Search Patents
  • Patent number: 9749757
    Abstract: The present disclosure regards a binaural hearing system configured to receive sound signals from the environment having two hearing instruments to be worn on respective sides of the head of a user and to generate a binaural signal using the received sound signals of both hearing instruments.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 1, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2017
    Assignee: OTICON A/S
    Inventor: Pauli Minnaar
  • Patent number: 7471799
    Abstract: Method of noise reduction in a hearing aid or a listening device to be used by a hearing impaired person in which the noise reduction is provided primarily in the frequency range wherein the hearing impaired has the smallest hearing loss or the best hearing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 21, 2002
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2008
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Joachim Neumann, Søren Laugesen
  • Patent number: 10721572
    Abstract: A hearing aid is disclosed. The hearing aid comprises a carrier unit and a vibrator unit provided on said carrier unit. The vibrator unit is configured to apply vibrations to a pinna of an outer ear of a user by touching said pinna.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 30, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2020
    Assignee: OTICON A/S
    Inventors: Svend Oscar Petersen, Thor Højlund Olsen, Bjarke Mejnertsen
  • Patent number: 9813825
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an apparatus having a directional microphone system having adaptable directionality and a remote object detection unit configured to detect a remote object by detecting a transmitted signal reflected from the object, the directionality of the directional microphone system may be modified or adapted based on the detection of the remote object.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2017
    Assignee: OTICON A/S
    Inventors: Adis Bjelosevic, Ole Fogh Olsen
  • Patent number: 7212642
    Abstract: Hearing aid with a microphone system for providing a directional response by generating a fixed forward pointing directivity pattern and a fixed backward pointing directivity pattern and where the forward and backward directivity pattern signals are mixed at a ratio, which ensures energy minimization of the output signal, and where the fixed directivity patterns are set for optimized directivity when the microphone system is located near or at an object.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2003
    Date of Patent: May 1, 2007
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventor: Karsten Bo Rasmussen
  • Patent number: 10321249
    Abstract: A hearing instrument and a method for operating a hearing instrument is provided. The hearing instrument and/or the method includes receiving and manipulating an audio signal at a signal processor to create a manipulated audio signal, providing a tinnitus relief sound having an operational level based on a present volume level from an audio signal, and generating an output signal based on the manipulated audio signal and the tinnitus relief sound.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 11, 2019
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Björn Ohl, Dorthe Hofman-Bang, Marianne Philipsson, Jacob Anders Roug, Jesper Nøhr Hansen, Gary Jones
  • Patent number: 10674292
    Abstract: A hearing instrument and a method for operating a hearing instrument is provided. The hearing instrument and/or the method includes receiving and manipulating an audio signal at a signal processor to create a manipulated audio signal, providing a tinnitus relief sound having an operational level based on a present volume level from an audio signal, and generating an output signal based on the manipulated audio signal and the tinnitus relief sound.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2020
    Assignee: OTICON A/S
    Inventors: Björn Ohl, Dorthe Hofman-Bang, Marianne Philipsson, Jacob Anders Roug, Jesper Nøhr Hansen, Gary Jones
  • Patent number: 11700493
    Abstract: A hearing aid is configured to be located at or in an ear of a user. The hearing aid comprises a heartbeat detector providing a pulse control signal, and a processor. The processor is configured to estimate whether the hearing aid is located at a left or a right ear of the user in dependence of the pulse control signal. A method of operating a hearing aid and a binaural hearing aid system is further disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2023
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Karsten Bo Rasmussen, Svend Oscar Petersen, Troels Holm Pedersen, Amalie Sofie Ekstrand, Anders Vinther Olsen, Jacob Lindvig, Jana Thorin, Michael Syskind Pedersen, Nicolai Westergren, Sudershan Y. S, Tanveer Bhuiyan, Svend Feldt
  • Patent number: 8494191
    Abstract: The invention relates to a neckloop for being coupled with a transformer element and for generating an electromagnetic signal for being received by a telecoil of a hearing device or by an induction receiver. In order to avoid strangulation of the person wearing the neckloop the neckloop comprises a teleloop cable having a first end and a second end, and a first magnet and a second magnet for forming a clasp of the neckloop. The first and second magnets are of opposite polarity. The first magnet is provided with a first plating and the second magnet is provided with a second plating. The first plating is in direct contact with the first end and the second plating is in direct contact with the second end.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2013
