Electrical audio signal processing systems and devices – Hearing aids – electrical – Programming interface circuitry
Reexamination Certificate
1998-01-29
2001-05-08
Le, Huyen (Department: 2743)
Electrical audio signal processing systems and devices
Hearing aids, electrical
Programming interface circuitry
C381S312000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06229900
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a hearing aid comprising a first memory means and a receiver which is coupled thereto and which serves to receive control signals from a remote control, which hearing aid is arranged so as to store the control signals in the first memory means.
The invention also relates to a remote control for controlling such a hearing aid, which remote control comprises a transmitter.
The invention further relates to a system comprising at least one such hearing aid and such a remote control.
Such a hearing aid is disclosed in DE-C 3 642 828. The hearing aid disclosed in said German patent specification comprises a number of signal-processing elements, such as filters and amplifiers, which are incorporated in the signal path between, on the one hand, a microphone or a telephone coil and, on the other hand, a loudspeaker. The transfer function of each of these signal-processing elements can be controlled by means of a number of parameters. The overall transfer function of the known hearing aid, i.e. the transfer function of the microphone or the telephone coil to the loudspeaker, is determined by means of a set of parameters in which all parameters for the individual signal-processing elements are collected. In a wireless remote control associated with the known hearing aid, a number of these sets of parameters can be stored. By means of the remote control, a user can select one of the sets of parameters contained in the remote control and send them to the hearing aid. Subsequently, the transfer function of the known hearing aid is determined by the new set of parameters. This construction enables the user to adapt the hearing aid to different sound conditions. In the known hearing aid, the position of the signal-processing elements in the signal path is fixed. As a result, a user cannot readily change the total transfer function of the known hearing aid in a flexible manner.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide a hearing aid of the type mentioned in the opening paragraph, by means of which the total transfer function of the hearing aid can be flexibly changed by the user. To achieve this, the hearing aid in accordance with the invention is characterized in that the hearing aid further comprises a programmable processor, and the control signals include a first set of instructions which can be executed by the programmable processor.
The combination of a programmable processor and a set of instructions which can be executed by this programmable processor enables the transfer function of the hearing aid to be adapted in a relatively flexible manner. The sequence of the signal-processing operations and the number of times that a specific signal-processing operation is executed are not fixed. A different transfer function can be selected by loading a different set of instructions into the hearing aid via a remote control.
In WO 89/04583, a description is given of a hearing aid which is connected to a remote control by means of a number of wires. The remote control is provided with a programmable processor and a memory. A set of instructions which can be carried out by the programmable processor and a number of sets of parameters can be stored in the memory. A user can select one of the stored sets of parameters by means of a remote control so that the execution of the set of instructions by the programmable processor is influenced. In the known hearing aid, the programmable processor is incorporated in the remote control, whereas, in the case of the invention, the programmable processor is arranged in the hearing aid. In addition, in the case of the known hearing aid, the user cannot replace the set of instructions to be carried out by the programmable processor by another set of instructions. As a result, a flexible adaptation of the total transfer function is not readily possible in this known hearing aid.
The remote control in accordance with the invention, which comprises a transmitter, is characterized in that the remote control can be coupled to a device for loading, into the remote control, at least one set of instructions which can be executed by a programmable processor, with the transmitter being arranged so as to send the set of instructions which can be executed by the programmable processor to the hearing aid.
By virtue thereof, the transfer function of the hearing aid can readily be adapted to different audio conditions by the user. For a number of these sound conditions a transfer function of the hearing aid is determined which is adapted to the user. Subsequently, a set of instructions which can be executed by the programmable processor and which corresponds to one of these transfer functions can be loaded into the remote control of the user. The user can send this set of instructions to the hearing aid via a transmitter in the remote control, and, in this manner, the user can adapt the transfer function of the hearing aid in a simple manner.
An embodiment of the remote control in accordance with the invention is characterized in that the remote control is embodied so as to store at least a first and a second set of instructions which can be executed by the programmable processor. This enables a number of different instruction sets, corresponding to just as many different sound conditions, to be loaded into the remote control. This has the advantage that the user can independently adapt the transfer function of the hearing aid to other sound conditions by sending one of the instruction sets stored in the remote control to the hearing aid.
A further embodiment of the remote control in accordance with the invention is characterized in that the remote control comprises at least one selection means for selecting one of the stored sets of instructions which can be executed by the programmable processor and which are to be sent to the hearing aid. By virtue thereof, the user can select a set of instructions which are suitable under the prevailing sound conditions, and the user can send this instruction set to the hearing aid, so that the transfer function of the hearing aid is adapted to the sound conditions.
A further embodiment of the remote control in accordance with the invention, which remote control is also embodied so as to control a further hearing aid, which further hearing aid comprises a further programmable processor, is characterized in that the remote control comprises a single selection means for selecting a set of instructions which can be executed by the programmable processor and which are to be sent to the hearing aid, and for selecting a further set of instructions which can be executed by the further programmable processor and which are to be sent to the further hearing aid. This has the advantage that the user, which has a hearing aid for both ears, can set the transfer functions of both hearing aids with a single selection. In this connection, the set of instructions does not have to be equal to the further set of instructions.
These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4989251 (1991-01-01), Mangold
patent: 5083312 (1992-01-01), Newton et al.
patent: 5202927 (1993-04-01), Topholm
patent: 3642828 (1989-10-01), None
patent: WO8904583 (1989-05-01), None
“A Single Battery, 0.9V-Opearted Digital Sound Processing IC Including AD/DA and IR Receiver with 2mW Power Consumption” by Harry Neuteboom et al; ISSCC97/Session 6/Low-Power and Mixed-Signal Processing/Paper TP6.4; 1997 IEEE International Solkid-Statie Circuits Conference.
Beltone Netherlands B.V.
Dabney P.
Le Huyen
McDermott & Will & Emery
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