Patents by Inventor Herbert Bächler
Herbert Bächler has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Publication number: 20100303269Abstract: The method for adjusting a hearing device to the hearing preferences of a user of said hearing device comprises the steps of a) classifying a hearing loss of said user according to one of N pre-defined hearing loss classes, wherein N?3; b) obtaining, in dependence of said one hearing loss class, a gain model. The hearing system according to the invention comprises a sound generating unit for generating test sounds; a user interface for receiving user input from a user of said hearing system; a control unit operationally connected to said sound generating unit and to said user interface; wherein said control unit is adapted to classifying a hearing loss of said user—in dependence of said test sounds and said user input—according to one of N pre-defined hearing loss classes, wherein N?3; and said control unit is adapted to obtaining—in dependence of said one hearing loss class—a gain model. A simplified hearing device fitting can be achieved.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 18, 2007Publication date: December 2, 2010Applicant: PHONAK AGInventor: Herbert Baechler
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Publication number: 20100128906Abstract: A system providing hearing assistance to a user having a wireless remote control for transmitting control commands as an amplitude modulated radio frequency signal, an RF power detector for outputting a signal representative of the power envelope of the RF signal received by an antenna of the RF power detector, a classifier unit for analyzing the output signal of the RF power detector to detect control commands of the remote control and to detect the presence of a source of interfering RF signals, an audio signal processing unit, and a user's ear worn part for stimulating the user's hearing according to audio signals processed in the audio signal processing unit. The classifier unit provides a control signal representing detected remote control commands and an interference signal representing the presence of a source of interfering RF signals. Operation of the audio signal processing unit is controlled by the control signal.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 20, 2006Publication date: May 27, 2010Applicant: PHONAK AGInventors: Stefan Haenggi, Herbert Baechler
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Patent number: 7688991Abstract: There is provided a method of operating a hearing assistance system comprising a hearing device (10, 110, 210), which comprises means (24) for stimulating a user's hearing and which is worn at one of the user's ears, and a remote device (12, 30, 40) spaced apart from the hearing device.Type: GrantFiled: May 24, 2006Date of Patent: March 30, 2010Assignee: Phonak AGInventors: Herbert Baechler, Francois Callias, Stefan Haenggi
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Patent number: 7639827Abstract: A hearing system includes a hearing device with an input acoustical/electrical converter. The system is controllably operable in at least first and second modes. A sensing unit senses behavior of an acoustical impedance of an acoustical input of the input converter. An evaluation unit evaluates the sensed behavior over at least one predetermined behavior of the acoustical impedance. An output of the evaluation unit controls change over from the first mode to the second mode.Type: GrantFiled: October 1, 2003Date of Patent: December 29, 2009Assignee: Phonak AGInventor: Herbert Bächler
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Publication number: 20090268933Abstract: The hearing system (1) comprises a filtering unit (6) for improving a signal-to-noise ratio of an S+N-audio signal (S+N) composed of a desired audio signal (S) and a unwanted audio signal (N), which filtering unit (6) comprises an adaptive filter; an S+N-input for receiving said S+N-audio signal (S+N); an N*-input for receiving an N*-audio signal (N*), which is used as an estimate for said unwanted audio signal (N); and an S*-output for outputting an S*-audio signal (S*) obtained in dependence of said S+N-audio signal (S+N) and said N*-audio signal (N*), which is an approximation towards said desired signal (S); wherein the hearing system (1) comprises a selecting unit (2) operationally connected to said filtering unit (6) for selecting a first input audio signal (In1; In2; . . . ) from at least two input audio signals (In1, In2) and feeding said first input audio signal (In1; In2) either to said S+N-input or to said N*-input.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 15, 2006Publication date: October 29, 2009Applicant: PHONAK AGInventor: Herbert Baechler
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Patent number: 7580535Abstract: Binaural hearing devices are operated by establishing a communication link between the devices. The communication link is exclusively for transmitting non-audio signals between two devices.Type: GrantFiled: May 10, 2004Date of Patent: August 25, 2009Assignee: Phonak AGInventor: Herbert Baechler
