WO2014010165A1

WO2014010165A1 - Hearing aid

Info

Publication number: WO2014010165A1
Application number: PCT/JP2013/003536
Authority: WO
Inventors: 翌越智; 井下　博義; 成清藤井; 佐藤　浩明
Original assignee: パナソニック株式会社
Priority date: 2012-07-10
Filing date: 2013-06-05
Publication date: 2014-01-16
Also published as: JPWO2014010165A1

Abstract

This hearing aid is provided with: a microphone (5); a hearing aid processing unit (11) that is connected to the microphone (5); a receiver (7) and a control unit (18) that are connected to the hearing aid processing unit (11); a first and second biological sensor (infrared sensor (6), acceleration sensor (15)) that are selectively connected to the control unit (18) via a switching means (13, 16, 17); and a notification unit (display unit (8), receiver (7)) that issues a notification of detection information based on the first and second biological sensors. The control unit (18) causes the notification unit (display unit (8), receiver (7)) to output the detection information based on the first or second biological sensor (infrared sensor (6), acceleration sensor (15)) that are selectively connected to the control unit (18) by the switching means (13, 16, 17).

Description

hearing aid

The present invention relates to a hearing aid equipped with various biological sensors.

In recent years, middle-aged and elderly people have a high interest in maintaining health, and there are many people who try to maintain their health by dieting or walking. Such people manage using dedicated devices such as pedometers. In addition, with the aim of higher-quality health management, a technology has been realized in which systems and services using health care devices such as blood pressure monitors and thermometers at home are linked.
As a hearing aid, a hearing aid incorporating a sensor for detecting various biological information is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP-A-9-182193

As described above, a user who places emphasis on health management, for example, wears a pedometer to manage the number of steps, or measures body temperature at a predetermined time. In order to manage such biological information, it is inevitably inconvenient because it is necessary to individually operate the measuring device according to the purpose and confirm the measurement result.
Also, in the above patent document, the hearing aid processing is changed according to the detection results of a plurality of sensors provided in the hearing aid, but it has a function of notifying the hearing aid wearer of information detected by the sensor, such as a pedometer. Not.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to improve usability by notifying the user of the measurement result obtained from the sensor at the timing of switching the hearing aid mode.
And in order to achieve this objective, the hearing aid of this invention is equipped with the microphone, the hearing aid process part, the receiver, the biosensor, the notification part, and the control part. The microphone acquires sound information. The hearing aid processing unit performs hearing aid processing on the sound information acquired by the microphone. The receiver outputs the sound information subjected to the hearing aid processing in the hearing aid processing unit. The biometric sensor detects the biometric information of the user. The notification unit notifies the biological information detected by the biological sensor. The control unit selectively uses the biosensor according to the operation mode of the hearing aid, and outputs detection information based on the biosensor from the notification unit according to the operation mode switching of the hearing aid.

According to the hearing aid of the present invention, it is possible to improve the user-friendliness than before.

The figure explaining the use condition of the hearing aid which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. The block diagram of the hearing aid of FIG. The block diagram of the hearing aid of FIG. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the hearing aid of FIG. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the hearing aid of FIG. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the hearing aid of FIG. Explanatory drawing of the display part of the hearing aid of FIG. Explanatory drawing of the display part of the hearing aid of FIG. The figure explaining the usage pattern of the hearing aid which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. The block diagram of the hearing aid of FIG. The block diagram of the hearing aid of FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of the hearing aid of FIG. The figure explaining the display part of the hearing aid of FIG. The figure explaining the display part of the hearing aid of FIG.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the hearing aid of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 shows a state in which a hearing aid according to an embodiment of the present invention is worn.
In FIG. 1, a user 100 uses a hearing aid 1 (see FIG. 2). As shown in FIG. 1, the user 100 wears the wearer 2 on the left ear and connects to the wearer 2 via the cable 3. The hearing aid main body 4 is suspended from the neck. In addition, since the user 100 shown in FIG. 1 has low hearing ability of the left ear, it is assumed that the wearing body 2 is attached only to the left ear in this way.

