A cochlear implant multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system and method

Abstract

The application discloses a cochlear implant multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system and method, and relates to the technical field of cochlear implants, in particular to a cochlear implant multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system and method. The system comprises a test board, a head piece and a speech processor, and further comprises a half-wave detection unit and a multi-channel collector. The test board comprises a receiving coil, a stimulator, a stimulation electrode and a test electrode terminal. The speech processor receives and processes sound signals and encodes the sound signals. The encoded signals are transmitted to the receiving coil through the head piece. After decoding processing by the stimulator, pulse signals with corresponding frequencies and current intensities are generated and transmitted to each stimulation electrode. The stimulation electrode is connected to the test electrode terminal. The test electrode terminal is connected to the multi-channel collector. The multi-channel collector is connected to the half-wave detection unit. The multi-channel collector combines n stimulation electrodes to transmit signals to the half-wave detection unit for half-wave detection. The application utilizes the multi-channel collector and the half-wave detection unit to realize automatic half-wave detection, reduce labor costs, and improve the efficiency and success rate of half-wave detection.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of medical devices and relates to a multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system and method for cochlear implants. Background Technology

[0002] Cochlear implant systems provide a method for converting external sound signals into electrical signals to stimulate the auditory nerve, enabling patients with severe or total deafness (whose hair cells in the cochlea can function normally) to regain partial hearing. From the perspectives of stimulation safety, effectiveness, and electrode safety, using symmetrical positive and negative pulse electrical signals to stimulate the auditory nerve ensures both stimulation effectiveness and electrode safety while maintaining high stimulation safety. Therefore, this waveform is widely used in cochlear implant systems. However, when the speech processor sends electrical stimulation information to the implant chip, the stimulation sequence may be interrupted by other events, causing the implant to exhibit a half-wave phenomenon with only one pulse waveform when generating symmetrical positive and negative pulse signals.

[0003] In existing technologies, the detection of the half-wave phenomenon in implanted stimulation pulses mainly involves using an oscilloscope to observe whether a half-wave phenomenon appears in the stimulation pulse signal extracted from the test board. (See [link to relevant documentation]). Figure 1 The speech processor (40) is connected to the stimulator (23) on the test board (20) via the headpiece (30). The test electrode (21) draws out the electrode signal output by the stimulator (23) through the stimulation electrode (24). The oscilloscope (10) clamps the test electrode (21) and observes the stimulation pulse signal drawn out from the test electrode (21) through the oscilloscope (10).

[0004] The existing technology has at least the following drawbacks:

[0005] 1) Due to the limited number of oscilloscope probes, only a maximum of 4 stimulation waveforms can be observed in each test.

[0006] 2) The presence of the stimulus half-wave phenomenon can only be determined by testers through manual observation, which may result in missed detections. Summary of the Invention

[0007] To address the aforementioned problems, the present invention aims to provide a multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system for cochlear implants, comprising a test board, a headpiece, and a speech processor, and further comprising a half-wave detection unit and a multi-channel acquisition unit, wherein...

[0008] The test board includes a receiving coil, a stimulator, stimulating electrodes, and test electrode terminals. The speech processor receives, processes, and encodes the sound signal, transmits the encoded signal to the receiving coil through the headpiece, and after decoding by the stimulator, generates pulse signals of corresponding frequency and current intensity, which are then transmitted to each stimulating electrode. The stimulating electrodes are connected to the test electrode terminals. The test electrode terminals are then connected to a multi-channel acquisition unit. The multi-channel acquisition unit is connected to a half-wave detection unit. The multi-channel acquisition unit combines n stimulating electrodes and transmits the signals to the half-wave detection unit for half-wave detection.

[0009] Preferably, the half-wave detection unit includes a channel selection module, a data display module, a half-wave judgment module, and a memory.

[0010] Preferably, the half-wave detection unit detects the stimulation pulse under the following conditions: the pulse width is greater than 40µs and less than 200µs; the stimulation amplitude is not less than 200µA.

[0011] Preferably, the sampling rate Fs of the multi-channel acquisition device is 96 kHz, and for a pulse width of t = 40 μs, the number of sampling points is N = FS * t = 3.84 > 3; the test resistance connected to the stimulation electrode on the test board is R = 250 Ω, and the discrimination threshold for a stimulation amplitude I = 200 μA pulse is...

[0012] V Tr =R*I=0.05v.