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Patent number: 7450730Abstract: The invention relates to a personal monitoring system for a user, comprising: at least one of a sensor (26, 28) for sensing an internal body parameter of the user and a sensor (14, 26, 28) for sensing an ambient parameter of the ambient around said user, an earpiece (10) for being worn at least in part in the ear canal of the user including an acoustic output transducer (18) for providing sound to the user's ear canal, an evaluation unit (22) communicating with the sensor, means (32, 34) for individually implementing an individually defined regulation for the sensed parameter into said evaluation unit, the evaluation unit being adapted for monitoring sensed values of the parameter over time and comparing them to the individually defined regulations for the sensed parameter and being adapted for continuously judging whether the sensed values of the parameter comply with the individual regulation or not, and a compliance control unit (24) communicating with the evaluation unit and with the output transducer forType: GrantFiled: December 23, 2004Date of Patent: November 11, 2008Assignee: Phonak AGInventors: Christian Berg, Herbert Baechler
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Patent number: 7428312Abstract: In a signal processing unit of a hearing device, the signal processing unit consisting of a signal analyzing unit and a signal identification unit, the momentary acoustic surround situation is identified. Based on this identified surround situation, the parameter set belonging to the identified surround situation is automatically adjusted in a transmission unit in which a number of parameter sets are saved which are assigned to different acoustic surround situation. The hearing device user can adjust his individual hearing desire for each acoustic surround situation according to the automatic adjusted parameter set with the aid of an input unit. Thereby, the parameter of this parameter set are adjusted at the same time and commonly in one of two opposing directions, e.g. in the sense of “better hearing” or in the sense of “more pleasant understanding”.Type: GrantFiled: November 18, 2003Date of Patent: September 23, 2008Assignee: Phonak AGInventors: Hilmar Meier, Michael Boretzki, Herbert Bächler, Stefan Launer
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Patent number: 7349549Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for recording information in a hearing device and/or in a recording unit at least temporally operationally connected to the hearing device. The method consists in that a point in time of the recording and/or a recording frequency as well as the information to be recorded, as data and/or parameters and/or adjustments of the hearing device are adjusted freely or are programmable, respectively. Furthermore, a hearing device is described that is suitable to use the method. By the present invention, a multitude of the parameters being adjustable in a hearing device can be checked or surveyed all together or selectively in real, i.e. actually existing acoustic environments in order to optimally adjust or adapt the hearing device afterwards, that means after the analysis by the fitter, for example.Type: GrantFiled: January 27, 2004Date of Patent: March 25, 2008Assignee: Phonak AGInventors: Herbert Bächler, Volker Kühnel, Silvia Allegro, Stefan Daniel Menzl, Hilmar Meier, Michael Boretzki, Stefan Launer, Ivo Hasler, Hans-Ueli Roeck, Christoph Widmer
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Publication number: 20080049945Abstract: There is provided a system for providing binaural hearing assistance to a user, comprising a left ear unit to be worn at or in the user's left ear, a right ear unit to be worn at or in the user's right ear, each of the left ear unit and the right ear unit comprising means for stimulating the user's hearing and an inductive antenna for enabling bidirectional communication between the left ear unit and the right ear unit via an inductive link, which antenna has an axial symmetry axis which is oriented substantially vertically and which is substantially parallel to the antenna of the other one of the left ear unit and right ear unit, the system further comprising at least one device to be worn by the user which comprises an inductive antenna for enabling communication between the device and at least one of the left ear unit and the right ear unit via an inductive link, which antenna has an axial symmetry axis which is oriented substantially vertically and which is substantially parallel to the antennas of the leType: ApplicationFiled: August 25, 2006Publication date: February 28, 2008Applicant: Phonak AGInventors: Stefan Haenggi, Francois Marquis, Herbert Baechler
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Publication number: 20080037798Abstract: The method comprises the steps of automatically monitoring and detecting indications indicative of a forthcoming event concerning hearing systems; if such an indication is detected, retrieving identification data identifying at least one device of the hearing system concerned, referred to as specific device, or a user of said hearing system concerned, referred to as specific user; ans using said identification data for retrieving further data related to said specific device as device data or related to said specific user as user data. The method and the corresponding system can be used for adjusting said specific hearing system or other support actions, like dispensing consumables for said specific hearing system, or preparatory actions, like launching a suitable fitting program or loading audiological data related to the user.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 21, 2006Publication date: February 14, 2008Applicant: PHONAK AGInventors: Herbert Baechler, Stefan Launer, Bernd Waldmann
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Publication number: 20080019547Abstract: To improve the adjustment of the settings of a hearing aid or a hearing instrument respectively, a method is proposed according to which at least one setting of the hearing aid or instrument respectively for a particular acoustic environment is changed or deviated from the actual setting without any preceding action or manipulation of the user to provoke the user to interact or to readjust e.g. said setting.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 20, 2006Publication date: January 24, 2008Applicant: PHONAK AGInventor: Herbert Baechler
