This month’s patent crop once again drives home the impression that hearing aids are only one version of innovative tinkering around the ear. Consider GN Hearing’s interesting patent #10327071, intriguingly entitled “Head-wearable hearing device.”
Consider that title: where else but the head would a hearing device go? And why device instead of hearing aid?
Words Matter
GN is in step with a growing trend to refer to things in the ear as devices rather than hearing aids (see image below). Hearing Economics itself switched “device” for “hearing aid” a few years back when it became evident that the patents were using the ear space for a variety of multi-tasking application, only one being to amplify sound for persons with hearing loss.
This is not symantic silliness or a woke response1 in the tech industry. It’s a recognition of expanding functionality and technological opportunity that has been a long time in coming.
Marjorie Skafte, the venerated editor of Hearing Instruments and then Hearing Review, went on the stump almost 40 years ago to advocate adoption of “hearing instrument” instead of hearing aid. By changing our words, she reasoned that we would change our thinking and could influence the market as to what was possible with devices at the ear.
It is a pleasure to see Marge’s vision begin to manifest in the technology sector all these years later. It will be interesting to see how the evolving vision plays out at retail and in healthcare regulation in coming years.
|
Description |
Patent Number |
Assignee |
Issued |
|
Pyrazolopyridazines and methods for treating retinal-degenerative diseases and hearing loss associated with usher syndrome |
Usher III Initiative Inc. (Chicago, IL) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Methods and systems for neural stimulation via visual, auditory and peripheral nerve stimulations |
Cognito Therapeutics Inc. (Newton, MA) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Methods for generating the inner ear and other cranial placode-derived tissues using pluripotent stem cells |
Indiana University Research & Technology Corporation (Indianapolis, IN) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Portable listening device system |
Apple Inc. (Cupertino, CA) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Audio accelerometric feedback through bilateral ear worn device system and method |
Bragi GmbH (Munchen, DE) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Wearable device charger |
Bragi GmbH (Munchen, DE) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Hearing device and monitoring system thereof |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Method for suppressing feedback in a hearing instrument and hearing instrument |
Sivantos Pte. Ltd. (Singapore, SG) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Hearing device and a method of selecting an optimal transceiver channel in a wireless network |
GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Binaurally coordinated frequency translation in hearing assistance devices |
Starkey Laboratories Inc. (Eden Prairie, MN) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Hearing system, devices and method of securing communication for a user application |
GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Hearing device including antenna unit |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Image and audio based characterization of a human auditory system for personalized audio reproduction |
EmbodyVR Inc. (San Mateo, CA) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Wearable electronic device that corrects errors where a user hears binaural sound |
Applicants: Lyren, Philip Scott (Bangkok, TH) & Norris, Glen A (Tokyo, JP) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Ear hook |
Shenzhen Ginto E-commerce Co. Ltd. (Shenzhen, CN) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Wearable microphone |
Point Source Audio Inc. (Petaluma, CA) |
6/04/2019 |
|
|
Hearing device with communication logging and related method |
GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
Hearing aid and hearing-aid charging system |
Nitto Denko Corporation (Ibaraki-shi, JP) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
Ear device for fixing earphone |
Applicant: Lee, Seung Chul (Seo-gu Daegu, KR) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
Automated scanning for hearing aid parameters |
GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
Hearing device comprising a filterbank and an onset detector |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
Hearing assistance device eavesdropping on a bluetooth data stream |
Starkey Laboratories Inc. (Eden Prairie, MN) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
Adjustable elliptical polarization phasing and amplitude weighting for a hearing instrument |
Starkey Laboratories Inc. (Eden Prairie, MN) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
Hearing instrument with power supply unit, and power supply unit for a hearing instrument |
Sivantos Pte. Ltd. (Singapore, SG) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
External component with inductance and mechanical vibratory functionality |
Cochlear Limited (Macquarie University, AU) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
Hearing device shell with guide structure |
GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
Method and apparatus for controlling a hearing instrument to relieve tinitus, hyperacusis, and hearing loss |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
6/11/2019 |
|
|
System and application for auditory guidance and signaling |
GM Global Technology Operations LLC (Detroit, MI) |
6/18/2019 |
|
|
Head-wearable hearing device |
GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) |
6/18/2019 |
|
|
Hearing aid comprising a directional microphone system |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
6/18/2019 |
|
|
Hearing aid device with integrated antenna |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
6/18/2019 |
|
|
Method of manufacturing hearing devices |
Sonova AG (Staefa, CH) |
6/18/2019 |
|
|
Wearable audio component |
Harman International Industries Inc. (Northridge, CA) |
6/18/2019 |
|
|
Hearing aid |
GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) |
6/18/2019 |
|
|
Hearing protection headset |
Tasco Corporation (Riverside, RI) |
6/18/2019 |
|
|
Detecting neuronal action potentials using a sparse signal representation |
MED-EL Elektromedizinische Geraete GmbH (Innsbruck, AT) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Notification and activation system utilizing onboard sensors of wireless earpieces |
Bragi GmbH (Munchen, DE) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Real-time multivariable biometric analysis and display system and method |
Bragi GmbH (Munchen, DE) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Controlling ear stimulation in response to image analysis |
Elwha LLC (Bellevue, WA) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Microphone for a hearing aid |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Signal processor for a hearing device and method for operating a hearing device |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Method for feedback suppression |
Sivantos Pte. Ltd. (Singapore, SG) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Hearing device including an external antenna part and an internal antenna part |
Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Prosthetic adapter |
Cochlear Limited (Macquarie University, AU) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Standard attachment for a standard earpiece and standard earpiece |
Sivantos Pte. Ltd. (Singapore, SG) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Hearing system with user-specific programming |
KOJ Institut fuer Gehoertherapie AG (Zurich, CH) |
6/25/2019 |
|
|
Hearing Aid |
GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) |
6/25/2019 |
Footnotes
1Talk about symantic sillness.
Holly Hosford-Dunn, PhD, owned and operated a dispensing audiology practice in Tucson and was active in management of HearingHealthMatters.org through 2017. She holds BA degrees in Communication Sciences, Psychology and Economics; MA in Communication Disorders; PhD in Hearing Sciences. Following post-doctoral work at Max Planck Institute (Munich, DE) and Eaton-Peabody Auditory Physiology Lab (Boston), she joined the Stanford medical school faculty as director of audiology. She has authored/edited numerous text books, chapters, journals, and articles and taught Marketing and Practice Management in a variety of academic settings. She continues to consult and write on topics related to hearing health care vis-à-vis consumer demands, professional training, technological advancement, capital investment, industry consolidation, regulatory control, product and service distribution, and strategic pricing.
**featured image via Sivantos, Patent #10321246
