155 results about "Hearing prosthesis" patented technology

The invention comprises a totally implantable hearing prosthesis for hearing impaired persons. An inertial vibrational element is hermetically sealed and implanted in bone between the lateral and superior semicircular canals without breaching the integrity of the canals. The vibrational element is adapted to vibrate the walls of the canals and the fluids contained therein, thereby vibrating contiguous fluids within the cochlea thus stimulating hair cells and creating a hearing percept. The invention can also be adapted to be a tinnitus masking system, and / or used in combination with a coehlear implant hearing system.

A bimodal hearing prosthesis configured to deliver electrical and acoustic stimulation to a recipient such that a frequency range of a received sound that is represented by the electrical stimulation is perceived simultaneously with the frequency range of the received sound that is represented by the acoustic stimulation.

The invention comprises a totally implantable hearing prosthesis for hearing impaired persons. An inertial vibrational element is hermetically sealed and implanted in bone between the lateral and superior semicircular canals without breaching the integrity of the canals. The vibrational element is adapted to vibrate the walls of the canals and the fluids contained therein, thereby vibrating contiguous fluids within the cochlea thus stimulating hair cells and creating a hearing percept. The invention can also be adapted to be a tinnitus masking system, and / or used in combination with a cochlear implant hearing system.

A hearing prosthesis and method for same are disclosed wherein a smaller wireless microphone component transmits audio signals to an external component of the medical device. The external component processes the received audio signal(s) to generate stimulation data. The external component is detachably connected to a coil that transmits power and the stimulation data, via magnetic induction, to an implanted component. The implanted component applies stimulation to a recipient in accordance with the received stimulation data.

A hearing prosthesis is disclosed with comprises memory means for storing charging control information associated with charging of a rechargeable battery cell that functions as a power source for the hearing prosthesis. Also, a rechargeable hearing aid system is disclosed which comprises a common communication interface adapted to transmit charging control information from the hearing prosthesis to the charger so as to allow the charger to adapt its charging parameters to a variety of different types of rechargeable batteries.

A hearing aid and a receiver for use therein, the receiver being tip-mountable in a chamber of a housing. The back chamber of the receiver is acoustically connected to the chamber of the housing. The receiver is a dual-diaphragm receiver providing no or very little vibrations, whereby the receiver is fixedly but removably mounted to the housing. Electrical connections are provided between the receiver and housing using solderless, biasing electrical contacts, whereby removal of the receiver is facilitated.

A hearing prosthesis includes both a hearing aid adapted to sense and amplify low frequency acoustic sound signals and a cochlear implant system adapted to sense high frequency acoustic sound signals. The hearing aid has a first microphone adapted to sense the low frequency acoustic sound signals, amplify these sensed low frequency acoustic sound signals, and present the resulting amplified low frequency acoustic sound signals in the ear canal of a user, thereby enabling the user to better hear these amplified sounds using his or her normal hearing processes. The cochlear implant system includes a second microphone adapted to sense the high frequency acoustic sound signals and selectively stimulate the inner ear with electrical stimulation that will be perceived as high frequency acoustic sound signals. Both the cochlear implant system and the hearing aid system are coupled to operate on the same ear of the user. Feedback within the hearing aid portion of the system is eliminated by positioning the first microphone at a location that is acoustically remote from the ear canal where the amplified low frequency acoustic sound signals are presented. High frequency acoustic sound signals are better sensed by placing the second microphone at a location that is in or near the ear canal where the amplified low frequency acoustic sound signals are presented.

A speech processor module is disclosed. The speech processor module is configured to be implemented in more than one mode of operation of a hearing prosthesis including as a component of a stand-alone speech processing unit, and as a component of a body-worn speech processing unit, wherein said body-worn speech processing unit comprises a case that protects the speech processor module from environmental conditions which can damage said speech processor module implemented in said stand-alone operating mode.

An improved antenna device for BTE devices, such a hearing prostheses, is disclosed. Antenna elements (111, 114) are disposed in the BTE body (101) and in the earhook (102), with dielectric material (112, 113) disposed between, so as to form a capacitive coupling.

