System and method for evaluating ear seals using normalization

Abstract

A system for evaluating an ear seal between an earphone of a hearing device and an ear canal includes a first transducer configured to play a sound in response to an electrical signal including a reference frequency component and a test frequency component below the reference frequency. A second transducer receives the sound in the ear canal. A controller is configured to calculate at least one electrical signal level difference between the reference frequency component and the test frequency component of the electrical signal, measure the sound levels of the reference frequency component and the test frequency component of the sound in the ear canal, calculate an acoustic signal level difference between the measured sound levels of the reference frequency component and the test frequency component, calculate a normalized acoustic difference value by subtracting the electrical signal level difference from the acoustic signal level difference, and determine a measurement result of the ear seal based on the normalized acoustic difference value.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority based on U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 63 / 039,988, filed on June 17, 2020, entitled “System and Method for Evaluating an Ear Seal using Normalization,” the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Background Art

[0003] To reduce power consumption, many personal audio devices have a dedicated "in-ear detection" function that can be used to detect the presence of an ear near the device. In addition, specifically for in-ear transducers (earphones), for some applications, it is necessary to evaluate the quality of the seal formed between the earphone and the ear canal. For example, the playback quality, especially the bass response, is affected by the quality of the seal formed between the earphone and the ear canal. In addition, in the field of ear biometry, the ear canal impulse response (ECIR) is affected by the insertion quality.

[0004] Infrared sensors are already used in mobile phones to detect ear proximity. Light sensors have also been proposed to detect when earphones and headphones are inserted into or onto a user's ear. However, these non-acoustic mechanisms have the disadvantage of requiring additional hardware in the device. Furthermore, they cannot assess the quality of the seal or insertion.

[0005] Measuring the impedance of the sensor (e.g., receiver) is an acoustic method that can be used to detect whether a device is in or out of the ear, but it cannot detect the quality of the seal. Sound can also be detected using very low frequencies (e.g., 5 Hz), requiring direct measurement of the sound level at these frequencies. In addition to requiring the generation of a specific probe signal, this measurement is also subject to high noise levels and inaccuracies in the microphone response. Summary of the Invention

[0006] In one embodiment, the present disclosure provides a system for evaluating an ear seal between an earphone of a hearing device and an ear canal. The system includes a first transducer configured to play sound into the ear canal in response to an electrical signal, wherein the electrical signal includes a reference frequency component and at least one test frequency component. The sound includes the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component. The at least one test frequency component is lower than the reference frequency. A second transducer is configured to receive the sound in the ear canal. A controller is configured to: calculate at least one electrical signal level difference between the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component of the electrical signal; measure sound levels of the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component of the sound in the ear canal; calculate at least one acoustic signal level difference between the measured sound level of the reference frequency component and the measured sound level of the at least one test frequency component; calculate at least one normalized acoustic difference value by subtracting the electrical signal level difference from the at least one acoustic signal level difference; and determine a measurement result of the ear seal based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value.

[0007] In another embodiment, the present disclosure provides a method for evaluating an ear seal between an earphone of a hearing device and an ear canal. The method includes, by a first transducer of the earphone, playing a sound into the ear canal in response to an electrical signal. The electrical signal includes a reference frequency component and at least one test frequency component. The sound includes the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component. The at least one test frequency is lower than the reference frequency. The method further includes calculating at least one electrical signal level difference between the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component of the electrical signal, measuring the sound levels of the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component of the sound in the ear canal received by a second transducer of the earphone, calculating at least one acoustic signal level difference between the measured sound level of the reference frequency component and the measured sound level of the at least one test frequency component, calculating at least one normalized acoustic difference value by subtracting the electrical signal level difference from the at least one acoustic signal level difference, and determining a measurement result of the ear seal based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value.

