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WO2003063546A1 - Prothese auditive - Google Patents

Prothese auditive Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2003063546A1
WO2003063546A1 PCT/IL2002/000069 IL0200069W WO03063546A1 WO 2003063546 A1 WO2003063546 A1 WO 2003063546A1 IL 0200069 W IL0200069 W IL 0200069W WO 03063546 A1 WO03063546 A1 WO 03063546A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
hearing aid
signal
oaes
aid according
mixer
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Ceased
Application number
PCT/IL2002/000069
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Raphael Rembrand
Jacob Aboody
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Neat Ideas NV
Original Assignee
Neat Ideas NV
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Neat Ideas NV filed Critical Neat Ideas NV
Priority to PCT/IL2002/000069 priority Critical patent/WO2003063546A1/fr
Publication of WO2003063546A1 publication Critical patent/WO2003063546A1/fr
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Ceased legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R25/00—Deaf-aid sets, i.e. electro-acoustic or electro-mechanical hearing aids; Electric tinnitus maskers providing an auditory perception
    • H04R25/50—Customised settings for obtaining desired overall acoustical characteristics
    • H04R25/505—Customised settings for obtaining desired overall acoustical characteristics using digital signal processing

Definitions

  • a Hearing Aid A Hearing Aid
  • the present invention relates to a hearing aid.
  • a hearing aid in connection with the present invention means a device insertable into/or connectable to the ear or into/to any suitable instrument, e.g. a cellular phone or the like.
  • hearing aids There are known certain hearing aids. Most of the present hearing aids substantially enable the linear modification of the input signal by filtering out certain frequencies, by amplifying selected frequency ranges more than others and by supporting high Signal to Noise ratios (S/N) in the amplifier being part of said hearing aids. Moreover, said hearing aids sometimes support directional amplification to reduce sources of noise outside the cone of attention.
  • S/N Signal to Noise ratios
  • Such a hearing aid should be relatively simple to design, to be insertable into/or connectable to the ear and to be located in a comfortable manner therein. Said hearing aid should be easy to manufacture and not be too expensive.
  • OAEs Oto-Acoustic Emissions
  • OAEs are the signals created by the outer hair cells of the cochlea and their operation is controlled by the reflex response (efferents) of the Olivocochlear nerve and the sympathetic nerve system (herein called "OAEs signal").
  • the OAE signal is a random "noise like” signal that is sometimes referred to as the "sound of sea waves”.
  • OAEs volume changes as a function of outer sounds and the body's nerve system.
  • OAEs can be measured and recorded directly by using any commercially available OAE recorder e.g. Madsen Electronics - Capella or a sensitive microphone placed in the ear.
  • OAEs can also be generated synthetically e.g. through a computer program simulating a large number of oscillators. In the normal ear, OAEs are involved in Speech discrimination / recognition, Signal to Noise ratio enhancement and sound amplification.
  • the device according to the present invention is to be used as a hearing aid proper or a hearing aid add-on.
  • Current Hearing Aids technology ignores the presence or the role of OAEs in the ear, while the present invention proposes to take OAEs into account and be assisted by it.
  • OAE profiles are measured by recording the ears' response after subjecting it to a range of excitation signals. Typically three types of audiograms are taken: SOAE (Spontaneous OAE) - The quiescent state of the ear with no excitation, TEOAE (Transiently Evoked OAE) - Response to a wide range of frequencies all at once (click) and DPOAE (Distortion Product OAE) - The response to selected frequency combinations.
  • SOAE Sertaneous OAE
  • TEOAE Transiently Evoked OAE
  • DPOAE Deposition Product OAE
  • the amount of intervention applied by the body's sympathetic nerve system may be indirectly taken into account by measuring related phenomena e.g. heart rate, blood pressure, the level of the user's OAE or body temperature. This measurement is then used to adjust the volume of the OAEs signal.
  • related phenomena e.g. heart rate, blood pressure, the level of the user's OAE or body temperature. This measurement is then used to adjust the volume of the OAEs signal.
  • the proposed Hearing Aid or Hearing Aid add-on can perform any number or all of the following tasks:
  • the present invention thus consists in a hearing aid comprising: a. a device being OAEs signal (as herein defined) generator for forwarding a natural or a synthetic OAEs signal; b. a sound microphone; devices a. and b., each forwarding the signal to c. a mixer; said mixer being connected to d. an amplifier; said amplifier being connected to e. an ear phone; All devices being connected to each other by suitable connecting means.
  • the connecting means are preferably cables.
  • the demonstration Hearing Aid whose description is outlined below, includes all functional units that are needed to perform the tasks mentioned above. Said hearing aid may be manufactured and sold as one unit.