[0013] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention also provides a method for detecting the half-wave of a multi-channel stimulation pulse in a cochlear implant, comprising the following steps:

[0014] S10, iterate through the sampling data of each channel of the multi-channel data acquisition unit;

[0015] S20, if the voltage values ​​of 3 consecutive sampling points exceed the threshold, the stimulation pulse is determined to be a positive or negative wave;

[0016] S30 determines whether the acquired value is a positive or negative wave based on its sign.

[0017] S40, start searching from the 4th sampling point and end at the last sampling point;

[0018] S51, during this search process, if a negative wave or a positive wave is detected, the waveform of the stimulus signal is determined to be complete.

[0019] S52, if no corresponding negative or positive wave is detected, the waveform of the stimulus signal is determined to be incomplete, the error location and error data are saved, and the determination result is displayed.

[0020] Preferably, the sampling rate Fs of the multi-channel acquisition device is 96KHz.

[0021] Preferably, for a pulse width of t = 40 μs, the number of sampling points is N = FS * t = 3.84 > 3.

[0022] Preferably, the test resistance value connected to the stimulation electrode on the test plate is R = 250Ω, and the discrimination threshold for a stimulation amplitude pulse of I = 200µA is...

[0023] V Tr =R*I=0.05v.

[0024] Compared with existing technologies, the present invention has at least the following beneficial effects: The present invention utilizes a multi-channel acquisition unit and a half-wave detection unit to automate half-wave detection, reducing labor costs while improving the efficiency and success rate of half-wave detection. It also includes at least the following advantages:

[0025] 1) Electrodes 1 to 24 can be combined freely to detect half-waves, and can simultaneously support the measurement of stimulation waveforms of up to 24 electrodes.

[0026] 2) An automatic detection algorithm is used to determine whether a half-wave phenomenon occurs during electrode stimulation;

[0027] 3) Save the stimulus data of the detected half-wave signal, support on-site playback, and use it for problem analysis. Attached Figure Description

[0028] Figure 1 This is a structural block diagram of a current cochlear implant stimulation pulse half-wave detection system.

[0029] Figure 2 This is a structural block diagram of a multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system for cochlear implants according to a specific embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 3 This is a flowchart illustrating the steps of the cochlear implant multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Figure 4 This is a display interface diagram of the cochlear implant multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0032] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this invention clearer, the invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative and not intended to limit the invention.

[0033] Conversely, this invention encompasses any substitutions, modifications, equivalent methods, and solutions made within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims. Furthermore, to provide a better understanding of the invention, certain specific details are described in detail below. However, those skilled in the art will fully understand the invention even without these detailed descriptions.

[0034] System Implementation Examples

[0035] See Figure 2 The image shows the cochlear implant multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system of the present invention, including a test board 20, a headpiece 30, and a speech processor 40, and further including a half-wave detection unit 11 and a multi-channel acquisition unit 12, wherein...

[0036] The test board 20 includes a receiving coil 22, a stimulator 23, stimulating electrodes 24, and a test electrode 21. The speech processor 40 analyzes, processes, and encodes the sound signal, and transmits the signal to the receiving coil 22 through the headpiece 30. After decoding by the stimulator 23, a pulse signal with corresponding frequency and current intensity is generated and transmitted to each stimulating electrode 24. The stimulating electrodes 24 are connected to the test electrode 21. The test electrode 21 is then connected to the multi-channel acquisition unit 12. The multi-channel acquisition unit 12 is connected to the half-wave detection unit 11. The multi-channel acquisition unit 12 combines n stimulating electrodes 24 and transmits the signal to the half-wave detection unit 11 for half-wave detection.

[0037] The half-wave detection unit 11 includes a channel selection module, a data acquisition and display module, a half-wave judgment module, and a memory.

[0038] The half-wave detection unit 11 detects stimulation pulses under the following conditions: pulse width is greater than 40µs and less than 200µs; stimulation amplitude is not less than 200µA.

[0039] The sampling rate Fs of the multi-channel acquisition unit 12 is 96 kHz. For a pulse width of t = 40 μs, the number of sampling points is N = FS * t = 3.84 > 3. The test resistance connected to the stimulation electrode 24 on the test board 20 is R = 250 Ω. The discrimination threshold for a stimulation amplitude I = 200 μA pulse is...

[0040] V Tr =R*I=0.05v.