[0008] In yet another embodiment, the present disclosure provides a non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions capable of causing or configuring a system for evaluating a seal between an earpiece of a hearing device and an ear canal or ear cavity to perform operations. The operations include: playing a sound into the ear canal by a first transducer of the earpiece in response to an electrical signal. The electrical signal includes a reference frequency component and at least one test frequency component. The sound includes the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component. The at least one test frequency is lower than the reference frequency. The method further includes calculating at least one electrical signal level difference between the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component of the electrical signal; measuring the sound levels of the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component of the sound in the ear canal received by a second transducer of the earpiece; calculating at least one acoustic signal level difference between the measured sound level of the reference frequency component and the measured sound level of the at least one test frequency component; calculating at least one normalized acoustic difference value by subtracting the electrical signal level difference from the at least one acoustic signal level difference; and determining a measurement result of the ear seal based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 is an example graph showing good ear seal and poor ear seal sound levels measured over a frequency spectrum according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0010] Figure 2 is an example graph showing normalized acoustic difference levels on a test spectrum relative to a reference frequency for different ear seal leakage sizes according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0011] Figure 3 is an example graph illustrating normalized acoustic difference levels for different ear seal leakage sizes at selected frequencies according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0012] Figure 4 is an example block diagram of a system that may be used to evaluate ear seals using normalization according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0013] Figure 5 is an example flow chart illustrating the operation of a system for evaluating ear seals using normalization according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0014] Figure 1 is an example graph illustrating good and poor ear seal sound levels measured across the frequency spectrum according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 1In the , sound levels are measured in decibels (dBr) relative to a reference signal and are measured over the frequency range of 10 Hz to 1000 Hz. As can be observed from the graph, with a poor seal, the response has an approximately logarithmic relationship with frequency, while with a good seal, the response has an approximately linear relationship with frequency. Thus, for example, the response at lower frequencies (e.g., the audio-range bass response) is adversely affected by a poor seal relative to the response with a good seal. Figure 1 Examples are shown for determining ear seal quality, such as informing the system to boost low frequencies and / or informing the user of a poor seal in the event of a poor ear seal. Further uses include determining ear seal quality and determining whether an earphone is fully inserted into a user's ear canal, as described herein.

[0015] An embodiment is described in which a system uses the lower frequency region of the spectrum of broadband program material to evaluate the in / out position of an earbud and the quality of the ear seal. The sound level at one or more low frequencies (LF) (referred to herein as test frequencies) is measured relative to at least one higher frequency (HF) (referred to herein as reference frequency) using the difference in the electrical programming signal as a normalized reference. The LF test frequency is 100 Hz (see, for example, Figure 3 ) and 1 kHz HF reference frequencies as an example. The electrical signal level difference between 100 Hz and 1 kHz is known and is independent of ear tip position and seal quality. Therefore, a reference level can be recorded to be used for acoustic measurements. The sound level difference between 100 Hz and 1 kHz, measured by a microphone in the ear canal (e.g., the earphone's error microphone), depends on ear tip position and seal quality and can therefore be used to assess seal quality when normalized to an electrical signal level difference. More than one test frequency and more than one reference frequency can be used to achieve greater discrimination of ear seal quality under various conditions. For example, the normalized acoustic differences between the levels at a reference frequency and multiple test frequencies can be used together to increase the confidence level of the normalized acoustic differences used to determine ear seal quality. Finally, for example, a threshold value for the difference indicating "ear tip dropout" can be established for each test frequency.

