Fitting of hearing devices

• US 9,479,879 B2
• Filed: 03/22/2012
• Issued: 10/25/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cochlear Limited
• Original Assignee: Cochlear Limited
• Inventors: Flynn, Mark, Davidsson, Bjorn
• Primary Examiner(s): Etesam, Amir
• Application Number:
  US14/006,808
• Publication Number:
  US 20140050341A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,678 Days
• Field of Search: 381/60
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/12 Audiometering
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/30 Monitoring or testing of hearing aids, e.g. functioning, settings, battery power
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/305 Self-monitoring or self-testing
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/356 Amplitude, e.g. amplitude shift or compression
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/558 Remote control, e.g. of amplification, frequency
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/606 acting directly on the eardrum, the ossicles or the skull, e.g. mastoid, tooth, maxillary or mandibular bone, or mechanically stimulating the cochlea, e.g. at the oval window
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/70 Adaptation of deaf aid to hearing loss, e.g. initial electronic fitting

Abstract

The present invention relates to recipient fitting of a hearing device. An embodiment of the present invention determines the transmission loss for sound applied to the recipient by the hearing device. Separate gains are then determined for compensating for the determined transmission loss and the measured hearing loss of the recipient. For example, in an embodiment, the hearing device may compensate for transmission losses in a 1:1 manner (i.e., the transmission loss in 100% compensated for). The hearing device may apply a different gain to compensate for the hearing loss, such as a gain that is a fraction (e.g., 33-55%) of the measured hearing loss.

Claims

1. A method for fitting a hearing device at least partially implanted under the skin for a recipient, the method comprising:

obtaining hearing threshold levels for the recipient unaided by the hearing device;

obtaining hearing threshold levels indicative of a minimum signal for the hearing device that causes a hearing percept by the recipient based on the hearing percept caused by the hearing device due to recipient feedback;

calculating a transmission loss using the stored thresholds unaided by the device and the thresholds for the device, wherein the calculated transmission loss at least partially takes into account the effects of transmission due to the minimum signal for the hearing device travelling through tissue of the recipient;

generating one or more control settings using the calculated transmission loss; and

providing the control settings to the hearing device so that the hearing device applies a gain to sound received by the hearing device that separately compensates for the transmission loss and a hearing loss of the recipient by applying gain that compensates for a percentage of the transmission loss that is greater than the percentage of the compensated hearing loss.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein calculating the transmission loss comprises:

subtracting a threshold unaided by the device from a threshold for the device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the hearing device is a bone conduction hearing device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the hearing device is a middle ear mechanical stimulation system.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the hearing device is an inner ear mechanical stimulation system.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the hearing device is a hearing aid.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the action of obtaining hearing threshold levels for the recipient unaided by the hearing device is executed by obtaining threshold levels for the recipient in terms of dB SPL indicative of threshold levels of the recipient without the hearing device.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising applying a binaural compensation to the control settings to compensate for bilateral summation.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

using the hearing device to evoke a hearing percept by applying the gain to the sound received by the hearing device upon which the evoked hearing percept is based.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the action of obtaining hearing threshold levels for the recipient unaided by the hearing device is executed without the hearing device attached to the recipient.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtained threshold levels for the recipient unaided by the hearing device comprise an audiogram.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the action of obtaining threshold levels for the recipient unaided by the hearing device comprise obtaining an audiogram therefore;

and wherein the method further includes an action in addition to obtaining the audiogram entailing measuring thresholds by applying stimulation to the recipient using the hearing device and determining the minimum signal that causes a hearing percept by the recipient.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein the action of obtaining hearing threshold levels indicative of a minimum signal for the hearing device includes obtaining threshold levels, for a plurality of frequencies, indicative of a minimum signal for the hearing device that causes a hearing percept by the recipient at the frequency.

7. A fitting system for determining control settings for a hearing device configured to be at least partially implanted under the skin, the fitting system comprising:

a device comprising;

a processor;

a data storage device; and

an interface configured to connect to the hearing device;

a user interface connected to the device to enable user interaction with the device;

wherein the data storage device stores thresholds for a recipient unaided by the hearing device; and

wherein the processor is configured to determine thresholds indicative of a minimum signal for the hearing device that causes a hearing percept by the recipient based on the hearing precept caused by the hearing device due to a response by the recipient, and to calculate a transmission loss using the stored thresholds unaided by the hearing device and the thresholds with the device, wherein the calculated transmission loss at least partially takes into account the effects of transmission due to the minimum signal for the hearing device travelling through tissue of the recipient;

to generate one or more control settings using the calculated transmission loss, and to provide the control settings to the hearing device via the interface so that the hearing device applies a gain to sound received by the hearing device that separately compensates for the transmission loss and a hearing loss of the recipient, wherein the gain applied compensates for a percentage of the transmission loss that is greater than the percentage of the compensated hearing loss.

8. The fitting system of claim 7, wherein the processor in calculating the transmission loss for a frequency is configured to subtract a threshold unaided by the hearing device from a threshold for the hearing device.

9. The fitting system of claim 7, wherein the hearing device is a bone conduction hearing device.

10. The fitting system of claim 7, wherein the hearing device is a middle ear mechanical stimulation system.

11. The fitting system of claim 7, wherein the hearing device is an inner ear mechanical stimulation system.

12. The fitting system of claim 7, wherein the hearing device is a hearing aid.

20. The system of claim 7, wherein the determination by the processor of the thresholds indicative of a minimum signal for the hearing device that causes a hearing percept by the recipient is different from an audiogram of unaided hearing thresholds.