Figure 1. Compensation for magnitude and phase distortion of amplified output in the ear canal. Key: HRTF= head related transfer function; ITF=insertion transfer function.
Hearing aid patents continue to offer excitement, especially for audiophiles in pursuit of “natural” sound. The simple act of sticking something in the ear, whether occluding or not, has measurable effects at the ear drum. Patent #9769575 looks at those effects with the intent of correcting distortions of magnitude and phase (Fig 1). Magnitude effects are something we’re familiar with in hearing aid R&D. Phase, not so much. As the inventors put it:
Many hearing aid devices compensate for the magnitude effects, but fail to adequately address phase distortion. The result is that users often complain that the sound is not natural and lacks directional cues important to the listening experience. Such complaints are particularly prevalent among musicians and professionals in the music industry, whose ears are trained to distinguish subtle differences but who require hearing aids to compensate for a partial loss of hearing.
Over Hill Over Dale
So much for sound. What about other ear functionalities? The external ear’s diverse geography invites invention and patent designs. The feature image (USPTO #D796686 ) shows an “ornamental design for the ear magnetic clip for ear acupressure and auricular therapy.” Designing minds might also want to tuck a battery or antennae into the clip.
Figure 2. What is it?
Design patents (those with “D” preceding the numbers) cover “ornamental appearances of a useful object,” leaving some or all of their methods of operation to viewers’ imaginations. For example, the inscrutable machine in Figure 2 for an “Ear Cleaning Device” (USPTO #D797293) gives no hint of how to navigate the berms and swales of an ear with this device.
Figure 3. What does it do?
“Ear Wing” (Figure 3, USPTO #9774963) has some explanation of function in the patent content. Ear Wings don’t take the ear airborne, but they may take the discomfort out of sticking something in your ear for long periods. The ear wing consists of a “deformable fixing portion” shaped like the antihelix of the ear, which connects to a sound device. The design in Figure 2 doesn’t look all that comfortable, but the patent assures that “even if the user wears the ear wing for long hours, he or she does not feel uncomfortable.”
The September Patent List of Ear Devices
|
Description |
Patent Number |
Assignee |
Issued |
|
Measurement apparatus for testing and calibrating bone-conduction vibrators |
Oticon Medical A/S |
9/05/2017 |
|
|
Hearing aid container |
Huit, Calvin (Meridian, ID) |
9/05/2017 |
|
|
Method of operating a binaural hearing aid system and a binaural hearing aid system |
Widex A/S (Lynge, DK) |
9/05/2017 |
|
|
Dynamic negotiation and discovery of hearing aid features and capabilities by fitting software to provide forward and backward compatibility |
Starkey Laboratories, Inc. (Eden Prairie, MN) |
9/05/2017 |
|
|
Rate and place of stimulation matched to instantaneous frequency |
Med-El Elektromedizinische Geraete GmbH (Innsbruck, AT) |
9/05/2017 |
|
|
Determination of neuronal action potential amplitude based on multidimensional differential geometry |
Med-El Elektromedizinische Geraete GmbH (Innsbruck, AT) |
9/05/2017 |
|
|
Ear magnetic clip for ear acupressure and auricular therapy application |
Internicola, Paolo (Leesburg, VA) |
9/05/2017 |
|
|
Passive noise-cancellation of an in-ear headset module |
Cotron Corp (Taipei, TW) |
9/12/2017 |
|
|
Ear cleaning device |
Nupur Technologies, LLC (Buffalo, NY) |
9/12/2017 |
|
|
Audio control using auditory event detection |
Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corp (San Francisco, CA) |
9/12/2017 |
|
|
Hearing instrument with T-coil |
Sonova AG (Staefa, CH) |
9/12/2017 |
|
|
Seamless connectivity between hearing aid and multiple devices |
Apple Inc. (Cupertino, CA) |
9/12/2017 |
|
|
Audio control using auditory event detection |
Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corp (San Francisco, CA) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Audio control using auditory event detection |
Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corp (San Francisco, CA) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Hearing device comprising an anti-feedback power down detector |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Magnitude and phase correction of a hearing device |
Meyer Sound Laboratories, Inc. (Berkeley, CA) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Method and system for providing hearing assistance to a user |
Sonova AG (Staefa, CH) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Hearing device and methods for wireless remote control of an appliance |
iHear Medical, Inc. (San Leandro, CA) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Seamless connectivity between hearing aid and multiple devices |
Apple Inc. (Cupertino, CA) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Waterproof molded membrane for microphone |
Cochlear Limited (Macquarie University, NSW, AU) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Implant magnet insertion and removal tools |
Med-El Elektromedizinische Geraete GmbH (Innsbruck, AT) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Hearing aid |
IMHear Corp (Downers Grove, IL) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Hearing aid BTE |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Hearing aid BTE |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
9/19/2017 |
|
|
Diffuse noise listening |
GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) |
9/26/2017 |
|
|
Audio control using auditory event detection |
Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corp (San Francisco, CA) |
9/26/2017 |
|
|
Hearing assistance device ear-to-ear communication using an intermediate device |
Starkey Laboratories, Inc. (Eden Prairie, MN) |
9/26/2017 |
|
|
Shell for a hearing device |
Sonova AG (Staefa, CH) |
9/26/2017 |
|
|
PIM housing |
Sonova AG (Staefa, CH) |
9/26/2017 |
|
|
Method for fitting a hearing device as well as an arrangement for fitting the hearing device |
Sonova AG (Staefa, CH) |
9/26/2017 |
|
|
Electrical cochlear stimulation system and method |
Advanced Bionics AG (Staefa, CH) |
9/26/2017 |
|
|
Switching hearing implant coding strategies |
Med-El Elektromedizinische Geraete GmbH (Innsbruck, AT) |
9/26/2017 |
|
|
In-ear speaker hybrid audio transparency system |
Apple Inc. (Cupertino, CA) |
9/26/2017 |
|
|
Ear bud stabilizer |
BPLUGZ, LLC (Naples, FL) |
9/26/2017 |
|
|
Ear-wing |
Han, Seung Kwan (Anyang-si, KR) |
9/26/2017 |