[0016] Figure 2is an example graph showing normalized acoustic difference levels over a test spectrum relative to a reference frequency for different ear seal leakage sizes according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The different leak sizes shown are measured in millimeters. Since the ear canal and earphone shapes do not match perfectly, the leak size may vary around the ear canal. Normalized acoustic difference level curves are shown for leak sizes of 0, 0.01, 0.0215, 0.0464, 0.1, 0.215, 0.464, 1, and 2.15 mm. The levels are measured in decibels relative to a reference signal (dBr) and the frequency range is from 10 Hz to 1000 Hz. The measured sound is generated by a speaker of the earphone of the hearing device and received at an internal (e.g., error) microphone of the hearing device. The normalized acoustic difference level information can be generated in various ways. For example, stored or streamed program material (e.g., music with different levels across the audio spectrum) can be driven into the speaker and measured at the internal microphone; the ... Figure 2 The level of the electrical signal driven into the speaker can be analyzed over a frequency spectrum (e.g., 10 Hz to 1000 Hz); the sound level at the microphone can be analyzed over the frequency spectrum; the difference between the level at a reference frequency (e.g., 1000 Hz) and each of the other frequencies in the spectrum can be calculated for both the electrical signal level and the acoustic level; and a normalized acoustic difference level can be calculated for each of the other frequencies as the difference between the acoustic level difference and the electrical signal level difference. For another example, the tone can be swept across the spectrum of interest (including the reference frequency), and a similar set of measurements and calculations can be performed to generate a normalized acoustic difference level for each frequency in the spectrum. In such an example, in the special case where the level of the electrical signal is the same for the reference frequency and all other frequencies, then the electrical signal level difference is zero, and normalization of the acoustic difference level includes subtracting zero from the acoustic difference level.

[0017] from Figure 2 As can be observed in Figure 1, a strong leakage dependence in the spectral shape of the normalized acoustic difference level is evident over a large portion of the frequency spectrum. In one embodiment, the frequency range between 50 Hz and 200 Hz provides clear features, especially at all but the extreme ends of the leakage size range. For example, normalized acoustic difference information specific to a given headphone model can be established via ear simulator or volunteer subject measurements and used to determine ear seal measurements, as described in more detail below. That is, although the normalized acoustic difference information may be different for different headphone designs, it is not necessarily the same across the entire design. Figure 2The observed separation of the normalized acoustic difference values ​​for a given frequency relative to a reference frequency for that frequency is typical. In particular, increasing leak size corresponds to smaller normalized acoustic difference values, as shown, which can be used to assess ear seal quality. Finally, a threshold for the normalized acoustic difference level indicating an "earbud out" condition can be established.

[0018] Figure 3 is an example graph showing normalized acoustic difference levels for different ear seal leakage sizes at selected frequencies according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. More specifically, Figure 3 For each of five different frequencies (i.e., 75, 100, 125, 150, and 200 Hz), the Figure 2 Normalized acoustic differences (in dBr) as a function of eight different ear seal leakage sizes (excluding the zero leakage case). The trend lines for the 75 and 200 Hz values ​​are shown with dashed arrows. Figure 3 The values ​​plotted in are normalized to the zero leakage level at each frequency shown. That is, at each frequency of interest, the level of the zero leakage response is taken to be the 0 dBr level. This has the effect of removing Figure 2 The "bump" of more than 10dBr can be observed at some frequencies in the signal and flattens it out at the 0dBr level. Figure 3 The difference between the zero leakage and non-zero leakage responses at each selected frequency is shown, illustrating the ability of embodiments to determine ear seal quality, earphone insertion depth, and / or "earphone out" status. Figure 3 As can be observed in , there is a general trend of increasing spread of the normalized acoustic difference as the ear seal leakage size increases.

[0019] Figure 4 is an example system 100 that can be used to evaluate ear seals using normalization, according to embodiments of the present disclosure. System 100 includes a hearing device 13 coupled to a portable audio device 10 (such as a mobile phone or other audio device). Hearing device 13 can include a combination box 16, a left earphone 18A, and a right earphone 18B. Left earphone 18A is shown positioned near a person's ear 5 for insertion therein, while right earphone 18B is intended to be inserted into the other ear (not shown). As used in this disclosure, the term "earphone" broadly includes any speaker, internal microphone, external microphone, and associated structure that is intended to be inserted into or otherwise acoustically coupled to a listener's ear canal, and includes, but is not limited to, earphones, earbuds, headphones, and other similar devices that can be inserted into or otherwise acoustically coupled to a person's ear canal. Furthermore, it should be understood that the embodiments described herein can be used to determine the ear seal quality of earphones of various shapes, sizes, and styles.

