Adaptive, programmable signal processing and filtering for hearing aids
US5027410A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 10, 1988 |
| Grant date | Jun 25, 1991 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 10, 2008 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04R2430/03
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A hearing aid system utilizes digital signal processing to correct for the hearing deficit of a particular user and to maximize the intelligibility of the desired audio signal relative to noise. An analog signal from a microphone is converted to digital data which is operated on by a digital signal processor, with the output of the digital signal processor being converted back to an analog signal which is amplified and provided to the user. The digital signal processor includes a time varying spectral filter having filter coefficients which can be varied on a quasi-real time basis to spectrally shape the signal to match the hearing deficit of the user and to accommodate ambient signal and noise levels. The coefficients of the spectral filter are determined by estimating the energy in several frequency bands within the frequency range of the input signal, and using those energy estimates to calculate desired gains for the frequency bands and corresponding spectral filter coefficients. The spectral energy analysis may be carried out using pairs of high pass and low pass digital filters in cascade relation, with the output of each low pass filter being provided to the next pair of hig…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.