  • the various devices being parts of the hearing aid may be manufactured separately and assembled at a suitable place thus forming the hearing aid per se. It is well understood that the same may be device[s] being part[s] of existing device[s] which devices are combined with the missing devices thus forming a hearing aid according to the present invention. Said possibilities are all within the scope of the present invention.
  • Said device may be an add-on device, e.g. one that includes a signal generator and an earphone whose output can be added to an existing hearing aid or any other suitable instrument, e.g. a cellular phone or the like, or one without the earphone where the signal generator output is electrically mixed into the earphone of the existing device.
  • an add-on device e.g. one that includes a signal generator and an earphone whose output can be added to an existing hearing aid or any other suitable instrument, e.g. a cellular phone or the like, or one without the earphone where the signal generator output is electrically mixed into the earphone of the existing device.
  • a noise gate is a device that mutes the input signal until the volume exceeds the predetermined threshold. The moment the volume exceeds the threshold the gate is opened and the signal may pass through.
  • a "release" parameter which enables to specify how long the gate will remain open after the signal has dropped below the threshold level. This may be useful to keep the gate from chopping off the end of decaying notes in an "unmusical" way.
  • the mixer and the amplifier may constitute one part. These possibilities are also within the scope of the present invention.
  • the device being OAEs signal generator can be, for example, a commercially available Otoacoustic Emissions recorder, e.g. Madsen Electronics - capella; a microphone such as a Shure TL 93 microphone located inside the ear and the sound being captured for example in a computer, e.g. a laptop computer.
  • the software may be, for example, a Microsoft sound recorder (AVI) and the hardware IBM Think Pad 600 with MWAVE (Sound Blaster compatible sound card).
  • AVI Microsoft sound recorder
  • MWAVE Sound Blaster compatible sound card
  • the OAEs signal forwarding device may be present.
  • Said device consists, e.g. of a blood pressure indicator being connected to a signal generator.
  • the blood pressure indicator is an example of a Sympathetic nerve system activity indicator and can be any commercially available blood pressure indicator. In this case a handcuff type Digital Blood Pressure Monitor OMRON HEM-711 is used.
  • the OAEs signal forwarding device may also be a system for measuring heart rate, the level of the user's OAEs, the body temperature etc.
  • a computer may be used as signal generator and in this case the readings of the monitor are fed manually to the computer.
  • the synthetic OAEs signal may be created by a computer simulation.
  • this noise should be adapted to the ear.
  • the output from the device for forwarding the synthetic OAEs signal is mixed with a sound microphone, e.g. a Shure 16 A microphone.
  • the mixer used is, e.g., a MACKIE 1202VLZ Pro mixer. Mixer settings are preferably changed according to the listener but no frequency filtering has to be applied.
  • the output from the mixer is preferably fed to a "noise gate", if present, in order to provide an artificial threshold.
  • the threshold level may be set according to the special requirements of the user, e.g. -25dbV and the release between 0-500ms preferably at 330ms.
  • the hardware used may be, e.g. ELSYS 3630 Compressor/limiter/noise gate.
  • the threshold level which is a natural feature of the ear, is, when no noise gate is present, determined by the hearing difficulty of the ear. The harder the hearing the threshold level is higher. Thus the threshold level is adjusted in accordance with the hearing of the customer. The threshold level is determined by the hearing difficulty the person experiences.
  • the amplifier/speaker combination used with an earphone socket is, e.g. an ALTEC LANSING Multimedia and the earphone is e.g. VIVANCO SR 900.
  • the final hearing aid is a single chip fabrication, in which all components are mounted on a single chip.
  • the cables if used as connecting means are advantageously standard high quality coaxial microphone cables.
  • Fig. 1 shows one embodiment of a hearing aid according to the present invention
  • Fig. 2 shows another embodiment of a hearing aid according to the present invention
  • Fig. 3 shows a further embodiment of a hearing aid according to the present invention.
  • the hearing aid shown in Fig. 1 comprises:
  • Laptop Computer 1 forming an OAEs signal generator and Sound Microphone 2 being both connected to Mixer 3.
  • Mixer 3 is connected to noise gate 4 which in turn is connected to amplifier 5.
  • Amplifier 5 is connected to Ear Phone 6.
  • the hearing aid shown in Fig. 2 comprises:
  • Blood pressure Indicator (PI) 7 is connected, via control cable 8, to signal generator 9.
  • Voice generator 9 and Sound Microphone 2 are both connected to Mixer 3.
  • Noise Gate 4, Amplifier 5 and EarPhone 6 are identical to those parts of Fig.1.
  • the hearing aid shown in Fig. 3 comprises:
  • Blood pressure Indicator 7 is connected, in a similar manner as shown in Fig. 2 via control cable 8 to signal generator 9.
  • Signal generator 9 and Sound Microphone are connected to a combined Mixer/Amplifier device 10, which in turn is connected to Ear Phone 6.
  • this Hearing Aid which is an advantageous one does not comprise a Noise Gate and the Mixer and Amplifier form together one unit.

