Patents Assigned to Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
  • Hearing aid, and method for reducing feedback therein
    Patent number: 7203328
    Abstract: Feedback reduction in hearing aids is simplified and improved in an amplification device that has two separate compensation paths, an acoustic input and an inductive input. In the first compensation path, a first filter device acts to compensate acoustic feedback, and in the second compensation path, a second filter device acts to compensate inductive feedback. The two very different feedbacks can be individually compensated without increased outlay.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 2003
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2007
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventors: Bernd Beimel, Tom Weidner
  • Hearing aid device that can be worn in the ear with a housing
    Patent number: 7191867
    Abstract: In a hearing aid device wearable in the ear with a housing, the battery loader is exposed to high mechanical stresses. In order to improve the attachment of the battery loader to the housing of the hearing aid device, the invention provides for the battery loader at the housing in the area of the housing opening a stabilization element that prevents deformations and in particular distortions of the housing in the area of the housing opening given high mechanical stress.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 20, 2007
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: Christian Schmitt
  • Method for the operation of a hearing aid as well as a hearing aid
    Patent number: 7181033
    Abstract: A hearing aid is provided that avoids disturbing acoustic effects caused by on, off, or switchover events. The signal processing in the hearing aid is switched in sliding fashion from a first operating condition into a second operating condition. According to the invention, both operating conditions are simultaneously present in the hearing aid during the switching event. The sliding transition ensues by a parallel signal processing in at least two signal paths of the hearing aid, whereby a signal that results from the first operating condition and a signal that results from the second operating condition are added in changing weighting.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2002
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2007
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventors: Eghart Fischer, Volkmar Hamacher
  • Selection of communication connections in hearing aids
    Patent number: 7174026
    Abstract: A hearing aid and a corresponding method are provided in which address data and/or channel data with respect to a plurality of signal sources are stored in a memory of the hearing aid. As a result of a priority-driven address management system, the hearing aid user can very conveniently automatically engage in communication with an interface having the highest priority.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 14, 2003
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2007
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: Torsten Niederdränk
  • Feedback compensation device and method, and hearing aid device employing same
    Patent number: 7174027
    Abstract: A feedback compensator for a hearing aid device has a filter arrangement that splits a signal path, to implement an adaptive feedback compensation with only one buffer memory, two splitting nodes, and two addition nodes. The feedback compensation ensues only in the feedback-susceptible frequency range of the input signal. In addition to the filtering of the input signal, it is advantageous to feed to the adaptive feedback compensation filter a bandwidth-limited signal that is taken from the amplified output signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2007
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventors: Georg-Erwin Arndt, Tom Weidner
  • Modular hearing aid device
    Patent number: 7151839
    Abstract: The invention is directed to a modular hearing aid device having a microphone module that comprises a microphone module housing and at least one microphone, and having a hearing aid device module that comprises a hearing aid device module housing, whereby the microphone module housing supplements the hearing aid device module housing to form a housing of the hearing aid device having a uniform effect, and whereby the microphone module and the hearing aid device module are detachably connected, and whereby the hearing aid device module comprises at least one microphone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2003
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: Torsten Niederdränk
  • Device and method to remotely operate a hearing device
    Patent number: 7142681
    Abstract: The manual operation of hearing devices is simplified using a remote control that provides a projection device in order to project virtual buttons on a back of a hand. A sensor device registers, as necessary, an operation of the virtual buttons, whereupon a corresponding control signal is wirelessly transmitted to the hearing device. Very large buttons can thereby specially be made available for older patients or those who are dexterilly challenged.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 2004
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: Reinier Kortekaas
  • Hearing aid device attachable to an eyeglasses bow
    Patent number: 7103192
    Abstract: For making the production of hearing-aid eyeglasses using standard eyeglasses easier, a hearing aid device has a body that can be attached to an eyeglasses bow has a channel therein for acceptance of a flexible eyeglasses bow end piece, and the body is flexible in at least a region thereof. Standard eyeglasses thus do not have to be damaged for connection with the hearing aid device and they can be placed back into their original state in a simple manner.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: John Bailey
  • Hearing aid device wearable in the ear or hearing aid device having an otoplastic wearable in the ear
    Patent number: 7079662
    Abstract: Acoustic feedbacks can be caused by the aeration channel (5) that is present in hearing aid devices (2) wearable in the ear or hearing aid devices having an otoplastic wearable in the ear. In order to avoid this, it is provided that the aeration channel be subdivided into at least a first and a second sub-region, whereby the sub-region (5A) that is proximal when the hearing aid device (2) is worn or when the otoplastic is worn comprises a small cross-sectional area and a great length compared to the distal, second sub-region (5B).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 6, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: Torsten Niederdrānk
  • Hearing aid system with a hearing aid and an external processor unit
    Patent number: 7072480
    Abstract: A hearing aid system has a hearing aid and an external processor unit, where the external processor unit is permanently allocated to a specific hearing environment. The external processor unit is fashioned for remaining in the respective hearing environment long-term, and the signal processing of an acoustic input signal in the external processor unit is also specifically adapted to the respective hearing environment. There is preferably a wireless signal transmission between the hearing aid and the external processor unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2003
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: Uwe Rass
