Near infrared light in hearing aid appliances
Inventors
RIIS, Søren Kamaric • Lunner, Thomas • WENDT, Dorothea • BACKUS, Bradford
Assignees
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Publication Number
US-12491375-B2
Publication Date
2025-12-09
Expiration Date
Abstract
A cochlear implant hearing aid system is disclosed. The cochlear implant hearing aid system comprises an external part. The external part includes a sound pickup unit configured to pick up sound from the environment and a sound processing unit configured to process said sound. The cochlear implant hearing aid system further comprises an implant part. The implant part includes an implant processing unit and a plurality of cochlea stimulation electrodes for stimulation of a cochlea of a user. The cochlear implant hearing aid system further comprises a near-infrared transmitter configured to transmit a near-infrared wave. The cochlear implant hearing aid system further comprises a near-infrared receiver configured to receive said near-infrared wave.
Core Innovation
The invention relates to a system in which an implant part includes an internal near-infrared transmitter that transmits near-infrared waves in a wavelength range of 700-900 nm toward a cortex of a user. The implant part also includes an internal near-infrared sensor that detects near-infrared waves in the same wavelength range scattered by the cortex from outside of the system.
The detected near-infrared waves are processed by a digital signal processor using Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) or functional NIRS (fNIRS) image processing to provide cortical responses for input to the user. The processing unit applies NIRS or fNIRS image processing to extrapolate a hemodynamic response from the detected near-infrared waves and output determined brain activity based on the hemodynamic response.
The disclosed system further integrates the near-infrared transmitter and sensor into a hearing/medical-device architecture, including an external part with sound pickup and sound processing, and an implant part including either vibration transfer or cochlea stimulation electrodes with implant processing. The system is also disclosed with non-contact electromagnetic power transfer and non-contact electromagnetic data transfer, and the near-infrared-derived results are used for adapting medical device signal processing for health monitoring and/or brain-computer-interface output.
Claims Coverage
The document provides three independent claims: clm-00001 (system), clm-00014 (system), and clm-00018 (method). Across these independent claims, the core inventive features are an internal near-infrared transmitter and an internal near-infrared sensor configured to transmit near-infrared waves toward a cortex and detect cortex-scattered near-infrared waves, with optional NIRS/fNIRS-based processing and optional non-contact electromagnetic power and data transfer.
Internal near-infrared transmitter toward cortex
An implant part includes an internal near-infrared transmitter that transmits near-infrared waves of a wavelength within a range of 700-900 nm toward a cortex of a user.
Internal near-infrared sensor detecting cortex-scattered waves
The implant part includes an internal near-infrared sensor that detects near-infrared waves of a wavelength within the range of 700-900 nm, configured to detect the near-infrared waves scattered by the cortex from outside of the system.
Cortex-interaction through tissue to internal sensor
An implant part includes an internal near-infrared transmitter that transmits near-infrared waves of 700-900 nm through tissue to an internal near-infrared sensor provided on the implant part, with transmission toward a cortex and detection of near-infrared waves scattered by the cortex.
Detecting transmitted NIR waves scattered by cortex (method)
Near-infrared waves of 700-900 nm are transmitted via an internal near-infrared transmitter disposed in an implant part toward a cortex, and near-infrared waves of 700-900 nm are detected with an internal near-infrared sensor disposed in a user, where the near-infrared waves are scattered by the cortex from outside of the medical device system.
Across the independent claims, the central claim coverage is the use of an implanted internal near-infrared transmitter and an implanted internal near-infrared sensor to transmit near-infrared waves toward the cortex and detect cortex-scattered near-infrared waves (700-900 nm), with optional NIRS/fNIRS processing to generate cortical responses and hemodynamic-response-derived brain activity.
Stated Advantages
Not explicitly described in patent.
Documented Applications
Adapting CI/hearing-aid signal processing using NIR-derived results.
Fitting the system using NIR-derived results.
Health monitoring using NIR-derived results.
Brain-computer-interface output based on hemodynamic response.
Use in a hearing system with an external sound pickup and sound processing section and an implant part with either vibration transfer or cochlea stimulation electrodes.
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