Somatosensory Feedback Device for Speech Perception
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current sound-to-touch sensory substitution devices are inadequate for deaf individuals as they are costly, invasive, and limited in effectiveness, particularly for adults who have been deaf since birth, and fail to provide accurate and high-information rate auditory substitution.
Innovation Solution
A wearable somatosensation feedback device using signal processing and tactile interface devices, such as a vest with vibrating or motion-based feedback, that employs low bitrate audio compression algorithms like Discrete Cosine Transform to transform and map audio signals into tactile sensations, enabling deaf individuals to interpret skin sensations as audible speech and sounds.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If cochlear implants are used to provide auditory perception, then hearing function is restored, but the solution becomes expensive and requires invasive surgery
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical/surgical cochlear implant system with a sensory substitution device that uses tactile feedback through the skin. Instead of implanting electrodes in the cochlea, the invention uses external transducers to convert audio signals into tactile sensations that can be perceived through skin contact, thereby avoiding invasive surgery while providing hearing assistance
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces tactile sensation as an intermediary medium to transmit audio information. Rather than directly stimulating the auditory nerve through implants, the system uses the skin as an intermediary to convey processed audio signals through vibrations and tactile patterns, making the hearing assistance non-invasive
2Adaptability or versatility
If band-pass filtering and solenoid-based tactile feedback are used in sound-to-touch devices, then audio signals are converted to tactile sensations, but the representation becomes inaccurate due to aliasing noise and limited bandwidth
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs dynamic frequency adjustment where the tactile feedback frequency is modulated based on the audio signal characteristics. Instead of using fixed-frequency solenoids, the system varies the vibration frequency dynamically to match the temporal patterns of speech and audio signals, eliminating aliasing noise and improving fidelity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent expands the tactile feedback from simple vibration intensity to multi-dimensional stimulation including frequency modulation, pattern variation, and spatial distribution across multiple contact points. This dimensional expansion allows accurate representation of complex audio signals beyond the limitations of single-frequency solenoids
3Device complexity
If fixed-frequency solenoids are used for tactile feedback, then the device structure is simple, but aliasing noise occurs and the bandwidth is insufficient for high-throughput data
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the operating parameters of the tactile actuators from fixed frequency to variable frequency operation. The system dynamically adjusts vibration frequency, amplitude, and temporal patterns to encode audio information accurately, transforming the actuators from simple on/off devices into high-bandwidth communication channels
4Device complexity
If sound-to-touch devices are designed for low-bandwidth applications, then the device complexity is reduced, but the information rate is insufficient for full auditory substitution
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the audio signal into multiple frequency bands and maps each band to different tactile contact points or vibration patterns. This segmentation allows parallel transmission of multiple audio channels through the tactile interface, dramatically increasing the information rate while maintaining manageable device complexity through modular signal processing
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 device provides a cost-effective, non-invasive hearing substitution solution that overcomes temporal limitations of skin-based perception, allowing deaf adults to perceive auditory information and other data through somatosensation, without the need for invasive surgery, and can be configured to convey various types of information like news or message notifications.
Implementation Method 1
tactile interface devices (e.g., vibrating or motion-based feedback)
Data Source
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AI summary
This invention describes a wearable device (100) which relies on an array of tactile interfaces (108) (such as vibration motors), and a methodological framework for sending high-bandwidth information through the skin in such a way that relevant information is able to work with the skin's sensory limitations. One example application provides speech perception to deaf individuals. The general term for mapping information from one sense to another is sensory substitution. Here, we describe a device and methodological framework for sound-to-touch sensory substitution device that can enable speech perception. This includes a guiding framework to capture relevant information while obeying physiological constraints of the skin. We also describe how the uses of the device can be generalized to other applications-for example, using vibrational patterns on the skin to encode real-time data streams from the Internet, such as stock market data, or weather data.