A method and system for fitting and adjusting the operation of an acoustic hearing prosthesis or a hybrid electric and acoustic hearing prosthesis. A graphic user interface allows for the acoustic and electric fitting parameters to be viewed and adjusted in a comparable way. The method further allows for the parameters for acoustic stimulation of the acoustic channels to be adjusted in response to behavioural or objective measurement of responses to known stimuli, so as to achieve a desired response curve.

A method of wireless communication between hearing aid devices of a hearing prosthesis. A first device selects a frequency channel for bidirectional wireless communication from a predefined series of frequency channels. A second device transmits a command signal repeatedly over the series of frequency channels until it transmits the command signal over the frequency channel selected by the first device. Subsequent commands send by the second device to the first device are initially transmitted over the selected frequency channel.

An hearing prosthesis configured to cancel received bone-conducted sound. The hearing prosthesis comprises: first and second matched microphones configured to be implanted in a recipient in a spaced arrangement such that the first microphone receives air-conducted sound signals and bone-conducted sound signals substantially simultaneously, and wherein the second microphone receives bone-conducted sound signals at substantially the same time as the first microphone and receives the air-conducted sound signals after a time delay. The time delay results in a relative phase difference between the air-conducted sound signals and the bone-conducted sound signals received by the second microphone. The prosthesis also comprises a noise cancellation system configured to cancel, based on the phase difference, the bone-conducted sound signals received by the first and second microphones.

A wireless binaural hearing aid system that utilises direct sequence spread spectrum technology to synchronize operation between individual hearing prostheses is provided.

A hearing prosthesis for delivering stimuli to a hearing-impaired recipient is disclosed, the hearing prosthesis comprising: a sound transducer for converting received sound signals into electric audio signals; a sound processor for converting said electric audio signals into stimuli signals; a stimulator for delivering said stimuli to the recipient; a memory for storing data representative of sound signals; and a controller configured to cause selected sound data to be retrieved from said memory and processed by said sound processor.

A hearing system, comprising: an adhesive element adapted to temporarily adhere to the skin of a recipient; a hearing prosthesis having a coupler and an anchor having a first surface adapted to adhere to the adhesive element, and a fixture adapted to attach to the coupler of the hearing prosthesis.

An auditory prosthesis comprising an actuator for providing mechanical stimulation to a recipient. The auditory prosthesis comprises a measurement circuit for use in determining the resonance peak(s) of the actuator. In an embodiment, the measurement circuit measures the voltage drop across the actuator and / or current through the actuator during a frequency sweep of the operational frequencies of the actuator. These measured voltages and / or currents are then analyzed for discontinuities that are indicative of a resonance peak of the actuator. In another embodiment, rather than using a frequency sweep to measure voltages and / or currents across the actuator, the measurement circuit instead applies a voltage impulse to the actuator and then measure the voltage and / or current across the actuator for a period of time after application of the impulse. The measured voltages and / or currents are then analyzed to identify resonance peak(s) of the actuator.

A method of calibrating an implantable microphone for a hearing prosthesis is disclosed. For an implantable microphone which includes a vibration sensor to provide body noise cancellation, a calibration method is disclosed, in which known acoustic and vibration signals are provided by an external device. This may be as part of the external charging system for an implantable device.

Various assistive listening devices are coupled to a receiver integrated into a BTE sound processor of a cochlear implant system, or other hearing prosthesis. The assistive listening devices and manner of integration with the BTE sound processor may include, e.g., (a) integration of an FM (frequency modulated) receiver into a remote battery pack; (b) integration of an FM or infrared (IR) or other system into a custom all-in-the-ear hearing instrument shell with an electrical connection through an existing auxiliary connector in the earhook of a BTE sound processor; or (c) integration of an FM system into the BTE sound processor via an interposer module.

An implantable hearing prosthesis for a recipient patient is described. An implantable signal transducer includes one or more electromagnetic drive coils for receiving an electrical stimulation signal and a cylindrical transducer magnet arrangement including an inner disk magnet having a first magnetic field direction, and an outer annular magnet surrounding the inner rod magnet and having a second magnetic field direction opposite to the first magnetic field direction. Current flow through the one or more electromagnetic drive coils from the electrical stimulation signal creates a coil magnetic field that interacts with the magnetic fields of the transducer magnet arrangement to create vibration in the transducer magnet which is developed by the signal transducer as a mechanical stimulation signal for audio perception by the patient.

