A hearing system configured to be located at or in the head of a user, comprises a) at least two microphones providing at least two electric input signals, b) an own voice detector, c) access to a database (O.sub.l, H.sub.l) comprising c1) relative or absolute own voice transfer function(s), and corresponding c2) absolute or relative acoustic transfer functions for a multitude of test-persons, d) a processor connectable to the at least two microphones, to the own voice detector, and to the database. The processor is configured A) to estimate an own voice relative transfer function for sound from the user's mouth to at least one of the at least two microphones, and B) to estimate personalized relative or absolute head related acoustic transfer functions from at least one spatial location other than the user's mouth to at least one of the microphones of the hearing system in dependence of the estimated own voice relative transfer function(s) and the database (O.sub.l, H.sub.l). The hearing system further comprises e) a beamformer configured to receive the at least two electric input signals, or processed versions thereof, and to determine personalized beamformer weights based on the personalized relative or absolute head related acoustic transfer functions or impulse responses. A method of determining personalized beamformer coefficients (w.sub.k) is further disclosed.

An improved implantable auditory stimulation system includes two or more implanted microphones for transcutaneous detection of acoustic signals. Each of the implanted microphones provides an output signal. The microphone output signals may be combinatively utilized by an implanted processor to generate a signal for driving an implanted auditory stimulation device. The implanted microphones may be located at offset subcutaneous locations and/or may be provided with different design sensitivities, wherein combinative processing of the microphone output signals may yield an improved drive signal. In one embodiment, the microphone signal may be processed for beamforming and/or directionality purposes.

A method for providing sound to at least one user, in which audio signals are captured and transformed into audio data that is transmitted to at least one receiver unit; audio signals are generated from the received audio data and the hearing of the user(s) stimulated thereby; wherein the audio data is transmitted as audio data packets in separate slots of a TDMA frame structure, wherein the transmission unit and the receiver unit(s) are synchronized to form a wireless network, wherein each TDMA frame structure has at least one listening slot during which the synchronized network members do not transmit data and at least one network members listens, and wherein control data is transmitted from an external control device according to a sequence pattern selected according to the duration and periodicity of the listening slot(s) to be received by the at least one synchronized network member during said listening slot(s).

In a binaural hearing aid system audio signals are transmitted between an antenna facility of a left ITE hearing aid and an antenna facility of a right ITE hearing aid. Binaural beam forming is based on a natural directivity of the pinna and/or based on a head shadowing effect. Each antenna facility has an antenna arrangement with a coil core made of magnetically permeable material, and extending along a longitudinal axis, a further electric hearing aid component, which emits electromagnetic interference radiation, and an at least partially planar shield made of magnetically permeable material. The shield is arranged between the antenna arrangement and the further hearing aid component transversely to the longitudinal axis of the coil core and the shield is arranged at a distance of 50 to 150 micrometers from the coil core, preferably 75 to 100 micrometers.

A hearing assistance system comprises an input unit for providing electric input sound signals u.sub.i, each representing sound signals U.sub.i from a multitude n.sub.u of sound sources S.sub.i, an electroencephalography (EEG) system for recording activity of the auditory system of the user's brain and providing a multitude n.sub.y of EEG signals y.sub.j, and a source selection processing unit receiving said electric input sound signals u.sub.i and said EEG signals y.sub.j, and in dependence thereof configured to provide a source selection signal Ŝ.sub.x indicative of the sound source S.sub.x that the user currently pays attention to using a selective algorithm that determines a sparse model to select the most relevant EEG electrodes and time intervals based on minimizing a cost function measuring the correlation between the individual sound sources and the EEG signals, and to determine the source selection signal Ŝ.sub.x based on the cost functions obtained for said multitude of sound sources.

A hearing aid system for assisting a user's ability to hear includes at least one hearing aid instrument worn on the user's head. A sound signal from the surroundings is recorded and converted into input audio signals by input transducers of the hearing aid system. The hearing aid system includes two adaptive beamformers with variable notch direction, applied indirectly or directly to the input audio signals to generate direction-dependently damped audio signals. The notch directions are set to mutually different values to minimize the energy content of the direction-dependently damped audio signal of each beamformer. The notch directions of the two beamformers are evaluated in comparative fashion. A user's head rotation is captured qualitatively and/or quantitatively if a correlated change in the notch directions is determined within the scope of the comparative evaluation. A method for operating the hearing aid system is also provided.

In a method for direction-dependent noise rejection for a hearing system, first and second input transducers are used to generate an interference signal and a target signal from a sound from the surroundings. The interference signal and/or the target signal are referenced to a useful signal source arranged in a target direction. The target signal is generated with a target directivity pattern. For each of a first plurality of frequency bands, an acoustic characteristic of the target signal is compared with a corresponding acoustic characteristic of the interference signal, and the comparison is used to ascertain a provisional weighting factor. The provisional weighting factor is used to form for the frequency band a weighting factor for the respective frequency bands. An input signal to be processed is weighted on a frequency-band-by-frequency-band basis using the respective weighting factor, and the weighted input signal is used to generate an output signal.

A method (300) of operating a hearing aid with a low delay beam former and a hearing aid (200, 500).

Systems and methods for detecting when a device is placed into an operational position are disclosed. Upon determination that the device is in the operational position, one or more processes can be executed. Execution or initialization of the processes upon detection of the operational position provides for the determination of optimal settings than would otherwise be determined if the processes automatically executed before detection of the operational position. Further aspects of the present disclosure relate to determining when the device is no longer in an operational position upon which time the execution of the processes are terminated. The settings in place upon termination can be saved and reapplied the next time the device is in the operational position.

A hearing aid is configured to be located at or in an ear of a user. The hearing aid comprises a heartbeat detector providing a pulse control signal, and a processor. The processor is configured to estimate whether the hearing aid is located at a left or a right ear of the user in dependence of the pulse control signal. A method of operating a hearing aid and a binaural hearing aid system is further disclosed.