Remote Hearing Aid Profile Updates via Intermediary Service
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing hearing aids lack the ability to make real-time adjustments to audio processing based on the user's environment, limiting their effectiveness in varying listening conditions.
Innovation Solution
A system and method that allows hearing aid users to remotely communicate with a hearing aid profile service to update their hearing aid profiles in real-time, incorporating audio samples and meta-data to adjust audio processing characteristics such as noise cancellation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If hearing aid profiles are fixed during manufacturing or initial programming, then device complexity is reduced and reliability is improved, but adaptability to different listening environments deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
A remote hearing aid profile service acts as an intermediary between the hearing aid device and the user's listening environments. The service receives audio samples and metadata from the hearing aid, processes them to generate optimized profiles, and communicates updated profiles back to the device. This external intermediary enables complex adaptive processing without increasing the complexity of the hearing aid itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The hearing aid continuously captures and transmits audio samples and metadata to the remote profile service in advance. The service pre-processes this data and generates optimized profiles before they are needed, so that when the user enters a new listening environment, the updated profile is already ready for immediate application, enabling proactive adaptation rather than reactive adjustment.
2Adaptability or versatility
If real-time remote updates are implemented, then adaptability to listening environments is improved, but loss of time for data transmission and processing increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hearing aid continuously captures audio samples and metadata in the background without interrupting normal audio processing. The transmission to the remote service occurs continuously or at regular intervals, ensuring that data is always ready for processing. This continuous operation eliminates delays that would occur with periodic or on-demand sampling, enabling near-real-time profile updates.
Solution Approach 2:
Audio samples and metadata are captured and transmitted to the remote profile service in advance of when they are needed for profile generation. The service processes this data beforehand, so that when environmental changes occur, the updated profile is already prepared and can be applied immediately, minimizing the perceived delay for the user.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple audio processing programs are provided, then adaptability to different environments is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to complex program selection
Solution Approach 1:
The hearing aid system automatically performs the function of program selection by analyzing audio samples and metadata from the listening environment. The remote profile service generates appropriate profiles based on this analysis, and the system automatically applies the most suitable profile without requiring the user to manually select from multiple programs. This self-service approach eliminates the complexity of program selection while maintaining adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses feedback from audio sample analysis and metadata to automatically determine which profile is most appropriate for the current environment. The remote service continuously monitors the effectiveness of applied profiles and adjusts selections based on this feedback, replacing manual program selection with intelligent, context-aware automatic selection that simplifies operation.
Data Source
AI summary
A hearing aid profile is updated by sending a hearing aid profile update request to a hearing aid profile service, receiving the updated hearing aid profile from the hearing aid profile service, and replacing the current hearing aid profile in the hearing aid with the updated hearing aid profile. Other aspects are also described and claimed.