The wearing body 2 and the hearing aid main body 4 will be described in more detail with reference to FIG.
The wearing body 2 includes a microphone 5 for collecting ambient sounds, an infrared sensor 6 for measuring the body temperature in the ear canal, and an audio signal obtained by performing hearing aid processing on the audio signal collected from the wearing body 2 and the present embodiment. And a receiver 7 for generating various notification sounds in the form.
The hearing aid main body 4 includes a display unit 8 for displaying various states to the user 100 and a button 9 for setting an operation mode of the hearing aid main body 4. In the present embodiment, a liquid crystal screen is used for the display unit 8.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the hearing aid 1.
First, as a function of a normal hearing aid, audio data input from the microphone 5 that collects ambient sounds is input to the A / D converter 10 as analog audio data. The A / D converter 10 converts analog audio data into digital audio data and outputs the digital audio data to the hearing aid processing unit 11.
The hearing aid processing unit 11 performs hearing aid processing on the digital audio data so that the hearing characteristics suitable for the user 100 are obtained, and then outputs the digital sound data to the D / A converter 12.

The D / A converter 12 converts the digital audio data into analog audio data and outputs the analog audio data to the receiver 7.
The receiver 7 converts the analog voice data into air vibration and outputs it as a voice signal that can be heard by the user 100.
In the present embodiment, the following configuration is provided in addition to the normal hearing aid function.
First, the wearing body 2 further includes an infrared sensor 6 that measures the amount of infrared rays in the ear canal of the user 100 and measures the body temperature.

The infrared sensor 6 is connected to the biological information detection unit 14 via the switching unit 13.
The biological information detection unit 14 calculates the body temperature of the user 100 based on the amount of infrared rays obtained from the infrared sensor 6.
Next, the hearing aid main body 4 further includes an acceleration sensor 15 that counts the number of steps when the user 100 is walking.

The acceleration sensor 15 is connected to the biological information detection unit 14 via the switching unit 16.
The biological information detection unit 14 calculates the number of steps of the user 100 based on the acceleration obtained from the acceleration sensor 15.
Next, the microphone 5 provided in the mounting body 2 also functions as a sensor for detecting sleep and snoring according to the operation mode of the hearing aid. The microphone 5 is connected to the biological information detection unit 14 via the A / D converter 10 and the switching unit 17.

The biological information detection unit 14 detects sleep or snoring of the user 100 based on the audio data obtained from the microphone 5.
The control unit 18 is connected to the switching means 13, 16, 17, the biological information detection unit 14, the display unit 8, the hearing aid processing unit 11, and the memory 19, and performs overall control of the hearing aid 1.
The button 9 is connected to the hearing aid processing unit 11 and sets the operation mode of the hearing aid 1. The operation mode can be set when fitting the hearing aid.

Here, the fitting refers to an act of adjusting the hearing aid in accordance with the hearing ability and usage environment of the user 100. In the present embodiment, description will be made assuming that the user 100 can select the normal mode, the walk mode, and the sleep mode.
In each mode, generally, the acoustic parameter is changed or the validity / invalidity of the hearing aid processing function is switched depending on the difference in the operation mode.
In the present embodiment, in the walk mode, the wind suppression function is set to be valid. In the sleep mode, the amplification amount of the hearing aid is suppressed. Similarly, the validity / invalidity of the biosensor can be set at the time of fitting.

In the present embodiment, in the walk mode, the function of measuring the body temperature using the infrared sensor 6 and the function of counting the number of steps using the acceleration sensor 15 are enabled. In the sleep mode, the microphone 5 is used to detect sleep and snoring, and the simple determination function for apnea syndrome is enabled.
Next, the overall processing flow will be described with reference to FIG.
First, when the power of the hearing aid 1 is turned on (S1), various processes (S2) for starting the hearing aid 1 are performed, and then the operation as a normal hearing aid is performed. The normal operation of the hearing aid is the “normal mode” (S3) as the operation mode.

In this state, the hearing aid processing unit 11 confirms whether or not the button 9 has been pressed. Here, if the button 9 is not pressed, the process returns to S3. On the other hand, when the button 9 is pressed, it is determined that the operation mode has been switched, and the mode is switched to the next mode “walk mode” (S4).
Even in the “walking mode” (S5), the hearing aid processing unit 11 checks whether the button 9 has been pressed. If the button 9 is not pressed, the process returns to S5. On the other hand, when the button 9 is pressed, it is determined that the operation mode has been switched, and the mode is switched to the “sleeping mode” that is the next mode (S6).

