JP6639857B2 - Hearing test apparatus, hearing test method and hearing test program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for measuring a subject's hearing, and more specifically, to a hearing test apparatus, a hearing test method, and a hearing test program capable of determining mild hearing loss by a simple method.

A person, whether congenital or late, may for some reason have diminished hearing. Such a condition is medically deaf and is classified into, for example, mild hearing loss, moderate hearing loss, and severe hearing loss according to its degree.
Here, in general, the presence or absence of hearing loss or the degree of hearing loss is determined by using a so-called audiometer (also called an audiometer) and conducting a hearing test with a pure tone at a specialized clinic or the like.

Since the above-mentioned hearing test is complicated and time-consuming, there is a considerable need to easily measure by a simple method. To meet such needs, for example, a technique is known in which a test signal of a specific frequency band is output a predetermined number of times, and a hearing characteristic is determined based on the number of times the output test sound is heard (see the following patent). Reference 1).
In addition, in view of age, generally speaking, older people tend to have lower hearing than younger ones, and in Patent Document 1, gender and age may be input so that appropriate measurements can be made according to age. It has been disclosed.

JP 201375066 A

However, it is not possible to say that the present technology, not limited to Patent Literature 1, satisfies the needs of the market properly, and there are various problems as described below.
The first problem is whether the characteristics of the test sound used for the test satisfy the needs of the market. In a general hearing test, a pure tone is used including the above Patent Document 1. Certainly, when medical accuracy is required, it is necessary to take a long time in accordance with established testing methods.However, since pure sound is not a sound that can be heard in the actual living environment, it should be done quickly within a limited time. Not suitable for doing.
Patent Document 1 states that not only a pure sound but also a sound composed of frequency components from 3000 Hz to 5000 Hz may be heard as the inspection sound. However, it lacks specificity and cannot solve the above-described problem. Absent.

In addition, as a second problem, it is difficult to understand the result of the hearing test. As described above, in addition to the need for a hearing test for medical accuracy, there may be a need for a preventive test on a regular basis.
Such needs are expected to become remarkable in the aging society in the coming years, and furthermore, from a regional standpoint, it is possible that the global expansion is not limited to Japan.

In such a case, it is desirable that the hearing test can be performed as if it were a game, as part of a normal lifestyle. Therefore, it is necessary that the display method relating to the method of the hearing test and the result thereof be in an easy-to-understand form without requiring a complicated operation.
On the other hand, in the known arts including the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, although some of the inspection methods correspond to the above-mentioned needs in terms of providing a simple option, the display method of the result includes There is still much room for improvement.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to provide an audiometry apparatus, an audiometry method, and an audiometry program that are simple, quick, and capable of easily examining the degree of hearing. And

In order to solve the above problems, an audiometry apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention relates to (1) first storage means for storing significant test sound data including a plurality of moras, and a standard audible range of a subject. Second storage means for holding standard audible range data, output means for outputting a test sound based on the test sound data to the subject, and first candidate for selecting whether or not the output test sound has been heard Generating means for generating information and second candidate information including a plurality of correct answer candidate data for the heard test sound, and comparing a phoneme of the selected correct candidate data with a phoneme of the test sound data for each mora A hearing determining means for distinguishing between a mora in which the correct answer candidate data and the test sound data match and a mora in which the test sound data does not match and outputting a comparison result to a display means; Superimposition processing means for performing a process of superimposing the audible range data, and, when it is selected that the test sound can not be heard, the output means performs control to increase the sound pressure and output the test sound again, According to the content of the selected first candidate information, the hearing determination means changes a display position of a phoneme included in the mora based on the comparison result, and the mora includes a consonant part and a vowel part. the hearing determination means, characterized that you compare as output one that caused the incorrect answer of the vowel part and said consonant portion contained in not match mora to the other and further distinguished to display means And

  Further, in the hearing test apparatus according to the above (1) or (2), (3) the comparison result is obtained by using the sound pressure as one axis and the pitch as the other axis orthogonal to the one axis. While being displayed two-dimensionally, the standard audible range data is displayed two-dimensionally as an area where the maximum sound pressure for each pitch is connected with a line and the minimum sound pressure for each pitch is further connected with a line. Is preferably superimposed on the comparison result.

The hearing test apparatus according to (1) or ( 2 ), further comprising: ( 3 ) input means for inputting attribute information including at least one of the subject's age, gender, and native language, The storage unit holds a plurality of standard audible range data respectively generated based on different types of the attribute information, and the superimposition processing unit selects the standard audible range data based on the attribute information input to the input unit. Preferably, control is performed to superimpose the selected standard audible range data on the comparison result.
The hearing test apparatus according to any one of (1) to ( 3 ), further includes: ( 4 ) a communication unit capable of communicating with an external device, wherein the comparison result is transmitted to the external device via the communication unit. It is preferable to perform control for transmitting to

In order to further solve the above-described problem, the hearing test method according to the present embodiment retains significant test sound data including a plurality of mora and standard audible range data regarding a standard audible range of a subject, and the retained test A test sound based on sound data is output to the subject, and first candidate information for selecting whether or not the test sound was heard, and second candidate information including a plurality of correct answer candidate data for the heard test sound are output. The displayed phonemes of the second candidate information and the phonemes of the test sound are compared for each mora, and the correct candidate data and the test sound data are distinguished from the mora that does not match the mora. The comparison result is superimposed on the standard audible range data and output. When it is selected that the test sound cannot be heard, the sound pressure is increased and the test sound is output again, and the selected sound is output. The display position of a phoneme included in the mora based on the comparison result is changed according to the content of the first candidate information, and the mora is composed of a consonant part and a vowel part. One of the consonant part and the vowel part included in the unmatched mora, which has caused a wrong answer, is further distinguished from the other and compared so as to be outputted to a display means.

