Universal debugging method of artificial cochlea system

Abstract

The invention relates to a universal debugging method for an artificial cochlea system, which comprises the following steps that: an upper computer sends a debugging instruction, and the debugging instruction comprises a query instruction and a setting instruction; the lower computer receives the debugging instruction, executes a corresponding action, generates response information according to an execution result and feeds back the response information to the upper computer; wherein the debugging instruction and the response information are both expressed in a JSON format and comprise an MAP attribute, an HEAD attribute and a DATA attribute, the MAP attribute is used for distinguishing artificial cochlea system manufacturers, the HEAD attribute is used for matching and identifying the corresponding debugging instruction and response information, the DATA attribute comprises an OP attribute and a PARAM attribute, the OP attribute is used for distinguishing the type of the debugging instruction, and the PARAM attribute is used for matching and identifying the corresponding debugging instruction and response information. The PARAM attribute comprises parameters related to the debugging instruction and is represented in a list form. Compared with the prior art, the method has the advantages that code exchange among various data types in the artificial cochlea system can be quickly realized, and the debugging operation convenience of the artificial cochlea system is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of data transmission, and in particular relates to a general programming method for a cochlear implant system. Background Art

[0002] Equipping a cochlear implant is currently an effective clinical means for treating patients with severe, profound or total deafness. The cochlear implant system includes two parts: an implant and an external device. The implant is completely implanted in the patient's head, and the external device includes a sound processor worn by the patient on the head and a programming device used by a programmer. The sound processor collects surrounding sounds and converts them into wireless signals and sends them to the implant, and the implant releases electric charges to stimulate the auditory nerve to achieve auditory restoration. In order to achieve the best hearing effect, professional personnel need to debug the cochlear implant system according to the individual conditions of the patient. This process is called programming, which is an important link to ensure the normal operation of the cochlear implant system. During programming, the programmer operates a terminal such as a computer or a mobile phone to send programming instructions to the sound processor through the programming device and receives the information returned by the sound processor, so as to adjust the parameters of the sound processor; the programmer can also communicate with the implant in the patient's body through radio waves via the sound processor to test the working state of the implant and the auditory characteristics of the patient.

[0003] As can be seen from the foregoing, programming involves information exchange, which is an internal communication between different parts of the cochlear implant system and must follow certain formats and rules, that is, a programming protocol. According to the ISO's OSI reference model, the programming protocol of the cochlear implant system is an application layer protocol. During programming, the terminal and the programming device are the upper computers, and the sound processor is the lower computer. The upper and lower computers establish a connection through wired (such as Hi-Pro, serial port or USB, etc.) or wireless (such as Bluetooth, WIFI network or infrared remote control, etc.) to perform data exchange. Although there are already product-specific standards for cochlear implant systems, these standards do not cover the communication rules between the various parts of the system. Currently, the programming protocols of cochlear implants are formulated by each manufacturer on its own. In addition to producing products, manufacturers also need to provide programming devices or software that match their own products, which increases the burden on manufacturers; and due to the lack of standards for the adjustment protocol of cochlear implant systems, there are compatibility problems between the products of different manufacturers, and programmers need to be familiar with the programming methods of different brands of cochlear implants and be able to switch proficiently between various programming devices.

[0004] Chinese Patent Application 2018112144079 discloses a data communication protocol and implementation method for industrial Internet of Things terminals. The data communication protocol format mainly consists of 6 parts: data frame synchronization identifier, number of bytes, content start identifier, data content, content end identifier, and data frame checksum. It has a clear structure, is flexible and efficient, convenient for extension, and easy to develop, modify, and maintain. However, in the data content, the format of each group of parameters is "

parameter name

value

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the defects of the above-mentioned existing technologies and provide a general cochlear implant system tuning method, which can quickly achieve encoding exchange between multiple data types in the cochlear implant system and improve the convenience of the cochlear implant system tuning operation.

[0006] The purpose of the present invention can be achieved through the following technical solutions:

[0007] The present invention provides a general cochlear implant system tuning method. The cochlear implant system includes an implant body, a sound processor, and a tuning device. The tuning device is a host computer, and the sound processor is a slave computer. The method includes the following steps:

[0008] The host computer sends a tuning instruction, and the tuning instruction includes a query instruction and a setting instruction;

[0009] The slave computer receives the tuning instruction, performs corresponding actions, generates a response message according to the execution result, and feeds it back to the host computer. The host computer generates a new tuning instruction according to the response message and sends it to the slave computer until the tuning operation is completed;

[0010] Among them, the tuning instruction and the response message are both expressed in JSON format, including MAP attribute, HEAD attribute, and DATA attribute. The MAP attribute is used to distinguish cochlear implant system manufacturers. The HEAD attribute is used to match and identify corresponding tuning instructions and response messages. The DATA attribute includes OP attribute and PARAM attribute. The OP attribute is used to distinguish tuning instruction types. The PARAM attribute includes parameters involved in the tuning instruction and is represented in a list form.