Even in the “sleeping mode” (S7) state, the hearing aid processing unit 11 checks whether the button 9 is pressed. If the button 9 is not pressed, the process returns to S7. On the other hand, if the button 9 is pressed, it is determined that the operation mode has been switched, and the next mode is switched to the “normal mode” (S8).
As described above, the operation mode of the hearing aid 1 is sequentially switched by operating the button 9, and a desired operation mode is selected.

Next, the respective operation modes will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 5 shows the flow of processing in the “walk mode”.
First, when “walking mode” is selected (S11), the control unit 18 controls the switching unit 13 to place the infrared sensor 6 and the biological information detection unit 14 in a connected state. Furthermore, the control part 18 controls the switching means 16, and makes the acceleration sensor 15 and the biological information detection part 14 into a connection state (S12).

Next, hearing aid processing (S13) is performed, which is a general operation of a hearing aid. Then, the biological information detection unit 14 calculates the body temperature from the information obtained by the infrared sensor 6, and calculates the number of steps from the acceleration information obtained from the acceleration sensor 15 (S14).
The body temperature information and the step count information are notified from the biological information detection unit 14 to the control unit 18 and displayed on the display unit 8 (S15) (see FIGS. 7A and 7B).
Then, the control unit 18 sends the audio information such as “the current number of steps is 8000” or “the current body temperature is 36.4 degrees” to the hearing aid processing unit 11 and notifies the user 100 from the receiver 7.

At this time, when the body temperature information exceeds a predetermined body temperature, as shown in FIG. 7C, the display may be switched to a warning display, and may be notified as audio information such as “During body temperature rise, hydration”. .
The body temperature information and the step count information displayed on the display unit 8 may be switched according to the preference of the user 100 or may be alternately displayed at a predetermined interval.
Next, the state of the button 9 is confirmed (S16), and if the button 9 is not pressed, the process returns to S13. On the other hand, if the button 9 is pressed, the final step count is displayed on the display unit 8 as shown in FIG. 7D, and a voice message “the current step count is 9000 steps” is notified from the receiver 7. (S17).

In addition, although not shown in the figure, in order to notify the next mode, a notification that “the mode has been changed to the sleep mode. The snoring detection sensor is effective” is displayed on the display unit 8 and is also notified by voice from the receiver 7. To do. And it changes to "sleeping mode" which is the next mode (S18).
In the present embodiment, voice step count notification and body temperature notification are executed every 1000 steps.

In this way, when transitioning from the “walking mode” to the “sleeping mode”, the measurement result of the mode is notified, so that no special operation is required and the necessary information remains in the normal hearing aid usage state. Therefore, the usability of the user 100 can be improved.
In addition, when the mode transitions, the mode is notified by voice, and the sensor which is effective in this mode is also notified as in the example of “Snoring detection sensor is effective”. Thus, in the “sleeping mode”, it is possible to improve the usability of the user 100 by notifying which sensor is being used.

Here, when it changes to "sleeping mode" (S21), the control part 18 controls the switching means 13, and makes the infrared sensor 6 and the biometric information detection part 14 a non-connection state. Further, the control unit 18 controls the switching unit 16 to bring the acceleration sensor 15 and the biological information detection unit 14 into a disconnected state, and ambient sound obtained from the microphone 5 passes through the A / D converter 10. It controls so that it may input into the biometric information detection part 14 (S22).
Next, hearing aid processing (S23) is performed, which is a general operation of a hearing aid.

Then, the biological information detection unit 14 detects sleep and snoring sound from the voice information obtained by the microphone 5, and collects the time when no sleep was detected and the time when snore was detected (S24).
At this time, since the user 100 is sleeping, the display on the display unit 8 such as the “walking mode” described above and the notification by voice are not performed (S25).
Next, the state of the button 9 is confirmed (S26). If the button 9 is not pressed, the process returns to S23.

