Patent ID: 7882928

Claim:
A tip for coupling sound between a medical instrument and an ear comprising: a sealing surface configured to substantially conform said tip to an auditory canal of the ear, said sealing surface including a plurality of openings; a first acoustic path comprising an acoustic tube acoustically coupled to at least one of said plurality of openings, said acoustic tube being disposed within said tip; and a second acoustic path acoustically coupled to at least another one of said plurality of openings in said sealing surface, wherein a selected one of said first acoustic path and said second acoustic path is configured for acoustic transmission, and another one of said first acoustic path and said second acoustic path is configured for acoustic detection, said acoustic tube of said first acoustic path being configured to substantially acoustically isolate said first acoustic path from said second acoustic path, wherein said tip remains substantially free of Helmholtz resonance over a range of slidable mechanical engagement, and wherein a center of said acoustic tube is mechanically suspended substantially coaxially on a longitudinal axis of said tip.