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventor: Kristian Kiehn Holst
  • Patent number: 9439005
    Abstract: The present invention regards a hearing system configured to be worn by a user comprising an environment sound input unit, an output transducer, and electric circuitry. The environment sound input unit is configured to receive sound from the environment of the environment sound input unit and to generate sound signals representing sound of the environment. The output transducer is configured to stimulate hearing of a user. The electric circuitry comprises a spatial filterbank. The spatial filterbank is configured to use the sound signals to generate spatial sound signals dividing a total space of the environment sound in subspaces. Each spatial sound signal represents sound coming from a subspace. The subspaces may (in particular modes of operation) be either fixed, or dynamically determined, or a mixture thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2016
    Assignee: OTICON A/S
    Inventor: Jesper Jensen
  • Publication number: 20120275628
    Abstract: A portable electronic device and an auxiliary device each having an interface allowing the establishment of a communication link between them, at least to be able to transmit data representative of a status information from the auxiliary device to the portable electronic device, and-a method of of establishing a measure of an absolute elapsed time in a listening device. The problem is solved in that the portable electronic device has a timing unit for determining a time interval and a memory for storing data, and wherein the auxiliary device has a master timing unit for providing a signal representative of the present time, and wherein the system is adapted to transfer a signal representative of the present time from the auxiliary device to the portable electronic device and to store it in the memory.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 25, 2012
    Publication date: November 1, 2012
    Applicant: OTICON A/S
    Inventor: Michael Syskind PEDERSEN
  • Patent number: 7688990
    Abstract: A hearing aid with anti feed back system, the hearing aid including a signal path from at least one input transducer to an output transducer, a signal processing unit, acoustic environment detection capability, and a parameter generator that generates input to the setting of signal processing parameters to be used in the signal processing unit based on either manual input or from the results of acoustic environment detection, and an alert signal generator that generates an alert signal to the anti feed back system whenever one or more preselected input to the generation of signal processing parameters undergoes changes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 30, 2010
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Johan Hellgren, Thomas Bo Nielsen
  • Patent number: 7596230
    Abstract: The invention concerns a method for detecting and minimizing the harmful influence of ultra sound in a listening device having two or more microphones. The energy contents in the microphone signals is determined, and time related changes in energy contents of the microphone signals is analysed to determine whether any of the microphones is subjected to an ultrasound sound-field, and the signal from the microphone with the lowest content of ultrasound is routed through a signal processing device to an output unit. The invention further concerns a listening device having means for choosing the microphone channel with the lowest level of ultrasound.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 29, 2009
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventor: Kim Spetzler Petersen
  • Patent number: 9031271
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a listening device for a hearing impaired person. The present invention furthermore relates to a corresponding operating method of operating a listening device and to a corresponding computer program. In particular, the present invention relates to a listening device that comprises a signal processing unit that is controlled by a controller configured to implement a combined feed-forward and feed-back control in order to ensure that both an electric input signal and a processed electric output signal have at least almost identical modulation index values. Thereby, speech intelligibility is increased, in particular for a hearing impaired person being capable of perceiving sound pressure levels in a substantially decreased dynamic range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventor: Niels Henrik Pontoppidan
  • Patent number: 10123134
    Abstract: A binaural hearing assistance method and system comprising left and right hearing assistance devices and a user interface are provided. The left and right hearing assistance devices comprises a) at least two input units for providing a time-frequency representation of an input signal in a number of frequency bands and a number of time instances; and b) a multi-input unit noise reduction system comprising a multi-channel beamformer filtering unit operationally coupled to said at least two input units and configured to provide a beamformed signal. The binaural hearing assistance system is configured to allow a user to indicate a direction to or location of a target signal source relative to the user via said user interface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2016