Here, when the user 100 wakes up and presses the button 9, the display unit 8 displays whether or not there is a risk of apnea syndrome from the time when the above-described sleep was not detected or the state of snoring is displayed on the display unit 8. 8 and notified as sound.
For example, if there is a possibility of apnea syndrome, a message as shown in FIG. 8 is displayed and a voice message “Possibility of apnea syndrome” is notified (S27).
In addition, although not shown, a notification “changed to the normal mode” is displayed on the display unit 8 to notify the next mode, and the receiver 7 notifies the user by voice.

Then, the process proceeds to the “normal mode” which is the next mode (S28).
In this way, when the transition from the “sleeping mode” to the “normal mode” is made, notification of the measurement result of the mode can improve the usability of the user 100.
Here, the fitting operation is performed on the hearing aid as described above. Usually, at the time of fitting, adjustment is performed according to the usage environment of the user 100. For this reason, fitting is often performed on the order of several months. At this time, the data log of the usage status of the user 100 is stored in the hearing aid. Therefore, it is possible to feed back to the fitting device such as graphing by the fitting application at the time of fitting using the data log.

If this data log function is used, the information obtained from the biosensor can be stored as a part of the data log, and the data stored later can be processed into a graph and fed back to the user 100. it can.
Thereby, since this daily data management can be monitored by using this data log function, the usability of the user 100 can be improved as compared with the conventional case.

In this embodiment, the mode is switched by pressing the button 9, but the input voice signal from the microphone 5 may be determined and the mode may be automatically changed.
In the present embodiment, the display and the notification by the voice message are used in combination. However, the display unit may be used to notify by a character, an icon, or the like.
In the present embodiment, the first and second biosensors are described as being built in the hearing aid body. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the configuration may be such that biological information is supplied from a biological sensor as an external device using wired or wireless communication.

In the walk mode and the sleep mode, the heart rate may be detected using the microphone 5 as a biometric sensor. In this case, for example, it is possible to notify the exercise intensity from the heart rate detected by the microphone 5 in the walk mode, or to notify the sleep quality such as REM sleep from the heart rate detected by the microphone 5 in the sleep mode. it can.
Furthermore, as an operation mode when detecting mastication by a biometric sensor, the “walk mode” and “sleep mode” described in the first embodiment are replaced with, for example, a “meal mode”, or “walk mode”, “ “Meal mode” or the like may be added to “sleep mode”. This embodiment will be described below as a second embodiment.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 9 shows a state in which the hearing aid according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention is worn by the user.
In FIG. 9, the user 100 uses the hearing aid 1 (see FIG. 10), and the hearing aids 2 A and 2 B are attached to the left and right ears and connected to the wearing bodies 2 A and 2 B via the cable 3. The main body 4 is suspended from the neck.
The wearing

bodies

2A and 2B and the hearing aid main body 4 will be described in more detail with reference to FIG.

The wearing body 2A includes a microphone 5A for collecting ambient sounds, a microphone 6A for collecting mastication sounds, audio signals after hearing aid processing for the audio signals collected from the wearing body 2A, and various types in the present embodiment. And a receiver 7A for generating a notification sound.
The wearing body 2B includes a microphone 5B for collecting ambient sounds, a microphone 6B for collecting mastication sounds, an audio signal obtained by performing hearing aid processing on an audio signal collected from the wearing body 2B, and the present embodiment. And a receiver 7B that generates various notification sounds.

The hearing aid main body 4 further includes a display unit 8 for displaying various states of the hearing aid main body 4 and notifying the user 100.
Next, the detailed configuration and operation flow of the hearing aid 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12.
FIG. 11 is a block diagram of the hearing aid 1.
First, as a function of a normal hearing aid, audio data input from the

microphones

5A and 5B that collect ambient sounds is input to the A / D converter 10 as analog audio data.

The A / D converter 10 converts analog audio data into digital audio data and outputs the digital audio data to the hearing aid processing unit 11.
The hearing aid processing unit 11 performs hearing aid processing on the audio characteristics suitable for the user 100 for the digital audio data, and then outputs the hearing aid processing to the D / A converter 12.
The D / A converter 12 converts the digital audio data into analog audio data and outputs the analog audio data to the

receivers

7A and 7B.