To further solve the above-described problem, the hearing test program according to the present embodiment causes the computer to retain significant test sound data composed of a plurality of mora and standard audible range data regarding a standard audible range of the subject, A test sound based on the held test sound data is output to the subject, and first candidate information for selecting whether or not the test sound has been heard, and a second candidate information including a plurality of correct answer candidate data for the heard test sound. Displaying candidate information, comparing the selected phoneme of the second candidate information and the phoneme of the test sound for each of the moras, Is superimposed on the standard audible range data and output. When it is selected that the test sound cannot be heard, the sound pressure is increased and While outputting a test sound, the display position of a phoneme included in the mora based on the comparison result is changed according to the content of the selected first candidate information, and the mora is configured by a consonant part and a vowel part. In the comparison, one of the consonant part and the vowel part included in the unmatched mora, which has caused an incorrect answer, is further distinguished from the other and compared so as to be outputted to a display means. And

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, a hearing test can be performed in an easy-to-understand mode without requiring complicated operation in the display mode regarding the test method and the result. As a result, the subject can easily judge the presence or absence of hearing loss (slight hearing loss, etc.) with a game-like feeling, and even if a tendency of hearing loss is observed, early coping is possible.

1 is a configuration diagram illustrating a configuration of an entire system including a hearing test apparatus 10 according to a first embodiment. It is a block diagram showing composition of hearing test device 10 in a 1st embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of history data recorded on inspection history DB in a 1st embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of question data recorded in an inspection question DB according to the first embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of standard audible range data recorded on standard audible range data DB in a 1st embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the data generation process performed in the preparation stage of a hearing test in 1st Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the hearing test process performed in the test | inspection stage of a hearing test in 1st Embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of an attribute input screen performed at the time of a hearing test in a 1st embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of audibility judgment performed at the time of a hearing test in a 1st embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of the correct answer judgment performed at the time of a hearing test in a 1st embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of a result output screen performed after a hearing test in a 1st embodiment. It is the elements on larger scale which expanded a part of result output screen in 1st Embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of a result output screen performed after a hearing test in a 2nd embodiment.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment for carrying out the present invention will be described using an information system in which a hearing test apparatus is communicably connected to various devices via a network as an example. However, it goes without saying that the hearing test apparatus, the hearing test method, and the hearing test program of the present invention are not limited to being applied to such a system, and may be a stand-alone hearing test apparatus or a hearing test program that is not connected to a network.

<< 1st Embodiment >>
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating a configuration of an entire system including a hearing test apparatus 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In this system, various devices are communicably connected by a network such as the Internet or a LAN, and preferably includes a hearing test apparatus 10, a server apparatus 20, and an electronic apparatus 30.

The hearing test apparatus 10 mainly has a function of performing a simple and quick hearing test on a subject. In short, the subject listens to a word (test sound) through the hearing test apparatus 10 and selects an answer from the presented options (correct answer candidates). The hearing test apparatus 10 analyzes the sound that cannot be heard by the subject and the sound that can be heard by taking into account the sound pressure based on the selection result of the subject, and performs the analysis together with a graph of a general audible range (standard audible range) of a person. Display the result. As a result, for example, information for detecting mild hearing loss can be easily obtained, and can be utilized as so-called preventive medicine, such as receiving medical treatment as needed.
The detailed configuration of the hearing test apparatus 10 and the method of the hearing test will be described again with reference to a new drawing.

The server device 20 is connected to, for example, the Internet, stores various information, and executes a program for processing the stored information as needed.
That is, the server device 20 has, for example, a database 21, and the various types of information described above are stored in the database 21 so that information can be communicated with other devices connected to the Internet.
The database 21 may be a known recording medium such as a memory or a hard disk.

Further, for example, a hearing test program of the present invention described later may be stored in the database 21, and the user may be able to download the program via the Internet for a fee or free of charge.
Further, the user may access the server 20 via the Internet and execute the hearing test program stored in the database 21. This eliminates the need for the user to store a large amount of information in his or her terminal such as a PC, and allows the user to perform a hearing test while making the use environment of the PC comfortable.

The electronic device 30 includes, for example, an information terminal connectable to the Internet, for example, a tablet terminal, a smartphone, an information recording / reproducing device such as a notebook PC, a TV, a DVD recorder / Blu-ray recorder / HDD recorder, and a network connection such as a microwave oven or a refrigerator. Examples include a cooking appliance that can be used, a stationary PC, and an on-board audio reproduction device.
The electronic device 30 may be connected to a network by a wire, or may be configured to communicate information via a wireless device 31 via the network.
In the following, a notebook PC is shown as an example of the hearing test apparatus 10. However, if the hearing test program is installed in the electronic device 30, the electronic device functions as the hearing test device 10.

<Hearing test device>
Next, the configuration and functions of the hearing test apparatus 10 of the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG.
The hearing test apparatus 10 of the present embodiment includes an overall control unit 11, a ROM / RAM 12, a communication control unit 13, an input interface 14, a data processing unit 15, a recording unit 16, and an output interface 17. These components are connected to each other via a bus B as shown in FIG.
In the following, a description will be given as an example of a notebook PC that can be connected to a network and that has a hearing test program described below stored and installed in the recording unit 17 as the hearing test apparatus 10. However, for example, in the case of a stand-alone type, the communication control unit 13 may be omitted, and when the server device 20 performs data processing and storage, the recording unit 16 may be omitted.

The overall control unit 10 is connected to a main storage device such as a control unit (such as the communication control unit 13) and a recording unit 17 described below via a bus B, and executes various programs. Therefore, the overall control unit 10 has a function of executing a hearing test program performed using a significant test sound composed of a plurality of moras.
As such an overall control unit 10, a known CPU can be typically exemplified. The hearing test program may be installed in the ROM section of the ROM / RAM 12 in advance.

