Hearing instrument

Abstract

A hearing instrument microphone device incudes at least two microphone sound ports (or sound inlets), a pressure difference microphone in communication with at least two of the sound ports and a pressure microphone in communication with at least one of the sound ports, wherein the acoustic centers of the pressure difference microphone and the pressure microphone essentially coincide.

Claims

1. A hearing instrument including a signal processor, a receiver, and a microphone device, the microphone device comprising: at least two microphone ports, a pressure difference microphone in communication with at least two of the ports, a pressure microphone in communication with at least one of the ports and having an effective acoustic center, wherein the effective acoustic center of the pressure microphone is the center point of the ports that are in communication with the pressure microphone, wherein the effective acoustic center of the pressure microphone is essentially at equal distances from locations of the ports in communication with the pressure difference microphone, and wherein the signal processor comprises a first input channel and a second input channel, and is capable of obtaining a first digital input signal representative of an acoustic signal incident on the pressure microphone via the first input channel, and a second digital input signal representative of an acoustic signal incident on the pressure difference microphone via the second input channel, processing the first and second digital input signals, combining the first and second digital input signals into a processed signal with an adjustable directional dependency, and activating the receiver to convert an electronic output signal produced by the signal processor into an acoustic output signal.

2. The hearing instrument according to claim 1, wherein the pressure microphone and the pressure difference microphone are arranged in a common casing.

3. The hearing instrument according to claim 1, wherein the pressure difference microphone comprise a pressure difference microphone cartridge with a membrane dividing the volume within the cartridge in two volume parts, the first volume part being, via a first opening of the pressure difference microphone, coupled to a first one of the ports, whereas the second volume part is, via a second opening of the pressure difference microphone, coupled to a second one of the ports.

4. The hearing instrument according to claim 1, wherein the pressure microphone is a pressure microphone comprising a pressure microphone cartridge, and a membrane dividing the cartridge volume in two volume parts, the first volume part being, via at least one pressure microphone opening, coupled to at least one of the ports, whereas the second volume part is closed.

5. The hearing instrument according to claim 1, wherein membranes of the pressure microphone and of the pressure difference microphone are parallel.

6. The hearing instrument according to claim 1, wherein the pressure difference microphone and the pressure microphone are both coupled to the same plurality of ports.

7. The hearing instrument according to claim 1, wherein the pressure difference microphone is coupled to two pressure difference microphone ports and wherein the pressure microphone is coupled to at least one pressure microphone port separate from the pressure difference microphone ports.

8. The hearing instrument according to claim 1, wherein the signal processor is capable of applying a correction filter to at least one of the first digital input signal and the second digital input signal, prior to combining the signals.

9. The hearing instrument according to claim 1, wherein the signal processor comprises: a correction filter adjusting a frequency dependency of at least one of the first and the second input signals into adjusted first or second input signals, respectively, and a beamformer capable of combining the adjusted first and second input signals onto a beamformed signal with an adjustable directional dependency.

10. The hearing instrument according to claim 9, wherein the beamformer is an adaptive beamformer.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) In the following, embodiments of the invention are described referring to drawings. In the drawings, same reference numerals refer to same or analogous elements. The drawings are all schematic. They show:

(2) FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a first embodiment of a microphone device according to the first aspect of the invention;

(3) FIGS. 2-8 are schematic representations of alternative embodiments of microphone devices according to the first aspect of the invention, and partly how they are integrated in a hearing instrument casing;

(4) FIG. 9 is a schematic representation of a hearing instrument;

(5) FIGS. 10 and 11 are block diagrams of possibilities of processing signals in hearing instruments according to the first or second aspect;

(6) FIG. 12 is a graph of the frequency response (magnitude and phase) of a static correction filter of an embodiment; and

(7) FIG. 13 is a schematic representation of a microphone device, not according to the first aspect, that may be used in embodiments of hearing aids of the second aspect of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(8) The microphone device 1 depicted in FIG. 1 is a basic version illustrating the operating principle. The microphone device comprises a first port 2 and a second port 3, the ports being arranged at a distance from each other. In the depicted configuration with no tubing, the sound ports are formed by spouts of the microphone device.

(9) In a common casing 7, a pressure microphone 11 and a pressure difference microphone 12 are arranged.

(10) The pressure microphone 11 is formed by a pressure microphone cartridge and comprises a membrane 15 that divides the cartridge in a first volume 11.1 and a second volume 11.2. The first volume 11.1 is coupled, via sound inlet openings 11.3, 11.4 of the cartridge, to the first and second ports, respectively, whereas the second volume 11.2 is closed. The pressure microphone, as is known in the art, due to its construction is not sensitive to the direction of incident sound.