[0020] Each of earphones 18A and 18B (generally referred to as earphones 18 and collectively as earphones 18) includes a reference microphone R, an error microphone E, and a speaker SPKR. When earphones 18 are inserted into the ear canal, reference microphone R is outside the ear canal and error microphone E is inside the ear canal. Reference microphone R (also referred to as the external microphone) measures the ambient or external acoustic environment. Error microphone E (also referred to as the internal microphone) measures the ambient audio attenuated within the ear canal and the audio reproduced by speaker SPKR. Speaker SPKR can reproduce remote speech received by mobile audio device 10 as well as other local audio events such as ringtones, stored or streamed audio program material, injection of near-end speech (i.e., the voice of the user of mobile audio device 10) to provide a balanced conversation perception, and other audio that needs to be reproduced by mobile audio device 100, such as from a web page or other network communication source received by mobile audio device 10, as well as audio indications such as a low battery indicator and other system event notifications.

[0021] The hearing device 13 may include a controller 17, for example, within the combination box 16 or within one or both of the earphones 18, that performs various operations or functions described herein to determine ear seal quality using sound levels measured at the error (internal) microphone E at test and reference frequencies. These operations may include measuring the sound level at the error microphone E at a reference frequency and a test frequency, calculating an acoustic difference between the measured sound levels, calculating a difference between the test frequency component and the reference frequency component of an electrical signal used to drive the speaker SPKR to generate sound, calculating a normalized acoustic signal difference based on the acoustic difference and the electrical signal difference, and determining the ear seal quality based on the normalized acoustic difference. The controller 17 may also perform actions based on the determined ear seal quality that may improve the hearing experience of the user of the hearing device 13. The controller 17 may include a processing element that retrieves and executes program instructions. The controller 17 may also include volatile and non-volatile memory for storing data and program instructions executable by the controller 17. The controller 17 may further include an audio coder / decoder (CODEC) circuit (not shown) that receives signals from the reference microphone R and the error microphone E and generates an electrical signal to the speaker SPKR.

[0022] The audio device 10 also includes a controller 19 that can perform operations to determine the ear seal quality and / or perform actions based on the determined ear seal quality to improve the user's hearing experience. The controller 19 can be included in an integrated circuit (IC) of the audio device 10. The controller 19 can also include audio CODEC circuitry and volatile and non-volatile memory (not shown). The audio device 10 can include an audio port 15 for connecting to the hearing device 13. The audio port 15 can be communicatively coupled to radio frequency (RF) circuitry (not shown) and the controller 19 within the audio device 10, thereby allowing communication with components of the hearing device 13. The RF circuitry can include a wireless telephone transceiver. In other embodiments, the hearing device 13 can be wirelessly connected to the mobile audio device 10, for example via Bluetooth or other short-range wireless technology.

[0023] The hearing device 13 and / or the mobile audio device 10 may include acoustic noise cancellation (ANC) circuitry and features that inject an anti-noise signal into the loudspeaker SPKR to improve the intelligibility of distant speech and other audio reproduced by the loudspeaker SPKRR. Typically, the ANC system measures ambient acoustic events impinging on a reference microphone R (as opposed to the output of the loudspeaker SPKR and / or near-end speech), and by also measuring the same ambient acoustic events impinging on an error microphone E, the ANC processing circuitry adjusts the anti-noise signal generated using the output of the reference microphone R to have characteristics that minimize the amplitude of the ambient acoustic events at the error microphone E. In some embodiments, the hearing device 13 and / or the audio device 10 may also include a near-speech microphone that can be used in ANC operations.

