Hearing-Assist Circuitry for Psychoacoustic Conflict Reduction

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Solution Overview

Problem

Hearing-impaired individuals face significant challenges in large venues due to the interference between ambient and electronically transmitted sound, leading to poor sound quality and intelligibility in hearing-assist systems, which are often not optimized for such environments.

Innovation Solution

A hearing-assist system that incorporates circuitry to reduce psychoacoustic conflict by customizing sound signals, emphasizing dialogue, reducing low frequencies, applying bandpass filtering, and introducing delays to synchronize electronically transmitted sound with ambient sound, thereby improving signal-to-noise ratio and clear speech energy.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If hearing-assist systems use typical amplification methods designed for home/classroom environments, then the system structure remains simple, but sound intelligibility deteriorates in large venues due to psychoacoustic conflict between ambient and electronic sound

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesound intelligibilityVSAvoidsignal processing complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the audio signal into different frequency bands using bandpass filtering, separating dialogue frequencies from low-frequency ambient sounds. This allows selective processing of speech frequencies while attenuating interfering ambient frequencies, thereby improving sound intelligibility without requiring complete system redesign

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies preliminary signal processing including bandpass filtering, delay adjustment, and psychoacoustic conflict reduction before the sound reaches the user. By pre-processing the electronic sound signal to match ambient sound characteristics and synchronize timing, the system improves intelligibility before delivery to the hearing-impaired user

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If the hearing-assist system amplifies all frequencies equally, then the system operation remains simple, but interference between ambient and electronic sound increases, rendering the signal unintelligible

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesignal clarityVSAvoidsystem configuration

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies local quality by emphasizing specific frequency bands (dialogue frequencies) while attenuating others (low-frequency ambient sounds). The bandpass filtering and psychoacoustic conflict reduction are applied selectively to frequency ranges most important for speech intelligibility, rather than uniform processing across all frequencies

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The patent changes key signal parameters including frequency distribution (through bandpass filtering), time delay (to synchronize electronic sound with ambient sound), and amplitude balance (to reduce psychoacoustic conflict). These parameter modifications transform the electronic sound signal to better match natural ambient sound characteristics, improving clarity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

3Adaptability or versatility

If hearing-assist systems are designed for small venues, then the device complexity remains low, but the system fails to address psychoacoustic effects in large venues with significant ambient sound

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvevenue adaptabilityVSAvoidsignal processing circuitry

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements universal signal processing that can adapt to different venue types. The bandpass filtering, delay adjustment, and psychoacoustic conflict reduction circuitry are designed to handle both small and large venues, automatically adapting to the ambient sound characteristics of the specific environment through configurable parameters

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

4Reliability

If the system introduces delay to synchronize electronic sound with ambient sound, then sound intelligibility improves, but the system complexity increases due to additional circuitry

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesound synchronizationVSAvoiddelay circuitry

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces a delay to the electronic sound signal before delivery to the user, synchronizing it with the ambient sound that arrives later due to propagation time. This preliminary timing adjustment prevents the electronic sound from arriving ahead of ambient sound, which would create confusion and reduce intelligibility

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

The system significantly enhances sound intelligibility for hearing-impaired users by minimizing interference and amplifying clear speech energy, allowing them to better enjoy events in venues like theaters and concert halls.

Implementation Method 1

applying bandpass filtering

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectBandpass filtering: Filter (physical)

Implementation Method 2

introducing delays to synchronize electronically transmitted sound with ambient sound

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectTime delay:

Data Source

PatentUS10511919B2Methods for hearing-assist systems in various venues

Publication Date: 2019.12.17 EPSTEIN BARRY

AI summary

A hearing-assist system for use in a venue in which ambient sounds contain dialogue as well as other components which comprises circuitry inserted in a signal path between a program source feed in a program occurring in the venue and a hearing-assist unit worn by a user in that venue which reduces psychoacoustic conflict and interference between sound which is ambient in the venue and sound heard by the user via the hearing-assist unit.