Headset Hearing Loss Estimation From Real-World Audio Interactions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for diagnosing mild to moderate hearing loss require time-consuming clinical tests and surveys, providing limited data and preventing accurate estimation and compensation for an individual's hearing loss.
Innovation Solution
A controller in a headset utilizes sensors to capture audio and environmental data to estimate a user's hearing loss by analyzing interactions with the local area, determining a sound profile, and applying filters to compensate for identified hearing loss.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional clinical hearing tests and surveys are used to diagnose hearing loss, then diagnostic accuracy is improved, but time consumption and complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables automatic hearing loss estimation by having the user interact with audio content in their natural environment while the device captures audio data, head motion, and eye-tracking information. The processor automatically analyzes this data to generate a sound profile without requiring clinical provider intervention or manual survey completion by the user.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical clinical testing process with an automated computational system that uses sensors (acoustic, motion, imaging) and machine learning algorithms to estimate hearing loss. The processor substitutes the clinical provider's manual assessment with automated analysis of captured audio and user interaction data.
2Loss of information
If conventional hearing tests are used, then diagnostic data is obtained, but the data is limited and does not provide complete assessment of functional hearing
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges multiple data sources including audio captured by acoustic sensors, head motion from position sensors, and eye-tracking from imaging devices to create a comprehensive sound profile. This combination of previously separate assessment methods provides complete functional hearing assessment in an integrated system.
Solution Approach 2:
The headset device performs multiple functions simultaneously: it captures audio, tracks head motion, monitors eye movements, and processes this data to estimate hearing loss. This multi-functional approach replaces multiple separate clinical tools with a single universal device that assesses functional hearing comprehensively.
3Productivity
If clinical hearing tests are administered, then hearing loss is estimated, but the process requires significant time and resources
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary data collection by capturing audio, head motion, and eye-tracking information during natural user interaction with audio content before formal diagnosis. This preliminary assessment in the user's natural environment enables rapid hearing loss estimation without requiring time-consuming clinical testing sessions.
Data Source
AI summary
An audio system includes one or more acoustic sensors capturing audio from a local area surrounding the audio system and one or more additional sensors capturing data describing the local area. An audio controller in the audio system identifies interactions by a user based on the captured audio and the data describing the local area. The audio controller determines attributes associated with each interaction, such as metrics describing speaking by the user, metrics describing requests for clarification by the user, and metrics based on a topic determined from audio captured by the user. Based on the interactions and associated attributes, the audio controller estimates a sound profile for the user that identifies ranges of frequencies where the user has hearing loss. The audio controller may leverage the sound profile to determine one or more filters to offset hearing loss of the user.