[0024] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the circuits and techniques disclosed herein may be incorporated into a single integrated circuit that includes control circuitry and other functionality for implementing the hearing device 13 and / or portable audio device 10, such as an MP3 player-on-a-chip integrated circuit. In these and other embodiments, the circuits and techniques disclosed herein may be implemented partially or completely in software and / or firmware embodied in a computer-readable medium and executed by a controller or other processing device, such as a controller capable of performing the operations described herein. The controller may include electronic circuitry capable of retrieving program instructions stored in an addressed memory location and executing the retrieved instructions. The IC may also include non-volatile memory for storing threshold values, as described in more detail below.

[0025] Figure 5 is a system illustrating the use of normalized evaluation of ear seals according to an embodiment of the present disclosure (e.g., Figure 4The described operations are performed for each earphone 18 of the hearing device 13. The operations begin at block 502.

[0026] At block 502, an electrical signal is driven to a hearing device (e.g., Figure 4 Hearing device 13) of the earphone (for example, Figure 4 The transducer of the earphone 18) (e.g., Figure 4 The sound is played into the ear canal of the user of the hearing device by the internal microphone of the hearing device (e.g. Figure 4 The electrical signal is received by an error microphone (E). The electrical signal may include a recorded or streamed audio signal, such as music, played back through the transducer. The electrical signal includes a component at a reference frequency and a component at one or more test frequencies. The test frequencies are lower than the reference frequency. Preferably, the reference frequency is greater than 500 Hz, and the test frequencies are in the range of 50-200 Hz. Because sound and the electrical signal used to generate the sound may have different frequency content, the system can extract or isolate the signal power of the sound and electrical signal at a desired reference frequency and one or more test frequencies. In one embodiment, a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) is performed on the sound and / or electrical signal to obtain frequency bins that include the desired test frequency or frequencies. In another embodiment, one or more notch filters are used to isolate the desired test frequency or frequencies. Other frequency isolation techniques may also be used. Furthermore, because the system may not be able to control the frequency content of the sound and electrical signals, the system may measure the levels at the reference and / or test frequencies, detect that the signal levels are not high enough to determine the ear seal measurement with acceptable confidence, and, in response, use the measured levels at different reference and / or test frequencies where the sound signal level is sufficiently high. Sound level measurements can be made by hearing instruments (e.g. Figure 4 hearing devices 13) and / or mobile audio devices (e.g. Figure 4 The controller 17 of the mobile audio device 10) is executed. The operation proceeds to block 504.

[0027] At block 504, an electrical signal level difference is calculated between the reference frequency and test frequency components of the electrical signal. In one embodiment, multiple test frequencies are used, and multiple electrical signal level differences are calculated between the reference frequency component and the multiple test frequency components of the electrical signal. Furthermore, the acoustic signal levels of the reference frequency component and the test frequency components of the sound generated at block 502 are measured. Furthermore, one or more acoustic signal level differences are calculated between the measured acoustic signal level of the reference frequency component and one or more measured acoustic signal levels of the test frequency components. Finally, one or more normalized acoustic difference values ​​are calculated by subtracting the one or more electrical signal level differences from the corresponding one or more acoustic signal level differences. As described above, multiple test frequencies can be used with a given reference frequency to better distinguish ear seal quality under various conditions. For example, multiple normalized acoustic difference values ​​can be calculated for different test frequencies and then statistically combined (e.g., averaged, weighted averaged) to generate a single normalized acoustic difference value. Furthermore, one or more test frequencies can be used with each of the multiple reference frequencies to better distinguish ear seal quality under various conditions. The operation at block 504 may be performed by a controller of the hearing device and / or the mobile audio device. Operation proceeds to block 506 .

