CN111901738A

CN111901738A - Method and system for detecting state of bone conduction hearing device

Info

Publication number: CN111901738A
Application number: CN202010891027.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 唐惠芳; 李伯诚; 闫冰岩
Original assignee: Shenzhen Voxtech Co Ltd
Current assignee: Shenzhen Voxtech Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-08-29
Filing date: 2020-08-29
Publication date: 2020-11-06
Also published as: CN115334437A

Abstract

The embodiment of the application discloses a method and a system for detecting the state of bone conduction hearing equipment, wherein the bone conduction hearing equipment at least comprises a microphone, a loudspeaker, a feedback analysis unit and a signal processing unit, and the method comprises the following steps: generating, by the speaker, a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal is generated by a signal processing unit; receiving, by the microphone, the third sound and generating a feedback signal; determining, by a feedback analysis unit, a feedback path transfer function of a speaker to a microphone of a bone conduction hearing device based on a feedback signal of the microphone and the first signal; obtaining at least one preset feedback path transfer function; comparing the feedback path transfer function with at least one preset feedback path transfer function; and determining the state of the bone conduction hearing device by the signal processing unit according to the comparison result.

Description

Method and system for detecting state of bone conduction hearing device

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of hearing device technology, and in particular, to a method and system for detecting a state of a bone conduction hearing device.

Background

Hearing devices (e.g. hearing aids) are usually provided with both a microphone and a speaker, and the state of the hearing device has a great impact on the use of the hearing device. Abnormal conditions of the hearing device may result in a substantial reduction of the output sensitivity of the hearing device or directly in a malfunction of the hearing device (e.g. howling). Therefore, the detection of the state of the hearing device is of great significance for ensuring the normal use of the hearing device and reducing possible damage caused by abnormal hearing devices. In bone conduction hearing devices (e.g. bone conduction hearing aids), the feedback path transfer function is an important indicator reflecting the state of the hearing instrument. In some scenarios, the real-time status of the bone conduction hearing device may be visually reflected by detecting and evaluating the feedback path transfer function of the bone conduction hearing device.

Disclosure of Invention

One of the embodiments of the present application further provides a method for detecting a state of a bone conduction hearing device, where the bone conduction hearing device at least includes a microphone, a speaker, a feedback analysis unit, and a signal processing unit, and the method includes: generating, by the speaker, a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal is generated by the signal processing unit; receiving, by the microphone, the third sound and generating a feedback signal; determining, by the feedback analysis unit, a feedback path transfer function of the speaker of the bone conduction hearing device to the microphone based on a feedback signal of the microphone and the first signal; obtaining at least one preset feedback path transfer function; comparing the feedback path transfer function with the at least one preset feedback path transfer function; determining, by the signal processing unit, a state of the bone conduction hearing device according to the comparison result.

In some embodiments, the at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises a standard feedback path transfer function, an abnormal feedback path transfer function; the abnormal feedback path transfer function comprises one or more of a wearing incorrect feedback path transfer function, a bone conduction hearing device structure abnormal feedback path transfer function, a foreign object invasion feedback path transfer function and a foreign object occlusion feedback path transfer function; said comparing said feedback path transfer function with said at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises: determining the at least one preset feedback path transfer function within a preset threshold range from the feedback path transfer function; determining the type of the feedback path transfer function based on the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function.

In some embodiments, determining the type of the feedback path transfer function based on the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises: if the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is a standard feedback path transfer function, determining that the type of the feedback path transfer function is normal; or if the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is an abnormal feedback path transfer function, determining the abnormal type of the feedback path transfer function; further comprising: if the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is an incorrect wearing feedback path transfer function, determining that the type of the feedback path transfer function is incorrect wearing; or if the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is a bone conduction hearing equipment structure abnormity feedback path transfer function, determining that the type of the feedback path transfer function is bone conduction hearing equipment structure abnormity; or if the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is a foreign matter invasion feedback path transfer function, determining that the type of the feedback path transfer function is foreign matter invasion; or if the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is a foreign matter blocking feedback path transfer function, determining that the type of the feedback path transfer function is foreign matter blocking.

In some embodiments, said determining said at least one preset feedback path transfer function within a preset threshold from said feedback path transfer function comprises: and if the at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises at least two preset feedback path transfer functions, determining the preset feedback path transfer function with the minimum difference value as the preset feedback path transfer function.

In some embodiments, said determining the state of the bone conduction hearing device based on the comparison comprises: if the type of the feedback path transfer function is normal, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is normal; or if the type of the feedback path transfer function is abnormal, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is abnormal; further comprising determining an abnormality type of the bone conduction hearing device: if the type of the feedback path transfer function is incorrect wearing, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is incorrect wearing; or if the type of the feedback path transfer function is abnormal structure of the bone conduction hearing device, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is abnormal structure; or if the type of the feedback path transfer function is foreign matter invasion, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is foreign matter invasion; or if the type of the feedback path transfer function is foreign matter shielding, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is foreign matter shielding.

In some embodiments, the method further comprises: and adaptively adjusting parameters of the bone conduction hearing device or sending reminding information to a user according to the state of the bone conduction hearing device.

In some embodiments, the state of the bone conduction hearing device comprises at least one of: normal state, abnormal state; the abnormal state includes one or more of wearing incorrectly, bone conduction hearing device structural abnormality, foreign object invasion, and foreign object occlusion.

One of the embodiments of the present application further provides a system for detecting a state of a bone conduction hearing device, wherein the bone conduction hearing device at least includes a microphone, a speaker, a feedback analysis unit, and a signal processing unit, and the system includes: the speaker is configured to generate a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal is generated by the signal processing unit; the microphone is configured to receive the third sound and generate a feedback signal; the feedback analysis unit is configured to determine a feedback path transfer function of the speaker of the bone conduction hearing device to the microphone based on a feedback signal of the microphone and the first signal; obtaining at least one preset feedback path transfer function; comparing the feedback path transfer function with the at least one preset feedback path transfer function; the signal processing unit is configured to determine a state of the bone conduction hearing device based on the comparison.

In some embodiments, said determining said at least one preset feedback path transfer function for which said feedback path transfer function is within a preset threshold comprises: and if the at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises at least two preset feedback path transfer functions, determining the preset feedback path transfer function with the minimum difference value as the preset feedback path transfer function.

In some embodiments, the signal processing unit is configured to: and adaptively adjusting parameters of the bone conduction hearing device or sending reminding information to a user according to the state of the bone conduction hearing device.

One of the embodiments of the present application further provides a system for detecting the state of a bone conduction hearing device, wherein the system includes a sound generation module, a feedback signal generation module, a feedback analysis module, and a signal processing module; wherein: the sound generating module is used for generating a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal is generated by the signal processing unit; the feedback signal generating module is used for receiving the third sound and generating a feedback signal; the feedback analysis module is configured to determine a feedback path transfer function from a speaker to a microphone of the bone conduction hearing device based on the feedback signal and the first signal; obtaining at least one preset feedback path transfer function; comparing the feedback path transfer function with the at least one preset feedback path transfer function; the signal processing module is used for determining the state of the bone conduction hearing device according to the comparison result.

One of the embodiments of the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, where the storage medium stores computer instructions, and after a computer reads the computer instructions in the storage medium, the computer executes: generating a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal is a test signal generated by the computer; receiving the third sound and generating a feedback signal; determining a feedback path transfer function of the speaker to the microphone of the bone conduction hearing device based on the feedback signal and the first signal; obtaining at least one preset feedback path transfer function; comparing the feedback path transfer function with the at least one preset feedback path transfer function; determining a state of the bone conduction hearing device according to the comparison result.

Drawings

The present application will be further explained by way of exemplary embodiments, which will be described in detail by way of the accompanying drawings. These embodiments are not intended to be limiting, and in these embodiments like numerals are used to indicate like structures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of a transfer function detection system according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 2 is an exemplary flow diagram of a method of obtaining a vibration transfer function according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 3 is an exemplary block diagram of a system for obtaining a vibration transfer function according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a transfer function detection system with a probe in a first position according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a transfer function detection system with a probe in a second position according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 6 is a graph of a first feedback path transfer function shown in accordance with some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 7 is a graph of a second feedback path transfer function according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a graph of a vibration transfer function according to some embodiments of the present application;

fig. 9 is an exemplary flowchart of a method of detecting a state of a bone conduction hearing device according to some embodiments of the present application; and

fig. 10 is an exemplary block diagram of a system for detecting a condition of a bone conduction hearing device according to some embodiments of the present application.

Detailed Description

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. It is obvious that the drawings in the following description are only examples or embodiments of the application, from which the application can also be applied to other similar scenarios without inventive effort for a person skilled in the art. Unless otherwise apparent from the context, or otherwise indicated, like reference numbers in the figures refer to the same structure or operation.