    Date of Patent: November 6, 2018
    Assignee: Oticon A/S
    Inventors: Jesper Jensen, Michael Syskind Pedersen, Jan Mark De Haan
  • Patent number: 9510112
    Abstract: An external microphone array is configured to be used with a hearing aid and comprises a number of microphones configured to detect one or more sound signals from a sound source and means for wirelessly sending the detected sound signal to at least one hearing aid. The external microphone array comprises means for automatically determining the direction of the sound source either by: a) receiving a wireless signal transmitted from a remote control; b) by receiving acoustic signals picked up by the hearing aid(s) and by further comparing the signals with signals received by the external microphone array. The external microphone array may e.g. take the form of a sphere, a hemi-sphere or a neckband.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2016
    Assignee: OTICON A/S
    Inventors: Svend Oscar Petersen, Mette Boel Pedersen, Gabriel Aldaz, Martin Bergmann, Regin Kopp Pedersen, Peter Sommer
  • Patent number: 9473858
    Abstract: A hearing device comprising a first and a second input sound transducers, a processing unit, and an output sound transducer. The first transducer is configured to be arranged in an ear canal or in the ear of the user, to receive acoustical sound signals from the environment and to generate first electrical acoustic signals from the received acoustical sound signals. The second transducer is configured to be arranged behind a pinna or on, behind or at the ear of the user, to receive acoustical sound signals from the environment and to generate second electrical acoustic signals from the received acoustical sound signals. The processing unit is configured to process the first and second electrical acoustic signals. The output sound transducer is configured to be arranged in the ear canal of the user and to generate acoustical output sound signals from electrical acoustic signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2016
    Assignee: OTICON A/S
    Inventors: Michael Syskind Pedersen, Thomas Kaulberg, Anders Thule, Steen Michael Munk, Karsten Bo Rasmussen
  • Publication number: 20100135511
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of operating an audio processing device. The invention further relates to an audio processing device, to a software program and to a medium having instructions stored thereon. The object of the present invention is to provide improvements in the processing of sounds in listening devices. The problem is solved by a method comprising a) receiving an electric input signal representing an audio signal; b) providing an event-control parameter indicative of changes related to the electric input signal and for controlling the processing of the electric input signal; c) storing a representation of the electric input signal or a part thereof; d) providing a processed electric output signal with a configurable delay based on the stored representation of the electric input signal or a part thereof and controlled by the event-control parameter. The invention may e.g. be used in hearing instruments, headphones or headsets or active ear plugs.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 25, 2009
    Publication date: June 3, 2010
    Applicant: OTICON A/S
    Inventor: Niels Henrik PONTOPPIDAN
  • Patent number: 10299049
    Abstract: A hearing device comprising a first and a second input sound transducers, a processing unit, and an output sound transducer. The first transducer is configured to be arranged in an ear canal or in the ear of the user, to receive acoustical sound signals from the environment and to generate first electrical acoustic signals from the received acoustical sound signals. The second transducer is configured to be arranged behind a pinna or on, behind or at the ear of the user, to receive acoustical sound signals from the environment and to generate second electrical acoustic signals from the received acoustical sound signals. The processing unit is configured to process the first and second electrical acoustic signals and apply a direction dependent gain. The output sound transducer is configured generate acoustical output sound signals in accordance with the applied direction dependent gain.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 9, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2019
    Assignee: OTICON A/S
    Inventors: Michael Syskind Pedersen, Thomas Kaulberg, Anders Thule, Steen Michael Munk, Karsten Bo Rasmussen
  • Patent number: RE48921
    Abstract: An audio device includes a microphone, a sound canal allowing sound to pass from the surroundings to the microphone, a signal path from the microphone to a receiver, and a current source, such that sounds received at the microphone may be enhanced and presented at the ear level of the user. A protection screen is provided at the sound canal, and includes a first surface which faces the surroundings and a second surface which faces the sound canal, and defines a slit-formed opening between the first surface and the second surface. The curvature between the first surface and the slit-formed opening is smooth and gradual, and a sharp edge is located at the transition between the second surface and the slit-formed opening.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 1, 2022
    Assignee: OTICON A/S
    Inventor: Lars Tuborg Jensen