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Publication number: 20070274550Abstract: There is provided a method of operating a hearing assistance system comprising a hearing device (10, 110, 210), which comprises means (24) for stimulating a user's hearing and which is worn at one of the user's ears, and a remote device (12, 30, 40) spaced apart from the hearing device.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 24, 2006Publication date: November 29, 2007Applicant: Phonak AGInventors: Herbert Baechler, Francois Callias, Stefan Haenggi
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Patent number: 7286678Abstract: Hearing aid fitted with a central processing unit (1) having peripherals (3E, 3A) connected to its input and output. Each peripheral includes an identification unit (5) having an output connected to a first input of a comparator (9). A second input of the comparator is connected to a read-only identification memory (11) containing identification features of the peripherals. An output of the comparator drives a configuration memory (15). As a result, the hearing aid self identifies its current configuration based on the identification of the peripherals.Type: GrantFiled: July 6, 2000Date of Patent: October 23, 2007Assignee: Phonak AGInventors: Herbert Bächler, Christian Berg
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Publication number: 20070217637Abstract: So as to adapt an antenna arrangement (13) for RF-signal transmission in a hearing device (5) to different needs of different types of signal-transmission, the bandwidth BW of the antenna arrangement (13) is manually (M) and/or automatically (A) adjusted.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 2, 2006Publication date: September 20, 2007Applicant: Phonak AGInventors: Stefan Haenggi, Herbert Baechler
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Publication number: 20070071264Abstract: A hearing system includes a hearing device with a signal processing unit. A control input of the signal processing unit is connected to a device communication port. A remote control device has a wireless communication port for single or bi-directional wireless communication with the device communication port. A computer is embedded in the remote control device. An output of the computer is connected to the wireless communication port and to a machine/man interface at the remote control device. An input of the computer is connected to a man/machine interface at the remote control device. A set of application programs is executable by the computer.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 8, 2006Publication date: March 29, 2007Applicant: pHONAK agInventors: Herbert Baechler, Hilmar Meier
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Patent number: 7181032Abstract: An electrical connection to or in a hearing apparatus is established by assembling a series capacitor. The capacitor is formed by one part having one capacitor plate and a second part having another capacitor plate. A part of the casing of the hearing apparatus can be used as a dielectricum of the capacitor.Type: GrantFiled: March 13, 2001Date of Patent: February 20, 2007Assignee: Phonak AGInventors: Andreas Jakob, Herbert Baechler
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Publication number: 20060140425Abstract: The invention relates to a personal monitoring system for a user, comprising: at least one of a sensor (26, 28) for sensing an internal body parameter of the user and a sensor (14, 26, 28) for sensing an ambient parameter of the ambient around said user, an earpiece (10) for being worn at least in part in the ear canal of the user including an acoustic output transducer (18) for providing sound to the user's ear canal, an evaluation unit (22) communicating with the sensor, means (32, 34) for individually implementing an individually defined regulation for the sensed parameter into said evaluation unit, the evaluation unit being adapted for monitoring sensed values of the parameter over time and comparing them to the individually defined regulations for the sensed parameter and being adapted for continuously judging whether the sensed values of the parameter comply with the individual regulation or not, and a compliance control unit (24) communicating with the evaluation unit and with the output transducer forType: ApplicationFiled: December 23, 2004Publication date: June 29, 2006Applicant: PHONAK AGInventors: Christian Berg, Herbert Baechler
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Patent number: 7043038Abstract: An in-the-ear hearing device comprises an outside body, which is at least in part of textile material (3). The textile material allows to optimally adapt shape and shape dynamics as well as biocompatibility to the respective characteristics of an individual ear canal.Type: GrantFiled: July 24, 2002Date of Patent: May 9, 2006Assignee: Phonak AGInventors: Herbert Bächler, Jörg Mayer, Hans Hessel, Erdal Karamuk
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Patent number: 7006646Abstract: The invention relates to fitting apparatus for hearing aids, wherein a first interface transmitting a signal to a hearing aid (7) and a second interface receiving individual response signals to auditory stimulus (9) are merged into a single interface (13).Type: GrantFiled: June 27, 2000Date of Patent: February 28, 2006Assignee: Phonak AGInventor: Herbert Baechler