Here, “mora” is a unit of sound that can be heard as one sound by human ears such as “ma” and “me”, and is a segmental unit of sound having a certain time length in phonology. Point.
Further, the “mora” used in the present embodiment is basically composed of two phonemes each having a unique sound pressure and a unique pitch. For example, the above-mentioned mora “ma” is composed of two phonemes, a consonant part “m” and a vowel part “a”. In addition, as a display form of phonemes, for example, when a consonant element is represented in the above “ma”, a consonant part is capitalized to “Ma”, while when a vowel element is represented, a vowel part is capitalized to “mA”. ". Thus, the two phonemes constituting the mora have different pitches and sound pressure reference values for vowels / consonants.
As described above, “mora” used in the present embodiment is basically composed of two phonemes, but there is also a “mora” that has one phoneme, such as a vowel, a long sound, a vowel, or “n”. It should be noted that: Further, although actual sounds (other than pure tones) include many phonemes that are harmonics, the phonemes constituting the mora used in the present embodiment are subjected to phoneme decomposition once, and For both vowels and consonants, the data of the phoneme with the highest sound pressure is used. It should be noted that various choices can be made among a large number of phonemes including overtones, and the above vowels and consonants are not limited to the data of the phoneme having the highest sound pressure.
In the present embodiment, a prompt sound such as “tsu” (corresponding to a patch in Hangul) is also counted as one mora.

Various programs required for driving the overall control device 10 and the like are recorded in the ROM / RAM 12. The ROM / RAM 320 is also used as a work area for temporarily storing data when various processes are executed. Therefore, the ROM / RAM 12 may constitute the first recording means or the second storage means of the present invention.
The communication control unit 13 is a predetermined network interface, and establishes a communication channel with an external device via the Internet, for example, and exchanges various data. The communication control unit 13 constitutes, for example, a communication unit of the present invention.

Note that the overall control device 10 may perform control for transmitting a comparison result described below to an external device (such as the electronic device 30) via the communication control unit 13. On the external device side that has received the comparison result, for example, the hearing aid adjustment can be performed based on the comparison result. More specifically, it is conceivable to perform correction or the like for enhancing the audio signal or the acoustic signal of a portion corresponding to the frequency and the sound pressure at which the test subject has not been able to hear or is difficult to hear. Thereby, even if the hearing ability of the subject is slightly reduced, it is possible to suppress a trouble in life.
The input interface 14 is a device that receives commands and various types of information input from the outside, and examples thereof include a keyboard and a mouse. For example, if a voice recognition program is installed, the input interface 14 is configured to include a microphone. Therefore, the input interface 14 constitutes the input means of the present invention.

The data processing unit 15 executes a hearing test program for causing the hearing test apparatus 10 to execute a later-described hearing test method. More specifically, the data processing unit 15 performs a hearing test to measure the degree of hearing loss for the subject, analyzes phonemes such as test sounds, creates a problem to be used for the hearing test, and It performs the right / wrong judgment (comparison process) with the selected correct answer candidate, or executes an application that outputs the result of the hearing test. Therefore, the data processing unit 15 constitutes at least a part of the generation unit, the hearing determination unit, and the superimposition processing unit of the present invention.
Such a data processing unit 15 includes a phoneme analysis processing unit 15a, a question creation processing unit 15b, a comparison processing unit 15c, and a superposition processing unit 15d.

The phoneme analysis processing unit 15a has a function of analyzing a significant (meaningful) test sound composed of a plurality of moras. More specifically, the phoneme analysis processing unit 15a phoneme-decomposes sound source data (test sound data) of a test sound composed of a plurality of significant mora uttered by a person, and measures a pitch and a sound pressure of each phoneme.
The question creation processing unit 15b has a function of creating a hearing test question in which a plurality of correct answer candidates corresponding to the test sound used for the hearing test are arranged as options. For example, the question creation processing unit 15b may extract an arbitrary question from a plurality of inspection questions stored in an inspection question DB 16c described later, or may extract the question based on the question ID in consideration of the attributes of the subject described in detail below. May be.

  The comparison processing unit 15c compares the phoneme of the sound source data (also referred to as test sound data) corresponding to the correct test sound and the phoneme of the sound source data of the correct candidate selected by the subject (also referred to as correct candidate data) for each mora. It has a function to compare with. More specifically, the comparison processing unit 15c determines, based on the sound pressure information of the test sound when the subject selected the correct candidate, a mora in which the correct candidate matches the test sound among the correct candidate data selected by the subject. And a comparison result is generated by discriminating a mora that does not match with (the details will be described later). As a method for such distinction, for example, the comparison processing unit 15c displays the phoneme of the matched sound source data with a small blue circle, and displays the phoneme of the unmatched sound source data with a small red circle. Next, a process of generating the comparison result is performed.

Note that the comparison processing unit 15c does not compare the test sound for which the subject could not select the correct answer candidate with the sound source data corresponding to the correct test sound, and displays the sound with a small red circle. Is generated.
Note that the red circle and the blue circle described above are merely examples, and there is no limitation as long as the display is made so that correctness can be recognized, for example, by changing the shape or displaying a different color.

The superimposition processing unit 15d has a function of superimposing standard audible range data on a general human standard audible range on the comparison result generated by the comparison processing unit 15c. More specifically, the superimposition processing unit 15d may use, for example, standard audible range data stored in a standard audible range data DB 16c described below, or may download the standard audible range data via a network.
Further, the superimposition processing unit 15d may select the standard audible range data based on the attribute information of the subject and superimpose the data on the comparison result described above. More specifically, standard audible range data corresponding to the attribute information is selected based on the age, gender, native language, and the like of the subject as the attribute information. Thus, for example, the standard audible range data used differs depending on whether the subject is young (eg, 5-34 years old), middle-aged (eg, 35-65 years old) or old (eg, 66 years old). Become. Alternatively, the standard audible range data used differs between a subject whose native language is Japanese and a subject whose language is English.

The recording unit 16 is configured by an HDD or an SSD (Solid State Drive), and includes a recording area including an inspection history DB 16a, an inspection problem DB 16b, a standard audible range data DB 16c, and an interface DB 16d. Therefore, the recording unit 16 may compose the first recording unit or the second storage unit of the present invention, complementarily with the ROM / RAM 12.
Note that the recording unit 16 may be appropriately omitted as long as the data recorded in these DBs can be downloaded via a network.

