Cochlear implant

US10668272B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignees

• MEDIZINISCHE HOCHSCHULE HANNOVER · DE
• GOTTFRIED WILHELM LEIBNIZ UNIVERSITÄT HANNOVER · DE

Inventors

• Holger Blume · Großburgwedel, DE
• Wolfgang Ertmer · Garbsen, DE
• Thomas Lenarz · Hannover, DE
• Andrej Kral · Hannover, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Jul 27, 2016
• Grant date: Jun 2, 2020
• Expiry date: Jan 23, 2037

Classification

• Technology area (CPC H): Electricity
• CPC primary: H02J2310/23
• WIPO field: Medical technology
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

A cochlear implant of a cochlear implant system is described. The cochlear implant comprises electrodes which are mechanically connected to one another and can be inserted in a row in the form of a spiral into a cochlea in order for auditory nerve receptors to be stimulated, a control circuit that can specifically apply electric pulses to the individual electrodes, and an energy source. The control circuit allows the electrodes to be fed in a pulsed manner with electric signals generated by a processor from the acoustic signals, and auditory nerve receptors adjacent to the electrodes to be stimulated. The electrodes are components of modules, each of which comprises its own decoder-and-control circuit for decoding module addresses and stimulation signals and generating electric pulses for the electrodes. Encoded module addresses and stimulation signals generated from acoustic signals are applied to inputs of the decoder-and-control circuit.