Smart Hearing Aids

By
Surya Ravindra Mallajosyula

Introduction and teachers

Hearing empowers us and helps us lead our • Use the phone

everyday lives without limitations. It enables
us to socialize, work and communicate. It
also helps us to stay connected to the outside
world and it keeps us safe by warning us of
potential danger.
In this report we will discuss the types of
hearing losses, Importance of hearing aids
and their basic function, hearing aids
available in current world, digital hearing
aids and implant hearing aids for extreme
hearing loss.
Types of Hearing Losses
There are 4 types of hearing losses
• Conductive- Sound is not transmitted
efficiently from the outer ear to the
cochlea.
• Sensorineural: Hearing loss due to
damage to the cochlea or nerve
endings in the inner ear.
• Mixed: Combination of Conductive
and Sensorineural hearing loss.
• Unilateral hearing: Hearing in one
ear, Hearing loss in the other.
• Listen to and even play music
• Achieve employment and pursue a career
in more efficient way
• Engage fully with the hearing world
How does a Hearing Aid Work
The microphone in the hearing aid picks up
sound and sends it to the amplifier where it
makes it louder. These impulses are sent to
the brain where they are perceived as sound.
Motion transferred to the cochlea fluids is
converted into electrical impulses by tiny
hair cells inside the cochlea. The receiver of
the hearing aid sends the amplified sound
down the ear canal, causing the eardrum and
the middle ear bones to vibrate.

Why Hearing Aids are

important Fig 1. Important Components of a Microphone

Hearing is the most essential part of our life.

To enjoy life to full extent a good hearing is
necessary and the following are some of the
important and essential functional things of
a hearing aid.
• Converse confidently with family, friends
Digital Hearing Aids
There are multiple types on digital hearing
aids available in market. They can be
classified as below.
Wearable Aids:
Depending on the types of hearing loss,
doctor advice their patients, the type of
hearing aid which best suits them. The
following are some of the hearing aids
available in the current market.
Behind the ear (BTE) : BTE instruments
have a plastic casing that rests behind the ear
and houses the device's technology. A clear
plastic tube then directs amplified sound into
an ear mold inside the ear canal.
Receiver In Canal (RIC): The receiver-in-
the-canal device is small, discreet, and
incredibly quick to fit; perfect for many
first-time wearers.
In The Ear (ITE): Smaller, in-the-ear
instruments house their technology
components in a custom-formed ear mold
that fits within the outer portion of the ear.
Completely In Canal (CIC): These devices
fit completely in the canal. Only the head of
a tiny plastic line with which you insert or
remove the instrument shows above the
canal.
In The Canal (ITC): In-the-canal
instruments are smaller still, featuring an ear
mold that fits down into the ear canal and a
smaller portion that faces out into the outer
ear and uses REED Sensors.
Every hearing aids have different pros and
cons and depending upon the wearers
comfort, type of hearing loss and intensity of
the hearing problem (i.e.,
mild/moderate/severe), the wearers can
choose the style of the hearing aid which
works best for them. All these above hearing
aids don’t require a surgery and people can
simply wear from outside.
Latest technology available in
the hearing aids
The following is one of the smart hearing
aid available in the current market and it is
developed by company called Phonak,
which is headquartered in Switzerland.
These smart hearing aids come with a
technology called Auto Sense OS
technology and Binaural Voice Stream
Technology.
Auto Sense OS
Autosense OS is the automatic OS
(Operating system) that provides improved
sound recognition in listening situations by
analyzing the sounds in real time and
automatically activating an appropriate
blend of optimized gain settings, programs
and features specific to various listening
environments. Autosense identifies listening
situations with accuracy and adapts with
precision. Also this OS comes with 200
different programs inbuilt and whenever a
person wearing this smart hearing aid enters
a restaurant, movie theater or even in car,
the hearing aid automatically sense the
environment and analyze the sound and
adjust accordingly. With this technology, the
wearers can enjoy a seamless life experience
and these smart aids can be controlled by an
app (phonak balance app) which can be
downloaded from app stores.