The receivers 7 A and 7 B convert the analog sound data into air vibrations and output the sound signals as audible to the user 100.
Next, the flow of operation of the hearing aid 1 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
In order to use the hearing aid 1, the power of the hearing aid 1 is turned on (S001).
The audio data input from the

microphones

6A and 6B for detecting the mastication sound is input to the A / D converter 10 as analog audio data.

The A / D converter 10 converts analog audio data into digital audio data, and outputs it to the mastication detection unit 14A.
The mastication detection unit 14A analyzes the digital audio data of each of the

microphones

6A and 6B, and individually determines whether or not it is a mastication sound (S002). When the mastication detection unit 14A determines that it is a mastication sound, the mastication detection unit 14A notifies the mastication counting unit 18A.
Since the sound input from the

microphones

6A and 6B includes not only the mastication sound but also its own utterance sound, it is necessary to identify them and extract only the mastication sound. In this technique, a method of detecting using the difference between the frequency bands of the mastication sound and the utterance sound is known as a known technique, and detailed description in this embodiment is omitted.

Then, when detecting the mastication sound from the sounds input from the

microphones

6A and 6B, the mastication detection unit 14A compares the sound pressure levels of the mastication sounds acquired by the microphone 6A and the microphone 6B (S003). Then, the side having the higher sound pressure level is recognized as the side using the back teeth.
For example, in a meal, when masticating with the right back tooth, a mastication sound larger than that of the left microphone 6A is acquired in the right microphone 6B. Therefore, information that the user 100 has chewed is sent from the microphone 6B to the chewing count unit 18A (S004).

On the other hand, when masticating with the left back tooth, a larger mastication sound is acquired in the left microphone 6A than in the right microphone 6B. Therefore, information that the user 100 has chewed is sent from the microphone 6A to the chewing count unit 18A (S005).
For example, when the microphone 6A is set to “1” and the microphone 6B is set to “2”, the signal sent to the mastication counting unit 18A is “1” in the latter case.
When the mastication counting unit 18A receives the signal “1” from the microphone 6A or the signal “2” from the microphone 6B from the mastication detection unit 14A, the mastication counting unit 18A separately counts and stores the result in the memory 19. Then, the display unit 8 displays the current situation according to each count situation (S006).

In the display unit 8, for example, as shown in FIG. 13, the balance between left and right chewing is displayed with a pattern such as a balance. The user 100 can eat while considering the mastication balance while viewing the display on the balance. Moreover, as shown in FIG. 14, you may display the balance of right and left chewing together with the log | history of the recording until the last time.
Further, the mastication counting unit 18A confirms whether or not a predetermined time (for example, 1 minute) has elapsed (S007), and notifies the notification sound generation unit 18B.

The notification sound generation unit 18B transmits a message to the hearing aid processing unit 11 according to the count values on the microphone 6A side and the microphone 6B side. Then, the hearing aid processing unit 11 mixes the message with the voice data input from the

microphones

5A and 5B, and outputs the sound subjected to the hearing aid processing from the

receivers

7A and 7B (S008).
Note that the message to be mixed with the audio data is, for example, when the count value of the microphone 6A (left side) is larger than that of the microphone 6B (right side), “Use the left back tooth because the left back tooth is often used.” Such voice information. Note that a beep or melody may be generated from a receiver with a higher count value to indicate which back tooth is used more frequently and call attention.

Then, the time during which mastication is not detected is measured by the mastication detection unit 14A. If mastication is not detected for a predetermined time (for example, 5 minutes) (S009), it is determined that the meal has ended, and the left and right count values are reset (S010). )
The memory 19 stores the count value calculated by the mastication counting unit 18A. By storing the past history using this count value as a log, the log data can be transferred to an external device such as a fitting device to which the hearing aid 1 is connected, so that the history can be used.