The examination history DB 16a has a function of storing history data of a hearing test performed by a subject, and is configured to be able to hold examination history data as shown in FIG. 3, for example. More specifically, the examination history data includes a personal ID, examination date and time, a hearing test result, remarks (eg, presence or absence of mild hearing loss in FIG. 3), an ID of standard audible range data used, and an ID of a question used in the examination. Are managed by the inspection history DB 16a.
When the inspection history data is managed commercially, for example, the inspection history data may be stored in the database 21 of the server device 20. In this case, the inspection history data is managed for each of a plurality of personal IDs.

The test question DB 16b has a function of storing a plurality of questions for a hearing test. In this embodiment, the questions for inspection are ID managed, and each question is configured to include an attribute, an inspection sound, information on a plurality of correct answer candidates, and the like.
More specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the questions for the hearing test according to the present embodiment include attributes (age, gender, native language, etc.), test sounds, correct candidates 1 to correct candidates 4 for each problem ID. It is comprised including. Since one of the correct answer candidates 1 to 4 is the same as the test sound, the correct candidate same as the test sound may be omitted. Further, the attribute is not limited to the above, and another index may be appropriately introduced.

Therefore, for example, when a hearing test is performed by inputting attribute information of a subject, a question ID suitable for the attribute input by the subject can be extracted from a plurality of questions stored in the test question DB 16b.
When the problem for the hearing test is managed commercially, the problem may be stored in advance in the database 21 of the server device 20, for example. The question for the hearing test may be downloaded to the test apparatus 10 (the ROM / RAM 12 or the test question DB 16c).
In addition, the hearing test questions stored in the test question DB 16b are not limited to being stored in the above-described manner, and may include at least test sound data and a plurality of correct answer candidate data corresponding thereto.

The standard audible range data DB 16c has a function of storing standard audible range data relating to a general audible range of a person. Here, the standard audible range data of the present embodiment is data expressed by sound pressure (dB) and pitch (frequency), and indicates a region where sound can be identified in a range from about 20 Hz to about 20,000 Hz.
The standard audible range data of the present embodiment is managed by ID, and includes information (attribute of age, gender, native language, etc.) and maximum / minimum value of sound pressure for each predetermined pitch (frequency) for each ID. It is comprised including. The attribute is not limited to the above, and another index may be appropriately introduced.
When the standard audible range data is managed commercially, for example, it may be stored in advance in the database 21 of the server device 20. In this case, the subject's hearing test is performed through a billing process or the like by the overall control device 10. The standard audible range data may be downloaded to the device 10 (the ROM / RAM 12 or the test question DB 16c).

The interface DB 16d has a function of storing images and videos (such as an attribute input screen 100 and an audible determination screen 200, which will be described later) for the subject to input various types of information during a hearing test. Therefore, the interface DB 16d constitutes at least a part of the generating means of the present invention.
The information stored in the interface DB 16d may be downloaded to the hearing test apparatus 10 via a network, or a recording medium (Blu-ray disc, DVD disc, semiconductor memory, or the like) storing a hearing test program described later. May be copied and stored.

The output interface 17 has a function of outputting a screen or a video in which a result of the above-described hearing test or a subject inputs various information. Typically, the output interface 17 includes a display device (such as a liquid crystal display) and a speaker. Therefore, the output interface 17 constitutes at least a part of the output means and the display means of the present invention.
Note that the result of the hearing test is not limited to the above-described display device, and may be output on paper by a printer, for example.

<Hearing test method and hearing test program>
Next, a hearing test method according to the first embodiment will be described.
The hearing test method of the present embodiment is roughly divided into a preparation stage and a test stage described below, but the preparation stage and the test stage do not need to be performed continuously, and may be performed at intervals. Good.
Further, the preparation stage and the inspection stage may be executed by the same person or may be executed by different persons.

A. Preparation Step First, the preparation step of the hearing test method will be described with reference to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 6, the preparation stage in the present embodiment includes Steps A to E.
First, in step A, the following processing is executed. That is, first, a plurality of vocabularies (referred to as prominent vocabularies) each composed of four moras and having a meaning known to many people are prepared as a subject which is a source of the test sound. For example, as a famous vocabulary composed of four moras, there are nouns widely known in general regardless of age and gender, such as "sunflower", "asagao", "hachimaki", or "kaminari".

Then, the prepared test sound is uttered by a person and recorded on a recording medium (not shown) or the like as sound source data of the test sound (also referred to as test sound data). As described above, since the standard audible range of a person changes depending on the age and the native language, it is desirable to record, as sound source data, a plurality of persons who generate test sounds according to their attributes.
Although the famous vocabulary in the present embodiment is composed of four moras, the number is not limited to four, and may be two, three, or five or more moras. However, it is preferable to use four moras, because the beginning and the end of a word can be distinguished relatively easily and the number of vocabularies is abundant.

  After obtaining the test sound data in step A, subsequently, in step B, the obtained test sound data is decomposed into phonemes and divided into consonants and vowels, and the pitch and sound pressure of each phoneme are measured. I do. For example, when the above-described hearing test apparatus 10 is used, the above-described pitch and sound pressure are measured by the phoneme analysis processing unit 15a of the data processing unit 16. At this time, the pitch and sound pressure of the test sound data obtained by the phoneme analysis processing unit 15a may be recorded in the recording unit 16.

Subsequently, in step C, standard audible range data is generated. In other words, the maximum sound pressure value and the minimum sound pressure value for each representative frequency are extracted from the audible range with reference to the general audible range of humans.
The frequency at which the maximum sound pressure value and the minimum sound pressure value are measured is not particularly limited. For example, the frequency may be measured at intervals of 50 Hz from 20 Hz to 20 KHz, or at any of several frequencies in the above range. May be extracted as the maximum sound pressure value and the minimum sound pressure value.