(11) The pressure difference microphone 12 is formed by a pressure microphone cartridge and comprises a membrane 16 that divides the cartridge in a first volume 12.1 and a second volume 12.2. The first volume 12.1 is coupled via a first sound inlet opening 12.3 of the cartridge, to the first port 2, and the second volume 12.2 is coupled, via a second sound inlet opening 12.4 of the cartridge, to the second port 3. Due to this construction, the pressure difference microphone 12 is sensitive to the sound direction in that a sound signal sound incident from directions parallel to the line that connects the first and second spouts 2, 3 lead to a signal different in magnitude than a sound signal incident of equal strength from a direction approximately perpendicular to this line. The directional dependency of pressure difference microphone sound sensitivity is known in the art and will not be explained in any more detail here.

(12) A remarkable property of the embodiment of FIG. 1, compared to prior art combinations of different microphones, is that the pressure microphone is open to both ports. As a consequence, the acoustic centers of the pressure microphone and of the pressure difference microphone coincide.

(13) In the depicted configuration, the pressure microphone cartridge and the pressure difference microphone cartridge are both formed by the common casing 7 and an additional rigid separating wall 9 that divides the casing volume between the two cartridges. This construction, however, is not a requirement. Rather, other geometries are possible, the sizes and/or shapes of the cartridges and/or the orientation of the membranes need not been equal, and/or between the pressure microphone cartridge and the pressure difference microphone cartridge, other objects may be arranged.

(14) The ports 2, 3, in all embodiments, may further comprise a protection 21, for example of the kind known in the field.

(15) FIG. 2 depicts an embodiment that is similar to the configuration of FIG. 1 but in which both ports are open not towards opposing lateral sides but towards a front side (towards the top in the depicted configuration). For example the microphone device 1 may be placed in a hearing instrument, and the ports 2, 3 may be small openings in the hearing instrument casing 8. The sound conducting volumes that connect the ports with the respective openings may be viewed as tubing 31 or ducts from the ports 2, 3 to the respective openings 11.3, 11.4, 12.3, 12.4, the word ‘tubing’ not being meant to restrict the material or geometry of the sound conducting duct from the ports to the sound inlet openings. In other words, in all embodiments, the tubing may comprise flexible tubes or rigid ducts or have any other configuration that allows for a communication between the ports and the sound inlet openings of the microphones.

(16) In the embodiment of FIG. 2 as well as in the subsequently depicted embodiments, the microphone device may optionally comprise spouts at the locations of the sound inlet openings, to which the tubings may be connected. Separate spouts may be present for the different openings, or, as in FIG. 1, the spouts may be common to neighbored openings.

(17) The directional dependency of the sound sensitivity of the pressure difference microphone 12, especially for lower frequencies, is improved if the ports 2, 3 are arranged at some distance to each other. Therefore, in a variant of the embodiment of FIG. 2, the ports may be arranged not in immediate vicinity to the microphone casing 7 as in FIG. 2, but at a larger laterals distance thereto, with the tubing connecting the ports to the sound inlet openings.

(18) FIG. 3 depicts a further embodiment, in which the tubing 31 is asymmetrical. The asymmetry in tubing lengths requires unequal front and back volumes for the pressure difference microphone.

(19) A further difference between the embodiment of FIG. 3 and the one depicted in FIG. 2 is that the microphone casing 7 is offset relative to the hearing instrument casing 8 towards the hearing instrument interior; i.e. the microphone casing does not form part of the hearing instrument casing but is arranged in an interior of the hearing instrument. This further difference is independent of the asymmetrical arrangement, and both modifications can apply to any embodiment. I.e., a hearing instrument according to any embodiment can have an offset casing without an asymmetrical tubing of the microphone device or can have an asymmetrical tubing of the microphone device without the offset casing—and of course can have both or neither.

(20) FIG. 4 shows an embodiment in which the pressure difference microphone and the 12 pressure microphone 11 have separate tubings 31, 32, respectively, and separate ports 2, 3; 4, 5, respectively. Especially, in the depicted configuration, the ports 2, 3 of the pressure difference microphone are spaced from each other further than the ports 4, 5 of the pressure microphone. Nevertheless, the center points of the two pairs of ports and hence the acoustic centers of the two microphones coincide. In alternative embodiments, the spacing of the ports of the pressure microphone could be larger than the spacing of the ports of the pressure difference microphone, even though a large spacing of the pressure difference microphone ports is potentially advantageous.

(21) In the embodiments of FIG. 4 as well as in other embodiments, the sound path lengths through the tubing from the port to the pressure microphone and the pressure difference microphone, respectively, are unequal. In such embodiments, the signal processor that processes the signals generated by the two microphones preferably applies a delay on the signal with the shorter tubing length (the pressure microphone signal in the embodiments of FIGS. 4, 5 and others) to compensate. Such a delay, however, as long as the condition of the first aspect of the invention is fulfilled, is not dependent on the direction of incidence and therefore not delicate.

(22) Also in the variant of FIG. 5, the pressure microphone 11 and the pressure difference microphone 12 have separate ports. In this variant, however, the pressure microphone has a single, central port 4. The single central port is located at the place of the acoustic center of the two ports 2, 3 of the pressure difference microphone.

