Patents Assigned to Cochlear Limited
  • Patent number: 11290827
    Abstract: A method, including the actions of obtaining access to a virtual reality system; activating a cochlear implant such that the cochlear implant evokes a hearing percept based on first input; and receiving second input from the virtual reality system in temporal proximity with the evocation of the hearing percept based on the first input, wherein the cochlear implant evokes a hearing percept based on the first input, and the second input is correlated with the first input.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Stephen Fung, Alexander Von Brasch, Kieran Reed
  • Patent number: 11277695
    Abstract: A method including obtaining data based on a current and/or anticipated future state of a hearing prosthesis and adjusting a set gain margin of the hearing prosthesis based on the current or anticipated future state of the hearing prosthesis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2018
    Date of Patent: March 15, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Martin Hillbratt, Mark Flynn, Bjorn Davidsson
  • Patent number: 11272299
    Abstract: An external headpiece of an implantable hearing aid system, including an RF coil, a sound processing apparatus, a battery, and a magnet configured to support the headpiece against skin of the recipient via a transcutaneous magnetic coupling with an implanted magnet implanted in a recipient, wherein a longitudinal axis of the cylindrical battery extends through the magnet.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventor: Werner Meskens
  • Patent number: 11266844
    Abstract: A feedthrough for a cochlear implant or other medical device can include contacts disposed on an outer perimeter thereof. By disposing the contacts on the perimeter, the number of contacts on the feedthrough can be increased, the size of the feedthrough reduced, or both.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventor: Mark Alan von Huben
  • Patent number: 11272297
    Abstract: Presented herein are directed to techniques for using objective measurements to determine a combined efficiency of an implantable actuator and a mechanical coupling of the implantable actuator to an auditory structure of an ear of a recipient. In particular, the implantable actuator is activated so as to deliver, via the mechanical coupling, mechanical stimulation to the auditory structure to effect a pressure change in an inner ear of the recipient. At least one stimulation device, that is separate from the implantable actuator, is configured to deliver secondary stimulation to the recipient to also effect a pressure change in the inner ear of the recipient. Objective measurements are performed to intra-operatively capture auditory evoked responses of the recipient in response to the mechanical stimulation and in response to the secondary stimulation. These auditory evoked responses are analyzed to determine a vibratory coupling efficiency.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Bernd Waldmann, Tiago Rocha Felix
  • Patent number: 11272300
    Abstract: A device comprises a tank circuit including a parallel tank circuit and a series tank circuit. In this example, the parallel tank circuit and the series tank circuit share a capacitive component and an inductive component. The device also includes electronics, and circuitry configured to selectively couple the electronics to the parallel tank circuit for a first application and to couple the electronics to the series tank circuit for a second application.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Werner Meskens, Tony Nygard, Koen Van den Heuvel
  • Patent number: 11253193
    Abstract: A body worn or implantable hearing prosthesis, including a device configured to capture an audio environment of a recipient and evoke a hearing percept based at least in part on the captured audio environment, wherein the hearing prosthesis is configured to identify, based on the captured audio environment, one or more biomarkers present in the audio environment indicative of the recipient's ability to hear.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 22, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Kieran Reed, John Michael Heasman, Kerrie Plant, Alex Von Brasch, Stephen Fung
  • Patent number: 11252514
    Abstract: Presented herein are non-surgical or superficial coupling apparatuses for transcutaneous bone conduction devices. A coupling apparatus comprises a drive plate configured to be detachably connected to a transcutaneous bone conduction device. The drive plate is also connected to an earhook (ear hook) configured to fit over/around a recipient's pinna (auricle) to at least partially support the drive plate. An adhesive member may also be provided to secure the drive plate to the recipient's skin.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 15, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Tobias Good, Henrik Fyrlund
  • Patent number: 11252520
    Abstract: In a subcutaneous microphone used in medical devices, a structure is introduced that constrains the motion of the diaphragm during normal operation of the microphone. In one embodiment, a raised portion, such as a pole or pillar is placed in the chamber at the middle of the diaphragm. The raised portion may contact one or both of the bottom surface of the chamber and the underside of the membrane, and generally acts to reduce the amount of deflection experienced by the membrane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 15, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Koen Erik Van den Heuvel, Patrik Kennes
  • Patent number: 11241193
    Abstract: Evaluating an implanted hearing prosthesis, including operating the implanted hearing prosthesis, capturing sound generated by a transducer of the prosthesis during said operation, and comparing the captured sound to a sound model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 8, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Kyun Thibaut, Jurgen Van Vlem, Christiane D'hondt, Florent Hubert-Brierre, Kristof Buytaert, Hans Bernhard, Grégoire Meylan, Martin Junghans, Susanne Gentner