[0011] Further, the HEAD attribute includes Ref, and Ref is an integer. Each tuning instruction is attached with a randomly generated integer, and its corresponding response message is attached with the same integer, so as to achieve matching and identification of corresponding tuning instructions and response messages.

[0012] Further, the HEAD attribute also includes Key, Total, and Seq;

[0013] Among them, Key represents the encryption public key, Total represents the number of commissioning instructions to be sent for a complete commissioning operation. When multiple commissioning instructions need to be sent for a complete commissioning operation, Seq represents the sequence number of the current commissioning instruction.

[0014] Furthermore, the query instruction includes a single-point query instruction and a non-single-point query instruction. The single-point query instruction includes querying the product model, querying the product version, and querying the product serial number.

[0015] Furthermore, the non-single-point query instruction includes querying the impedance between electrodes. At this time, the PARAM attribute includes the electrode number to be measured, the reference electrode number, and the measured impedance value.

[0016] Furthermore, the DATA attribute further includes the TYPE attribute, which is used to distinguish the object of the commissioning instruction. The object of the commissioning instruction includes the lower computer and the implant.

[0017] Furthermore, if the transmitted data is binary, it is first converted into a string through BASE64 and then encoded in JSON format.

[0018] Furthermore, the communication method between the upper computer and the lower computer is serial. After the upper computer sends a commissioning instruction, it sends the next commissioning instruction only after receiving the corresponding response information from the lower computer.

[0019] Furthermore, the communication method between the upper computer and the lower computer is parallel. After the upper computer sends a commissioning instruction, it can send the next commissioning instruction without waiting for the corresponding response information from the lower computer.

[0020] Furthermore, the communication method between the upper computer and the lower computer is a hybrid of serial and parallel.

[0021] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0022] 1. The present invention proposes a general programming method for a cochlear implant system. Specifically, a general programming protocol for the cochlear implant system is designed. The programming instructions sent by the host computer and the response information feedback by the slave computer are both expressed in JSON format, including MAP attributes, HEAD attributes, and DATA attributes. Among them, the DATA attribute includes an OP attribute and a PARAM attribute. The OP attribute is used to distinguish the types of programming instructions, and the PARAM attribute includes the parameters involved in the programming instructions, which are represented in a list form. Through the above protocol, complex data types can be encoded and exchanged, applicable to scalars, sequences, mappings, etc. It can not only process structured data but also conveniently process unstructured data. This protocol encodes data in JSON format, facilitating the mutual conversion between data and object entities, enabling fast serialization and deserialization, and improving the convenience of the programming operation of the cochlear implant system. While simplifying programming, the above method can also be easily integrated with third-party programs, having high flexibility and scalability.

[0023] 2. The present invention matches and identifies the corresponding programming instructions and response information through the HEAD attribute. Specifically, Ref in the HEAD attribute is an integer. Each programming instruction is attached with a randomly generated integer, and the corresponding response information is attached with the same integer, thereby enabling fast matching and identification of the corresponding programming instructions and response information. Especially when there is serial communication between the host computer and the slave computer, it can improve the data transmission speed while ensuring the accuracy of data transmission. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] Figure 1 is a flowchart of the method of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 2 is a schematic structural diagram of the cochlear implant system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0026] The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings and specific embodiments. This embodiment is implemented on the premise of the technical solution of the present invention, and gives detailed implementation manners and specific operation processes, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0027] Embodiment:

[0028] This embodiment provides a general programming method for a cochlear implant system. The cochlear implant system involved is as Figure 2As shown, it includes an implant, a sound processor, and a programming device. During programming, the patient still wears the sound processor normally, but the sound processor operates in the debugging mode. The programmer will operate the programming device to establish a connection (wired or wireless) with the sound processor working in the debugging mode. After the connection is established, the programming operation can be carried out. At this time, the programming device used by the programmer is called the host computer, and the sound processor becomes the slave computer. The entire programming process is manifested as a communication process between the host computer and the slave computer. As Figure 1 shown, the programming operation mainly includes two steps: S1, the host computer issues a programming instruction; S2, after the slave computer receives the programming instruction, it executes the corresponding action according to the instruction, generates a response message based on the execution result and feeds it back to the host computer. The host computer generates a new programming instruction according to the response message and sends it to the slave computer until the programming operation is completed.

