Patent ID: 8343397

Claim:
A method for forming an in-ear device that carries sound from a speaker into a person's ear canal while preventing almost all environmental sound from reaching the person's ear canal inner portion, comprising: molding a foam elastomeric material around an elongated tube that has a tube axis and a tube passage extending along said axis, to form a device body with a body axis that is parallel and coincident to the tube axis, with a body outer surface of a shape to fit into and seal against an outer portion of a persons ear canal, and with said tube passage extending along said axis; said step of molding including molding the entire length of the body around said tube; said step of molding includes fixing the position of said tube in a closed cavity by at least one pin that has portions that fill at least opposite ends of the tube passage, filling the cavity with said foam elastomeric material and allowing the foam to solidify against the body to adhere thereto, and removing from the cavity the earplug body with the tube therein, including removing the at least one pin from the tube passage.