Patents by Inventor Poul HOANG

Poul HOANG 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).

  • Patent number: 12277952
    Abstract: A hearing device includes a) a multitude of input transducers providing a corresponding multitude of electric input signals; and b) a processor for providing a processed signal in dependence of the electric input signals. The processor includes b1) a beamformer for providing a spatially filtered signal in dependence of electric input signals and beamformer filter coefficients determined in dependence of a fixed steering vector including as elements respective acoustic transfer functions from a target signal source, to each of said multitude of input transducers; and b2) a target adaptation module connected to the input transducers and to at least one beamformer, the target adaptation module being configured to provide compensation signals to compensate the electric input signals so that they match the fixed steering vector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2025
    Assignee: OTICON A/S
    Inventors: Jan M. De Haan, Robert Rehr, Sebastien Curdy-Neves, Svend Feldt, Jesper Jensen, Michael Syskind Pedersen, Michael Noes Gätke, Mohammad El-Sayed, Stig Petri, Karsten Bonke, Gary Jones, Poul Hoang
  • Publication number: 20250024209
    Abstract: A hearing aid includes an input providing an input signal representing sound in an environment, the input signal including no speech signal, or one or more speech signals from one or more speech sound sources and additional signal components, termed noise signal, from one or more other sound sources, an own voice detector, a voice activity detector, and a talker extraction unit to determine and/or receive one or more speech signals as separated one or more speech signals from speech sound sources other than the hearing aid user and to detect the speech signal originating from the voice of the user. The talker extraction unit provides separate signals, each including, or indicating presence of, one of the one or more speech signals. A noise reduction system determines speech overlap and/or gap between the speech signal originating from the user's voice and each of the separated one or more speech signals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 27, 2024
    Publication date: January 16, 2025
    Applicant: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Michael Syskind PEDERSEN, Jesper JENSEN, Jan M. DE HAAN, Poul HOANG
  • Publication number: 20240430624
    Abstract: A hearing aid including a multitude M?2 microphones adapted for providing M electric input signals (x) representative of an environment of a user, at least one beamformer for generating at least one beamformed signal in dependence of beamformer weights (w) configured to be applied to said electric input signals, thereby providing said at least one beamformed signal (Y) as a weighted sum of the M of electric input signals. The beamformer weights (w) are adaptively optimized to a plurality of target positions (?) by maximizing a target signal to noise ratio (SNR) for sound from the target positions (?). The signal to noise ratio may be determined in a number of different ways, e.g. in dependence of first and second output variances (|YT2, |YV|2) of said beamformer, when said electric input signals (x) or said beamformed signal (Y) are/is labelled as target (T) and noise (V), respectively.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 4, 2024
    Publication date: December 26, 2024
    Inventors: Michael Syskind PEDERSEN, Jesper JENSEN, Adam KUKLASINSKI, Fares EL-AZM, Sam NEES, Sigurdur SIGURDSSON, Silvia TARANTINO, Poul HOANG, Jan M. DE HAAN, Mojtaba FARMANI, Svend Oscar PETERSEN
  • Publication number: 20240414483
    Abstract: A hearing aid comprises a multitude M?2 microphones adapted for providing M electric input signals (x) representative of an environment of a user, at least one beamformer for generating at least one beamformed signal in dependence of beamformer weights (w) configured to be applied to said electric input signals, thereby providing said at least one beamformed signal (Y) as a weighted sum of the M of electric input signals. The beamformer weights (w) are adaptively optimized to a plurality of target positions (?) by maximizing a target signal to noise ratio (SNR) for sound from the target positions (?).