It should be understood that "system," "device," and/or "module" as used herein is a method for distinguishing different components, elements, components, parts, or assemblies at different levels. However, other words may be substituted by other expressions if they accomplish the same purpose.

As used in this application and the appended claims, the terms "a," "an," "the," and/or "the" are not intended to be inclusive in the singular, but rather are intended to be inclusive in the plural unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In general, the terms "comprises" and "comprising" merely indicate that steps and elements are included which are explicitly identified, that the steps and elements do not form an exclusive list, and that a method or apparatus may include other steps or elements.

Flow charts are used herein to illustrate operations performed by systems according to embodiments of the present application. It should be understood that the preceding or following operations are not necessarily performed in the exact order in which they are performed. Rather, the various steps may be processed in reverse order or simultaneously. Meanwhile, other operations may be added to the processes, or a certain step or several steps of operations may be removed from the processes.

For convenience of explanation, the following description will be made on the use and application process of the sound generating unit by taking a bone conduction speaker or a speaker as an example. It should be noted that the foregoing description is provided for illustrative purposes only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present application.

Hereinafter, without loss of generality, in describing the bone conduction related art in the present invention, the description of "bone conduction hearing device", "bone conduction speaker", "speaker device", or "bone conduction earphone" will be adopted. The description is merely one form of bone conduction application and it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that the "speaker" or "earpiece" may be replaced by other words of the same kind, such as "player", "hearing aid", etc. Indeed, various implementations of the invention may be readily applied to other non-speaker-type hearing devices. For example, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that, having the benefit of the basic principles of a bone conduction speaker, various modifications and changes in form and detail may be made to the specific manner and procedure of implementing a bone conduction speaker, and in particular, the incorporation of ambient sound pickup and processing functionality into a bone conduction speaker to enable the speaker to function as a hearing aid, without departing from such principles. For example, a microphone, such as a microphone, may pick up sounds from the user/wearer's surroundings and, under certain algorithms, transmit the sound processed (or resulting electrical signal) to a bone conduction speaker portion. That is, the bone conduction speaker may be modified to incorporate a function of picking up ambient sound, and after a certain signal processing, transmit the sound to the user/wearer through the bone conduction speaker portion, thereby implementing the function of the bone conduction hearing aid. By way of example, the algorithms described herein may include one or more combinations of noise cancellation, automatic gain control, acoustic feedback suppression, wide dynamic range compression, active environment recognition, active anti-noise, directional processing, tinnitus processing, multi-channel wide dynamic range compression, active howling suppression, volume control, and the like.

In some embodiments, a hearing device (e.g., a hearing aid) is typically provided with both a microphone and a speaker. The sound emitted by the speaker may be partially received by the microphone, thereby causing howling, or causing an echo to be heard by the user (e.g., the wearer) during use of the device. To suppress echo or howling, it is necessary to reduce the influence of the speaker on the microphone as much as possible (for example, to remove the sound emitted from the speaker from the signal received by the microphone). Typically the effect of the loudspeaker on the microphone can be represented by a feedback path transfer function between the loudspeaker and the microphone. In some embodiments, in a bone conduction hearing device (e.g., a bone conduction hearing aid), sound produced by a bone conduction speaker may affect a microphone by way of both vibration and air conduction. Thus, the feedback path between the bone conduction speaker to the microphone includes not only the air conduction transmission path but also the vibration transmission path. These two transfer paths would correspond to different transfer functions between the bone conduction speaker to the microphone. In some scenarios, there is a need to better assess the impact of a bone conduction speaker on a microphone through different transmission paths, in particular vibration transmission paths. For the measurement of the vibration transfer function, additional devices such as an acceleration sensor are generally needed, and the test is complex.

Therefore, some embodiments of the present application provide a method for obtaining a vibration transfer function of a bone conduction speaker to another location (for example, a location where a microphone is located, which is connected to the bone conduction speaker through a housing), by using a detector to receive a first sound including a sound transmitted through an air conduction transfer path and the vibration transfer path at a first location and a second sound including only the sound transmitted through the air conduction transfer path at a second location, respectively, so as to calculate the vibration transfer function, and the testing method is more efficient and simpler to operate.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of a transfer function detection system according to some embodiments of the present application. For convenience of description, the transfer function detection system 100 may be referred to simply as the system 100. The system 100 may include a probe 110, a hearing device 120, a database 130, and a processor 140. The various components in the system 100 may be connected by any communication and/or connection and/or any combination of connections, including wireless connections, wired connections, or any other connection and/or connection that enables the transmission and/or reception of data. In some embodiments, the system 100 may be based on the purpose of obtaining a vibration transfer function of a bone conduction hearing device and detecting a status of the bone conduction hearing device.

In some embodiments, the wired connection includes, but is not limited to, the use of a metal cable, an optical cable, or a hybrid cable of metal and optical, such as: coaxial cables, communication cables, flexible cables, spiral cables, non-metallic sheathed cables, multi-core cables, twisted pair cables, ribbon cables, shielded cables, telecommunication cables, twin cables, parallel twin wires, and twisted pairs.

The above-described examples are merely for convenience of illustration, and the medium for wired connection may be other types of transmission medium, such as other transmission medium of electrical or optical signals. Wireless connections include, but are not limited to, radio communications, free-space optical communications, acoustic communications, electromagnetic induction, and the like. Wherein the radio communication includes, but is not limited to, IEEE302.11 series of standards, IEEE302.15 series of standards (e.g., bluetooth technology, zigbee technology, etc.), first generation mobile communication technologies, second generation mobile communication technologies (e.g., FDMA, TDMA, SDMA, CDMA, and SSMA, etc.), general packet radio service technologies, third generation mobile communication technologies (e.g., CDMA2000, WCDMA, TD-SCDMA, WiMAX, etc.), fourth generation mobile communication technologies (e.g., TD-LTE, FDD-LTE, etc.), satellite communication (e.g., GPS technology, etc.), Near Field Communication (NFC), and other technologies operating in the ISM band (e.g., 2.4GHz, etc.); free space optical communications include, but are not limited to, visible light, infrared signals, and the like; acoustic communications include, but are not limited to, acoustic waves, ultrasonic signals, and the like; electromagnetic induction includes, but is not limited to, near field communication techniques and the like. The above examples are for convenience of illustration only, and the medium for the wireless connection may be of other types, such as Z-wave technology, other premium civilian radio bands, and military radio bands, among others.

In some embodiments, the hearing device 120 may generally include an air conduction speaker and a bone conduction speaker. In some embodiments, the hearing device 120 may include a bone conduction speaker (e.g., bone conduction speaker 122 as shown in fig. 4 and 5) and a housing 121. The bone conduction speaker 122 and the remaining components (e.g., microphone) may be housed within the housing 121. To suppress the effect of the bone conduction speaker 122 on the microphone, the vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to a certain location of interest of the device (e.g., as indicated at 123 in fig. 1, 4) needs to be calculated. It should be appreciated that the location of interest may be a location of a microphone (e.g., a microphone actually mounted on the hearing device 120) or may be anywhere inside or outside the hearing device 120 (e.g., anywhere on the hearing device 120 where the bone conduction speaker 122 is rigidly or elastically connected).

In some embodiments, the detector 110 may receive the sound emitted by the bone conduction speaker 122 and may then generate a feedback signal based on the sound. The feedback signal may reflect the effect of the bone conduction speaker 122 on (the location of) the probe 110. For example, the feedback signal may be sent to the processor 140, and the processor 140 may calculate a feedback path transfer function from the bone conduction speaker 122 to the detector 110 according to the feedback signal. In some embodiments, the detector 110 may also receive sound in the environment and generate a tone signal based on the sound. The sound in the environment may include, for example, human voice, car voice, noise of the surrounding environment, and the like. In some embodiments, the detector 110 may send the tone signal to the bone conduction speaker 122 and the processor 140, and the bone conduction speaker 122 may generate a sound based on the tone signal. In some embodiments, the detector 110 may send the tone signal to the processor 140, which in turn is sent by the processor 140 to the bone conduction speaker 122, and the bone conduction speaker 122 may generate sound based on the tone signal. In some embodiments, the detector 110 may include an acoustic-to-electrical transducer, such as a microphone. Illustratively, the microphones may include a ribbon microphone, a micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) microphone, a dynamic microphone, a piezoelectric microphone, a capacitive microphone, a carbon microphone, an analog microphone, a digital microphone, and the like, or any combination thereof. As another example, the microphones may include an omni-directional microphone, a unidirectional microphone, a bi-directional microphone, a cardioid microphone, and the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, the probe 110 may also include an air conduction microphone and a bone conduction microphone. For convenience of description, the present application illustrates a microphone as the probe 110.

