Ear Device Variety
The January 2022 patent post highlighted sensors loaded onto ear devices. For those interested in more on sensors, see Sonova’s patent #11240611 in this month’s list, which provides a good summary of sensor types and applications under development.
Nocira’s patent #11246793, entitled Ear Pumps, describes a treatment device [that] can utilize specific patterns of pressure applied to an ear… to reduce headache pain of individual users.
Apple’s patent #112525A18 describes an audio output signal … played by an audio output device to deliver speech or music that the user perceives clearly, despite the hearing loss of the user.
The February 2022 Patent List
| Description | Patent Number | Assignee | Issued |
| Multichannel optogenetic stimulation and inhibition | 11235149 | MED-EL Elektromedizinische Geraete GmbH (Innsbruck, AT) | 2/01/2022 |
| Cochlear implant leads and methods of making the same | 11235150 | Advanced Bionics AG (Staefa, CH) | 2/01/2022 |
| Method for inductive charging of a rechargeable hearing instrument | 11239681 | GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) | 2/01/2022 |
| Device for providing a hearing aid user guide and related method | 11240608 | GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) | 2/01/2022 |
| Rate matching algorithm and independent device synchronization | 11240610 | Earlens Corporation (Menlo Park, CA) Corporation | 2/01/2022 |
| Hearing device comprising a sensor unit and a communication unit, communication system comprising the hearing device, and method for its operation | 11240611 | Sonova AG (Staefa, CH) | 2/01/2022 |
| Miniature hearing instrument configured for positioning at least partially in bony region of ear canal | 11240612 | Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) | 2/01/2022 |
| Bone conduction implant | 11240613 | Cochlear Limited (Macquarie University, AU) | 2/01/2022 |
| Method of sealing a module and a hearing device | 11240614 | Sonova AG (Staefa, CH) | 2/01/2022 |
| Apparatuses for coupling to hearing aids | 11240615 | Applicant: Szmanda, Jeffrey P (Big Bend, WI) | 2/01/2022 |
| Method and system for adjusting a hearing device to personal preferences and needs of a user | 11240616 | Sonova AG (Staefa, CH) | 2/01/2022 |
| Methods for making spatial microphone subassemblies, recording system and method for recording left and right ear sounds for use in virtual reality playback | 11240620 | Applicant: Hamm, Russel O (New York, NY) | 2/01/2022 |
| Wireless earbud | D942423 | Google LLC (Mountain View, CA) | 2/01/2022 |
| Ear plug | D942610 | Ear Labs AB (Malmo, SE) | 2/01/2022 |
| Audio device comprising a microphone | RE48921 | Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) | 2/01/2022 |
| Evaluation of an implanted prosthesis | 11241193 | Cochlear Limited (Macquarie University, AU) | 2/08/2022 |
| Hearing device with own-voice detection and related method | 11244699 | GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) | 2/08/2022 |
| Hearing device with active vent click compensation | 11245973 | GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) | 2/08/2022 |
| Hearing aid for placement in a user’s ear canal | 11245989 | GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) | 2/08/2022 |
| Body temperature hearing aid | 11245990 | Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) | 2/08/2022 |
| Determining impedance-related phenomena in vibrating actuator and identifying device system characteristics based thereon | 11245991 | Cochlear Limited (Macquarie University, AU) | 2/08/2022 |
| Method of testing microphone performance of a hearing aid system and a hearing aid system | 11245992 | Widex A/S (Lynge, DK) | 2/08/2022 |
| Hearing device comprising a noise reduction system | 11245993 | Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) | 2/08/2022 |
| Hearing device with an antenna | 11245994 | GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) | 2/08/2022 |
| Earmold with closing element for vent | 11245995 | GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) | 2/08/2022 |
| Apparatus and method for treating a neurological disorder of the auditory system | 11245996 | Neuromod Devices Limited (Dublin, IE) | 2/08/2022 |
| Ear pumps | 11246793 | Nocira LLC (Tempe, AZ) | 2/15/2022 |
| Sound classification system for hearing aids | 11250878 | Starkey Laboratories Inc (Eden Prairie, MN) | 2/15/2022 |
| Systems and methods for wirelessly transmitting power and data to an implantable stimulator | 11251660 | Advanced Bionics AG (Staefa, CH) bionics | 2/15/2022 |
| Hearing device and earphone | 11252493 | Rion Co Ltd (Tokyo, JP) | 2/15/2022 |
| Hearing protection device with passive ear protectors | 11252496 | GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) | 2/15/2022 |
| Coupling apparatuses for transcutaneous bone conduction devices | 11252514 | Cochlear Limited (Macquarie University, AU) | 2/15/2022 |
| Hearing device and a hearing system comprising a multitude of adaptive two channel beamformers | 11252515 | Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) | 2/15/2022 |
| Adjustable venting for hearing instruments | 11252516 | Earlens Corporation (Menlo Park, CA) | 2/15/2022 |
| Assistive listening device and human-computer interface using short-time target cancellation for improved speech intelligibility | 11252517 | Applicant Cantu, Marcos Antonio (Rancho Viejo, TX) | 2/15/2022 |
| Media system and method of accommodating hearing loss | 11252518 | Apple Inc (Cupertino, CA) | 2/15/2022 |
| Hearing device with embedded integrated circuit chips | 11252519 | GN Hearing A/S (Ballerup, DK) | 2/15/2022 |
| Subcutaneous microphone having a central pillar | 11252520 | Cochlear Limited (Macquarie University, AU) | 2/15/2022 |
| Modular connection assembly for a hearing assistance device | 11252521 | Starkey Laboratories Inc (Eden Prairie, MN) | 2/15/2022 |
| Utilization of vocal acoustic biomarkers for assistive listening device utilization | 11253193 | Cochlear Limited (Macquarie University, AU) | 2/22/2022 |
| System for bilateral in-ear EEG recording with closed-loop binaural sensory stimulation | 11253674 | ICM (Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Epini Re, APHP (Assistance Publique-Hopitaux de Paris, Sorbonne Universite, & INSERM (Institut National de la Sante et de la Recherche Medicale) (Paris, FR) | 2/22/2022 |
| In-ear earphone | 11259109 | Luxshare Precision Industry Co Ltd (Shenzhen, CN) | 2/22/2022 |
| Hearing device adapted to provide an estimate of a user’s own voice | 11259127 | Oticon A/S (Smorum, DK) | 2/22/2022 |
| Hearing aid system and a method for operating a hearing aid system | 11259128 | Sonova AG (Staefa, CH) | 2/22/2022 |
| Sliding bias and peak limiting for optical hearing devices | 11259129 | Earlens Corporation (Menlo Park, CA) | 2/22/2022 |
| Hearing assistive system with sensors | 11259130 | Widex A/S (Lynge, DK) | 2/22/2022 |
| Hearing aid implant recharging system | 11259131 | Nanoear Corporation Inc (Houston, TX) | 2/22/2022 |
| Ear-mountable listening device having a ring-shaped microphone array for beamforming | 11259139 | Iyo Inc (Redwood City, CA) | 2/22/2022 |
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.