Fig 2. Products using Autosense OS
Implantable Hearing Aids
Implantable hearing aids are recommended
by the doctors to the people who are
profoundly deaf. These hearing aids require
surgery. Internal parts of the hearing aid are
placed inside the body (near to ear) and
external parts are outside the ear which help
to catch the sound.
Mostly commonly available implants are
Cochlear Implant and Bone-Anchored
Hearing Aid (BAHA).
Cochlear Implant
What is a cochlear implant?
A cochlear implant is an electronic medical
device that replaces the function of damaged
inner ear. These type of implants are
recommended to people who have a
Sensorineural type of hearing loss
Why are cochlear implants different?
Unlike hearing aids, cochlear implants don’t
just amplify sounds. They mimic the natural
hearing function of the inner ear through
electronic stimulation. The system has two
parts – an external sound processor and the
actual cochlear implant. Incoming sounds
are processed into electrical signals and then
transmitted directly to the hearing nerve,
bypassing the damaged parts of the inner
ear.
Fig 3: Parts of Cochlear Implant
How does cochlear implant work?
The external sound processor captures sound
and converts them into digital signals. These
signals are sent to the internal implant, via
the coil. The implant converts the signals to
electrical impulses and sends them along an
electrode array in the cochlea. The hearing
nerve delivers the signal to the brain, sound
is heard.
Bone-Anchored Hearing
Aid(BAHA):
What is BAHA?
BAHA is a surgically implanted medical
device to the people who have damaged
middle ear and has significant hearing loss.
This is recommended for the patients whose
cochlear is in working condition but having
problem with middle and outer ear (i.e.,
Conductive and Unilateral type of hearing
loss).
Due to this the sound from the environment
is not efficiently transferred to cochlea and
thus causing hearing loss.
How does BAHA implant work?
The BAHA is a bone conduction type
hearing aid and unlike conventional hearing
aids which depend on acoustic coupling
through air, this system is based on bone
conduction technology where the sound is
conducted through bone rather than the
middle ear.
This system consists of a sound processor
with small titanium fixture implanted in the
mastoid bone behind the ear. After minor
surgery, the Fixture protrudes through skin
so that the external processor can attached to
it.
The sound vibrations from the environment
are picked by the sound processer and these
vibrations (sound) are transferred to implant
inserted in the bone. Once these vibrations
received, those are transferred to inner ear
cochlea through bone conduction (where
they are converted into electrical impulses
by hair cells inside cochlea). These impulses
travel to the brain allowing the patient to
hear normally.
Fig 4. Bone Anchored Hearing Aid
Fig 5 . BAHA after surgery.
Conclusion
Current hearing aid technology with
its innovations better meet needs of
individuals who are hard of hearing
and helps to enjoy a seamless life
experience.
References
●
http://www.cochlear.com/wps/wcm/con
nect/f4054f12-fd1b-4757-9274-
5cdb07b1b072/CI+N34846+Answers+t
o+Your+Questions+_candidates+LR.pd
f?MOD=AJPERES&CONVERT_TO=u
rl&CACHEID=f4054f12-fd1b-4757-
9274-5cdb07b1b072
● http://www.horizonscanning.gov.au/inte
rnet/horizon/publishing.nsf/Content/878
61CF6758FF75ACA2575AD0080F348/
$File/BAHA%20v8_3.pdf
● https://www.phonakpro.com/us/en/a
bout-phonak/technologies/autosense-
os.html
● https://www.phonakpro.com/us/en/a
bout-phonak/technologies/binaural-
voicestream.html
● https://usa.bestsoundtechnology.com
/siemens-hearing-products/
● http://www.earassociates.com/servic
es-bone-anchored-hearing-aids-san-
jose-ca.html
● http://www.cochlear.com/wps/wcm/c
onnect/us/home/treatment-options-
for-hearing-loss
● https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cochlear_i
mplant
○