The processor 140 may process data and/or information obtained from the probe 110, the bone conduction speaker 122, the database 130, or other components of the system 100. For example, the processor 140 may process the electrical signal generated by the microphone picking up the sound emitted by the bone conduction speaker 122 and thereby calculate the feedback path transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the microphone. In some embodiments, the processor 140 may be a single server or a group of servers. The server groups may be centralized or distributed. In some embodiments, the processor 140 may be local or remote. For example, the processor 140 may access information and/or data from the detector 110, the bone conduction speaker 122, and/or the database 130. As another example, the processor 140 may be directly connected to the detector 110, the bone conduction speaker 122, and/or the database 130 to access information and/or data.

In some embodiments, the processor 140 may include a test signal generation unit 141 and a feedback path calculation unit 142 (shown in fig. 4 and 5). The test signal generation unit 141 may transmit a test tone signal (e.g., a first test tone signal) to the bone conduction speaker 122 and the feedback path calculation unit 142. The bone conduction speaker 122 may generate a sound (e.g., a first sound) based on the test tone signal, the detector 110 may generate a feedback signal (e.g., a first feedback signal) based on the sound after receiving the sound emitted from the bone conduction speaker 122 and send the feedback signal to the feedback path calculation unit 142, and the feedback path calculation unit 142 may calculate a feedback path transfer function based on the test tone signal and the feedback signal output by the detector 110. In some embodiments, based on the feedback signal including the gas conduction transmission path and the vibration transmission path and its corresponding test tone signal, feedback path calculation unit 142 may determine a corresponding feedback path transfer function (i.e., a first feedback path transfer function), and based on the feedback signal including only the gas conduction transmission path and its corresponding test tone signal, feedback path calculation unit 142 may determine a corresponding feedback path transfer function (i.e., a second feedback path transfer function). In some embodiments, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may determine the vibration transfer function based on the two feedback path transfer functions determined previously.

In some embodiments, the processor 140 may further include a feedback analysis unit and a signal processing unit. In some embodiments, the processor 140 may determine a feedback path transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 of the bone conduction hearing device to the probe 110 in real time based on the feedback signal of the probe 110. The processor 140 may also compare the real-time determined feedback path transfer function with other preset feedback path transfer functions to determine the real-time status of the bone conduction hearing device.

Database 130 may store data, instructions, and/or any other information. Such as the first feedback path transfer function described above. In some embodiments, the database 130 may store data obtained from the probe 110, the bone conduction speaker 122, and/or the processor 140. In some embodiments, database 130 may store data and/or instructions used by processor 140 to perform or use to perform the exemplary methods described in this application. In some embodiments, database 130 may include mass storage, removable storage, volatile read-write memory, read-only memory (ROM), the like, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, database 130 may be implemented on a cloud platform.

In some embodiments, the database 130 may be in communication with at least one other component (e.g., the processor 140) in the system 100. At least one component in the system 100 may access data (e.g., a first feedback path transfer function) stored in the database 130. In some embodiments, the database 130 may be part of the processor 140.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary flow chart of a method of obtaining a vibration transfer function according to some embodiments of the present application. In particular, the method 200 may be performed by the system 100 (e.g., the processor 140). For example, the method 200 may be stored in a storage device (e.g., the database 130) in the form of a program or instructions that, when executed by the system 100 (e.g., the processor 140), may implement the method 200.

In step 210, the test signal generating unit 141 generates a first test tone signal and a second test tone signal. In some embodiments, step 210 may be performed by the test tone generation module 310.

In some embodiments, the test signal generating unit 141 may be a signal source capable of generating and outputting an electrical signal having certain characteristics. For example, the first test tone signal or the second test tone signal includes a white noise signal, a pure tone signal, an impulse signal, narrowband noise, a narrowband sing tone, a modulated tone, and/or a swept tone signal. When the sound emitting device (e.g., the bone conduction speaker 122) receives a white noise signal, the sound emitting device may generate noise having the same energy density at all frequencies, i.e., white noise. When the generating device receives the pure tone signal, the sound generating device can generate a single tone sound, namely pure tone. When the generating device receives the sweep frequency sound signal, the sound generating device can generate sound with frequency continuously changing from high to low (or from low to high) in the same frequency band, namely sweep frequency sound.

In some embodiments, the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal are signals generated by the test signal generating unit 141 at different time points in sequence and respectively used for testing the device under test. In some embodiments, to maintain consistency between the two test conditions, the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal may be identical, i.e. the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal are both of the same type and frequency. For example, the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal may be identical swept frequency signals. In some embodiments, the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal may also be of different types. For example, the first test tone signal may be white noise, and the second test tone signal may be pure tone.

In some alternative embodiments, testing the device under test under the first test tone signal and testing the device under test under the second test tone signal may instead be done simultaneously at once. At this time, the test signal generating unit 141 may generate only one test tone signal, for example, only the first test tone signal or the second test tone signal, and the test purpose may also be achieved, for details, see the related description of step 230.

A first sound and a second sound are generated by the bone conduction speaker 122 based on the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal, respectively, step 220.

The first test tone signal and the second test tone signal may be transmitted to the bone conduction speaker 122 in the form of electrical signals, which the bone conduction speaker 122 may convert into a first sound and a second sound, respectively. In some embodiments, the bone conduction speaker 122 may include a vibrating plate and a transducer. The transducer may be configured for generating vibrations, for example by converting corresponding electrical signals of the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal into mechanical vibrations. The transducer may drive the vibrating plate to vibrate. For example only, the vibrating plate may be mechanically coupled to and vibrate with the transducer. In actual use (e.g., the user wearing the hearing device 120), the vibrating plate may contact the user's skin and transmit vibrations through human tissue and bones to the auditory nerve, so that the user may hear sounds.

In some embodiments, the bone conduction speaker 122 may sequentially generate the first sound and the second sound based on the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal. For example, the first sound may be generated first, and the second sound may be generated after the microphone receives the first sound and outputs the first feedback signal. Or, the second sound may be generated first, and the first sound may be generated after the microphone receives the second sound and outputs the second feedback signal.

In some embodiments, the first sound and the second sound may be sequentially produced by the same bone conduction speaker 122 at the same location of the same hearing device 120. At this time, by changing the position of the microphone, the influence of the sound emitted by the bone conduction speaker 122 on different positions can be obtained, thereby obtaining transfer functions corresponding to different acoustic paths. In other embodiments, the bone conduction speaker 122 may include two bone conduction speakers 122 with the same structure and material, and the two bone conduction speakers 122 sequentially generate the first sound and the second sound based on the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal, respectively.

At step 230, the at least one detector outputs a first feedback signal after receiving the first sound at the first location and outputs a second feedback signal after receiving the second sound at the second location, respectively.

The at least one detector may receive the first sound and the second sound and generate a first feedback signal and a second feedback signal based on the first sound and the second sound, respectively, and transmit the first feedback signal and the second feedback signal to the feedback path testing apparatus (e.g., the feedback path calculation unit 142).

For convenience of description, the following description will be given by taking as an example that at least one of the detectors includes an air conduction microphone (e.g., the microphone in fig. 4 and 5). The microphone may receive a first sound delivered by the bone conduction speaker 122 in a first manner at the first location. For example, the bone conduction speaker 122 may be fixed to the hearing device 120 (i.e., the bone conduction speaker 122 is rigidly or resiliently connected to the hearing device 120), and the first position may be another position proximate to the hearing device 120 (e.g., the housing 121 in fig. 1 or 4). When the microphone is in said first position, the microphone is rigidly or resiliently connected to the hearing device 120. It is known from the sound generation principle of the bone conduction speaker 122 that the bone conduction speaker 122 will bring the (housing of the) hearing device 120 into vibration when generating the first sound, and the vibration of the hearing device 120 will be transferred to the microphone in close proximity to the hearing device 120. For example, as shown in fig. 4, the first position may be a certain position against the housing 121 of the hearing device 120. If the vibration direction of the housing 121 is parallel to the vibration direction of the diaphragm of the microphone, the vibration of the housing 121 may cause the diaphragm of the microphone to vibrate. Meanwhile, the bone conduction speaker 122 also drives the ambient air to vibrate when generating the first sound, and the air vibration is transmitted to the microphone in an air conduction manner. Therefore, the first sound is transmitted to the microphone by way of both vibration conduction and air conduction. That is, the first mode described above includes vibration conduction and air conduction.

In some embodiments, the microphone may generate the first feedback signal based on the first sound transmitted through the two transmission paths, and the microphone may also transmit the first feedback signal to the feedback path calculation unit 142 and/or store in a storage device (e.g., the database 130).

