Hearing Aid Fitting via Mobile Location Data
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Hearing aids currently lack the ability to automatically adjust their settings based on the user's location and surroundings, leading to suboptimal sound delivery in various environments, which can be inconvenient and affect user experience.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that utilizes a mobile terminal connected to a hearing aid, which acquires location information and transmits it to a server to receive a fitting parameter model tailored to the user's hearing conditions, allowing the hearing aid to adjust its settings accordingly, either automatically or manually, to optimize sound delivery in different situations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If hearing aid uses fixed fitting parameters, then device complexity is reduced, but adaptability to different environments deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a mobile terminal as an intermediary device between the hearing aid and the environment. The mobile terminal acquires location information, communicates with a server to obtain appropriate fitting parameters, and transmits these parameters to the hearing aid. This intermediary approach allows the hearing aid to adapt to different environments without requiring complex environmental sensing and processing capabilities within the hearing aid itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables automatic adjustment of fitting parameters through self-service mechanisms. The mobile terminal automatically acquires location information, requests appropriate parameters from the server, and applies them to the hearing aid without requiring manual user intervention. This self-service approach resolves the contradiction by providing environmental adaptability while maintaining simple device operation.
2Ease of operation
If hearing aid automatically adjusts settings, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mobile terminal serves as an intermediary that handles the complexity of automatic adjustment operations. Instead of embedding complex environmental sensing, processing, and parameter adjustment mechanisms within the hearing aid, the system offloads these functions to the mobile terminal, which then communicates the adjusted parameters back to the hearing aid.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements automatic fitting parameter adjustment that operates without user intervention. The mobile terminal automatically detects location changes, retrieves appropriate parameters from the server, and applies them to the hearing aid, providing ease of operation while containing complexity in the supporting infrastructure rather than the hearing aid itself.
3Adaptability or versatility
If hearing aid uses location-based fitting parameters, then adaptability to surroundings is improved, but loss of information increases due to network dependency
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-acquiring location information and retrieving appropriate fitting parameters from the server before the user needs them. The mobile terminal proactively monitors location changes and ensures the hearing aid has the correct parameters ready, reducing the need for real-time information exchange and minimizing network dependency during critical moments.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates copies of fitting parameters that are stored and transmitted between the server, mobile terminal, and hearing aid. Instead of requiring continuous real-time network connection, the parameters are copied and cached locally, allowing the hearing aid to operate with stored parameter copies even when network connectivity is temporarily unavailable.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of fitting a hearing aid connected to a mobile terminal is provided. The method may include acquiring location information of a location of the mobile terminal, transmitting the location information to a server, receiving, from the server, information about at least one recommended fitting parameter model adapted to hearing conditions of the location and hearing characteristics of a user of the hearing aid, and displaying the information about the at least one recommended fitting parameter model. The method may also include receiving a fitting parameter model selected by the user from among the at least one recommended fitting parameter model, and controlling the hearing aid to function according to the received fitting parameter model.