[0028] At block 506, an ear seal measurement is determined based on the one or more normalized acoustic difference values ​​calculated at block 504. In one embodiment, the one or more normalized acoustic difference values ​​are compared to thresholds associated with different ear seal qualities or leak sizes. For example, a difference of X (e.g., -20) dBr may be associated with a leak size of Y (e.g., 0.01) mm. The threshold may be based on previously measured and calculated information such as Figure 2 and / or Figure 3In one embodiment, the thresholds are determined a priori for a given earphone model. In another embodiment, the thresholds are determined for a generic earphone, for example, based on expected values ​​from a sample of different earphones being tested. In one embodiment, at least one of the thresholds may be associated with the minimum friction between the earphone and the ear canal required to retain the earphone in the ear canal without additional support. In other words, the threshold corresponds to a condition where the leak size is so large that the earphone is no longer held in the ear canal by friction and is likely to fall out without additional support. Such a threshold may help define a leak size corresponding to a loosely inserted earplug condition. Leak sizes greater than this value are not of concern, and for related purposes, the earphone may be declared out of the ear canal. In one embodiment, different thresholds may be associated with different earphone insertion depths in the ear canal. For example, a separate determination of insertion depth may be obtained (e.g., based on the high-frequency response shape), and a correlation may exist between ear seal leak size and insertion depth, such that leak size determination according to embodiments described herein can be used as an independent confirmation of insertion depth. In one embodiment, a trained machine learning module may perform ear seal measurement determination. The machine learning module may receive and use the normalized acoustic difference value calculated at block 504 and / or the sound level measured at block 502. The received normalized acoustic difference value calculated and / or the sound level measured may be provided as input to the machine learning module during both the training mode and the operational mode. Operation proceeds to decision block 508.

[0029] At decision block 508 , a determination is made as to whether the normalized acoustic difference value calculated at block 504 (e.g., for a given test frequency) is less than a predetermined threshold, referred to as a “device exit” threshold. If so, operation proceeds to block 512 ; otherwise, operation proceeds to block 514 .

[0030] At block 512 , an indication that the earphone is removed from the ear canal is stored. The “device exit” indication can be used as a trigger for other actions, for example, as described with respect to block 514 .

[0031] At block 514, actions are taken based on the ear seal measurement results taken at block 506 and / or the "device exit" indications determined at blocks 508 and 512. These actions may include, but are not limited to: using the ear seal measurement results and / or the "device exit" indication to assist the ANC algorithm employed by the hearing device 13 and / or the mobile audio device 10; adjusting playback quality and / or level; adjusting the balance between the left and right earphones; adjusting the equalization of the earphones, such as increasing the bass level; displaying a message to the user, such as, "Earphones exit, please replace" or "Ear seal quality is low, please reinsert the earphones." As described herein, in some embodiments, with respect to Figure 5The described operations may be performed entirely by the hearing device 13 itself (eg, the controller 17 within the combo box 16 ), while in other embodiments some operations may be performed by the mobile audio device 10 coupled to the hearing device 13 .

[0032] Advantages of the embodiments described herein may include the following. Because, for example, program material or a musical chime signal can be used (e.g., the lowest guitar note is 80 Hz and the lowest bass note is 40 Hz), no infrasound detection signal is required. Since the high-pass filter slope range of the internal microphone can be avoided (e.g., the typical -3dB frequency range of the error microphone is 35 to 85 Hz), a reduction in measurement uncertainty can be avoided. These embodiments can be used as a general, i.e., rough measure of the insertion quality of unknown sealed headphone designs. The use of multiple test frequencies and / or reference frequencies can allow fine-tuning for a given headphone with better confidence in the measurement results. For known earplugs, the embodiments can be fine-tuned to a large degree of seal assessment accuracy. For example, the embodiments can be used as a noise-independent (i.e., independent of other methods) measurement of insertion depth for ear biometry and can be used to assist ANC algorithms.

[0033] It should be understood, especially by those skilled in the art having the benefit of this disclosure, that the various operations described herein, particularly those associated with the accompanying drawings, can be implemented by other circuits or other hardware components. Unless otherwise indicated, the order in which each operation of a given method is performed can be changed, and the various elements of the systems shown herein can be added, reordered, combined, omitted, modified, etc. This disclosure is intended to encompass all such modifications and changes, and therefore, the above description should be construed in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

[0034] Similarly, although this disclosure is directed to specific embodiments, certain modifications and changes may be made to those embodiments without departing from the scope and coverage of this disclosure. In addition, any benefits, advantages, or solutions to problems described herein with respect to specific embodiments are not intended to be construed as critical, required, or essential features or elements.