Similarly, the second sound delivered by the bone conduction speaker 122 in the second manner may be received by the microphone at the second location. For example, the second position may not be in contact with (the housing 121 of) the hearing device 120 but close to the first position. When the microphone is in said second position, the microphone may be considered to be in a suspended position relative to the hearing device 120. Alternatively, the second position may be located inside or outside the (housing) of the hearing device 120, as long as the microphone is not rigidly or elastically connected to the hearing device 120 in this position. For example, in fig. 5, since the microphone is not in contact with the housing 121 when in the second position, the diaphragm of the microphone only receives the sound transmitted through the air and is not affected by the vibration of the housing 121. Thus, the second sound is only transmitted to the microphone by air conduction. That is, the second mode described above includes only gas conduction. In some embodiments, the microphone may generate a second feedback signal based on the second sound transmitted through the air conduction transmission path, and the microphone may also transmit the second feedback signal to the feedback path computation unit 142 and/or store in a storage device (e.g., the database 130). It is to be understood that when the distance between the second position and the first position is small (e.g., less than 1mm,5mm,1cm,5cm), the air conduction path of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position can be considered approximately the same as the air conduction path of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the second position.

In some alternative embodiments, when the microphone is in the first position and the vibration direction of the housing 121 is perpendicular to the vibration direction of the diaphragm of the microphone, the vibration of the housing 121 does not cause the vibration of the vibration member (e.g., the diaphragm) of the microphone. At this point, it may be considered that the microphone would still only receive air-borne sound at the first location. Therefore, the process of the microphone receiving the second sound at the second position separated from the casing 121 may be replaced by adjusting the orientation of the microphone such that the vibration direction of the diaphragm is perpendicular to the vibration direction of the casing 121 when the microphone is at the first position. Since the diaphragm is not affected by the vibration of the case 121, even if the microphone is attached to the case 121, the second sound received by the microphone is transmitted only by air conduction. Therefore, when the vibration direction of the diaphragm of the microphone is perpendicular to the vibration direction of the housing 121, only the air conduction feedback path transfer function needs to be considered in calculating the feedback path transfer function. It is to be understood that when the bone conduction speaker 122 generates the first sound and the second sound respectively, and it is only necessary to set the vibration direction of the diaphragm of the microphone to be parallel or perpendicular to the vibration direction of the housing 121 at the first position, the microphone may also output the first feedback signal and the second feedback signal according to the received first sound and second sound respectively.

In some embodiments, the at least one detector (e.g., air conduction microphone or microphone) may also include a first detector (e.g., first air conduction microphone) and a second detector (e.g., second air conduction microphone) that are identical in structure and material. In some embodiments, at least one of the probes (e.g., air conduction microphone or microphone) may also include a first probe (e.g., silicon microphone) and a second probe (e.g., electret microphone) that are different in structure and material. In some embodiments, the microphones may be air conduction microphones and bone conduction microphones. For ease of understanding, in this application the microphone may be an air conduction microphone. The first and second detectors may be located at first and second positions, respectively, for receiving the first and second sounds, respectively, when receiving the first and second sounds, respectively. Similar to the previous embodiment, the first detector may output a first feedback signal when receiving the first sound, and the second detector may output a second feedback signal when receiving the second sound.

In other embodiments, the first and second detectors may be placed in the first and second positions simultaneously, respectively, and the first and second detectors may receive the same sound simultaneously. For example, the bone conduction speaker 122 generates the first sound based on only one test tone signal (e.g., the first test tone signal), and the first and second probes are located at the first and second locations, respectively, and receive the first sound at the same time. In this embodiment, although the first detector and the second detector receive the same sound, since the first sound transmission path received by the first detector includes the air conduction transmission path and the vibration transmission path, and the first sound received by the second detector includes only the air conduction transmission path, the feedback signals output by the first detector and the second detector are different, for convenience, the feedback signal output by the first detector may also be referred to as a first feedback signal, and the feedback signal output by the second detector may also be referred to as a second feedback signal.

In step 240, the feedback path calculation unit 142 determines a vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position based on the first test tone signal, the second test tone signal, the first feedback signal, and the second feedback signal. In some embodiments, step 240 may be performed by processing module 320.

In some embodiments, after receiving the first feedback signal and the second feedback signal from the microphone output, the feedback path calculating unit 142 may calculate the feedback path transfer function based on the first test tone signal, the second test tone signal, the first feedback signal, and the second feedback signal by using a feedback path transfer function determination principle. In some embodiments, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may obtain the first test tone signal from the test signal generation unit 141. In some embodiments, after the feedback path calculation unit 142 receives the first test tone signal and the first feedback signal, a first feedback path transfer function of the first sound transferred from the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location may be calculated based on the first test tone signal and the first feedback signal. For example, the feedback path calculating unit 142 may perform an algorithm transformation on the first test tone signal and the first feedback signal, respectively, to obtain a first test tone transformed signal and a first feedback transformed signal. In some embodiments, the feedback path computation unit 142 may transform the first test sound signal and the first feedback transformed signal using a Z-transform. For example, the first test sound signal input by the bone conduction speaker 122 is Z-converted to obtain a first test sound conversion signal, and the first feedback signal output by the air conduction microphone is Z-converted to obtain a first feedback conversion signal. In other embodiments, the algorithmic transformation may also include a speech model solution such as a fourier transform, a laplace transform, or a linear predictive coder, among others.

In some embodiments, transfer function determination methods may include, but are not limited to, cross-correlation methods, adaptive estimation methods, and the like. In some embodiments, the transfer function determination method may also be a method of obtaining a transformed signal by performing an algorithm on the sound signal and the electrical signal, and then obtaining a transfer function by performing a calculation according to the transformed signal, which may be described in the calculation methods of equations (1) - (5).

For illustration purposes, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may derive the first feedback path transfer function by equation (1) based on the first test transform signal and the first feedback transform signal:

wherein, Y₁(z) is the first test tone converted signal, X₁(z) is the first feedback transform signal, F₁(z) is the first feedback path transfer function. As previously described, the first feedback path transfer function F₁(z) includes the effects of the air conduction transmission path and the vibration transmission path between the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position.

In some embodiments, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may obtain the second test tone signal from the test signal generation unit 141. In some embodiments, after the feedback path computation unit 142 receives the second test tone signal and the second feedback signal, a second feedback path transfer function for the second sound to be transferred from the bone conduction speaker 122 to the second location may be computed based on the second test tone signal and the second feedback signal. For example, the feedback path calculating unit 142 may perform algorithm transformation on the second test tone signal and the second feedback signal, respectively, to obtain a second test tone transformed signal and a second feedback transformed signal. In some embodiments, the feedback path computation unit 142 may transform the second test sound signal and the second feedback signal using a Z-transform. For example, the second test sound signal input by the bone conduction speaker 122 is Z-transformed to obtain a second test sound transformed signal, and the second feedback signal output by the microphone is Z-transformed to obtain a second feedback transformed signal.

Similarly, for illustrative purposes, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may obtain the second feedback path transfer function by equation (2) based on the second test tone transformed signal and the second feedback transformed signal:

wherein, Y₂(z) is the second test tone converted signal, X₂(z) is the second feedback transform signal, F₂(z) is a second feedback path transfer function. As previously described, the second feedback path transfer function F₂(z) includes only the effect of the air conduction transmission path between the bone conduction speaker 122 to the second position (or the first position).

Through the calculation of the above formula (1) and formula (2), the feedback path calculation unit 142 may determine a first feedback path transfer function corresponding to the first sound transmitted through the air conduction transfer path and the vibration transfer path, and determine a second feedback path transfer function corresponding to the second sound transmitted through the air conduction transfer path, and then determine the vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position through the subsequent calculation.

In some embodiments, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may be based on the first feedback path transfer function F₁(z) and a second feedback pathTransfer function F₂(z) determining a vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location.

Specifically, since the first transmission path of the first sound received by the microphone at the first position includes the air conduction transmission path and the vibration transmission path, and the second transmission path of the second sound received by the microphone at the second position only has the air conduction transmission path, the output signals (i.e., the first feedback signal and the second feedback signal) of the air conduction microphone at two times are different.

For purposes of illustration, a first feedback path transfer function including the gas conduction path and the vibration transfer path may be expressed as:

F₁(z)＝A₁(z)+B₁(z), (3)

wherein A is₁(z) is the air conduction feedback path transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position, B₁(z) is the vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position.

FIG. 6 shows the first feedback path transfer function F determined by equation (3)₁(z) graph.

In some embodiments, the air conduction path of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the second location may be approximately equal to the air conduction path of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location, considering that the distance between the second location and the first location is small. Thus, the second feedback path transfer function, which includes only the gas conduction path, can be expressed as:

F₂(z)＝A₂(z), (4)

wherein A is₂(z) is the air conduction feedback path transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the second position, and the air conduction feedback path transfer function A of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position₁(z) are identical or approximately identical. FIG. 7 shows the second feedback path function F determined by equation (2)₂(z) graph. As previously described, the second feedback path transfer function F₂(z) includes only the effect of the air conduction transmission path between the bone conduction speaker 122 to the second position (or the first position).

