Adaptive Data Rate for a Bilateral Hearing Prosthesis System

• US 20130308804A1
• Filed: 05/15/2012
• Published: 11/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cochlear Limited
• Original Assignee: Cochlear Limited
• Inventors: Meskens, Werner
• Granted Patent: US 9,020,169 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 381/315
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/552 Binaural

Abstract

Methods, systems, and devices for determining a data rate for a communication between bilateral hearing prostheses are disclosed. A first hearing prosthesis transmits a first signal to a second hearing prosthesis during a first transmission interval. The second hearing prosthesis transmits a second signal to the first hearing prosthesis during a second transmission interval. The first signal includes an indication of a data rate for the second signal.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

determining, by a first hearing prosthesis, a date rate for communications between the first hearing prosthesis and the second hearing prosthesis during a second transmission interval based on an acoustic environment in which the first hearing prosthesis and the second hearing prosthesis operate;

transmitting a first signal from the first hearing prosthesis to the second hearing prosthesis during a first transmission interval that includes an indication of the data rate for the second transmission interval; and

transmitting a second signal from the second hearing prosthesis to the first hearing prosthesis during the second transmission interval, wherein the second hearing prosthesis transmits the second signal at the data rate for the second transmission interval.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first signal and the second signal include at least one data packet.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first signal includes a first data packet having a first payload, wherein the indication of the data rate for the second signal is included in the first payload.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the first payload includes a symbol rate for transmissions sent from the second hearing prosthesis, wherein the data rate is based on the symbol rate.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the indication of the data rate for the second signal includes one of a length of a payload of a data packet and a frequency of transmissions between the first hearing prosthesis and the second hearing prosthesis.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, by the first hearing prosthesis, a third signal from a remote device during a first monitoring interval; and

receiving, by the second hearing prosthesis, a fourth signal from the remote device during a second monitoring interval, wherein the first transmission interval and the second transmission interval are interleaved with the first monitoring interval and the second monitoring interval.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein a symbol rate of the first signal and the second signal is less than a symbol rate of the third signal and the fourth signal.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first signal and the second signal include information for synchronizing a setting of a parameter used in processing a sound by the first hearing prosthesis and the second hearing prosthesis.

9. A system comprising:

a first hearing prosthesis;

a second hearing prosthesis; and

a remote device, wherein a first communication between the first hearing prosthesis and the second hearing prosthesis is interleaved with (i) a second communication between the remote device and the first hearing prosthesis and (ii) a third communication between the remote device and the second hearing prosthesis, and wherein the first hearing prosthesis determines a data rate for the first communication based on an acoustic environment in which the first hearing prosthesis and the second hearing prosthesis operate.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein a symbol rate of the first communication is less than a symbol rate of the second communication and the third communication.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein first hearing prosthesis determines the data rate for the first communication by determining one of a length of a payload of a data packet included in the first communication or a frequency of transmissions of one or more data packets in the first communication.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the first communication includes:

a first interval in which the first hearing prosthesis sends a first signal to the second hearing prosthesis; and

a second interval in which the second hearing prosthesis sends a second signal to the first hearing prosthesis, wherein the first signal and the second signal are digitally modulated signals.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein M frequencies are available for transmitting the first communication and the second communication, wherein N frequencies of the M frequencies are reserved for the first communication, and wherein M and N are integers.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the first hearing prosthesis is configured to select a transmit frequency for the second signal from the N frequencies reserved for the first communication, wherein the first hearing prosthesis includes an indication of the transmit frequency in the first signal.

15. A hearing prosthesis comprising a transceiver and one or more processor configured to:

identify an operating mode of the hearing prosthesis based on an acoustic environment in which the hearing prosthesis and an additional hearing prosthesis operate;

determine a data rate for a next communication cycle with the additional hearing prosthesis that is based on the operating mode; and

transmit a signal to the additional hearing prosthesis via the transceiver that includes information indicative of the data rate for the next communication cycle during a transmission interval.

16. The hearing prosthesis of claim 15, wherein the signal includes one or more data packets, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to include the information indicative of the data rate of the next communication in a payload of a first data packet.

17. The hearing prosthesis of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to send the first data packet to the second hearing prosthesis before any additional data packets during the transmission interval.

18. The hearing prosthesis of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to determine at least one of:

(i) a length of a payload of one or more data packets for the next communication cycle; and

(ii) a frequency of transmissions of the one or more data packets during the next communication cycle.

19. The hearing prosthesis of claim 18, wherein the information indicative of the data rate for the next communication cycle includes at least one of:

(i) the length of the payload of the one or more data packets; and

(ii) the frequency of transmissions of the one or more data packets during the next communication cycle.

20. The hearing prosthesis of claim 15, further comprising an audio transducer configured to receive a sound and generate a sound signal that includes information indicative of the sound, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:

receive the sound signal from the audio transducer; and

determine the acoustic environment based on at least the sound signal.