In the present embodiment, the mastication sound is detected using sounds input from the

microphones

6A and 6B. However, the mastication sound detection means is not limited to the microphone, and other means may be used.
For example, the mastication may be detected by disposing the pressure sensor instead of the

microphones

6A and 6B and detecting the deformation inside the ear canal that changes by moving the jaw with the pressure sensor.
As described above, the operation mode when performing the process of detecting mastication is set to, for example, “meal mode” and the like, for example, in “normal mode” and “meal mode” as in the first embodiment. When the operation mode of the hearing aid is switched, the switching means outputs detection information based on the biosensor selectively connected to the mastication counting unit 18A, which is a control unit, and the message generated by the notification sound generating unit 18B from the notification unit. Let

Thereby, similarly to Embodiment 1, the usability of the user 100 can be improved as compared with the conventional case.
Further, in the present embodiment, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, an input unit for detecting mastication is provided on the left ear mounting body and the right ear mounting body. Furthermore, a mastication detection unit for detecting mastication is connected to the input unit, a mastication count unit is connected to the mastication detection unit, and a notification unit for notifying the left and right mastication balance is connected to the mastication count unit.

Thereby, the left and right mastication balance can be detected and notified from the notification unit. As a result, the user 100 can try to correct the mastication balance. Therefore, frequent occurrence of a state in which the upper jaw and the lower jaw are displaced can be suppressed.
Also in the present embodiment, as in the first embodiment, an external device using wired or wireless communication may be used as a sensor for detecting mastication of the user 100.
For example, as a device (biological sensor) provided outside, a blood glucose level sensor or a blood pressure sensor may be used, and these sensors may be connected to a hearing aid via a communication unit. And these sensors should just function, for example, when a meal mode etc. are set among a plurality of operation modes set as a hearing aid.

The hearing aid of the present invention has the effect of improving the user-friendliness, and thus can be widely applied in the field of hearing aids.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Hearing aid 2 Wearing

body

2A, 2B Wearing body 3 Cable 4 Hearing aid main body 5

Microphone

5A, 5B Microphone 6

Infrared sensor

6A, 6B Microphone 7

Receiver

7A, 7B Receiver 8 Display part 9 Button 10 A / D converter 11 Hearing process part 12D / A converter 13 switching means 14 biological information detection section 14A mastication detection section 15 acceleration sensor 16 switching means 17 switching means 18 control section 18A mastication counting section 18B notification sound generation section 19 memory 100 user

Claims

A microphone to obtain sound information;
A hearing aid processing unit for performing hearing aid processing on sound information acquired in the microphone;
A receiver that outputs sound information subjected to hearing aid processing in the hearing aid processing unit;
A biosensor for detecting a user's biometric information;
A notification unit for notifying the biological information detected by the biological sensor;
A control unit that selectively uses the biosensor according to the operation mode of the hearing aid, and outputs detection information based on the biosensor from the notification unit according to the operation mode switching of the hearing aid;
Hearing aid equipped with.
The control unit causes the type of the biosensor selectively connected to be output from the notification unit.
The hearing aid according to claim 1.
The biological sensor is composed of first and second sensors,
When the second biological sensor is selectively connected to the control unit by the switching unit, the control unit connects the first biological sensor selectively connected by the switching unit before the switching. Detection information based on the notification unit,
The hearing aid according to claim 1 or 2.
The control unit can select valid / invalid of the biosensor at the time of fitting,
The hearing aid according to claim 1.
The notification unit notifies the biological information stored as a data log via a fitting application.
The hearing aid according to claim 1.
The notification unit is a liquid crystal screen of a display unit that displays various types of information.
The hearing aid according to claim 1.
The notification unit is the receiver that outputs sound information.
The hearing aid according to claim 1.
The biological sensor is an infrared sensor that measures body temperature by measuring the amount of infrared rays in the ear canal.
The hearing aid according to claim 1.
The biological sensor is an acceleration sensor that counts the number of steps when the user walks.
The hearing aid according to claim 1.
It further comprises a left ear mounting body and a right ear mounting body each having the receiver and the microphone,
The biometric sensor is a mastication detection unit that is provided in each of the left ear attachment body and the right ear attachment body and detects a user's mastication,
A hearing aid according to any one of claims 1 to 9.
Connected to the mastication detection unit, further comprising a mastication counting unit for counting the number of mastication of the user,
The notification unit notifies the mastication balance based on the counting result in the mastication counting unit,
The hearing aid according to claim 10.