In some casesIn an embodiment, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may be based on a first feedback path transfer function F₁(z) and a second feedback path transfer function F₂(z) determining a vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location. In particular, due to the second feedback path transfer function F₂(z) comprises only the gas conduction feedback path transfer function A₁(z) and a first feedback path transfer function F₁(z) comprises a gas conductance feedback path transfer function A₁(z) and vibration transfer function B₁(z), therefore, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may subtract the formula (3) and the formula (4) to calculate the vibration transfer function B₁(z)：

B₁(z)＝F₁(z)-F₂(z), (5)

FIG. 6 is a graph of a first feedback path transfer function including an air conduction path and a vibration transfer path. The graph in fig. 6 shows the situation where there is both an air conduction feedback path and a vibration transmission path in the first sound received at the first location at the corresponding frequencies. It can be seen that the bone conduction speaker affects the first location through both the air conduction feedback path and the vibration transmission path at a low dip (i.e., the effect is understood herein to be small) relative to the other frequency ranges in a range around 1000Hz (e.g., 600Hz-1000Hz), and affects the first location through both the air conduction feedback path and the vibration transmission path at a high peak (i.e., the effect is understood herein to be large) relative to the other frequency ranges in the ranges of 300Hz-400Hz and 2000Hz-3000 Hz.

Fig. 7 is a graph of a second feedback path transfer function including only the gas conduction path. The graph in fig. 7 shows the case where there is only a gas conduction feedback path in the second sound received at the second location at the corresponding frequency. Wherein the bone conduction speaker has less effect on the second location through the air conduction feedback path when the frequency is in the range of 0Hz-1000 Hz; the bone conduction speaker has a greater effect on the second location through the air conduction feedback path when the frequency is in the range of 1000Hz-3000 Hz. In some embodiments, when the second feedback path transfer function in fig. 7 is subtracted from the first feedback path transfer function in fig. 6, a curve as shown in fig. 8 may be obtained. As can be seen from fig. 8, the vibration transmission path has a large influence on the portion having the frequency of 0Hz to 1000Hz, and has a small influence on the portion having the frequency of 1000Hz or higher. In connection with fig. 6, 7 and 8, it can be seen that the influence of the bone conduction speaker on the first position through the vibration transmission path is mainly concentrated on a lower frequency range (e.g., less than 1000Hz), and the influence of the bone conduction speaker on the first position (or the second position) through the air conduction transmission path is mainly concentrated on a higher frequency range (e.g., greater than 1000 Hz).

In some embodiments, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may determine a vibration feedback signal of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position based on the first feedback signal and the second feedback signal.

For illustration purposes, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may obtain the vibration feedback signal through equation (6) based on the first feedback signal and the second feedback signal:

X_d＝X₁-X₂, (6)

wherein, X₁Is a first feedback signal, X₂As a second feedback signal, X_dIs a vibration feedback signal.

In some embodiments, the feedback path computation unit 142 may determine a vibrational transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location based on the first test tone signal, the second test tone signal, and the vibrational feedback signal.

In some embodiments, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may perform an algorithmic transformation on the first test tone signal, the second test tone signal, and the vibration feedback signal to obtain a first test tone transformed signal, a second test tone transformed signal, and a vibration feedback transformed signal, respectively. For example, for the first test tone signal Y₁Performing Z algorithm conversion to obtain a first test tone conversion signal Y₁(z) for the second test tone signal Y₂Performing Z algorithm conversion to obtain a second test tone conversion signal Y₂(z) for the second test tone signal X_dPerforming Z algorithm conversion to obtain a second test tone conversion signal X_d(z)。

In some embodiments, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may determine a first feedback path transfer function of the sound emitting unit to the first position based on the first test tone transformed signal, the second test tone transformed signal, and the vibration feedback transformed signal. Specifically, the feedback path calculating unit 142 may perform averaging or weighted averaging on the first test tone conversion signal and the second test tone conversion signal to obtain a test tone mean conversion signal.

For illustration purposes, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may obtain a test tone mean value transformation signal by formula (7) based on the first test tone transformation signal and the second test tone transformation signal:

Y_d(z)＝(Y₁(z)+Y₂(z))/2, (7)

wherein, Y₁(z) is the first test tone transition signal, Y₂(z) is the second test tone conversion signal, Y_dAnd (z) is a test tone mean value transformation signal.

In some embodiments, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may derive the vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position based on the test tone mean transform signal and the vibration feedback transform signal.

For illustration purposes, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may obtain the vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position by equation (8) based on the test tone mean transform signal and the vibration feedback transform signal:

wherein, Y_d(z) as a test tone mean value transformation signal, X_d(z) is a vibration feedback transformation signal, B₁(z) is the vibration transfer function.

In some embodiments, the feedback path calculating unit 142 may further average and weight the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal to obtain a test tone mean signal. And carrying out algorithm transformation on the test sound mean value signal and the vibration feedback signal to obtain a test sound mean value transformation signal and a vibration feedback transformation signal. The vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location is then derived based on the test tone mean transform signal and the vibration feedback transform signal.

It should be noted that the foregoing description is provided for illustrative purposes only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present application. Many variations and modifications will occur to those skilled in the art in light of the teachings herein. The features, structures, methods, and other features of the example embodiments described herein may be combined in various ways to obtain additional and/or alternative example embodiments. For example, the feedback path calculation unit 142 may include a first calculation unit and a second calculation unit, the first calculation unit may be used for calculating a first feedback path transfer function of the first feedback path, and the second calculation unit may be used for calculating a second feedback path transfer function. However, such changes and modifications do not depart from the scope of the present application.

FIG. 3 is an exemplary block diagram of a system for obtaining a vibration transfer function according to some embodiments of the present application. The system 300 for obtaining a vibration transfer function may be referred to simply as the system 300. As shown in fig. 3, the system 300 may include a test tone generation module 310 and a processing module 320. In some embodiments, the system 300 may be implemented by the system 100 (e.g., the processor 140) shown in fig. 1.

The test tone generation module 310 may be configured to generate a first test tone signal and a second test tone signal. In some embodiments, the first test tone signal or the second test tone signal may include at least one of a white noise signal, a pure tone signal, an impulse signal, narrowband noise, narrowband sing tones, a modulated tone, and/or a swept tone signal. In some embodiments, the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal are of the same type and frequency, for example, the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal may be pure tone signals of the same frequency. In some embodiments, the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal may also be of different types. For example, the first test tone signal may be white noise, and the second test tone signal may be pure tone. In some embodiments, the test tone generating module 310 may generate only one test tone signal, for example, only the first test tone signal or only the second test tone signal, and may also achieve the purpose of obtaining the vibration transfer function, as described in detail in relation to step 230.

The processing module 320 may be configured to determine a vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location based on the first test tone signal, the second test tone signal, a first feedback signal reflecting a signal transferred from the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location through the vibration transfer path and the air conduction transfer path, and a second feedback signal reflecting a signal transferred from the bone conduction speaker 122 to the second location through the air conduction transfer path. Wherein the first feedback signal and the second feedback signal may be output by at least one microphone receiving the first sound at a first location and the second sound at a second location, respectively; the first sound and the second sound may be generated by the bone conduction speaker 122 based on the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal, respectively. For more details on generating the first sound and the second sound based on the first test tone signal and the second test tone signal, please refer to the detailed description of step 220, which is not repeated herein.

In some embodiments, after the processing module 320 receives the first test tone signal, a first feedback path transfer function for the first sound to be transferred from the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location may be calculated based on the first test tone signal and the first feedback signal. For more details on calculating the first feedback path transfer function, please refer to the detailed description of step 240 in fig. 2, which is not described herein again.

In some embodiments, the processing module 320 may also calculate a second feedback path transfer function for the second sound to be transferred from the bone conduction speaker 122 to the second location based on the second test sound signal and the second feedback signal. For more details on calculating the second feedback path transfer function, please refer to the detailed description of step 240 in fig. 2, which is not described herein again.

In some embodiments, the processing module 320 may determine a vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location based on the first feedback path transfer function and the second feedback path transfer function. For more details on determining the vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position, please refer to the detailed description of step 240 in fig. 2, which is not described herein.

In some embodiments, the processing module 320 may determine a vibration feedback signal of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position based on the first feedback signal and the second feedback signal. In some embodiments, the processing module 320 may also determine a vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first location based on the first test tone signal, the second test tone signal, and the vibration feedback signal. For more details on determining the vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker 122 to the first position, please refer to the detailed description of step 240 in fig. 2, which is not described herein.