[0029] This embodiment mainly designs the programming protocol followed by the host computer and the slave computer. The communication content between the host computer and the slave computer is expressed in JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) format. For binary data, it is first converted into a string through BASE64 and then used for JSON format encoding. The communication method between the host computer and the slave computer can be serial. After the host computer sends a programming instruction, it can only send the next programming instruction after receiving the corresponding response message from the slave computer; the communication method between the host computer and the slave computer can also be parallel. After the host computer sends a programming instruction, it can send the next programming instruction without waiting for the corresponding response message from the slave computer; the communication method between the host computer and the slave computer can also be a hybrid of serial and parallel.

[0030] Each programming instruction and response message is a JSON object (collectively referred to as a programming instruction object), but this object has certain fixed attributes to adapt to the programming activities of the cochlear implant system. First, the programming instruction object contains an attribute named MAP, indicating that it is a programming message. The value of this attribute is a fixed string defined by the cochlear implant manufacturer itself and will not change once defined. The manufacturer can use its company name or abbreviation as the MAP attribute.

[0031] The programming instruction object also has a HEAD attribute, which is divided into four parts: Ref, Key, Total, and Seq as shown in Table 1. Table 2 shows examples of several programming instruction objects.

[0032] Table 1 Definition of HEAD Attribute

[0033]

[0034] Table 2 Examples of Programming Instruction Objects

[0035]

[0036] The commissioning instructions sent from the host computer to the slave computer are divided into three categories. One is the query category, one is the setting category, and the rest belong to the miscellaneous category. Their differences are as follows: The query category means that the host computer obtains the operating parameters and status of the slave computer, or obtains the parameters and status of the implant through the slave computer; the setting category means that the host computer adjusts the operating parameters of the slave computer or changes the parameters of the implant through the slave computer; Instructions other than the query or setting category are collectively referred to as miscellaneous items and can be used for internal testing by the manufacturer or other purposes. These three categories of instructions are uniformly expressed by the DATA attribute of the commissioning instruction object. The DATA attribute can be divided into two parts, the front part is represented by the OP attribute, which can distinguish the instruction type, and the rear part is represented by the PARAM attribute, which represents the parameter list. For query instructions, the value of the OP attribute is fixed as GET; for setting instructions, the value of the OP attribute is fixed as SET; for other types of instructions, the OP value can be defined by the manufacturer itself. The PARAM attribute part varies according to the instruction type and is defined by the manufacturer itself, and can include any sub-attributes.

[0037] 1. Commissioning Instructions

[0038] 1.1 Commissioning Query Instructions

[0039] The query instruction refers to the commissioning instruction object whose OP value in the DATA attribute is fixed as GET.

[0040] As a conventional function of the cochlear implant product, several query instructions are mandatory options, and it is recommended to use a fixed parameter list, as defined in Table 3.

[0041] Table 3 Common Query Instructions

[0042]

[0043]

[0044] 1.2 Commissioning Setting Instructions

[0045] For the commissioning instructions of the setting category, the OP value of the DATA attribute is fixed as SET, and the difference lies in the PARAM attribute, which can be freely defined by the manufacturer according to the product function.

[0046] When using a cochlear implant, the T value and C value of each channel must be clearly defined. The range between the T value and the C value is called the comfort threshold. The comfort threshold of the channel can be set using the setting instruction. For the instruction to set the comfort threshold, VALUE represents the set parameter value, CH is the channel number, specifying which channel's value to set, T represents the T value, and C represents the C value.

[0047] The following is an example:

[0048] {"MAP": "HL", "HEAD": {"Ref": 2231}, "DATA": {"OP": "SET", "PARAM": [{"CH": 1, "T": 5, "C": 100}, {"CH": 3, "T": 10, "C": 150}, {"CH": 5, "T": 100, "C": 200}]}}

[0049] This instruction sets the comfort zone of channel 1 to 5 - 100, the comfort zone of channel 3 to 10 - 150, and the comfort zone of channel 5 to 100 - 200.

[0050] Instructions for setting various parameters can be flexibly defined by the manufacturer according to the functions of their own products.

[0051] 2. Response Information

[0052] The communication method for debugging the machine is that the host computer issues debugging instructions and receives feedback from the slave computer; therefore, for each message sent by the host computer, a corresponding return message, or response message, is expected.

[0053] Response messages also belong to the debugging messages, follow the same debugging protocol format, and have exactly the same MAP attributes and HEAD attributes as the corresponding debugging instructions. The difference lies in the DATA attribute: if it is a query instruction, the DAYA attribute should contain the query result; if it is a setting instruction, the PARAM attribute should show whether the setting is successful; for other instructions, the response messages can be freely defined. Table 4 shows some examples of response messages.

