Personal device for hearing degradation monitoring

• US 10,540,994 B2
• Filed: 04/15/2019
• Issued: 01/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/13/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Dow, Eli M., Fitzsimmons, Thomas D., Materise, Maurice M., Yu, Jessie
• Primary Examiner(s): Opsasnick, Michael N
• Application Number:
  US16/384,162
• Publication Number:
  US 20190244631A1
• Time in Patent Office: 281 Days
• Field of Search: 381314, 600300
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0002 Remote monitoring of patients using telemetry, e.g. transmission of vital signals via a communication network A61B5/07 takes precedence; transmission systems for measured values G08C; transmission H04B; transmission of digital information H04L; wireless communication networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/12 Audiometering
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/121 evaluating hearing capacity
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4842 Monitoring progression or stage of a disease
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/35 Discourse or dialogue representation
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/26 Speech to text systems G10L15/08 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 17/04 Training, enrolment or model building
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 25/66 for extracting parameters related to health condition detecting or measuring for diagnostic purposes A61B5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 25/90 Pitch determination of speech signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/505 using digital signal processing
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/554 using a wireless connection, e.g. between microphone and amplifier or using Tcoils
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/70 Adaptation of deaf aid to hearing loss, e.g. initial electronic fitting

Abstract

Aspects relate to computer implemented methods and systems for monitoring a user'"'"'s hearing and comprehension. The methods and systems include receiving, by an audio capture device, a first audio input, receiving, by the audio capture device, a second audio input, converting the first and second audio inputs into respective first and second audio signals, transcribing the first and second audio signals into respective first and second transcriptions, analyzing, by a processor of the remote resource, the first and second transcriptions to determine if a content of the second transcription is related to a content of the first transcription to determine degradation of hearing of the user.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method to monitor a user'"'"'s hearing and comprehension, the method comprising:

receiving, by an audio capture device, a first audio input;

receiving, by the audio capture device, a second audio input, wherein the first audio input includes a voice of the user and wherein the second audio input includes a voice of a person having a conversation with the user;

converting the first and second audio inputs into respective first and second audio signals;

transcribing the first and second audio signals into respective first and second transcriptions;

analyzing the first and second transcriptions to determine if a content of the second transcription semantically matches a content of the first transcription, wherein the analysis includes an identification of cognitive breaks in the conversation between the user and the person and the identification of concepts within the content of the transcriptions to determine possible degradation of hearing of the user.

2. The computer implemented method of claim 1 wherein a determination that the content of the second transcription is not related to the content of the first transcription will indicate possible degradation of hearing of the user.

3. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising recording the analysis to track a hearing and comprehension ability of the user.

4. The computer implemented method of claim 3 further comprising transmitting the recorded analysis to a healthcare provider.

5. The computer implemented method of claim 1 wherein the audio capture device is a hearing aid.

6. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising transmitting the first and second audio signals to a remote resource wherein the remote resource is a smartwatch or a smart phone.

7. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising generating a notification indicating a loss of hearing or lack of understanding.

8. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising generating a user profile based on language usage by the user, pitch, tone, and cadence, wherein the user profile includes indicia to identify a voice of the user.

9. A system to monitor a user'"'"'s hearing and comprehension comprising:

an audio capture device;

a remote resource in communication with the audio capture device, the remote resource including a memory having computer readable instructions and a processor configured to execute the computer readable instructions, the computer readable instructions comprising;

receiving, by the audio capture device, a first audio input;

receiving, by the audio capture device, a second audio input, wherein the first audio input includes a voice of the user and wherein the second audio input includes a voice of a person having a conversation with the user;

converting the first and second audio inputs into respective first and second audio signals;

transmitting said first and second audio signals to the remote resource;

transcribing the first and second audio signals into respective first and second transcriptions;

analyzing the first and second transcriptions to determine if a content of the second transcription semantically matches a content of the first transcription, wherein the analysis includes an identification of cognitive breaks in the conversation between the user and the person and the identification of concepts within the content of the transcriptions to determine possible degradation of hearing of the user.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein a determination that the content of the second transcription is not related to the content of the first transcription will indicate possible degradation of hearing of the user.

11. The system of claim 9 wherein the computer readable instructions further comprise recording the analysis to track a hearing and comprehension ability of the user.

12. The system of claim 9 wherein the computer readable instructions further comprise transmitting the recorded analysis to a healthcare provider.

13. The system of claim 9 wherein the audio capture device is a hearing aid and the remote resource is a smartwatch or a smart phone.

14. The system of claim 9 wherein the computer readable instructions further comprise generating a notification indicating a loss of hearing or lack of understanding.

15. The system of claim 9 wherein the computer readable instructions further comprise generating a user profile based on language usage by the user, pitch, tone, and cadence, wherein the user profile includes indicia to identify a voice of the user.

16. The system of claim 9 wherein the computer readable instructions further comprise displaying at least the first transcription on a display of the remote device.

17. A computer program product to monitor a user'"'"'s hearing and comprehension, the computer program product comprising a remote resource having computer readable storage medium having program instructions embodied therewith and in communication with an audio capture device configured to capture a first audio input and a second audio input, wherein the first audio input includes a voice of the user and wherein the second audio input includes a voice of a person having a conversation with the user, and transmit a related first audio signal and a second audio signal to the remote resource, the program instructions executable by a processor to cause the processor to:

transcribe the first and second audio signals into respective first and second transcriptions;

analyze the first and second transcriptions to determine if a content of the second transcription semantically matches a content of the first transcription, wherein the analysis includes an identification of cognitive breaks in the conversation between the user and the person and the identification of concepts within the content of the transcriptions to determine possible degradation of hearing of the user.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, the processor further caused to record the analysis in the computer readable storage medium to track a hearing and comprehension ability of the user and to transmit the recorded analysis to a healthcare provider.

19. The computer program product of claim 17, the processor further caused to generate a notification indicating a loss of hearing or lack of understanding.

20. The computer program product of claim 17, the processor further caused to generate a user profile based on language usage by the user, pitch, tone, and cadence, wherein the user profile includes indicia to identify a voice of the user.