[0035] Likewise, other embodiments that benefit from this disclosure will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, and such embodiments should be considered to be included herein. All examples and conditional language recited herein are intended for teaching purposes to help readers understand this disclosure and the concepts contributed by the inventors to advance the art, and are to be interpreted as not being limited to these specifically recited examples and conditions.

[0036] This disclosure encompasses all changes, substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications to the example embodiments herein that would be understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art. Similarly, the appended claims encompass all changes, substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications to the example embodiments herein that would be understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art, where appropriate. Furthermore, in the appended claims, references to a device or system or component of a device or system that is adapted, arranged, capable, configured, enabled, operable, or operative to perform a particular function encompass that device, system, or component, whether or not it or that particular function is activated, turned on, or unlocked, so long as the device, system, or component is so adapted, arranged, capable, configured, enabled, operable, or operative.

[0037] Finally, software can cause or configure the functionality, manufacture, and / or description of the apparatus and methods described herein. This can be implemented using general-purpose programming languages ​​(e.g., C, C++), hardware description languages ​​(HDL) including Verilog HDL, VHDL, or other available programs. Such software can be provided on any known non-transitory computer-readable medium, such as a tape, semiconductor, magnetic or optical disk (e.g., CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, etc.), a network, wire, or other communication medium, on which are stored instructions capable of causing or configuring the apparatus and methods described herein.

Claims

1. A system for evaluating an ear seal between an earphone and an ear canal of a hearing device, comprising: a first transducer configured to play sound into the ear canal in response to an electrical signal, wherein the electrical signal includes a reference frequency component and at least one test frequency component, wherein the sound includes a reference frequency component and at least one test frequency component, wherein the at least one test frequency is lower than the reference frequency; a second transducer configured to receive the sound in the ear canal; and A controller configured to: calculating at least one electrical signal level difference between the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component of the electrical signal; measuring a sound level of the reference frequency component and a sound level of the at least one test frequency component of the sound in the ear canal; calculating at least one acoustic signal level difference between the measured sound level of the reference frequency component and the measured sound level of the at least one test frequency component; calculating at least one normalized acoustic difference value by subtracting the electrical signal level difference from the at least one acoustic signal level difference; and A measurement of the ear seal is determined based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value.

2. The system according to claim 1, in, To determine a measurement of the ear seal based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value, the controller compares the at least one normalized acoustic difference value with at least one threshold value; as well as The at least one threshold value corresponds to at least one level of the ear seal.

3. The system according to claim 1, in, To determine a measurement of the ear seal based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value, the controller compares the at least one normalized acoustic difference value with at least one threshold value; as well as The at least one threshold corresponds to at least one insertion depth of the earphone into the ear canal.

4. The system according to claim 1, in, To determine a measurement of the ear seal based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value, the controller compares the at least one normalized acoustic difference value with at least one threshold value; as well as Wherein at least one of the one or more thresholds is associated with a frictional force between the earphone and the ear canal that is less than a frictional force required to maintain the earphone positioned within the ear canal without additional support.

5. The system according to claim 1, in, The at least one test frequency comprises a plurality of test frequencies; and The controller determines a measurement result of the ear seal based on a plurality of normalized acoustic difference values.

6. The system according to claim 1, in, The reference frequency is at least 500 Hz.

7. The system according to claim 1, in, The at least one test frequency is selected from the range between 50-200 Hz.

8. The system according to claim 1, in, The electrical signal played as sound into the ear canal includes playback of a recorded or streamed audio signal.

