Hearing Assistance Motion Tracking for Vestibular-Visual Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Inconsistent vestibular and visual inputs due to various activities, diseases, or impairments can lead to motion sickness, causing symptoms such as nausea, dizziness, and balance issues.
Innovation Solution
A hearing assistance device equipped with motion sensors and control circuits tracks the user's motion and head position, estimates vestibular and visual inputs, and initiates responsive measures to mitigate motion sickness by providing auditory and visual stimuli to align these inputs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If motion sensors and control circuits are added to hearing assistance devices to detect and mitigate motion sickness, then motion sickness prevention capability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hearing assistance device integrates multiple functions including hearing enhancement, motion detection, head position tracking, and motion sickness mitigation. The control circuit processes multiple sensor inputs (motion sensors, microphones, electroacoustic transducers) to provide both auditory and visual feedback, allowing a single device to serve multiple purposes and reduce overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines motion sensors, microphones, electroacoustic transducers, and control circuits into an integrated hearing assistance device. The system merges vestibular input tracking (from motion sensors) with visual input estimation (from head position tracking) to create a unified motion sickness prevention mechanism that operates through coordinated auditory and visual feedback channels.
2Reliability
If the device provides both auditory and visual feedback to align vestibular and visual inputs, then motion sickness mitigation effectiveness is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The electroacoustic transducer serves dual functions: it provides auditory feedback for motion sickness mitigation and also functions as a visual feedback mechanism through light emission. This multi-functionality allows the device to address both auditory and visual input alignment without requiring separate components, thereby improving mitigation effectiveness while controlling complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The control circuit continuously monitors motion sensor data and head position, then provides real-time auditory and visual feedback to align vestibular and visual inputs. This closed-loop feedback system dynamically adjusts the feedback signals based on detected motion and head position, improving motion sickness mitigation effectiveness through adaptive control.
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments herein relate to devices and related systems and methods for motion sickness prevention and mitigation. In an embodiment, a method of preventing or mitigating motion sickness in a subject is included, the method tracking motion of the subject using a first motion sensor; estimating a vestibular system input based on tracked motion of the subject; tracking head position of the subject using the first motion sensor; estimating a visual system input based on tracked head position of the subject; estimating consistency between the vestibular system input and the visual system input; and initiating a responsive measure if the estimated consistency crosses a threshold value. Other embodiments are also included herein.