Landscapes

  • Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
  • General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
  • Neurosurgery (AREA)
  • Otolaryngology (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Acoustics & Sound (AREA)
  • Signal Processing (AREA)
  • Measuring Pulse, Heart Rate, Blood Pressure Or Blood Flow (AREA)

Abstract

La présente invention concerne une prothèse auditive comportant (a) un dispositif générateur de signaux oto-acoustiques pour l'émission d'un signal oto-acoustique naturel ou synthétique ; (b) un microphone acoustique ; les dispositifs (a) et (b), transmettant chacun le signal vers un mélangeur ; (c) ledit mélangeur étant relié à (d) un amplificateur ; ledit amplificateur étant relié à (e), un écouteur ; tous les dispositifs étant connectés entre eux par des moyens de connexion appropriés. Ladite prothèse auditive peut constituer une unité complète, étant assemblée à partir de pièces séparées de la prothèse auditive ou peut être une combinaison de pièces de dispositifs existants (un dispositif complémentaire) et une combinaison avec d'autres pièces. Le mélangeur et l'amplificateur peuvent former une unité monolithique.
PCT/IL2002/000069 2002-01-23 2002-01-23 Prothese auditive Ceased WO2003063546A1 (fr)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/IL2002/000069 WO2003063546A1 (fr) 2002-01-23 2002-01-23 Prothese auditive

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/IL2002/000069 WO2003063546A1 (fr) 2002-01-23 2002-01-23 Prothese auditive

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2003063546A1 true WO2003063546A1 (fr) 2003-07-31

Family

ID=27590140

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/IL2002/000069 Ceased WO2003063546A1 (fr) 2002-01-23 2002-01-23 Prothese auditive

Country Status (1)

Country Link
WO (1) WO2003063546A1 (fr)

Cited By (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1645164A4 (fr) * 2003-05-20 2010-12-08 Neat Ideas N V Aide auditive
US9344817B2 (en) 2000-01-20 2016-05-17 Starkey Laboratories, Inc. Hearing aid systems
US20170195800A1 (en) * 2016-01-01 2017-07-06 Dean Robert Gary Anderson Parametrically formulated noise and audio systems, devices, and methods thereof

Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR2700912A1 (fr) * 1993-01-26 1994-07-29 Stromboni Joseph Prothèse auditive.
WO1999041938A2 (fr) * 1998-02-13 1999-08-19 The University Of Iowa Research Foundation Systeme de traitement vocal et procede utilisant une stimulation pseudospontanee
WO2002009473A2 (fr) * 2000-07-19 2002-01-31 Tbtg.Int.Com Nv Dispositif d'assistance auditive

Patent Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR2700912A1 (fr) * 1993-01-26 1994-07-29 Stromboni Joseph Prothèse auditive.
WO1999041938A2 (fr) * 1998-02-13 1999-08-19 The University Of Iowa Research Foundation Systeme de traitement vocal et procede utilisant une stimulation pseudospontanee
WO2002009473A2 (fr) * 2000-07-19 2002-01-31 Tbtg.Int.Com Nv Dispositif d'assistance auditive

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US9344817B2 (en) 2000-01-20 2016-05-17 Starkey Laboratories, Inc. Hearing aid systems
US9357317B2 (en) 2000-01-20 2016-05-31 Starkey Laboratories, Inc. Hearing aid systems
EP1645164A4 (fr) * 2003-05-20 2010-12-08 Neat Ideas N V Aide auditive
US20170195800A1 (en) * 2016-01-01 2017-07-06 Dean Robert Gary Anderson Parametrically formulated noise and audio systems, devices, and methods thereof
US10142743B2 (en) * 2016-01-01 2018-11-27 Dean Robert Gary Anderson Parametrically formulated noise and audio systems, devices, and methods thereof

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