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 7, 2023
    Publication date: December 12, 2024
    Inventors: Michael Syskind PEDERSEN, Jesper JENSEN, Adam KUKLASINSKI, Fares EL-AZM, Sam NEES, Sigurdur SIGURDSSON, Silvia TARANTINO, Poul HOANG, Jan M. DE HAAN, Mojtaba FARMANI, Svend Oscar PETERSEN
  • Patent number: 12149882
    Abstract: A hearing device adapted for being located at or in an ear of a user, or for being fully or partially implanted in the head of a user comprises a) an input unit for providing at least one electric input signal representing sound in an environment of the user, said electric input signal comprising a target speech signal from a target sound source and additional signal components, termed noise signal components, from one or more other sound sources, b) a noise reduction system for providing an estimate of said target speech signal, wherein said noise signal components are at least partially attenuated, and c) an own voice detector for repeatedly estimating whether or not, or with what probability, said at least one electric input signal, or a signal derived therefrom, comprises speech originating from the voice of the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 13, 2023
    Date of Patent: November 19, 2024
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Poul Hoang, Jan M. De Haan, Jesper Jensen, Michael Syskind Pedersen
  • Patent number: 12137323
    Abstract: A hearing aid includes an input providing an input signal representing sound in an environment, the input signal including no speech signal, or one or more speech signals from one or more speech sound sources and additional signal components, termed noise signal, from one or more other sound sources, an own voice detector, a voice activity detector, and a talker extraction unit to determine and/or receive one or more speech signals as separated one or more speech signals from speech sound sources other than the hearing aid user and to detect the speech signal originating from the voice of the user. The talker extraction unit provides separate signals, each including, or indicating presence of, one of the one or more speech signals. A noise reduction system determines speech overlap and/or gap between the speech signal originating from the user's voice and each of the separated one or more speech signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: November 5, 2024
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Michael Syskind Pedersen, Jesper Jensen, Jan M. De Haan, Poul Hoang
  • Publication number: 20240276157
    Abstract: A hearing aid microphone system includes M microphones providing corresponding electric input signals. Environmental sound at a given microphone includes a target sound signal propagated via an acoustic propagation channel from a direction to or a location of a target sound source to the microphone, and possible additive noise signals. The acoustic propagation channel is modeled. The hearing aid system includes: a processor connected to the microphones, and a database ? having a multitude of dictionaries ?p, p=1, . . . , P, where p is a person index, of vectors, termed ATF-vectors, whose elements ATFm, m=1, . . . , M, are frequency dependent acoustic transfer functions representing direction- or location-dependent, and frequency dependent propagation of sound. The processor is configured to, at least in a learning mode of operation, determine personalized ATF-vectors based on the multitude of dictionaries ?p, the electric input signals, and the model of the acoustic propagation channels.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 17, 2024
    Publication date: August 15, 2024
    Applicant: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Poul HOANG, Jan M. DE HAAN, Michael Syskind PEDERSEN, Jesper JENSEN
  • Patent number: 11991499
    Abstract: A hearing aid microphone system includes M microphones providing corresponding electric input signals. Environmental sound at a given microphone includes a target sound signal propagated via an acoustic propagation channel from a direction to or a location of a target sound source to the microphone, and possible additive noise signals. The acoustic propagation channel is modeled. The hearing aid system includes: a processor connected to the microphones, and a database ? having a multitude of dictionaries ?p, p=1, . . . , P, where p is a person index, of vectors, termed ATF-vectors, whose elements ATFm, m=1, . . . , M, are frequency dependent acoustic transfer functions representing direction- or location-dependent, and frequency dependent propagation of sound. The processor is configured to, at least in a learning mode of operation, determine personalized ATF-vectors based on the multitude of dictionaries ?p, the electric input signals, and the model of the acoustic propagation channels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2024
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Poul Hoang, Jan M. De Haan, Michael Syskind Pedersen, Jesper Jensen
  • Publication number: 20240089651
    Abstract: A hearing device adapted for being located at or in an ear of a user, or for being fully or partially implanted in the head of a user comprises a) an input unit for providing at least one electric input signal representing sound in an environment of the user, said electric input signal comprising a target speech signal from a target sound source and additional signal components, termed noise signal components, from one or more other sound sources, b) a noise reduction system for providing an estimate of said target speech signal, wherein said noise signal components are at least partially attenuated, and c) an own voice detector for repeatedly estimating whether or not, or with what probability, said at least one electric input signal, or a signal derived therefrom, comprises speech originating from the voice of the user.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 13, 2023
    Publication date: March 14, 2024
    Applicant: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Poul HOANG, Jan M. DE HAAN, Jesper JENSEN, Michael Syskind PEDERSEN
  • Patent number: 11856357
    Abstract: A hearing device adapted for being located at or in an ear of a user, or for being fully or partially implanted in the head of a user comprises a) an input unit for providing at least one electric input signal representing sound in an environment of the user, said electric input signal comprising a target speech signal from a target sound source and additional signal components, termed noise signal components, from one or more other sound sources, b) a noise reduction system for providing an estimate of said target speech signal, wherein said noise signal components are at least partially attenuated, and c) an own voice detector for repeatedly estimating whether or not, or with what probability, said at least one electric input signal, or a signal derived therefrom, comprises speech originating from the voice of the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2022
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2023
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Poul Hoang, Jan M. De Haan, Jesper Jensen, Michael Syskind Pedersen
  • Publication number: 20230388721
