Hearing aid with sound tube serving for retention in concha

1. A hearing aid device comprising:

a customized shell having a shape adapted to fit in the helix lock area of an ear of a hearing-impaired person;

processing circuitry mounted within said shell that processes incoming audio signals to produce an audio output dependent on a hearing-impairment of the hearing-impaired person;

a face plate disposed at an exterior of the shell;

a sound-conducting tube having a first end interfacing with said face plate and a second end adapted to terminate in the ear canal of said ear, said sound-conducting tube being adapted to snugly fit into the concha of the ear and, in combination with said shell, exerting a pressure to retain the shell and the sound-conducting tube in said ear; and

said sound-conducting tube terminates in the ear canal with a free tube end containing a receiver that is connected to the processing circuitry via wires that run along a length of the sound-conducting tube, the free tube end comprising a domed-element covering said free end and fitting into the ear canal.

2. The hearing aid device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said shell comprises a battery door at a side of said shell that faces outwardly when the shell is disposed in the helix lock area of the ear.

3. The hearing aid device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said shell comprises a microphone at a side of said shell that faces outwardly when the shell is disposed in the helix lock area of the ear.

4. The hearing aid as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said sound-conducting tube is user detachable.

5. The hearing aid as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said free tube end is user detachable.

6. The hearing aid device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said face plate is a standard 10A CIC face plate.

7. The hearing aid device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said sound-conducting tube is comprised of transparent material.

8. The hearing aid as claimed in claim 1 , comprising a circuit board contained in said housing on which various processing circuitry is mounted, said circuit board and said processing circuitry having a shape and position conforming to an interior shape of said shell dependent on said custom-fit.

9. A hearing aid device, comprising:

a shell having a shape adapted to fit in an upper part of a concha of an outer ear of an ear of a hearing-impaired person;

a microphone, a battery, and processing circuitry mounted within said shell, said processing circuitry processing incoming audio signals to produce an audio output dependent on a hearing-impairment of the hearing-impaired person;

an ear piece having a receiver and adapted to fit in an ear canal of the ear of the hearing-impaired person, said shell being larger than said ear piece; and

a flexible connecting element having a first end connected to the shell and a second end connected to the ear piece, said connecting element being adapted to snuggly fit into the concha of the outer ear, and said connecting element having a selected length and a selected sufficient rigidity so that in combination with said shell and said ear piece the connecting element performs a retention function by placing pressure at a back of the concha of the outer ear to retain the shell and the ear piece in said ear.

10. The hearing aid device as claimed in claim 9 , wherein the connecting element is a flexible tube.

11. The hearing aid as claimed in claim 9 , wherein said connecting element is user detachable.

12. The hearing aid as claimed in claim 11 wherein the connecting element comprises a plug and socket interface via which it connects to the shell.

13. The hearing aid as claimed in claim 11 wherein the connecting element comprises a plug and socket interface via which it connects to the ear piece.

14. The hearing aid device as claimed in claim 9 wherein said connecting element is comprised of transparent material.

15. The hearing aid as claimed in claim 9 wherein the shell is a customized shell adapted to an individual shape of the ear.

16. The hearing aid device as claimed in claim 9 wherein said shell comprises a battery door at a side of said shell that faces outwardly when the shell is disposed in the ear.

17. The hearing aid device as claimed in claim 9 wherein said shell comprises said microphone at a side of said shell that faces outwardly when the shell is disposed in the ear.

18. The hearing aid as claimed in claim 9 wherein the ear piece is a customized ear mold.

19. The hearing aid as claimed in claim 9 comprising a circuit board contained in said shell on which said processing circuitry is mounted, said circuit board having a shape and position conforming to an interior shape of said shell.

20. The hearing aid as claimed in claim 9 wherein said connecting element has a wire therein for connecting said receiver to said processing circuitry.