In parallel with step C, a plurality of significant vocabulary words similar to the test sound data and the mora (hereinafter referred to as correct answer candidate candidates) are prepared. Here, as the correct answer candidate having a similar mora to the test sound data, for example, a vocabulary in which one or more of each consonant part and each vowel part in each phoneme constituting the four mora of the test sound is different is preferable. is there.
For example, when "kaminari" is the test sound data, "karamari" or "kamisori" is suitable as the correct candidate data.
When the above-described hearing test apparatus 10 is used, the above-described process of generating the correct answer candidate data is performed by the question creation processing unit 15b of the data processing unit 16.

Finally, in step E, processing is performed in which the standard audible range data, test sound data, and correct answer candidate data generated in step C and step D are recorded on a recording medium.
At this time, it is preferable that the standard audible range data be stored together with the attribute information in the data structure shown in FIG. 5, for example, and the test sound data and the correct answer candidate data be stored together with the attribute information in the data structure shown in FIG.
For example, when the above-described hearing test apparatus 10 is used, the above-mentioned standard audible range data has the data structure of FIG. 5 in the standard audible range data DB 16c, and the test sound data and the correct answer candidate data have the data structure of FIG. Respectively.
Step C and step D do not necessarily need to be performed in parallel. For example, step C may be performed independently of steps A, B, and D, or before and after step A and before and after step D. Processing may be performed.

B. Inspection Stage Next, the inspection stage will be described with reference to FIG. This test step is performed using, for example, the hearing test apparatus 10 and corresponds to at least a part of the hearing test method of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 7, the inspection stage in the present embodiment includes Steps 1 to 11.

First, in step 1, attribute information of a subject is input. More specifically, the attributes of the subject are arbitrarily input via the attribute information input screen 100 shown in FIG. 8 stored in the interface DB 16d of the recording unit 16 in the hearing test apparatus 10.
The attribute information input screen 100 includes a gender input field 101, an age input field 102, a native language input field 103, a menu button 104, and an input completion button 105 as attribute information.
It should be noted that the attribute information may preferably be displayed so as to be selectable in a pull-down format.
Further, the input of the subject's attribute information is not essential, and Step 1 may be omitted as appropriate. However, since the standard audible range data differs depending on the attribute as described above, it is preferable to input this attribute information in that a more precise and accurate result can be obtained.

Subsequently, in step 2, the general control device 10 extracts a problem with a predetermined ID from the test problem DB 16b, and generates a test sound of the test sound data from a speaker as the output interface 17.
At this time, for example, a test sound is generated from a speaker at a sound pressure of X decibels (X is an arbitrary natural number, such as 20, for example).

Subsequently, in step 3, a selection is made as to whether or not the subject has heard the test sound (also referred to as audible determination processing). More specifically, the overall control device 10 performs control to read out the audible determination screen 200 shown in FIG. 9 from the interface DB 16d and display it on the display device as the output interface 17.
Note that the audibility determination screen 200 of the present embodiment includes a number-of-reproductions display unit 201 indicating the number of times of reproduction, a non-listening button 202 for indicating that the test sound was not heard, and a fact that the test sound was understood. It is configured to include an audible button 203 for indicating intention. Therefore, the non-audible button 202 and the audible button 203 constitute the first candidate information of the present invention.
Note that the number-of-reproductions display unit 201 has a mechanism in which the number of black paints increases each time the test sound is reproduced, and it can be seen in FIG. 9 that this is the first reproduction.

If “No” in step 3, that is, if the subject selects that the test sound could not be heard, the overall control device 10 checks the sound pressure (corresponding to a so-called volume) of the test sound at that time. It is determined whether the specified dB has been reached (step 5).
Here, the specified dB is a sound pressure that can be considered to have a certain hearing abnormality when the sound pressure cannot be heard normally, and about 70 dB is exemplified.

If “No” in step 5, that is, if it is determined that the current sound pressure of the test sound has not reached the specified sound pressure, the sound pressure of the test sound is set to a predetermined number (for example, 5 dB). (Step 6), and control for generating the inspection sound of the inspection sound data again from the speaker is performed. At this time, the pitch of the test sound has not changed, and only the sound pressure of the test sound has increased.
If "Yes" in step 5, that is, if it is determined that the sound pressure of the current test sound has reached the specified sound pressure, it is determined that the test sound could not be heard without further increasing the sound pressure. A determination is made (step 7), and the process proceeds to step 9 described below.

On the other hand, when the subject selects that the test sound has been heard in Step 3, the correct answer candidate data (second candidate information) based on the heard test sound is selected (Step 4).
That is, the overall control device 10 performs control to read the correct answer determination screen 300 shown in FIG. 10 from the interface DB 16 d in the recording unit 16 and display it on the display device as the output interface 17.

The correct answer determination screen 300 according to the present embodiment includes a number-of-reproductions display unit 301 indicating the number of reproductions, a correct answer candidate button 302 for selecting the same vocabulary as the generated test sound, and the like.
Among these, the correct answer button 302 corresponds to the correct answer candidates 1 to 4 described with reference to FIG. 4, and in the present embodiment, a plurality of correct answer candidate data including the same correct answer as the test sound are displayed. It consists of buttons.
Then, the overall control unit 10 performs control to associate the four correct answer candidate data as the second candidate information included in the extracted question ID with the correct answer candidate button 302 in the correct answer determination screen 300.
When the subject presses any one of the four correct answer candidate buttons 302, the overall control device 10 starts control for performing the processing shown in step 8.
The number of correct answer candidate data to be displayed is not limited to four, and may be an arbitrary number of two or more.

That is, in step 8, the overall control device 10 controls the comparison processing unit 15 c of the data processing unit 15, and selects the correct answer selected so as to distinguish the correct candidate from the mora that matches the test sound and the mora that does not match. The phoneme of the candidate and the phoneme of the inspection sound are compared for each mora.
Here, as described above, since the mora is composed of a consonant part and a vowel part phoneme, the comparison processing unit 15c determines one of the consonant part and the vowel part included in the unmatched mora that has caused an incorrect answer. It is preferable to perform the above-described comparison processing so as to be further distinguished from the other.

