JPS59228830A - Tinnitus examination apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a device for objectively measuring the nature of tinnitus complained of by tinnitus patients.

A. Prior Art Conventional methods for measuring tinnitus include listening to a pure tone of a specific frequency and comparing it with tinnitus, or listening to band noise in a specific frequency range and comparing it with tinnitus.

This method generally uses 125.250.500.1
000.2000.4000.8000Hz pure tone, or if the center frequency and bandwidth are 1251
-1z-70'Hz, 250H2-7QHz, 500H
z-83Hz, 1000H7-110H2, 2000H
z-220Hz, 4000Hz-440Hz, 8000
Band noise of about Hz-110QHz is made to listen to patients and compared with tinnitus. (spv method) After these sounds are compared to tinnitus, the frequency of the tinnitus sound is
For example, if it is determined that the frequency is between 2000Hz and 4000Hz, the reproduction frequency will be increased between 2000Hz and 4000Hz, or the reproduction frequency will be increased between 2000Hz and 4000Hz.
The exact frequency of tinnitus was determined by lowering the frequency to 000 Hz. (FPM method) However, when tinnitus is compared with reproduced sound using the latter method, the patient's frequency discrimination ability is insufficient, and it is difficult to identify the tinnitus frequency, making measurement extremely time-consuming. Ta.

B0 Structure and Purpose of the Present Invention The present invention aims to eliminate these drawbacks by reproducing sound in accordance with the musical scale that almost everyone listens to on a daily basis. This device is configured to measure pre-tinnitus by comparing sounds that fit the scale with tinnitus, and an important purpose of the present invention is to measure pre-tinnitus by comparing sounds that fit the scale with tinnitus. To provide a tinnitus testing device that can easily, quickly, and accurately determine the frequency of tinnitus.

C0 configuration Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

The tinnitus testing device W shown in FIG. It includes an amplifier 3 that drives a sound generator 2 such as a horn to generate sound, and a switch circuit that controls the input voltage of the VCOI and switches the connected capacitor of the VCO1.

VCOl has seven connecting capacitors C1, C2, C8,
As C4, C5, C6, and C7 are switched from a large capacity to a small capacity, they oscillate a sound of one octave, that is, double the frequency, and the oscillation frequency increases in proportion to the input voltage.

The switch circuit includes seven capacitors, a rotary switch 5 for switching the capacitors, a voltage dividing resistor 6 for switching the input voltage of the VCO 1 to generate the sound of do-re-mi-fa-solacide, and seven change-over switches 4. There is.

7 capacitors CI, C2, C3, C4, C5, C6
, C7 are connected at one end to the capacitor terminal of vcOl, and one end of the capacitor is connected to the fixed contact of the rotary switch 5.

vcoi is, when the capacitance of the connected capacitor becomes 1/2,
Oscillation frequency doubles. Therefore, the 7 capacitors are
For example, CI=0.064μF, C2=0.032μF
, C3=0.016μF, C4=0.008μF, C3
=0.00411F, C6-0,002μF, cv=o
, 0 (11 μF).

The rotary switch 5 has a movable contact that is grounded, and connects one of the capacitors to the ground to switch the oscillation frequency in octave units. For example, rotary switch 5
C, C by switching the movable and moving contacts of
5C1, C2, C3, C voltage dividing resistor 6 is set to 1 when any of the changeover switches is turned on. , a predetermined voltage is applied to VCOI to control the oscillation frequency of VCOI. For example, capacitor C1 with maximum capacitance
is grounded by the rotary switch 5, and as the changeover switches 4 are pressed in order from the top, VCO1 becomes 6.
5.406H2 (do), 73.416Hz (shi), 82
．． 407. ', Hz (mi), 87.307H2 (7 a
)1.97.999H2(7), 11'0.001-
It emits sounds of 1z (u) and 123.47Hz (shi), and when all switches are turned off, the sound of 130.81Hz (
It is determined that the sound of C) will be generated.

Although not shown, the changeover switch has a mechanism in which when any one of the changeover switches is pressed to turn on, all of the function switches are turned off.

The amplifier 3 is for amplifying the output signal of the VCOl, for example, to a maximum output of about 0.1 mW to 10 W. Although not shown, it includes an anottenator that can adjust the output signal level preferably within a range of 100 dB. We are prepared.

As shown by the chain line in Figure 1, two sets of vcoi, 1A and 2
Something that extracts the seeds' signals, mixes them, and reproduces them.
It is possible to reproduce signals that include harmonics or subharmonics in the fundamental wave. In this case, the rotary switch 5 for switching the capacitor
An interlocking two-circuit, seven-contact rotary switch 5 is used to switch both capacitors together.

The capacitor connected to VCOlA for generating harmonics or subharmonics is determined to be an integral fraction or an integral multiple of the capacitors C1 to C7 for generating fundamental waves.

FIG. 2 shows a tinnitus testing device that generates a required scale signal in digital form, performs D/A conversion of the signal, and reproduces an analog signal.

