Mears "Intensitone" Carbon Hearing Aid
The Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid was manufactured
by the Mears Ear Phone Company of 45 West 34th Street in New York, NY
around 1920.
The complete unit including the battery weighed 14 oz. and stood 7⅛"
tall.
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Front view of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid
showing the various components: microphone (upper left), earphone (lower
left), battery (right) and battery extension cord (encircling the
battery).
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Front view of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid microphone showing
the 6-pointed star pattern of holes forming the microphone grill. The microphone measured 2⅜" in diameter by
1"
thick (6.0 x 2.5 cm) in its collapsed mode. It weighed 3.5 oz. (100 g).
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Rear view of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid carbon microphone showing the
8-step volume control The metal loop (top center) was for running a lanyard through it to wear
this hearing aid around your neck.
The inscriptions on the back read "Made in USA" (upper center), "Pat
apld [applied] for" (center) and "The Mears Ear Phone" (bottom).
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Side view of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid microphone showing
the the expandable cone in its somewhat expanded position. When fully
expanded (there are 5 concentric rings—only 3 would expand for this
picture), the microphone was 2" (2.5 cm) thick. This microphone was
unique in having such an expanding cone, presumably to give it better
directional sound capability while eliminating some background noise.
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Side view of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid microphone showing
the cone in its (almost) collapsed position.
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Side (bottom) view of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid microphone showing
the two jacks into which the two battery "pins" fit. The one on the left
is the larger of the two.
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Lower rear view of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid microphone showing
how the battery "pins" fit into the microphone's jacks.
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The microphone of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid
could be plugged directly onto the top of the battery (as shown above), or it could be
separated from the battery so the battery could be carried in a pocket.
To do the latter, you plugged the optional battery extension cord onto
the top of the battery and plugged the other end into the bottom of the
microphone (as shown in the 2nd picture from the top (above). |
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View of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid battery
extension cord. This cord was 15" (38 cm) long.
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The Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid
had another unusual feature. Instead of the battery being totally exposed or
hidden in a metal battery "can", with this aid, a leather battery cover
slid over the battery to conceal it. Shown here is the battery (left) and the battery cover (right).
This hearing aid used a
3-volt zinc-carbon battery of unknown manufacture. This battery was
the same as the
Globe No. 5 Carbon Hearing Aid Battery.
Note: the pins on the battery are set exactly 1" apart and are of
unequal diameters so you couldn't plug it in backwards and thus
accidentally reverse the polarity. Now, here's yet another unusual
feature. Normally the larger diameter pin was on the left, but the Mears
Intensitone carbon hearing aid required a battery with the larger
diameter pin to be on the right.
Furthermore, you couldn't just flip the battery around since the pins
are set near the back edge to counterbalance the microphone so it
wouldn't fall over.
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The Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid
battery
with the leather battery case covering it. In embossed gold are the
words "The New Mears Ear Phone 96 Tone Intensitone Model".
I don't have a clue how they came up with 96 different tones for this
hearing aid. |
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Top view of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid battery
with the leather battery case covering it.
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Front view of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid earphone. The earphone measured 2
1/16" in diameter by ¾" thick (5.2 x 1.9 cm).
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Side view of the Mears "Intensitone" carbon hearing aid earphone.
Note the hole (bottom center)—there is one on each side—for attaching
the headband (missing) to
the earphone. |
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Close-up view of the upper part of the back of the Mears "Intensitone"
carbon hearing aid earphone showing the on-off switch
(top center) in the "off" position. |
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Close-up view of the lower part of the back of the Mears "Intensitone"
carbon hearing aid earphone showing the name "The Mears Ear Phone".
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