9. The system according to claim 1, in, The system is fully implemented on the hearing device.

10. The system according to claim 1, in, The system is implemented partly on the hearing device and partly on a controller provided on a host device coupled to the hearing device.

11. The system according to claim 1, in, The controller comprises a trained machine learning module arranged to determine a measurement of the ear seal based on the at least one normalised acoustic difference value and / or the measured sound level.

12. A method for evaluating an ear seal between an earpiece of a hearing device and an ear canal, comprising: Playing sound into the ear canal by the first transducer of the earphone in response to the electrical signal; Wherein, the electrical signal includes a reference frequency component and at least one test frequency component; Wherein, the sound includes a reference frequency component and at least one test frequency component; wherein the at least one test frequency is lower than the reference frequency; calculating at least one electrical signal level difference between the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component of the electrical signal; measuring a sound level of the reference frequency component and a sound level of the at least one test frequency component of the sound in the ear canal received by the second transducer of the earphone; calculating at least one acoustic signal level difference between the measured sound level of the reference frequency component and the measured sound level of the at least one test frequency component; calculating at least one normalized acoustic difference value by subtracting the electrical signal level difference from the at least one acoustic signal level difference; and A measurement of the ear seal is determined based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value.

13. The method according to claim 12, in, Determining a measurement of the ear seal based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value comprises comparing the at least one normalized acoustic difference value to at least one threshold value; as well as The at least one threshold value corresponds to at least one level of the ear seal.

14. The method according to claim 12, in, Determining a measurement of the ear seal based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value comprises comparing the at least one normalized acoustic difference value to at least one threshold value; as well as The at least one threshold corresponds to at least one insertion depth of the earphone into the ear canal.

15. The method according to claim 12, in, Determining a measurement of the ear seal based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value comprises comparing the at least one normalized acoustic difference value to at least one threshold value; as well as Wherein at least one of the one or more thresholds is associated with a frictional force between the earphone and the ear canal that is less than a frictional force required to maintain the earphone positioned within the ear canal without additional support.

16. The method according to claim 12, in, The at least one test frequency comprises a plurality of test frequencies; and The determining of the measurement result of the ear seal is based on a plurality of normalized acoustic difference values.

17. The method according to claim 12, in, The reference frequency is at least 500 Hz.

18. The method according to claim 12, in, The at least one test frequency is selected from the range between 50-200 Hz.

19. The method according to claim 12, in, The playing of sound into the ear canal in response to the electrical signal includes playback of a recorded or streamed audio signal.

20. The method according to claim 12, in, The method is performed by a system or circuit that is completely implemented on the hearing device.

21. The method according to claim 12, in, The method is performed by a system or circuit; and Therein, the system or circuit is partially implemented on the hearing device and partially implemented on a controller provided on a host device coupled to the hearing device.

22. The method according to claim 12, in, The method is performed by a system or circuit comprising a trained machine learning module arranged to perform said determining a measurement result of the ear seal based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value and / or the measured sound level.

23. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions capable of causing or configuring a system for evaluating an ear seal between an earpiece of a hearing device and an ear canal or ear cavity to perform operations comprising: Playing sound into the ear canal by the first transducer of the earphone in response to the electrical signal; Wherein, the electrical signal includes a reference frequency component and at least one test frequency component; Wherein, the sound includes a reference frequency component and at least one test frequency component; wherein the at least one test frequency is lower than the reference frequency; calculating at least one electrical signal level difference between the reference frequency component and the at least one test frequency component of the electrical signal; measuring a sound level of the reference frequency component and a sound level of the at least one test frequency component of the sound in the ear canal received by the second transducer of the earphone; calculating at least one acoustic signal level difference between the measured sound level of the reference frequency component and the measured sound level of the at least one test frequency component; calculating at least one normalized acoustic difference value by subtracting the electrical signal level difference from the at least one acoustic signal level difference; and A measurement of the ear seal is determined based on the at least one normalized acoustic difference value.

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