[0054] Table 4 Examples of Response Messages

[0055]

[0056] The general debugging protocol designed in this embodiment encodes the data of the cochlear implant system in JSON format, which can achieve convenient conversion between data and object entities, and realize fast serialization and deserialization. The JSON format is simple and easy to use, and is the most popular data exchange format on the Internet. All kinds of programming languages and development tools have good support for JSON. Encoding the debugging protocol in JSON can simplify programming and can also be easily integrated with third-party programs, improving flexibility and scalability. The debugging method of the cochlear implant system based on the above general protocol can encode and exchange any complex data type, whether it is a scalar, sequence, or mapping, and can handle both structured data and unstructured data very conveniently, further improving the convenience of the debugging operation of the cochlear implant system.

[0057] When the above method is implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on such an understanding, the technical solution of the present invention, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or a part of this technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in various embodiments of the present invention. The aforementioned storage medium includes: various media that can store program codes, such as USB flash drives, mobile hard disks, read-only memories (ROM, Read-Only Memory), random access memories (RAM, Random Access Memory), magnetic disks, or optical discs.

[0058] The above description of the embodiments is to enable those of ordinary skill in the art to understand and use the invention. Obviously, those who are familiar with the technology in this field can easily make various modifications to these embodiments and apply the general principles described herein to other embodiments without creative labor. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and all improvements and modifications made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention according to the disclosure of the present invention should be within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A general programming method for a cochlear implant system, the cochlear implant system comprising an implant body, a sound processor and a programming device, the programming device being a host computer and the sound processor being a slave computer, characterized in that, It includes the following steps: The host computer sends commissioning instructions, and the commissioning instructions include query instructions and setting instructions; The slave computer receives the commissioning instructions, performs corresponding actions, generates response information according to the execution results and feeds it back to the host computer. The host computer generates new commissioning instructions according to the response information and sends them to the slave computer until the commissioning operation is completed; Among them, the commissioning instructions and the response information are both expressed in JSON format, including MAP attributes, HEAD attributes and DATA attributes. The MAP attribute is used to distinguish the manufacturers of cochlear implant systems. The HEAD attribute is used to match and identify the corresponding commissioning instructions and response information. The DATA attribute includes OP attributes and PARAM attributes. The OP attribute is used to distinguish the types of commissioning instructions. The PARAM attribute includes the parameters involved in the commissioning instructions and is represented in a list form.

2. The general programming method of a cochlear implant system according to claim 1, characterized in that The HEAD attribute includes Ref, and Ref is an integer. Each commissioning instruction is attached with a randomly generated integer, and its corresponding response information is attached with the same integer, so as to realize the matching and identification of the corresponding commissioning instructions and response information.

3. The general programming method of a cochlear implant system according to claim 2, characterized in that, The HEAD attribute also includes Key, Total and Seq; Among them, Key represents the encryption public key, Total represents the number of commissioning instructions required to send for a complete commissioning operation. When a complete commissioning operation requires sending multiple commissioning instructions, Seq represents the serial number of the current commissioning instruction.

4. The general programming method of a cochlear implant system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The query instructions include single-point query instructions and non-single-point query instructions. The single-point query instructions include querying product models, querying product versions and querying product serial numbers.

5. The general programming method of a cochlear implant system according to claim 4, wherein The non-single-point query instructions include querying the impedance between electrodes. At this time, the PARAM attribute includes the electrode number to be measured, the reference electrode number and the measured impedance value.

6. The general programming method of a cochlear implant system according to claim 1, characterized in that The DATA attribute also includes a TYPE attribute, which is used to distinguish the objects of the commissioning instructions. The objects of the commissioning instructions include the slave computer and the implant.

7. A general programming method for a cochlear implant system according to claim 1, characterized in that If the transmitted data is binary, it is first converted into a string through BASE64 and then encoded in JSON format.

8. The general programming method of a cochlear implant system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The communication method between the host computer and the slave computer is serial. After the host computer sends a commissioning instruction, it sends the next commissioning instruction only after receiving the corresponding response information from the slave computer.

9. The general programming method of a cochlear implant system according to claim 1, characterized in that The communication method between the host computer and the slave computer is parallel. After the host computer sends a commissioning instruction, it can send the next commissioning instruction without waiting for the corresponding response information from the slave computer.

10. A general programming method for a cochlear implant system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The communication method between the host computer and the slave computer is a hybrid of serial and parallel.

Images