  • Patent number: 11245991
    Abstract: A method, including determining a change in an actuator impedance based on a change in an electrical property of a system of which the actuator is apart, and determining one or more system characteristics based on the change in the actuator impedance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 8, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Martin E. Hillbratt, Kristian Asnes, Marcus Andersson, Johan Gustafsson, Mats Hojlund
  • Patent number: 11240613
    Abstract: An apparatus for a bone conduction implant, comprising a bone fixture including a screw thread configured to screw into a skull, wherein at least a section of the screw thread is non-uniform.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Goran Bjorn, Marcus Andersson, Stefan Magnander, Stellan Johansson
  • Patent number: 11223910
    Abstract: A method, including the actions of obtaining data based on a current and/or anticipated future wearing implementation of a hearing prosthesis, and adjusting a parameter of the hearing prosthesis based on the current or anticipated future wearing implementation of the hearing prosthesis, and evoking a hearing percept using the hearing prosthesis with the adjusted parameter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Martin Evert Gustaf Hillbratt, Kristian Gunnar Asnes
  • Patent number: 11223912
    Abstract: A vibrator including a housing, a transducer positioned within the housing such that there is a gap between the transducer and housing, and a damper assembly, disposed in the gap between the housing and at least a portion of the transducer, the damper assembly extending a sub-distance of the total distance of the gap.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Jan Vermeiren, Travis Rian Andrews
  • Patent number: 11213662
    Abstract: Presented herein are implantable systems and methods for long-term delivery of treatment substance to a recipient.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 4, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Kristien Johanna Maria Verhoeven, Daniel Smyth, Jonathon Kirk, Claudiu G. Treaba, Marcus Andersson
  • Patent number: 11213430
    Abstract: Embodiments are generally directed to a securable inner drug delivery plug or stopper that is configured to be inserted into, and secured (retained) within, an opening of the inner ear of an recipient. The securable inner drug delivery plug is configured to deliver drugs directly into the inner ear.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 4, 2022
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Kristien Johanna Maria Verhoeven, Daniel Smyth, Marcus Andersson, Claudiu G. Treaba, Fysh Dadd
  • Patent number: 11202158
    Abstract: Presented herein are low-power active bone conduction devices that comprise an actuator that is subcutaneously implanted within a recipient so as to deliver mechanical output forces to hard tissue of the recipient. The low-power active bone conduction devices include an energy recovery circuit configured to extract non-used energy from the actuator and to store the non-used energy for subsequent use by the actuator. The low-power active bone conduction devices may also include a multi-bit sigma-delta converter that operates in accordance with a scaled sigma-delta quantization threshold value to convert received signals representative of sound into actuator drive signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 14, 2021
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Werner Meskens, Wim Bervoets, Carl Van Himbeeck
  • Patent number: 11191960
    Abstract: Presented herein are techniques for time interleaving the sampling of input signals with the delivery of stimulation signals to a recipient of an implantable electrically-stimulating hearing prosthesis. The input signals, which are received via one or more input channels and sampled by a sound processing unit, are susceptible to electrical feedback from the stimulation signals. As such, in accordance with embodiments presented herein, the sampling of the input signals by the sound processing unit, and the delivery of the stimulation signals to the recipient, are synchronized with one another so as to avoid stimulation-evoked electrical feedback within the input signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 7, 2021
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventor: Koen Van den Heuvel
  • Patent number: 11179566
    Abstract: A method, comprising, fitting an electrical stimulating device to the recipient, the electrical stimulating device including electrodes implanted in the recipient, the electrical stimulating device being a multipolar electrical stimulating device, wherein the fitting includes simultaneously applying multipolar stimulation to the recipient via the electrodes based on at least two different stimulation channels of the electrical stimulating device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2021
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventor: Zachary Mark Smith
  • Patent number: 11166752
    Abstract: An implant including a bone fixture configured to anchor to bone of a recipient, and a structural component configured to be connected to the bone fixture and connect a functional component of the implant to the bone fixture, wherein at least one of the bone fixture or the structural component includes a deformable element configured to deform to form an anti-microbial seal between the bone fixture and the structural component, and the at least one deformable element and the respective at least one bone fixture or structural component form a monolithic structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2021
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventors: Goran Bjorn, Marcus Andersson