An at least partially implantable hearing prosthesis. The hearing prosthesis comprises an implantable internal energy transfer assembly configured to receive power from an external device and having an implantable microphone system removably positioned therein configured to receive a sound signal and to generate electrical signals representing the received sound signal; a main implantable component having a sound processing unit configured to convert the electrical signals into data signals; and an output stimulator configured to stimulate the recipient's ear based on the data signals.

An arrangement is described for fitting a hearing prosthesis system to a prosthesis patient. The PAMR measurement determines a post-auricular muscle reflex (PAMR) response of the patient to an auditory stimulus signal. For example, the PAMR response may include a PAMR amplitude growth function or a PAMR threshold stimulus level at which a PAMR is measured in the patient. Then a patient fitting module sets an operating characteristic of the hearing prosthesis system based on the PAMR response.

A multi-mode hearing prosthesis for enhancing the hearing of a recipient, comprising: a sound input element configured to receive a sound signal component; a frequency spectral analysis module configured to analyze the sound signal component and to categorize the component into at least a high- or lower-frequency component; a bone conduction processor configured to generate bone conduction stimulation signals from at least one of said high- and lower-frequency component for bone conduction stimulation of the recipient's skull; and a second stimulation processor configured to generate auditory stimulation signals from at least one of said high- and lower-frequency components for stimulating the recipient.

A hearing prosthesis, the hearing prosthesis including a plurality of sound capture devices and a determinator configured to generate a parameter indicative of an orientation of the plurality of sound capture devices relative to a reference, wherein the hearing prosthesis is configured to adjust a direction of focus of the hearing prosthesis based on at least the parameter.

An apparatus and method for determining stimulation channels for a stimulating device is provided. This method and apparatus may involve computing a set of weights for the plurality of stimulation channels of the stimulating hearing prosthesis. These weights may be determined by determining a transimpedance matrix for the stimulating hearing prosthesis where a diagonal of the transimpedance matrix is determined by extrapolation. A transadmittance matrix may then be computed for this transimpedance matrix. An error may then be computed base on positive off-diagonal terms of the transadmittance matrix. The apparatus and method may determine the weights for the stimulation channels by determining an adjustment to the diagonal of the transimpedance matrix that results in a computed error that does not exceed a specified criterion level.

An acoustic sensor suitable for use in a totally implanted hearing prosthesis is disclosed. The sensor uses an elongate member 36 and piezoelectric sensor 39 to detect acoustic signals when the sensor is implanted so as to be in fluid communication with the perilymph. The sensor may be applied in systems which are not totally implanted.

A method for fitting to a recipient a cochlear prosthesis having a sound processor that processes received sound in accordance with a MAP, the method comprises providing, by the hearing prosthesis, combinations of voice prompts and test stimuli for testing values of an element of the MAP; receiving from the recipient an indication of which of said values are desirable; and revising the MAP with the desired value for the tested element. A neural-stimulating device for stimulating nerve cells of a recipient is provided.

A hearing prosthesis whereby the change of a parameter by the user is only possible in discrete maximum steps, with the availability for further increments being dependant upon some conditional event or occurrence (“condition” herein) represented by one or more parameters such as the time which has elapsed since some previous event. In embodiments in which the parameter(s) include an event, such event may be, for example, the initial fitting or adjustment by a clinician, the last user adjustment, the last upward adjustment by the user, etc. In certain embodiments, the condition parameter(s) may include, for example, an elapsed period of time, a certain quantity of stimuli at a particular current level, or some combination of time, stimulation count and stimulation level. In alternative embodiments, there may be a tiered set of increasing increments, of which more gradually are available over time.

A method of pre-processing a sound signal including music for an auditory prosthesis is provided. An input sound signal is received. The sound signal is processed using music pre-processing software to produce a music pre-processed signal. The music pre-processed signal is presented for further processing, so as to produce a corresponding stimuli signal.