This inspection device includes a keyboard 7 for operation, a CPU 9 to which the keyboard 7 is connected via an interface 1108, and a memory R connected to the CPU 9.
OM10 and D/A converting the output signal of CPU9.
The main amplifier 3 amplifies the output of the D/A converter 11, and the sound generator 2 converts the electric signal of the amplifier 3 into mechanical vibration.

The ROM 10 stores information that causes the CPU 9 to output a predetermined digital signal in response to an input signal from the keyboard I. For example, when there is an input number 14 of C11 from the keyboard, the CPU 9 stores in the ROM 10 information for outputting a signal in which the analog signal after D/A conversion is a pure tone of 261.63H2 or this is the fundamental wave. There is.

In addition, the ROM 10 is filled with D/D by entering from the keyboard.
Information for controlling the analog signal level after the A change is also stored.

By the way, in the apparatus of the present invention, the reproduced sound is reproduced based on the 12-average scale, but it goes without saying that the pitch of the reproduced sound, that is, the frequency, is slightly shifted. Therefore, in this specification, the 12-average scale is used in a broad sense including natural minor scales, melodic minor scales, and the like.

D. How to Use To use the tinnitus testing device shown in FIG. 1, first set the sound generator so that it can be heard by the tinnitus patient, and turn off all the switches. In this state, capacitors 01 to C7 are switched using a rotary switch to measure which sound range the tinnitus is in. At this time, if the sound pressure level of the generator is too high, the sound of the generator masks the tinnitus and makes it inaudible. Therefore, the reproduction sound pressure level of the sound generator is adjusted so that both the sounds of the tinnitus and the sound of the sound generator can be heard.

This method measures which sound range the tinnitus is in. For example, if you can determine that the patient's tinnitus is between the sound of 2093.0 Hz (C) and the sound of 4186.0 (C), you can change the playback sound and the tinnitus by switching the selector switch from high to low. The sound closest to tinnitus is measured by comparing the

By the way, the masking effect of the human ear, namely 2
When there is a type of sound and the sound pressure level is high, the low-level sound is masked and becomes completely inaudible. , the level difference at least makes it impossible to hear low-level sounds. Therefore, the closer the reproduced sound is to the tinnitus frequency, the more precisely the sound pressure level of the reproduced sound needs to be adjusted. This is because measuring the frequency of tinnitus by listening to both the tinnitus and the playback can more accurately measure the frequency.

However, it is also possible to measure the frequency of tinnitus by utilizing the masking effect, that is, by measuring which frequency of reproduced sound masks the tinnitus.

The testing device shown in FIG. 2 can also measure the frequency of tinnitus using exactly the same method. In this device, the frequency and level of the reproduced sound can be adjusted by operating the keyboard, whereas the device shown in FIG. 1 changes the frequency of the reproduced sound using a rotary switch and a changeover switch.

E. Usage example: When you have tinnitus, the sound in your ear and the opposite ear is one octave different.
Frequency of code 1, i.e. 65.406H2,130,81
Hz, 261.63Hz, 523°25Hz, 1046
．． 5Hz, 2093. Using continuous sounds of υHz, 4186, and QHz, the frequency of tinnitus was determined by opening and emitting sounds approximately 15 to 3 QdB above the conscious threshold. The frequencies of right-sided tinnitus that this patient complains of are 4186.0Hz and 209.
It was confirmed that the frequency was located between one octave and 3.0Hz. (RPM method) Next, the reproduction frequency is gradually raised to 39
51, 04Hz (shi) iK ear Qf4Km was also found to be a similar frequency.

A week later, they tested for tinnitus using the same method and got exactly the same results.

F. Effect The tinnitus testing device of the present invention has a reproduction sound having a geometric series T, lb
, L12 average rate scale contains 0 pure tone or uji in the basic scale, so the patient listens to it almost every day.
− Tinnitus is compared to music that is familiar and easy to distinguish between high and low pitches. Therefore, the frequency of tinnitus can be measured simply and accurately, and it has the advantage of being able to measure tinnitus objectively.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIGS. 1 and 2 are block diagrams of a tinnitus testing apparatus showing an embodiment of the present invention. 1...■CO12...Sound generator, 3...Amplifier, 4Φ-selection switch, 5...Rotary switch, 6...Voltage dividing resistor, 7...Keyboard, 8...110.9...CPU,
10... ROM, 11... D/A converter, Applicant: Masaru Osaki - Part No. 1, 1 \" Procedural amendment (voluntary) 1. Indication of the case 1982 Patent Application No. 103935 3, Person making the amendment Relationship with the case Patent applicant 4, Agent Attachment 1 1! Insert the following sentence between lines 8 and 9 of page 12 of the Li specification. [It should be noted that the tinnitus test device for unexploded Q and IJ can adjust the frequency and pitch of the generated sound, so it goes without saying that it can also be used as a measuring device for Doo's iiJ hearing limit.

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) In a tinnitus testing device configured so that multiple sounds can be generated and the intensity of the generation stage Q can be adjusted,
A tinnitus testing device characterized in that the generated sound is a pure tone of a 12-average scale or a sound containing this in its fundamental wave. (2) The tinnitus testing device according to claim (1), wherein the generated sound is the sound of do-re-mi-fan-rashid.