    Abstract: A hearing aid configured to be worn at or in an ear of a user including hearing aid comprising A) a multitude of microphones, B) a database including b1) a plurality of acoustic transfer function vectors representing different candidate locations of a target sound source in the environment relative to the microphone system, and b2) a multitude of posterior probabilities related to at least some of the acoustic transfer function vectors, each posterior probability representing the probability of a given acoustic transfer function given a particular eye-gaze direction of the user, and C) a processor configured to determine a current location of the target sound source relative to the user.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 28, 2023
    Publication date: November 30, 2023
    Inventors: Jesper JENSEN, Poul HOANG, Simone Birk Bols THOMSEN
  • Publication number: 20230186934
    Abstract: A hearing device includes a) a multitude of input transducers providing a corresponding multitude of electric input signals; and b) a processor for providing a processed signal in dependence of the electric input signals. The processor includes b1) a beamformer for providing a spatially filtered signal in dependence of electric input signals and beamformer filter coefficients determined in dependence of a fixed steering vector including as elements respective acoustic transfer functions from a target signal source, to each of said multitude of input transducers; and b2) a target adaptation module connected to the input transducers and to at least one beamformer, the target adaptation module being configured to provide compensation signals to compensate the electric input signals so that they match the fixed steering vector.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 14, 2022
    Publication date: June 15, 2023
    Applicant: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Jan M. DE HAAN, Robert REHR, Sebastien CURDY-NEVES, Svend FELDT, Jesper JENSEN, Michael Syskind PEDERSEN, Michael Noes GÄTKE, Mohammad EL-SAYED, Stig PETRI, Karsten BONKE, Gary Jones, Poul Hoang
  • Publication number: 20230083192
    Abstract: A hearing device adapted for being located at or in an ear of a user, or for being fully or partially implanted in the head of a user comprises a) an input unit for providing at least one electric input signal representing sound in an environment of the user, said electric input signal comprising a target speech signal from a target sound source and additional signal components, termed noise signal components, from one or more other sound sources, b) a noise reduction system for providing an estimate of said target speech signal, wherein said noise signal components are at least partially attenuated, and c) an own voice detector for repeatedly estimating whether or not, or with what probability, said at least one electric input signal, or a signal derived therefrom, comprises speech originating from the voice of the user.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 8, 2022
    Publication date: March 16, 2023
    Applicant: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Poul HOANG, Jan M. DE HAAN, Jesper JENSEN, Michael Syskind PEDERSEN
  • Patent number: 11533554
    Abstract: A hearing device adapted for being located at or in an ear of a user, or for being fully or partially implanted in the head of a user comprises a) an input unit for providing at least one electric input signal representing sound in an environment of the user, said electric input signal comprising a target speech signal from a target sound source and additional signal components, termed noise signal components, from one or more other sound sources, b) a noise reduction system for providing an estimate of said target speech signal, wherein said noise signal components are at least partially attenuated, and c) an own voice detector for repeatedly estimating whether or not, or with what probability, said at least one electric input signal, or a signal derived therefrom, comprises speech originating from the voice of the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2022
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Poul Hoang, Jan M. De Haan, Jesper Jensen, Michael Syskind Pedersen
  • Publication number: 20220295191
    Abstract: A hearing aid includes an input providing an input signal representing sound in an environment, the input signal including no speech signal, or one or more speech signals from one or more speech sound sources and additional signal components, termed noise signal, from one or more other sound sources, an own voice detector, a voice activity detector, and a talker extraction unit to determine and/or receive one or more speech signals as separated one or more speech signals from speech sound sources other than the hearing aid user and to detect the speech signal originating from the voice of the user. The talker extraction unit provides separate signals, each including, or indicating presence of, one of the one or more speech signals. A noise reduction system determines speech overlap and/or gap between the speech signal originating from the user's voice and each of the separated one or more speech signals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 10, 2022
    Publication date: September 15, 2022
    Applicant: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Michael Syskind PEDERSEN, Jesper JENSEN, Jan M. DE HAAN, Poul HOANG
  • Publication number: 20220174428
    Abstract: A hearing aid system comprises a hearing aid configured to be worn on the head at or in an ear of a user. The hearing aid comprises a microphone system comprising a multitude of M of microphones arranged in said hearing aid and adapted to provide M corresponding electric input signals xm(n), m=1, . . . , M, n representing time. The environment sound at a given microphone comprises a mixture of a) a target sound signal sm(n) propagated via an acoustic propagation channel from a direction to or a location (?) of a target sound source to the mth microphone of the hearing aid when worn by the user, and b) possible additive noise signals vm(n) as present at the location of the mth microphone, wherein the acoustic propagation channel is modeled as xm(n)=sm(n)hm(?)+vm(n), and wherein hm(?) is an acoustic impulse response for sound for that acoustic propagation channel.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 9, 2021
    Publication date: June 2, 2022
    Applicant: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Poul HOANG, Jan M. DE HAAN, Michael Syskind PEDERSEN, Jesper JENSEN
  • Publication number: 20210076124
    Abstract: A hearing device adapted for being located at or in an ear of a user, or for being fully or partially implanted in the head of a user comprises a) an input unit for providing at least one electric input signal representing sound in an environment of the user, said electric input signal comprising a target speech signal from a target sound source and additional signal components, termed noise signal components, from one or more other sound sources, b) a noise reduction system for providing an estimate of said target speech signal, wherein said noise signal components are at least partially attenuated, and c) an own voice detector for repeatedly estimating whether or not, or with what probability, said at least one electric input signal, or a signal derived therefrom, comprises speech originating from the voice of the user.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 10, 2020
    Publication date: March 11, 2021
    Applicant: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Poul HOANG, Jan M. DE HAAN, Jesper JENSEN, Michael Syskind PEDERSEN