[0041] With the above settings, the speech processor 40 and headpiece 30 are the common speech processor 40 and headpiece 30 used in cochlear implants, used to send stimulation timing sequences to the stimulator 23 in the test board 20. The stimulator 23 is connected to the stimulation electrode 24, and the stimulation electrode 24 is connected to the test electrode terminal 21. The multi-channel acquisition unit 12 includes a MOTU24Ai sound card, which can be configured with sampling rates (44.1KHz, 48KHz, 88.2KHz, 96KHz, 176.4KHz, 192KHz). The multi-channel acquisition unit 12 performs analog-to-digital conversion on the stimulation signals output from the 24 stimulation electrodes 24, and sends the acquired stimulation data to the half-wave detection unit 11 via a USB serial port. The half-wave detection unit 11 performs half-wave detection on the received stimulation data to determine whether a half-wave exists in the received multi-channel data. If it does, it records, saves, and displays the data. (See the display interface.) Figure 4 .

[0042] Method Implementation Examples

[0043] See Figure 3 A method for detecting the half-wave of a multi-channel stimulation pulse in a cochlear implant includes the following steps:

[0044] S10, iterate through the sampling data of each channel of the multi-channel data acquisition unit;

[0045] S20, if the voltage values ​​of 3 consecutive sampling points exceed the threshold, the stimulation pulse is determined to be a positive or negative wave;

[0046] S30 determines whether the acquired value is a positive or negative wave based on its sign.

[0047] S40, start searching from the 4th sampling point and end at the last sampling point;

[0048] S51, during this search process, if a negative wave or a positive wave is detected, the waveform of the stimulus signal is determined to be complete.

[0049] S52, if no corresponding negative or positive wave is detected, the waveform of the stimulus signal is determined to be incomplete, the error location and error data are saved, and the determination result is displayed.

[0050] The sampling rate Fs of the multi-channel acquisition unit is 96kHz. For a pulse width of t = 40µs, the number of sampling points is N = FS * t = 3.84 > 3. The test resistance connected to the stimulation electrode on the test board is R = 250Ω. The discrimination threshold for a pulse with a stimulation amplitude I = 200µA is...

[0051] V Tr =R*I=0.05v.

[0052] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system for cochlear implants, comprising a test board, a head unit, and a speech processor, characterized in that, It also includes a half-wave detection unit and a multi-channel acquisition unit, among which, The test board includes a receiving coil, a stimulator, stimulating electrodes, and test electrode terminals. The speech processor receives, processes, and encodes the sound signal, transmits the encoded signal to the receiving coil through the headpiece, and after decoding by the stimulator, generates pulse signals of corresponding frequency and current intensity, which are then transmitted to each stimulating electrode. The stimulating electrodes are connected to the test electrode terminals. The test electrode terminals are then connected to a multi-channel acquisition unit. The multi-channel acquisition unit is connected to a half-wave detection unit. The multi-channel acquisition unit combines n stimulating electrodes and transmits the signals to the half-wave detection unit for half-wave detection. The half-wave detection unit is configured to: traverse the sampling data of each channel of the multi-channel acquisition unit; if the voltage values ​​of three consecutive sampling points exceed the threshold value, it is determined that a positive wave or a negative wave exists; search for the corresponding negative wave or positive wave in subsequent sampling points, and if no wave is detected, it is determined that the half-wave is missing. The sampling rate Fs of the multi-channel acquisition device is 96 kHz; the test resistance connected to the stimulation electrode on the test board is R = 250 Ω, and the discrimination threshold for a pulse with a stimulation amplitude of I is V. Tr =R*I.

2. The cochlear implant multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The half-wave detection unit includes a channel selection module, a data display module, a half-wave judgment module, and a memory.

3. The cochlear implant multi-channel stimulation pulse half-wave detection system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The half-wave detection unit detects stimulation pulses under the following conditions: pulse width greater than 40µs and less than 200µs; stimulation amplitude not less than 200µA.

4. A method for detecting the half-wave of a multi-channel stimulation pulse in a cochlear implant according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: S10, iterate through the sampling data of each channel of the multi-channel data acquisition unit; S20, if the voltage values ​​of 3 consecutive sampling points exceed the threshold, the stimulation pulse is determined to be a positive or negative wave; S30 determines whether the acquired value is a positive or negative wave based on its sign. S40, start searching from the 4th sampling point and end at the last sampling point; S51, during this search process, if a negative wave or a positive wave is detected, the waveform of the stimulus signal is determined to be complete. S52, if no corresponding negative or positive wave is detected, the waveform of the stimulus signal is determined to be incomplete, the error location and error data are saved, and the determination result is displayed.

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