It should be noted that the foregoing description is provided for illustrative purposes only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present application. Many variations and modifications will occur to those skilled in the art in light of the teachings herein. The features, structures, methods, and other features of the example embodiments described herein may be combined in various ways to obtain additional and/or alternative example embodiments. For example, the processing module 320 may include a first processing module that may be configured to calculate a first feedback path transfer function for a first feedback path and a second processing module that may be configured to calculate a second feedback path transfer function. However, such changes and modifications do not depart from the scope of the present application.

In other embodiments of the present application, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, comprising at least one processor 140 and at least one database 130; the at least one database 130 is configured to store computer instructions, and the at least one processor 140 is configured to execute at least some of the computer instructions to implement the method 200 as described above.

In still other embodiments of the present application, a method of detecting a state of a bone conduction hearing device is also provided. Fig. 9 is an exemplary flowchart of a method of detecting a state of a bone conduction hearing device according to some embodiments of the present application. The bone conduction hearing device may comprise at least a microphone, a speaker, a feedback analysis unit and a signal processing unit. In some embodiments, the microphones of the present embodiment may include bone conduction microphones, air conduction microphones, and the like, all of which belong to the probes disclosed in other embodiments of the present application, for example, the microphones shown in fig. 4 and 5. The speaker in this embodiment is a bone conduction speaker, which may be the same as or different from the bone conduction speaker 122 in the previous embodiment, but may be used to convert an electrical signal into a vibration signal. The microphone and the bone conduction speaker are respectively mounted at different locations of the bone conduction hearing device. For example, the microphone and the speaker are fixed at different positions on the housing of the bone conduction hearing device, respectively. In some embodiments, the feedback analysis unit and the signal processing unit may be two separate devices, or may be components of one device that implement two different functions. For example, the feedback analysis unit and the signal processing unit may be combined into one state detection device. It is understood that the state detection device may be combined with the microphone and the speaker to form an integral device, or may be a device provided separately from the microphone and the speaker. To distinguish the two above-mentioned arrangements, two application scenarios will be explained below: for example, when the condition monitoring device is combined with the microphone and the loudspeaker to form an integral device, the bone conduction hearing device can realize condition self-detection before or during use, and detect whether the bone conduction hearing device is in a normal state or an abnormal state, wherein the abnormal state comprises one or more of incorrect wearing, abnormal structure of the bone conduction hearing device, invasion of foreign matters and shielding of the foreign matters. For another example, when the state detection device is provided separately from the microphone and the speaker, the bone conduction hearing device may communicate and/or connect with the detection device before or during use to perform state detection on the bone conduction hearing device, and detect whether the bone conduction hearing device is in a normal state or an abnormal state, where the abnormal state includes one or more of improper wearing, abnormal structure of the bone conduction hearing device, intrusion of foreign matter, and blocking of foreign matter.

The method of detecting the status of a bone conduction hearing device may comprise the steps of:

at step 910, a third sound is generated by the speaker based on the first signal. In some embodiments, the first signal may be similar to the first test tone signal or the second test tone signal, which is not described herein. In some embodiments, step 910 may be performed by sound generation module 1010.

In some embodiments, a first signal (i.e., a test tone signal) may be generated by the signal processing unit, the first signal may be passed into a speaker, and the speaker may convert the first signal into a third sound.

In step 920, the microphone receives the third sound and generates a feedback signal. In some embodiments, step 920 may be performed by feedback signal generation module 1020.

The sound produced by the speaker is received by the microphone and corresponding feedback information is generated. In some embodiments, after the microphone receives the third sound, a feedback signal may be generated based on the third sound and sent to the feedback analysis unit. In some embodiments, the microphone may generate the feedback signal in a similar or identical manner as the first feedback signal generated in the previous embodiments.

Step 930, determining, by the feedback analysis unit, a feedback path transfer function of a speaker to a microphone of the bone conduction hearing device based on the feedback signal of the microphone and the first signal. Step 930 may be performed by feedback analysis module 1030.

In some embodiments, the method of determining a speaker to microphone feedback path transfer function of a bone conduction hearing device may be compared to the first feedback path transfer function F determined in fig. 2₁(z) and/or a second feedback path transfer function F₂(z) the same procedure. For purposes of illustration, the feedback path transfer function F from the speaker to the microphone of a bone conduction hearing device can be determined by equation (9)₃(z)：

Wherein, Y₃(Z) a first transformed signal, X, representing a Z transformation of a first signal input by the bone conduction hearing instrument₃(Z) feedback signal representing microphone output is subjected to Z-transformationThe transformed feedback transform signal.

By performing Z conversion on the first signal and the feedback signal, a first conversion signal Y can be obtained correspondingly₃(z) and feedback-converted signal X₃(z). Therefore, the feedback path transfer function from the speaker to the microphone of the bone conduction hearing device can be determined by equation (9).

At step 940, at least one preset feedback path transfer function is obtained. Step 940 may be performed by feedback analysis module 1030.

The preset feedback path transfer function may be understood as a feedback path transfer function that is preset or pre-stored in a storage device (e.g., the database 130). In some embodiments, the predetermined feedback path transfer function may comprise a feedback path transfer function determined according to methods disclosed in other embodiments herein (e.g., step 240), such as a first feedback path transfer function. In some embodiments, the preset feedback path transfer function may also be a feedback path transfer function that is manually set by an operator based on experience. In some embodiments, the at least one preset feedback path transfer function may comprise at least one of a standard feedback path transfer function or an abnormal feedback path transfer function. The standard feedback path transfer function may be a feedback path transfer function corresponding to a normal state of the bone conduction hearing device. For example, the standard feedback path transfer function may reflect a feedback path feature function of the bone conduction hearing device when worn by a large population, or may be an individualized feedback path feature function of a specific user when worn and used normally. The abnormal feedback path transfer function may refer to a feedback path transfer function corresponding to the bone conduction hearing device in an abnormal state. The abnormal feedback path transfer function includes one or more of a wear incorrect feedback path transfer function, a bone conduction hearing device structure abnormal feedback path transfer function, a foreign object intrusion feedback path transfer function, a foreign object occlusion feedback path transfer function. In some embodiments, the abnormal feedback path may include a variety of abnormal feedback conditions that may occur. In some embodiments, the at least one preset feedback path transfer function may comprise a speaker to microphone feedback path transfer function of the bone conduction hearing device in different states. The different wearing states of the bone conduction hearing device may comprise a state when worn by the user (when the speaker or housing of the bone conduction hearing device is in close proximity to the user's face) and a state when not worn by the user (when the speaker or housing of the bone conduction hearing device is not in close proximity to the user's face). Accordingly, the at least one preset feedback path transfer function may comprise a feedback path transfer function when the bone conduction hearing device is worn by the user (which may also be referred to as "first preset feedback path transfer function") and a feedback path transfer function when not worn by the user (which may also be referred to as "second preset feedback path transfer function").

Step 950, compare the feedback path transfer function with at least one preset feedback path transfer function. Step 950 may be performed by feedback analysis module 1030.

In some embodiments, the feedback path transfer function determined at step 930 may be compared to a preset feedback path transfer function to determine the state of the bone conduction hearing device. In some embodiments, it may be determined whether the difference of the feedback path transfer function and a standard feedback function of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is within a preset threshold: if so, determining that the transfer function of the feedback path is normal; if not, determining that the transfer function of the feedback path is abnormal. In other embodiments, it may be further determined whether a ratio of the feedback path transfer function to a standard feedback function in the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is within a preset threshold range, and if so, it is determined that the feedback path transfer function is normal; if not, determining that the transfer function of the feedback path is abnormal. In some embodiments, it may be determined whether a difference of the feedback path transfer function and an abnormal feedback function of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is within a preset threshold range: if yes, determining that the transfer function of the feedback path is abnormal; if not, determining that the transfer function of the feedback path is normal. In other embodiments, it may be further determined whether a ratio of the feedback path transfer function to an abnormal feedback function in the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is within a preset threshold range, and if so, it is determined that the feedback path transfer function is abnormal; if not, determining that the transfer function of the feedback path is normal. In some embodiments, the preset threshold range may be set manually and may be adjusted according to different situations, which is not limited in this application.

In some embodiments, if the at least one predetermined feedback path transfer function includes at least two predetermined feedback path transfer functions, the predetermined feedback path transfer function having the smallest difference with the feedback path transfer function is determined as the predetermined feedback path transfer function. For example, the at least one preset feedback path transfer function includes a first preset feedback path transfer function and a second preset feedback path transfer function, and if a difference between the first preset feedback path transfer function and the feedback path transfer function is greater than a difference between the second preset feedback path transfer function and the feedback path transfer function, the second preset feedback path transfer function is determined to be the preset feedback path transfer function.

