Hearing aid optical monitoring apparatus

Inventors

Wagner, Wolfgang • Stephenson, Shawn • Just, Steven Matthew • Aumer, Michael Edward • Tucker, Jesse Berkley • Eschbach, Lawrence Christopher • LeBoeuf, Steven Francis

Assignees

Yukka Magic LLC

Abstract

A hearing aid includes a speaker driver, an optical source secured directly to the speaker driver, an optical detector secured directly to the speaker driver, a first light guide extending outwardly from the optical source and in optical communication with the optical source, and a second light guide extending outwardly from the optical detector and in optical communication with the optical detector. The first light guide is configured to deliver light from the optical source into an ear region of the subject via a distal end thereof, and the second light guide is configured to collect light from the ear region via a distal end thereof and deliver collected light to the optical detector. The hearing aid may include at least one signal processor configured to process signals produced by the optical detector, and at least one of the following: an accelerometer, a humidity sensor, an altimeter, a temperature sensor.

Core Innovation

The invention relates to a headset, an earpiece speaker driver, and a monitoring device configured to operate in proximity to an ear of a subject. Each includes a speaker driver within a housing or as part of an earpiece, and a sensor module or sensor circuit that comprises an optical source and an optical detector configured to detect and/or measure physiological information from the subject wearing the headset or speaker driver.

A further aspect integrates the optical source and optical detector with the speaker driver using flexible mounting and optical routing structures. In a headset configuration, an elongated flexible printed circuit board is directly mounted on a surface of the speaker driver, with the optical source and optical detector secured to the PCB at a distal end portion. In other configurations, a sensor module is flexibly coupled to the speaker driver, including configurations with an optical light guide optically coupled to the optical detector to collect light from an ear region and deliver light to the detector.

The invention addresses measurement sensitivity to motion artifacts by using optical light guidance and light-guiding optics to prevent direct optical cross-path overlap when the device separates from skin. The disclosed approach uses light guides delivering light into an ear region and collecting scattered light back to the detector, with optional optical filtering material, windows, polarizing element, or polarization film/lens/material to attenuate spurious and/or reflected light. Optional signal processing on the PCB or via a data processing unit is described, and optional auxiliary sensors include an accelerometer, humidity sensor, altimeter, and temperature sensor.

Wearable integration configurations are described, including an earbud form factor and ring/armband form factors, with the optical monitoring apparatus mounted in association with the speaker driver. The disclosed arrangements further discuss damping of sound vibrations, including damping material and a flex circuit configured to dampen sound vibrations from the speaker driver. Results and plots are referenced that indicate reduced motion-artifact sensitivity compared with conventional sensors, including signal onset slope reduction.

Claims Coverage

The provided independent claims cover three related apparatus types that include an optical source and optical detector configured to detect and/or measure physiological information. Across the independent claims, the main inventive features involve structural integration of an optical sensor with a speaker driver using flexible PCB or flexible coupling, and optical light guidance and collection for ear-region sensing.

The independent claims collectively require optical detection of physiological information integrated with an earpiece speaker driver, with flexible structural coupling including an elongated flexible PCB with distal-end optical components or a flexibly coupled sensor module. Dependent claim refinements described in the partial content further emphasize optical light guiding and collection, optional onboard processing or processing via a data processing unit, optional auxiliary sensors, and damping of sound vibrations.

Stated Advantages

Documented Applications