Stuttering treatment methods and apparatus
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method for treating stuttering, comprising:
- providing an oral appliance comprising a housing and an actuatable transducer disposed within or upon the housing;
positioning the housing onto the at least one tooth, wherein the housing is configured to engage the at least one tooth without requiring anatomical modification of the at least one tooth and without bonding to the at least one tooth, wherein the appliance produces an interference fit between the appliance and at least two surfaces of the at least one tooth;
receiving an audio signal of a voice of the patient;
introducing a time delay in the audio signal of the patient'"'"'s voice to generate an altered audio feedback signal; and
vibrationally conducting the altered audio feedback signal from the oral appliance to a surface of the at least one tooth whereby stuttering by the patient is diminished.
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Abstract
Stuttering treatment methods and apparatus which utilize removable oral-based appliances having actuators which are attached, adhered, or otherwise embedded into or upon a dental or oral appliance are described. Such oral appliances may receive the user'"'"'s voice and process the voice to introduce a time delay and/or a frequency shift. The altered audio feedback signal is then transmitted back to the user through a tooth, teeth, or other bone via a vibrating actuator element. The actuator element may utilize electromagnetic or piezoelectric actuator mechanisms and may be positioned directly along the dentition or along an oral appliance housing in various configurations.
192 Citations
19 Claims
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1. A method for treating stuttering, comprising:
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providing an oral appliance comprising a housing and an actuatable transducer disposed within or upon the housing; positioning the housing onto the at least one tooth, wherein the housing is configured to engage the at least one tooth without requiring anatomical modification of the at least one tooth and without bonding to the at least one tooth, wherein the appliance produces an interference fit between the appliance and at least two surfaces of the at least one tooth; receiving an audio signal of a voice of the patient; introducing a time delay in the audio signal of the patient'"'"'s voice to generate an altered audio feedback signal; and vibrationally conducting the altered audio feedback signal from the oral appliance to a surface of the at least one tooth whereby stuttering by the patient is diminished. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A stuttering treatment apparatus, comprising:
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a housing that is configured to engage at least a portion of at least one tooth of a patient without requiring anatomical modification of the at least one tooth and without bonding to the at least one tooth, wherein the apparatus produces an interference fit between the apparatus and at least two surfaces of the at least one tooth; a processor positioned within or along the housing, wherein the processor is configured to introduce a time delay in an audio signal of a voice of the patient to generate an altered audio feedback signal; and an actuator disposed within or upon the housing and configured to transmit vibrations to a surface of the at least one tooth such that the actuator conducts the altered audio feedback signal whereby stuttering by the patient is diminished. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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Specification