When the comparison processing of the comparison processing unit 15c in Step 8 is completed, the process proceeds to Step 9, and the overall control device 10 determines whether or not the number of types of test sounds generated has reached a predetermined number (Step 9). Normally, each test sound is counted once for each different test sound. However, for example, when test sounds having the same question ID are generated at the first and fifth times, they are counted as one each.
Further, there is no particular limitation on the specific “predetermined number”, but it is desirable to carry out an arbitrary number of, for example, three or more times in order to increase the average effect of the results.

If “No” is obtained in step 9, the process proceeds to step 10, where the overall control device 10 extracts a new question ID from the test question DB 16 b and reads out the test sound data (step 10). Further, the overall control device increases the value of the counter of the number of inspections held in the ROM / RAM 12 or the like by one (step 11).
Then, the process proceeds to step 2, and the control for generating the test sound of the test sound data from the speaker again is repeated in the same manner as described above.

On the other hand, if “Yes” in step 9, the overall control device 10 determines that the necessary number of tests have been completed, and proceeds to step 12 to output the result of the hearing test to the subject.
In step 12, the overall control device 10 performs control to output the result of the comparison performed by the comparison processing unit 15c. At this time, the overall control device 10 controls the superimposition processing unit 15d to perform a process of superimposing the standard audible range data on the comparison result performed by the comparison processing unit 15c.

  More specifically, the superimposition processing unit 15d performs a process of reading out the standard audible range data suitable for the hearing test performed at that time from the standard audible range data DB 16c and superimposing the data on the comparison result. If the attribute information has been input in step 1, the superimposition processing unit 15d may extract the standard audible range data based on the attribute information from the standard audible range data DB 16c. For example, if the age is the elderly, the standard audible range data corresponding to the elderly is extracted.If the native language is selected as Japanese as the attribute information, the Japanese language is used. The corresponding standard audible range data will be extracted.

After the above-described superimposition processing is performed, the overall control device 10 subsequently performs control to output the comparison result on which the standard audible range data is superimposed to the output interface 17.
Although there may be various output modes, in the present embodiment, the comparison result is output as a two-dimensionally displayed graph as shown in FIG. 11, for example.
More specifically, as shown in FIG. 11, the result output screen 400 includes a two-dimensional graph 401, a standard audible range 402, a determined phoneme 403, a comment column 404, and a completion button 405.

In the present embodiment, the two-dimensional graph 401 has a horizontal axis 401a in which a pitch (frequency) is set as a pitch in Hz and a vertical axis 401b sets a volume of sound heard as a sound pressure in dB. I have.
At this time, the vertical axis 401b is divided into regions by a predetermined decibel range, and is displayed in different colors so that the regions can be distinguished from each other. Specifically, for example, in the present embodiment, the vertical axis 401b is displayed in light blue as “whispering voice” from 0 to 30 dB, displayed as yellowish green as “easy voice” from 30 to 50 dB, and “clearly” from 50 to 60 dB. The tone is displayed in orange as "tone", and after 60 dB, it is displayed in vermilion as "loud voice".

The standard audible range 402 is generated based on the standard audible range data, and is superimposed and displayed in the two-dimensional graph 401. As described above, the standard audible range data is a data string of the maximum sound pressure and the minimum sound pressure for each frequency (pitch). In this embodiment, the maximum sound pressure for each pitch is connected by a line and the minimum sound pressure for each pitch is The pressure was connected by a line and displayed as an area.
This makes it possible to determine whether or not the standard hearing ability has decreased based on whether or not a determination phoneme 403 described later exists inside and outside the standard audible range 402.

The judgment phoneme 403 is generated for each phoneme based on the comparison result of the comparison processing unit 15c, and is distinguished by the correctness of the correct answer candidate selected for the test sound.
More specifically, as shown in FIG. 11, in the two-dimensional graph 401, the judgment phoneme 403 is displayed based on, for example, the following rules (1) to (4). As is clear from the following rules, when displaying the determination phoneme 403 on the two-dimensional graph 401, the pitch originally possessed by the determination phoneme 403 is not changed, and the determination phoneme 403 is determined based on the sound pressure at which the subject has determined that the subject can hear. There is also a feature in that the sound pressure is changed.
(1) When the phoneme of the test sound matches the phoneme of the selected correct answer candidate, the phoneme is displayed as a small blue circle. At this time, the display position of the phoneme (determination phoneme 403) is changed according to the content of the selected first candidate information. Specifically, on the two-dimensional graph 401, the sound pressure does not correspond to the sound pressure originally possessed by the phoneme but corresponds to the sound pressure uttered when the subject selects the audible button 203 of the first candidate information. To be displayed.
(2) If the phoneme of the test sound does not match the phoneme of the selected correct answer candidate, the phoneme is displayed as a small red circle. At this time, the display position of the phoneme (determination phoneme 403) is changed according to the content of the selected first candidate information. Specifically, similarly to the above, the sound pressure does not correspond to the sound pressure originally possessed by the phoneme, but corresponds to the sound pressure uttered when the subject selects the audible button 203 of the first candidate information. It is displayed on the dimensional graph 401.
(3) A phoneme that the subject has determined to be inaudible is displayed in a small red circle. At this time, the display position of the phoneme (determination phoneme 403) is changed according to the content of the selected first candidate information. Specifically, since the non-listening button 202 is repeatedly pressed to reach the specified dB, the phoneme is displayed on the two-dimensional graph 401 in a form corresponding to the specified dB instead of the sound pressure originally possessed. indicate.
(4) On a small circle, phonemes (determination phonemes) are displayed by distinguishing between consonant elements and vowel elements. For example, if the test sound is “Himawari” and the correct answer candidate data selected by the subject is “Higashira”, the two phonemes “Hi” and “hI” corresponding to the mora of “Hi” are blue and on the two-dimensional graph 401. Are displayed on the two-dimensional graph 401, and "Gu (Gu, gU)", "La (Ra, rA)", and "Shi (Shi, shI)" are displayed in red on the two-dimensional graph 401, respectively. As described above, in the present embodiment, the test sound is displayed as a graph for each phoneme, and the display of the phonemes is distinguished by correctness, for example, by color coding.
The form displayed on the two-dimensional graph 401 is not limited to each phoneme, but may be another form such as, for example, each mora.

