SBIR-STTR Award

The long term objective of this research is to improve hearing aids in environments with noise and reverberation. The approach is to develop a hearing aid accessory which makes traditional hearing aids much more sensitive to sounds coming from the look direction than to sounds coming from the side and rear. A 3-microphone array with signal processing to produce a directional sensitivity in the look direction 10 to 12 db greater than broadside and rear directions has been devised. The plan will improve the circuit and to build 6 experimental models. Clinical methods for determining the efficacy of directional hearing aids will be devised. In Phase I the experimental models will be pilot tested with moderate and severely hearing impaired subiects in a variety of signal and noise environments and these results will be used to design and Implement full scale clinical trials in Phase II.Awardee's statement of the potential commercial applications of the research:The potential commercial application of the research is as an electronic accessory product which enhances the directivity of hearing aids. The market is expected to be a large segment of the existing hearing aid market. In addition, the objective of the proposed device Is to significantly improve the performance of hearing aids in environments with noise and reverberation, which should expand the hearing aid market.National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)

The research objective is to develop a hearing aid accessory (called the Array) which improves performance in environments with noise and reverberation. The approach is to process signals from an array of microphones so that sounds coming from the look direction are emphasized relative to sounds coming from the sides and rear. The Phase II plan is to develop techniques for measuring the patient benefit the Array provides in reducing noise, reverberation, and feedback, to improve and finalize the Array and circuit designs, to develop techniques for fitting the Array in clinical applications, to reduce the entire circuit to a single custom analog chip, to develop packaging that is easy to wear and attractive, and to conduct field tests with moderate to severely impaired patients at the House Ear Institute and the Golden State Audiology Associates. Modifications needed for children and patients with cochlear implants will be investigated. Information for the field tests will be used to establish commercial potential and capital commitments for Phase III. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: The potential commercial application of the research is as an electronic accessory product which enhances the directivity of hearing aids. The market is expected to be a large segment of the existing hearing aid market. In addition, the objective of the proposed device is to significantly improve the performance of hearing aids in environments with noise and reverberation, which should expand the hearing aid market.

Thesaurus Terms:
biomedical equipment development, hearing aid noise, sensory signal detection clinical research, human subject