The state of the bone conduction hearing device is determined by the signal processing unit based on the comparison, step 960. Step 960 may be performed by signal processing module 1040.

In some embodiments, the comparison result may include a feedback path transfer function normal or abnormal. In some embodiments, if the feedback path transfer function is normal, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is normal; and if the feedback path transfer function is abnormal, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is abnormal. In some embodiments, the state of the bone conduction hearing device may include: normal state, abnormal state includes wearing one or more of incorrect, bone conduction hearing device structure anomaly, foreign matter invasion, foreign matter shelter. Wherein, the wearing state can be understood as that the bone conduction hearing device is worn on the body of the wearer; the unworn state may be understood as the bone conduction hearing device is not worn on the body of the wearer; a structurally normal state may refer to a state in which the structure and/or components of the bone conduction hearing device are in normal operation, such that the bone conduction hearing device may be used normally; a structurally abnormal state is then the opposite of a structurally normal state, indicating that the structure and/or components of the bone conduction hearing device are not in a normal operating state (e.g., misalignment, movement, breakage of components on the bone conduction hearing device due to impact); a foreign object intrusion state may refer to the entry of something other than the structure and/or components of the bone conduction hearing device into the bone conduction hearing device. In some embodiments, the structural normal state may be classified as a normal state, and the structural abnormal state and the foreign object intrusion state may be classified as an abnormal state. In some other embodiments, the comparison result may reflect a wearing state of the bone conduction listening device, e.g. a wearing state, a non-wearing state.

In some embodiments, the feedback path transfer functions of the bone conduction hearing device in a normal state (e.g., structural normal state) and an abnormal state (e.g., foreign body invasion state) may be determined separately by the method of fig. 2 and stored in the database 130 as preset feedback path transfer functions. In some embodiments, a feedback path transfer function of the preset feedback path transfer functions corresponding to the bone conduction hearing device in an abnormal state (e.g., a foreign object invasion state) may be used as an abnormal feedback path transfer function, and a feedback path transfer function corresponding to the bone conduction hearing device in a normal state (e.g., a structural normal state) may be used as a standard feedback path transfer function. In some embodiments, a plurality of preset feedback path transfer functions may be stored in the database 130, and each preset feedback path transfer function corresponds to a state (normal state, abnormal state) of one bone conduction hearing device. According to

steps

950 and 960, by comparing the feedback path transfer function of the current bone conduction hearing device with the preset feedback path transfer function in the database 130, the preset feedback path transfer function in the database 130 that is closest to the feedback path transfer function of the current bone conduction hearing device may be matched, and the state of the bone conduction hearing device corresponding to the matched preset feedback path transfer function is the current state of the bone conduction hearing device. Thus, according to the above described procedure, the current state of the bone conduction hearing device may be determined in real time.

In some embodiments, the comparison may include identifying different classifications of the preset feedback path transfer functions, which in turn may determine different states of the bone conduction hearing device. In some embodiments, the type of the preset feedback path transfer function may include a standard feedback path transfer function, an abnormal feedback path transfer function; the abnormal feedback path transfer function includes one or more of a wear incorrect feedback path transfer function, a bone conduction hearing device structure abnormal feedback path transfer function, a foreign object intrusion feedback path transfer function, a foreign object occlusion feedback path transfer function. According to the type of the preset feedback path transfer function within a preset threshold range from the feedback path transfer function, the type of the feedback path transfer function may be determined, thereby determining different states of the bone conduction hearing device. For example, if it is determined that the type of the obtained preset feedback path transfer function is correspondingly fitted tightly (i.e. the bone conduction hearing device is fitted tightly to the user), the type of the feedback path transfer function is also correspondingly fitted tightly, and accordingly, it may be reflected that the bone conduction hearing device is fitted tightly to the user. For another example, if it is determined that the type of the obtained preset feedback path transfer function is not tightly fitted, the type of the feedback path transfer function is also not tightly fitted, and accordingly, the bone conduction hearing device may be reflected that the bone conduction hearing device is not tightly fitted to the user. For another example, different predetermined feedback path transfer functions may correspond to different head regions worn by the bone conduction hearing device. If the type of the preset feedback path transfer function is determined to be worn on a certain part of the head (for example, on the mastoid, the temporal bone or the forehead), the type of the feedback path transfer function also corresponds to the head part, and accordingly, the position of the bone conduction hearing worn by the user on the head (for example, on the mastoid, the temporal bone or the forehead) can be reflected.

In some embodiments, after determining the state of the bone conduction hearing device, the signal processing module 1040 may adaptively adjust the parameters of the bone conduction hearing device for the state. In some embodiments, after determining the state of the bone conduction hearing device, the signal processing module 1040 may also send a reminder message to the user for the state. In some embodiments, if the state of the bone conduction hearing device is abnormal, the user is prompted to adjust the state of the bone conduction hearing device. In some embodiments, the manner of alerting the user may include, but is not limited to, a voice prompt, a notification light prompt, a vibration prompt, a text prompt, a remote message, and the like. In particular, the voice prompt may be a voice message from a bone conduction hearing device, for example, "there is a foreign body intrusion in the device". The prompting lamp can be that the bone conduction hearing equipment is provided with a prompting lamp, when the state of the bone conduction hearing equipment is normal, a green lamp is displayed, and when the state of the bone conduction hearing equipment is abnormal, a red lamp is displayed, so that a wearer is reminded. The vibration prompt may refer to that when the state of the bone conduction hearing device is abnormal, the bone conduction hearing device may generate vibration, for example, vibration for 3 times, indicating that there is a structural abnormality; and (5) continuously vibrating, indicating that foreign matters invade. The text prompt may refer to a text message displayed on the bone conduction hearing device or a terminal in communication with and/or connected to the bone conduction hearing device to remind the user, such as "intrusion of foreign object in the device" or "structural abnormality in the device".

It should be noted that the foregoing description is provided for illustrative purposes only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present application. Many variations and modifications will occur to those skilled in the art in light of the teachings herein. The features, structures, methods, and other features of the example embodiments described herein may be combined in various ways to obtain additional and/or alternative example embodiments. For example, the states of the bone conduction hearing device include various states, but which states belong to normal states and which states belong to abnormal states may be set by an operator according to experience, may be set by a user, and may be set by the signal processing module 1040. However, such changes and modifications do not depart from the scope of the present application.

Fig. 10 is an exemplary block diagram of a system for detecting a condition of a bone conduction hearing device according to some embodiments of the present application. The bone conduction hearing device status detection system 1000 may be referred to simply as system 1000. As shown in fig. 10, in some embodiments, the system 1000 includes a sound generation module 1010, a feedback signal generation module 1020, a feedback analysis module 1030, and a signal processing module 1040.

The sound generation module 1010 may be configured to generate a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal is generated by the signal processing unit. In some embodiments, the sound generation module 1010 may be, or be part of, a bone conduction speaker. For more details of generating the third sound based on the first signal, please refer to the detailed description in fig. 9, which is not repeated herein.

The feedback signal generating module 1020 may be configured to receive the third sound and generate a feedback signal. In some embodiments, the feedback signal generating module 1020 may be a microphone, or a part of a microphone, or any acoustoelectric sensor or vibration sensor. For more details on generating the feedback signal, please refer to the detailed description in fig. 9, which is not repeated herein.

The feedback analysis module 1030 may be configured to determine a feedback path transfer function from a speaker to a microphone of the bone conduction hearing device based on the feedback signal and the first signal; the feedback analysis module can also be used for acquiring at least one preset feedback path transfer function; the feedback analysis module may be further configured to compare the feedback path transfer function with at least one predetermined feedback path transfer function. For more details of determining the feedback path transfer function, comparing the feedback path transfer function with at least one preset feedback path transfer function, please refer to the detailed description in fig. 9, which is not repeated herein.

The signal processing module 1040 may be configured to determine a state of the bone conduction hearing device based on the comparison. For more details on determining the status of the bone conduction hearing instrument, please refer to the detailed description in fig. 9, which is not repeated herein.

In still other embodiments of the present application, there is also provided a computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions which, when read by a computer, cause the computer to perform: generating a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal may be a computer generated test signal; receiving a third sound and generating a feedback signal; determining a feedback path transfer function from a speaker to a microphone of the bone conduction hearing device based on the feedback signal and the first signal; obtaining at least one preset feedback path transfer function; comparing the feedback path transfer function with at least one preset feedback path transfer function; and determining the state of the bone conduction hearing device according to the comparison result.