As described above, since the comparison processing unit 15c can distinguish one of the consonant parts and vowel parts included in the unmatched mora that caused the incorrect answer from the other, the judgment phoneme on the two-dimensional graph 401 This is preferably reflected in the display mode of 403.
More specifically, consider a case where, for example, “Rice” composed of three moras is the correct answer (test sound) and the correct answer candidate data selected by the subject is “Nice”. In this case, “Ra” is displayed in red since the consonant element is incorrect for “la” of the test sound, while “rA” is green (a color other than blue and red) because the vowel element is correct. It may be displayed.
FIG. 12 shows an enlarged view of the area α in FIG.
In the figure, two phonemes “Na” and “dA” are displayed as judgment phonemes 403, of which “Na” is displayed in blue within the standard audible range 402, and “dA” is displayed in the standard audible range 402 It is displayed in red outside.

Of these, for “Na”, since the phoneme of the test sound matches the phoneme of the selected correct candidate, the phoneme (judgment phoneme 403) corresponding to the consonant element of “na” originally has a consonant element of “na”. The displayed pitch is displayed on the two-dimensional graph 401 in blue based on the sound pitch and the sound pressure when the subject selects the correct candidate data.
On the other hand, since “dA” is displayed in red, it can be considered that the phoneme of the test sound and the phoneme of the selected correct answer did not match for the mora of “da”. Further, in the present embodiment, since "A" as a vowel part is a capital letter, it has been found that the unrecognizable phoneme was a vowel element.

Therefore, according to the result output screen 400, for example, the following determination can be made as a result of the hearing test.
-It is suggested that the sound of the pitch in which the circle of the judgment phoneme 403 is red cannot be heard (is difficult) by the subject.
When the circle of the judgment phoneme 403 is blue and the judgment phoneme 403 is displayed within the range of the standard audible range 402 or at a place where the sound pressure is smaller than the standard audible range 402, the phoneme in the judgment phoneme 403 is the subject. Can be determined to be heard.
If the circle of the judgment phoneme 403 is blue and this judgment phoneme 403 is displayed at a place where the sound pressure is larger than the standard audible range 402, the phoneme in the judgment phoneme 403 is sound pressure of a daily life level to the subject. It can be determined that (loudness) cannot be heard or is difficult to hear.

If the circle of the judgment phoneme 403 is red and the judgment phoneme 403 is displayed in the range of the standard audible range 402 or at a place where the sound pressure is smaller than the standard audible range 402, the phoneme in the judgment phoneme 403 is the subject. It can be judged that the subject cannot hear the sound, and it is suggested that the cause is a problem other than the loudness level of the sound that can be heard by the subject.
When the circle of the judgment phoneme 403 is red and this judgment phoneme 403 is displayed at a place where the sound pressure is larger than the standard audible range 402, it can be determined that the phoneme in the judgment phoneme 403 is not heard by the subject, It is suggested that the cause is a problem of the loudness of the sound that can be heard by the subject.

  In the first embodiment described above, the two-dimensional graph 401 generated on the result output screen 400 using the sound pressure and the pitch as axes orthogonal to each other is used, the standard audible range 402 is superimposed on this graph, and The judgment phoneme 403 is displayed on the two-dimensional graph 401 while discriminating whether it is a vowel part or not. Therefore, at a glance, it is possible to know which phoneme has a problem with which sound pressure with respect to general hearing, and thus it is possible to easily, quickly and accurately inspect the decline of hearing. Further, in the present embodiment, since a two-dimensional graph in which not only the sound pressure but also the pitch is added is displayed, a change in physical condition (eg, aging) with respect to the pitch can be easily determined.

  Further, the hearing test program of the present embodiment is a program for executing the above-described hearing test method on a computer, and may be recorded on a recording medium such as an optical disk or various memories, or can be downloaded via a network. It may be.

<< 2nd Embodiment >>
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
In the first embodiment, the two-dimensional graph 401 generated using the sound pressure and the pitch as axes orthogonal to each other on the result output screen 400 is used. In the present embodiment, another three-dimensional graph is generated by adding one more axis. There is a characteristic mainly in that it is.
Therefore, in the following, differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described, and elements having the same configurations or functions as those of the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals as those of the first embodiment, and description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

As shown in FIG. 13, the result output screen 500 according to the present embodiment has a pitch as a horizontal axis and a third axis orthogonal to the sound pressure as a vertical axis.
More specifically, in the present embodiment, “initial”, “in the middle”, and “final” are set in the present embodiment in consideration of the position of each mora in the test sound (significant vocabulary) described above. Therefore, in FIG. 13, the positions that each mora can take on the third axis are not continuous, but are only the three points described above.
At this time, in FIG. 13, the standard audible range 502 is also displayed as a three-dimensional (cylinder), and the determination phonemes 503 are also displayed in the three-dimensional graph 501 at three levels of height.

According to the present embodiment, at a glance, it is possible to determine which phoneme has a problem with which sound pressure for a general hearing.
In addition to this, the position of each mora is displayed in consideration of "beginning,""mid-word," and "end of word," so that subjects tend to have difficulties in listening to the beginning of words, missing words in words, or listening to words at the end. It is also possible to determine whether it is easy or not.

Each embodiment described above can be variously modified without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Hereinafter, modified examples that can be appropriately applied to each embodiment will be described. In the following modified examples, components having the same functions and actions as those of the above-described configuration are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.
≪Modified example≫
<Modification 1>
In the above-described determination phonemes 403 and 503, a single color such as blue, red, or any other color is displayed. However, one determination element may be displayed in a plurality of colors. For example, when one of the consonant part and the vowel part is correct, the inside of the circle may be divided into a consonant part and a vowel part and colored. For example, if the test sound is “Rice” and the correct answer candidate data selected by the subject is “Nice”, the left half is red with respect to the circles of “Ra” and “rA” that are the judgment phonemes 403 of “La”. In addition to the display, the right half may be displayed in blue.
As a result, it is possible to more accurately identify a mora or phoneme that is difficult for the subject to hear.