  • Method for the operation of a digital, programmable hearing aid as well as a digitally programmable hearing aid
    Patent number: 7068802
    Abstract: A method for operating a digital, programmable hearing aid is provided that uses both a transmission characteristic of a normal amplification as well as a transmission characteristic of a maximum amplification of an audio signal over a frequency range that can be nearly freely configured. Given a modification of the amplification by settings at the hearing aid as well as using parameters that result from the signal processing, the gain for the overall system is always calculated utilizing all parameters and is potentially limited to the maximum amplification at the respective frequency if this would otherwise be exceeded.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2002
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventors: Hervé Schulz, Tom Weidner
  • Cover device for hearing aids
    Patent number: 7039209
    Abstract: For reducing the space requirement for locking systems, a battery compartment and an electronics module are locked by means of a single articulation. For removing the battery, the battery compartment is swiveled open; for unlocking the electronics module, the battery compartment is removed from the plate by pulling the wire spring from the receptacles. The articulation thus has a double function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 2, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: Christian Schmitt
  • Hearing aid with an oscillation detector, and method for detecting feedback in a hearing aid
    Patent number: 7024011
    Abstract: In a hearing aid having an oscillation detector and a method for establishing the presence of oscillations in a hearing aid, sinusoidal input signals of the microphone can be detected, and so oscillations that are present can also be detected. To this end, the number of digitized sample values in consecutive periods of the input signal is determined, and a long-term average value NL and a short-term average value NK are formed from these numbers. When NL and NK are essentially identical, the presence of oscillations is detected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2000
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventors: Volkmar Hamacher, Georg-Erwin Arndt, Tom Weidner
  • Cerumen protection system for hearing aids
    Patent number: 7020299
    Abstract: Cerumen are effectively kept away from the earphone of a hearing aid by the earphone having a lager lateral sound exit opening partly covered by a band. Polytetrafluoroethylene film is suited as material for the band. For protection against larger cerumen constituents, the earphone can be additionally encapsulated by a capsule having a cover. To this end, the earphone is seated in the capsule vibration-damped by means of damping elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: Torsten Niederdränk
  • Method for operating a hearing aid system and hearing aid system
    Patent number: 7020296
    Abstract: In a hearing aid system having at least two hearing aid devices acoustic field characteristics are generated in the hearing aid devices and are transmitted between the hearing aid devices for adapting the signal processing units to different hearing situations. Both hearing aid devices are thus always operated in the same hearing program.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 17, 2001
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: Torsten Niederdränk
  • Hearing aid and operating method for automatically switching to a telephone mode
    Patent number: 7016510
    Abstract: In a hearing aid and method for automatically switching to a telephone mode, for automatically detecting a telephone situation for the wearer given a binaural supply, the difference between the levels of the input signals of the two hearing devices is measured and compared with at least one threshold value. If the difference in levels drops below or exceeds the threshold value, the respective hearing device is switched to the telephone mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventors: Georg-Erwin Arndt, Thomas Fischer, Thomas Hanses, Henning Puder
  • Method for the operation of a hearing aid device or hearing device system as well as hearing aid device or hearing device system
    Patent number: 7013015
    Abstract: For reducing feedback-conditioned oscillations in a hearing aid device, microphone signals of a first microphone and of a distanced, second microphone are compared to one another. When oscillations are detected at the same frequency in both microphone signals, these oscillations are determined to be useful (non-feedback) tonal signals. Oscillations that are only present in one of the microphone signals, in contrast, are feedback-conditioned and are suppressed using suitable measures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 1, 2002
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventors: Volker Hohmann, Volkmar Hamacher, Inga Holube, Birger Kollmeier, Thomas Wittkop
  • Hearing device system with behind-the-ear hearing aid devices fashioned side-specific
    Patent number: 7013014
    Abstract: In order to improve the directional effect in a hearing device system with a hearing aid device worn behind the left ear and a hearing aid device worn behind the right ear, the hearing aid devices are to be fashioned side-specific. Furthermore, each hearing aid device has at least three sound entrance ports that are arranged substantially along a straight line. When the hearing aid devices are worn, these straight lines are turned toward the straight-ahead viewing direction of a hearing device user (in contrast to symmetrically-fashioned hearing aid devices) due to the particular fashioning of the hearing aid devices. A directional effect thus is achieved by the natural formation of the pinna.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventors: Gerhard Ach-Kowalewski, Hartmut Ritter
  • Ear wax guard
    Patent number: 7013016
    Abstract: To prevent soiling of a hearing aid, the latter is provided with an exchangeable ear wax guard which, in the area of the sound outlet opening of the hearing aid, can be inserted into a sound tube. The ear wax guard is characterized in that, in order to improve its securing in the sound channel, it is provided with elevations at least in a subarea of its surface. On the surface of the ear wax guard, the density or size of the elevations preferably increases counter to the direction of insertion of the ear wax guard.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 7, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventor: Herbert Wolf
  • Method for automatic amplification adjustment in a hearing aid device, as well as a hearing aid device
    Patent number: 7010133
    Abstract: To improve the speech comprehensibility given treatment with a hearing aid device, during the operation of the hearing aid device speech signal levels and noise signal levels are determined in a plurality of frequency bands of an input signal. An automatic adjustment of the amplification follows, dependent on the determined signal level and the signal frequency. The determination of amplification parameters thereby ensues under inclusion of a loudness model and a speech comprehensibility model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 26, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2006
    Assignee: Siemens Audiologische Technik GmbH
    Inventors: Josef Chalupper, Patrick Mergell