It should be noted that the above description of the system and its devices/modules is merely for convenience of description and should not limit the present application to the scope of the illustrated embodiments. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that, given the teachings of the present system, any combination of devices/modules or configuration of subsystems with other devices/modules may be implemented without departing from such teachings. For example, the feedback analysis module 1030 and the signal processing module 1040 disclosed in fig. 10 may be different modules in one device (e.g., the processor 140), or may be one module to implement the functions of two or more modules described above. For example, the feedback analysis module 1030 and the signal processing module 1040 may be two modules, or one module may have both functions of analyzing and processing signals. For another example, each module may have its own storage module. As another example, the modules may share a memory module. And such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present application.

The beneficial effects that may be brought by the embodiments of the present application include, but are not limited to: (1) the vibration transfer function of the bone conduction speaker can be measured without using external devices such as an accelerometer and the like, so that the test process is simpler and more convenient; (2) the state of the current bone conduction hearing device can be detected according to the feedback path transfer function, and corresponding reminding is sent to the user according to the state of the bone conduction hearing device, so that the user can know or adjust the state of the bone conduction hearing device, and the user experience is improved. It is to be noted that different embodiments may produce different advantages, and in different embodiments, any one or combination of the above advantages may be produced, or any other advantages may be obtained.

Having thus described the basic concept, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the foregoing detailed disclosure is to be considered merely illustrative and not restrictive of the broad application. Various modifications, improvements and adaptations to the present application may occur to those skilled in the art, although not explicitly described herein. Such modifications, improvements and adaptations are proposed in the present application and thus fall within the spirit and scope of the exemplary embodiments of the present application.

Also, this application uses specific language to describe embodiments of the application. Reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," and/or "some embodiments" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with at least one embodiment of the present application is included in at least one embodiment of the present application. Therefore, it is emphasized and should be appreciated that two or more references to "an embodiment" or "one embodiment" or "an alternative embodiment" in various places throughout this application are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, some features, structures, or characteristics of one or more embodiments of the present application may be combined as appropriate.

Additionally, the order in which elements and sequences of the processes described herein are processed, the use of alphanumeric characters, or the use of other designations, is not intended to limit the order of the processes and methods described herein, unless explicitly claimed. While various presently contemplated embodiments of the invention have been discussed in the foregoing disclosure by way of example, it is to be understood that such detail is solely for that purpose and that the appended claims are not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, are intended to cover all modifications and equivalent arrangements that are within the spirit and scope of the embodiments herein. For example, although the system components described above may be implemented by hardware devices, they may also be implemented by software-only solutions, such as installing the described system on an existing server or mobile device.

Similarly, it should be noted that in the preceding description of embodiments of the application, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure aiding in the understanding of one or more of the embodiments. This method of disclosure, however, is not intended to require more features than are expressly recited in the claims. Indeed, the embodiments may be characterized as having less than all of the features of a single embodiment disclosed above.

Finally, it should be understood that the embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the principles of the embodiments of the present application. Other variations are also possible within the scope of the present application. Thus, by way of example, and not limitation, alternative configurations of the embodiments of the present application can be viewed as being consistent with the teachings of the present application. Accordingly, the embodiments of the present application are not limited to only those embodiments explicitly described and depicted herein.

Claims

1. A method of detecting a state of a bone conduction hearing device, wherein the bone conduction hearing device comprises at least a microphone, a speaker, a feedback analysis unit and a signal processing unit, the method comprising:

generating, by the speaker, a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal is generated by the signal processing unit;

receiving, by the microphone, the third sound and generating a feedback signal;

determining, by the feedback analysis unit, a feedback path transfer function of the speaker of the bone conduction hearing device to the microphone based on a feedback signal of the microphone and the first signal;

obtaining at least one preset feedback path transfer function;

comparing the feedback path transfer function with the at least one preset feedback path transfer function;

determining, by the signal processing unit, a state of the bone conduction hearing device according to the comparison result.

2. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises a standard feedback path transfer function, an abnormal feedback path transfer function; the abnormal feedback path transfer function comprises one or more of a wearing incorrect feedback path transfer function, a bone conduction hearing device structure abnormal feedback path transfer function, a foreign object invasion feedback path transfer function and a foreign object occlusion feedback path transfer function;

said comparing said feedback path transfer function with said at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises:

determining the at least one preset feedback path transfer function within a preset threshold range from the feedback path transfer function;

determining the type of the feedback path transfer function based on the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein determining the type of the feedback path transfer function based on the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises:

if the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is a standard feedback path transfer function, determining that the type of the feedback path transfer function is normal; or

If the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is an abnormal feedback path transfer function, determining the abnormal type of the feedback path transfer function; further comprising:

if the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is an incorrect wearing feedback path transfer function, determining that the type of the feedback path transfer function is incorrect wearing; or

If the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is a bone conduction hearing equipment structure abnormity feedback path transfer function, determining that the type of the feedback path transfer function is a bone conduction hearing equipment structure abnormity; or

If the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is a foreign matter invasion feedback path transfer function, determining that the type of the feedback path transfer function is foreign matter invasion; or

And if the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function is a foreign matter blocking feedback path transfer function, determining that the type of the feedback path transfer function is foreign matter blocking.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein said determining the at least one preset feedback path transfer function within a preset threshold from the feedback path transfer function comprises:

and if the at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises at least two preset feedback path transfer functions, determining the preset feedback path transfer function with the minimum difference value as the preset feedback path transfer function.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the determining the state of the bone conduction hearing device from the comparison comprises:

if the type of the feedback path transfer function is normal, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is normal; or

If the type of the feedback path transfer function is abnormal, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is abnormal; further comprising determining an abnormality type of the bone conduction hearing device:

if the type of the feedback path transfer function is incorrect wearing, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is incorrect wearing; or

If the type of the feedback path transfer function is structural abnormality of the bone conduction hearing equipment, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing equipment is structural abnormality; or

If the type of the feedback path transfer function is foreign matter invasion, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is foreign matter invasion; or

And if the type of the feedback path transfer function is foreign matter shielding, determining that the state of the bone conduction hearing device is foreign matter shielding.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

and adaptively adjusting parameters of the bone conduction hearing device or sending reminding information to a user according to the state of the bone conduction hearing device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the state of the bone conduction hearing device comprises a normal state, an abnormal state; the abnormal state includes one or more of wearing incorrectly, bone conduction hearing device structural abnormality, foreign object invasion, and foreign object occlusion.

8. A system for detecting a state of a bone conduction hearing device, wherein the bone conduction hearing device comprises at least a microphone, a speaker, a feedback analysis unit and a signal processing unit, the system comprising:

the speaker is configured to generate a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal is generated by the signal processing unit;

the microphone is configured to receive the third sound and generate a feedback signal;

the feedback analysis unit is configured to determine a feedback path transfer function of the speaker of the bone conduction hearing device to the microphone based on a feedback signal of the microphone and the first signal;

obtaining at least one preset feedback path transfer function;

the signal processing unit is configured to determine a state of the bone conduction hearing device based on the comparison.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises a standard feedback path transfer function, an abnormal feedback path transfer function; the abnormal feedback path transfer function comprises one or more of a wearing incorrect feedback path transfer function, a bone conduction hearing device structure abnormal feedback path transfer function, a foreign object invasion feedback path transfer function and a foreign object occlusion feedback path transfer function;

10. The system of claim 9, wherein determining the type of the feedback path transfer function based on the type of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function comprises:

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the determination of the at least one preset feedback path transfer function for which the feedback path transfer function is within a preset threshold comprises:

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the determining the state of the bone conduction hearing device based on the comparison comprises:

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the signal processing unit is configured to:

14. The system of claim 8, wherein the state of the bone conduction hearing device comprises a normal state, an abnormal state; the abnormal state includes one or more of wearing incorrectly, bone conduction hearing device structural abnormality, foreign object invasion, and foreign object occlusion.

15. A system for detecting a state of a bone conduction hearing device, wherein the system comprises a sound generation module, a feedback signal generation module, a feedback analysis module and a signal processing module; wherein:

the sound generating module is used for generating a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal is generated by the signal processing unit;

the feedback signal generating module is used for receiving the third sound and generating a feedback signal;

the feedback analysis module is configured to determine a feedback path transfer function from a speaker to a microphone of the bone conduction hearing device based on the feedback signal and the first signal;

obtaining at least one preset feedback path transfer function;

the signal processing module is used for determining the state of the bone conduction hearing device according to the comparison result.

16. A computer-readable storage medium, wherein the storage medium stores computer instructions, and when the computer instructions in the storage medium are read by a computer, the computer performs:

generating a third sound based on the first signal; wherein the first signal is a test signal generated by the computer;

receiving the third sound and generating a feedback signal;

determining a feedback path transfer function of the speaker to the microphone of the bone conduction hearing device based on the feedback signal and the first signal;

obtaining at least one preset feedback path transfer function;

determining a state of the bone conduction hearing device according to the comparison result.