<Modification 2>
In the above-described judgment phonemes 403 and 503, the order of the vocabulary in the test sound is not considered, but the color may be displayed in consideration of this. For example, when the test sound is “dandelion” and the correct answer candidate selected by the subject is “tan”, the judgment phonemes 403 of “ta” and “n” are indicated by a yellow circle (the color of the correct answer and the color of the normal incorrect answer). Display in a different color).
This makes it possible to accurately specify a mora or phoneme that is difficult for the subject to hear.

<Modification 3>
In the second embodiment, the word position is introduced as the third axis. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a third axis having a different viewpoint such as “tone” may be introduced.
As a result, it is possible to easily check the presence or absence of hearing loss with higher accuracy.

<Modification 4>
The vocabulary used as the test sound is a well-known vocabulary regardless of age or gender. For example, the test sound data used may be different depending on the attribute information.
That is, for example, it is conceivable that the famous word for the young age group and the famous word for the old age group are different from each other in age, so that the hearing test can be executed with further elimination of the influence on the presence or absence of knowledge.

<Modification 5>
In each of the above embodiments and modifications, the background sound at the time of inspection is not particularly considered, and may be a silent space or a general environmental sound. A background sound corresponding to the correspondence may be added to the inspection sound.

  The form described above is an example, and the hearing test apparatus and its system may be configured by appropriately combining the elements of the embodiments and the modifications described above without departing from the spirit of the present application.

   As described above, the hearing test apparatus, the hearing test method, and the hearing test program of the present invention are suitable for constructing a simple, quick, and accurate hearing test environment.

A Subject B Bus 10 Hearing test device 11 Overall control unit 12 ROM / RAM
13 Communication control unit 14 Input interface 15 Data processing unit 16 Recording unit 17 Output interface 20 Server device 21 Database 30 Electronic device 31 Wireless device 100 Attribute information input screen 200 Audible judgment screen 300 Correct answer judgment screen 400, 500 Result output screen

Claims (6)

First storage means for storing significant test sound data comprising a plurality of mora;
Second storage means for holding standard audible range data regarding the standard audible range of the subject;
Output means for outputting a test sound based on the test sound data to the subject,
Generating means for generating first candidate information for selecting whether or not the output test sound has been heard, and second candidate information including a plurality of correct answer candidate data for the heard test sound;
The phoneme of the selected correct candidate data and the phoneme of the test sound data are compared for each mora, and the correct candidate data and the test sound data are distinguished from the mora that does not match the mora to the display means. A hearing determination means for outputting a comparison result,
Superimposition processing means for performing a process of superimposing the standard audible range data on the comparison result,
Including
When it is selected that the test sound cannot be heard, the output means performs control to increase the sound pressure and output the test sound again, and according to the content of the selected first candidate information, Makes the display position of the phoneme included in the mora based on the comparison result different,
The mora is composed of a consonant part and a vowel part,
The hearing determination means compares one of the consonant part and the vowel part included in the unmatched mora, which has caused an incorrect answer, so as to be further output to a display means while further distinguishing the other from the other. Hearing test equipment. The comparison result is two-dimensionally displayed with the sound pressure as one axis and the pitch as the other axis orthogonal to the one axis,
The standard audible range data is superimposed on the two-dimensionally displayed comparison result as a region where the maximum sound pressure for each pitch is connected with a line and the minimum sound pressure for each pitch is further connected with a line. Item 3. The hearing test apparatus according to item 1. Input means for inputting attribute information including at least one of the age, gender, and native language of the subject;
The second storage means holds a plurality of standard audible range data respectively generated based on different types of the attribute information,
3. The control unit according to claim 1, wherein the superimposition processing unit performs control of selecting standard audible range data based on the attribute information input to the input unit, and superimposing the selected standard audible range data on the comparison result. 4. Hearing test equipment. Further comprising communication means capable of communicating with an external device,
4. The hearing test apparatus according to claim 1, wherein control is performed to transmit the comparison result to the external device via the communication unit. 5. Holding significant test sound data consisting of a plurality of mora and standard audible range data on the subject's standard audible range,
Outputting a test sound based on the held test sound data to the subject,
Displaying first candidate information for selecting whether or not the test sound was heard, and second candidate information including a plurality of correct answer candidate data for the heard test sound;
Comparing the phoneme of the selected second candidate information and the phoneme of the test sound for each mora,
The correct answer candidate data and the comparison result distinguishing the mora that does not match the mora that matches the test sound data and the mora that does not match are output by being superimposed on the standard audible range data,
When it is selected that the test sound cannot be heard, the sound pressure is increased and the test sound is output again, and the phoneme included in the mora based on the comparison result according to the content of the selected first candidate information. The display position of
The mora is composed of a consonant part and a vowel part,
In the comparison, a hearing test method includes comparing one of the consonant part and the vowel part included in the unmatched mora, which has caused an incorrect answer, so as to be further distinguished from the other and output to a display unit. . On the computer
Holding significant test sound data composed of a plurality of mora and standard audible range data regarding the standard audible range of the subject,
The test sound based on the held test sound data is output to the subject,
Displaying first candidate information for selecting whether or not the test sound was heard, and second candidate information including a plurality of correct answer candidate data for the heard test sound,
The phoneme of the selected second candidate information and the phoneme of the test sound are compared for each mora,
The correct answer candidate data and the test sound data are compared with the mora that does not match the mora that does not match and the comparison result that distinguishes the mora that does not match is output by being superimposed on the standard audible range data,
When it is selected that the test sound cannot be heard, the sound pressure is increased and the test sound is output again, and the phoneme included in the mora based on the comparison result according to the content of the selected first candidate information. The display position of
The mora is composed of a consonant part and a vowel part,
At the time of the comparison, one of the consonant part and the vowel part included in the unmatched mora, which has caused a wrong answer, is further distinguished from the other and compared so as to be output to a display means. Inspection program.