WIRELESS NETWORK PROTOCOL FOR A HEARING SYSTEM

• US 20100158292A1
• Filed: 01/13/2009
• Published: 06/24/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GN Resound A/S (GN Store Nord A/S)
• Original Assignee: GN Resound A/S (GN Store Nord A/S)
• Inventors: Pedersen, Brian Dam
• Granted Patent: US 8,194,902 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 381/315
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/55 using an external connection, either wireless or wired
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/552 Binaural
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/554 using a wireless connection, e.g. between microphone and amplifier or using Tcoils
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/558 Remote control, e.g. of amplification, frequency
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0216 using a pre-established activity schedule, e.g. traffic indication frame
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0229 where the received signal is a wanted signal
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A hearing system includes a first hearing instrument having a first receiver for wireless data communication with a device in a wireless network, and a first communication controller that is configured for controlling the wireless data communication in accordance with a protocol of the wireless network according to which, a transmitter of the device is controlled to transmit wireless data in a specific time slot in a frame of time slots, and the first receiver of the first hearing instrument is repeatedly enabled to receive data for an activated time period and disabled from receiving data for a de-activated time period, wherein the first communication controller is further configured for synchronising the first hearing instrument to the device in the wireless network by adjusting a sum of the activated time period and the de-activated time period to be different from a duration of the frame so that the specific time slot for the transmission of data by the transmitter and the activated time period will overlap at one time.

Claims

1. A hearing system comprising:

a first hearing instrument having

a first receiver for wireless data communication with a device in a wireless network, and

a first communication controller that is configured for controlling the wireless data communication in accordance with a protocol of the wireless network according to which,

a transmitter of the device is controlled to transmit wireless data in a specific time slot in a frame of time slots, and

the first receiver of the first hearing instrument is repeatedly enabled to receive data for an activated time period and disabled from receiving data for a de-activated time period;

wherein the first communication controller is further configured for synchronising the first hearing instrument to the device in the wireless network by adjusting a sum of the activated time period and the de-activated time period to be different from a duration of the frame so that the specific time slot for the transmission of data by the transmitter and the activated time period will overlap at one time.

2. The hearing system according to claim 1, wherein the first communication controller is further configured for adjusting the sum of the activated period and the de-activated time period to be equal to the duration of the frame upon reception of data by the first hearing instrument from the device.

3. The hearing system according to claim 1, wherein the first communication controller is configured for synchronising the first hearing instrument to the device in the network by adjusting the sum of the activated time period and the de-activated time period to be longer than the duration of the frame so that the time slot for transmission of data and the activated time period will overlap at the one time.

4. The hearing system according to claim 1, wherein the first hearing instrument further has a transmitter for wireless data communication, the transmitter of the first hearing instrument being a first transmitter, and the transmitter of the device being a second transmitter, and wherein the device is a second hearing instrument comprising

a second receiver and the second transmitter for wireless data communication between the first and second hearing instrument in the wireless network, and

a second communication controller that is configured for controlling the wireless data communication in accordance with the protocol of the wireless network, and

wherein, upon synchronization of the first hearing instrument with the second hearing instrument in the network, the first communication controller and the second communication controller are configured for alternating transmission of synchronisation data in the network, thereby forming a dual master network.

5. The hearing system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the first communication controller and the second communication controller is configured for controlling the respective one of the first transmitter and the second transmitter to transmit synchronisation data repetitively at a first rate, and upon receipt of a message indicating a synchronisation of the first hearing instrument and the device, to transmit synchronisation data repetitively at a second rate that is lower than the first rate.

6. The hearing system according to claim 4, wherein the first communication controller is configured for controlling the first receiver and the first transmitter for selective operation in a plurality of frequency channels, and the second communication controller is configured for controlling the second receiver and the second transmitter for selective operation in the plurality of frequency channels.

7. The hearing system according to claim 4, wherein the first communication controller is configured to operate the first receiver and the first transmitter according to a frequency hopping scheme, and the second communication controller is configured to operate the second receiver and second transmitter according to the frequency hopping scheme.

8. The hearing system according to claim 7, wherein the frequency hopping scheme allows the hearing instruments in the network to calculate what frequency channel the network will use at any given point in time without relying on a history of the network.

9. The hearing system according to claim 6, wherein before the synchronisation of the first hearing instrument with the second hearing instrument in the network,

the first communication controller is configured for performing frequency hopping at a first frequency hopping rate, and

the second communication controller is configured for performing frequency hopping at a second frequency hopping rate different from the first frequency hopping rate so that the first and second hearing instruments will perform data communication on a same one of the plurality of frequency channels.

10. The hearing system according to claim 9, wherein the first and second communication controller are configured for performing synchronous frequency hopping after the synchronisation of the first hearing instrument with the second hearing instrument in the network.

11. The hearing system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the first communication controller and the second communication controller is configured for

determining a delay between a receiver activation and an actual start of reception of data, and

adjusting a next receiver activation in accordance with the determined delay.

12. A method of communication between devices in a wireless network, comprising:

wirelessly transmitting data from a first device in the wireless network in a selected time slot in a frame of time slots;

enabling data reception for an activated time period and disabling data reception for a de-activated time period in a second device; and

synchronising the second device to the first device in the wireless network by adjusting the sum of the activated time period and the de-activated time period to be different from a duration of the frame so that the selected time slot for the transmission of data and the activated time period will overlap at one time.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising adjusting the sum of the activated period and the de-activated time period to be equal to the duration of the frame upon reception of data from the first device.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein the sum of the activated time period and the de-activated time period is adjusted to be longer than the duration of the frame.

15. The method according to claim 12, further comprising alternating transmission of synchronisation data from the first and the second devices in the network to thereby form a dual master network.

16. The method according to claim 12, further comprising transmitting synchronisation data repetitively at a first rate before synchronisation of the second device with the first device, and transmitting synchronisation data at a second rate that is lower than the first rate upon synchronisation of the second device with the first device.

17. The method according to claim 12, wherein the act of transmitting the data is performed sequentially in a plurality of frequency channels.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the act of transmitting the data is performed according to a frequency hopping scheme.

19. The method according to claim 18, further comprising calculating a next frequency channel to be used in the wireless network independent of a previous sequence of frequency channels used.

20. The method according to claim 17, further comprising, before synchronisation of the second device with the first device in the network, performing frequency hopping at a first frequency hopping rate in the first device, and performing frequency hopping at a second frequency hopping rate in the second device;

wherein the second frequency hopping rate is and different from the first frequency hopping rate.

21. The method according to claim 20, further comprising performing synchronous frequency hopping in the first and second devices after synchronisation of the devices.

22. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

determining a delay between a receiver activation and an actual start of reception of data; and

adjusting a next receiver activation in accordance with the determined delay.