Hearing Aid ITE BTE Microphone Spatial Localization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Hearing aid users experience poor sound source localization and increased listening fatigue due to internalized sound reproduction, which worsens the 'hearing speech in noise' problem, as conventional hearing aids fail to accurately replicate the spatial cues essential for human auditory localization.
Innovation Solution
The new hearing aid design incorporates at least one ITE microphone positioned in the outer ear in front of the pinna or inside the ear canal, combined with conventional BTE microphones, to preserve spatial cues, using signal processing to maintain directional information and reduce feedback, thereby enhancing sound localization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional BTE hearing aids are used, then hearing loss compensation is achieved, but sound source localization is poor and sound appears internalized
Solution Approach 1:
The hearing aid system is segmented into multiple independent microphone units positioned at different locations ( ITE microphones in the outer ear and BTE microphones behind the ear), each capturing sound signals separately. This segmentation allows the system to preserve spatial cues by maintaining multiple perspective views of the sound field, thereby improving sound source localization accuracy while reducing the internalized sound perception that causes listening fatigue.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from conventional two-microphone BTE configuration to a three-dimensional microphone array arrangement by adding ITE microphones in the outer ear. This dimensional expansion creates multiple spatial dimensions for capturing sound information, enabling the system to reproduce externalized sound fields with accurate directional and distance information, thus resolving the localization problem while reducing cognitive loading.
2Measurement precision
If ITE microphones are positioned in the outer ear or inside the ear canal, then spatial cues are preserved, but feedback risk increases
Solution Approach 1:
The microphone system is segmented into ITE microphones positioned in the outer ear/ear canal and BTE microphones positioned behind the ear. This spatial segmentation allows the system to capture sound signals from multiple locations, preserving spatial cues while maintaining distance from the feedback path, thereby reducing feedback risk while maintaining localization accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses signal processing as an intermediary to combine the signals from ITE and BTE microphones. The signal processor analyzes the spatial information from ITE microphones while using BTE microphones to monitor the actual sound field, allowing the system to preserve spatial cues through computational processing while using the BTE microphones as a feedback reference to suppress actual acoustic feedback.
3Measurement precision
If multiple microphones are used to preserve spatial cues, then sound localization is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The microphone system is divided into functional segments: ITE microphones for spatial cue capture in the outer ear and BTE microphones for overall sound field monitoring. This segmentation allows each microphone type to perform its specific function efficiently, reducing the complexity burden on individual components while achieving superior overall directional information accuracy through coordinated operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The BTE microphones serve multiple functions: they capture sound signals for hearing loss compensation and simultaneously monitor the actual sound field for feedback suppression and spatial verification. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated microphones for each function, thereby managing device complexity while maintaining high directional information accuracy through the ITE microphones.
Data Source
AI summary
A hearing aid includes: a BTE hearing aid housing configured to be worn behind a pinna of a user and accommodating at least one BTE sound input transducer configured for conversion of acoustic sound into a BTE audio sound signal; an ITE microphone housing configured to be positioned in an outer ear of the user and accommodating at least one ITE microphone configured for conversion of acoustic sound into an ITE audio sound signal and accommodated by the ITE microphone housing; a signal detector configured for determination of ITE signal magnitudes of the ITE audio sound signal at a plurality of frequencies, and determination of BTE signal magnitudes of the BTE audio sound signal at the plurality of frequencies; and a gain processor configured for determining gain values at respective frequencies of the plurality of frequencies based on the ITE signal magnitudes and the BTE signal magnitudes.