A device and method for improving hearing devices by using computer recognition of words and substituting either computer generated words or pre-recorded words in streaming conversation received from a distant speaker. The system may operate in multiple modes such as a first mode being amplification and conditioning of the voice sounds; a second mode having said microphone pickup up the voice sounds from a speaker, a processor configured to convert voice sounds to discrete words corresponding to words spoken by said speaker, generating a synthesized voice speaking said words and outputting said synthesized voice to said sound reproducing element, which is hearable by the user. Other modes include translation of foreign languages into a user's ear and using a heads up display to project the text version of words which the computer had deciphered or translated. The system may be triggered by eye moment, spoken command, hand movement or similar.

A processing system obtains a deformation signal generated by a deformation sensor. The deformation signal is indicative of a deformation of an outer ear of a user of a hearing instrument. Additionally, the processing system obtains an EMG signal generated by an electrode in a concha of the user, wherein the electrode is configured to detect activity of an intrinsic auricular muscle of the user. Furthermore, the processing system generates information regarding an auditory attention state of the user based on the deformation signal and the EMG signal. The processing system controls, based on the information regarding the auditory attention state of the user, the parameter of the audio system.

A method is indicated for operating a hearing aid, wherein the hearing aid is switchable between a usage state, in which a signal processing unit of the hearing aid is activated, and an idle state, in which the signal processing unit is deactivated. The hearing aid has a time measuring unit, which has a first timer and a second timer. The first timer is activated in the usage state and is deactivated in the idle state, for time measurement during the usage state. The second timer is activated in the idle state for time measurement during the idle state. Furthermore, a corresponding hearing aid is indicated.

A hearing assistance device is discussed that has one or more accelerometers, a user interface, and optionally a left/right determination module is configured to receive input data from the one or more accelerometers from user actions causing control signals as sensed by the accelerometers to trigger a program change for an audio configuration for the device selected from a group consisting of a change in amplification/volume control, a change in a mute mode, a change of a hear loss profile loaded into that hearing assistance device, and a change in a play-pause mode.

A hearing device configured to be worn at an ear of a user may include a sensor unit configured to provide sensor data, the sensor unit comprising a biometric sensor configured to provide biometric data included in the sensor data; and a processor configured to determine a physiological parameter from the sensor data, the physiological parameter indicative of a physiological property of the user. The processor is configured to determine whether the physiological parameter fulfills a condition, and provide, depending on whether the physiological parameter fulfills the condition, output data based on the sensor data, the output data including at least part of the biometric data and/or information derived from at least part of the biometric data different from the physiological parameter.

A system comprising a plurality of processing devices is arranged for performing an algorithm having a plurality of computational tasks. The plurality of processing devices are interconnected with each other. A control logic module is adapted to select an implementation of the algorithm among a plurality of implementations. At least a part of the control logic module resides in one of the processing devices and the implementation is selected according to at least one criterion of (latency requirements, computational power, resource availability, data locality, privacy requirements, precision requirements, hardware capabilities, distance, location, acoustical performance requirements, energy efficiency, orientation) and in the selected implementation the plurality of computational tasks of the algorithm is distributed over at least two of the processing devices.

A hearing system comprises a hearing device, e.g. a hearing aid, configured to be worn by a particular user at or in an ear, or to be fully or partially implanted in the head at an ear of the user. The hearing device comprises at least one microphone for converting a sound in the environment of the hearing device to an electric input signal. The hearing system, e.g. the hearing device, comprises a processor comprising an own voice analyzer configured to characterize the voice of a person presently wearing the hearing device based at least partly on said electric input signal, and to provide characteristics of said person's voice, and an own voice acoustic channel analyzer for estimating characteristics of an acoustic channel from the mouth of the person presently wearing the hearing device to the at least one microphone based at least partly on said electric input signal, and to provide characteristics of said acoustic channel of said person. The hearing system further comprises a user identification unit configured to provide a user identification signal indicating whether or not, or with what probability, the person currently wearing the hearing device is said particular user in dependence of said characteristics of said person's voice and said characteristics of said acoustic channel of said person.

Presented herein are techniques that use acoustic scene (environmental) analysis to determine the sound class of sound signals received at a hearing prosthesis and, accordingly, assess the estimated listening difficulty that the acoustic environment presents to a recipient of the hearing prosthesis. This difficulty of the recipient's listening situation can be used to adjust, adapt, or otherwise set the resolution of the electrical stimulation signals delivered to the recipient to evoke perception of the sound signals. In other words, the resolution of the electrical stimulation signals is dynamically adapted based on the present acoustic environment of the hearing prosthesis.

Broadly speaking, the embodiments disclosed herein describe replacing a current hearing aid profile stored in a hearing aid. In one embodiment, the hearing aid profile is updated by sending a hearing aid profile update request to a hearing aid profile service, receiving the updated hearing aid profile from the hearing aid profile service, and replacing the current hearing aid profile in the hearing aid with the updated hearing aid profile.

A method and system for heterogeneous event detection. Sensor data is obtained and divided into discrete data windows. Each data window is defined by and corresponds to a time period of the sensor data. A time-frequency representation over the time period is calculated for each data window. A filter mask is calculated based on the data window corresponding to the time-frequency representation. The filter mask is applied for reverting the time-frequency representation to a time representation, resulting in filtered data. Features, such as extrema or other inflection points, are identified in the filtered data. The features define events, and transforming the time-frequency representation back into the time domain emphasizes differences between more and less prominent frequencies, facilitating identification of heterogeneous events. The method and system may be applied to body movements of people or animals, automaton movement, audio signals, light intensity, or any suitable time-dependent variable.