(23) In the embodiment of FIG. 6, the microphone device comprises separate tubings 31, 32 and ports 2, 3, 4, 5 for the pressure difference microphone and the pressure microphone. A single sound inlet opening 11.3 of the pressure microphone is coupled to two tubings and thus in acoustic communication with two ports 4, 5.

(24) The embodiment of FIG. 7 is a variant of the embodiment of FIG. 6. The single sound inlet opening 11.3 of the pressure microphone is coupled to (is in acoustic communication with) two tubings 31 and hence the ports 2, 3 of the pressure difference microphone.

(25) In all embodiments, including in all of the embodiments illustrated herein in FIGS. 2-7, it is possible to arrange the pressure microphone and the pressure difference microphone so that the two membranes 15, 16 are placed next to each other instead of on top of each other with respect to the direction to which the ports face. The membranes 15, 16 are then in a ‘vertical’ plane instead of in a ‘horizontal’ plane (=plane parallel to the hearing instrument casing plate under which the microphone is arranged and in which the ports are present). This is very schematically illustrated in FIG. 8. The membranes are, in the shown configuration, parallel to the drawing plane instead of perpendicular thereto as in the previous embodiments.

(26) FIG. 9 yet very schematically depicts a hearing instrument 41. More in particular, the outward facing faceplate 42 of a Completely-in-the-Canal (CIC) hearing instrument can be seen in FIG. 9, with the battery compartment cover 43 and its hinge 44 being visible. The microphone device 1 may be arranged next to the battery compartment, for example integrated in the molded faceplate 41 or arranged as a separate component immediately beneath the faceplate. In alternative configurations (not depicted), the microphone device may also be arranged along the short side of the battery compartment, optionally with an additional, central port 4 integrated in the hinge or behind it. In all configurations, very compact solutions can be possible.

(27) As an alternative to being a CIC hearing instrument, the hearing instrument comprising the microphone device 1 according to any embodiment may be an other in-the-ear (ITE) hearing instrument, or may be a behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing instrument. In some prior art BTE hearing instruments, the two sound inlet ports of the two pressure microphones by which adaptive beam forming is achieved are located on both sides of a push-button or other device. Such configurations—with the microphones located deeply in the hearing instrument—are also possible with the herein described microphone devices. However, often it is advantageous to locate the microphones close to the outer plate of the casing to keep the tubings short. In this case, the pushbutton or other device may be arranged side-by-side with the microphone device. More in general, the microphone device may be located anywhere in the hearing instruments, and the ports may be placed at any convenient position of the hearing instrument, including embodiments the ports are directly embodiments of the hearing instrument shell and embodiments where ports are arranged in or under other elements such as a volume control, a hinge of a cover, a pushbutton etc.

(28) As is known in the field, the hearing instrument further comprises a receiver, a signal processor and means—that may be integrated in the signal processor or separate therefrom—to digitally capture a signal generated by the microphones in response to an acoustic signal and to activate a receiver to send an acoustic output signal in response.

(29) FIG. 10 shows a block diagram of the processing taking place in the hearing instrument. The signals produced by the pressure microphone 11 and by the pressure difference microphone 12 are both converted into digital signals (A/D) and then preferably transferred into the frequency domain (for example by Fast Fourier Transform FFT). Then, a correction filter (CF) is applied to at least one of the pressure microphone signal (p) and of the pressure difference microphone signal (u). In the depicted configuration, a filter is applied to the pressure difference microphone signal. The correction filter may be a static correction filter, i.e. a filter with a set frequency dependence. The purpose of the correction filter is to adjust the signals for different frequency responses of the pressure microphone and of the pressure difference microphone. The filter characteristics may be determined by measurements and/or calculations.

(30) An example of a filter characteristics is shown in FIG. 12, where the top panel shows the measured magnitude of and the bottom panel the measured phase of a static correction filter. The dip at 3 kHz is due to a resonance of the used embodiment of the pressure difference microphone, whereas the peak at 6 kHz is due to a resonance of the used embodiment of the used pressure microphone.

(31) The correction filter is generally arranged before the signals of the pressure and pressure difference microphones are combined. In contrast to the configuration of FIG. 10, this can also be done prior to the conversion in the frequency domain (as shown in FIG. 11) or even prior to the analog-to-digital conversion, the latter by means of an analog filter.

(32) The combination of the signals can comprise a step of static cardioid shaping SCS. From the Front Cardioid (C.sub.r) and the Back Cardioid (C.sub.b), a beamformed signal may be obtained, i.e. the directional dependence of the sensitivity may adaptively be adjusted. Adaptive beamforming from two static cardioids is known in the field of signal processing in hearing instruments and will not be detailed any further here.

(33) Instead of first calculating cardioids, the (in one case corrected) p and u signals may be directly used as input quantities for the adaptive beamforming, hence the static cardioid shaping is optional.

(34) After the beamforming and optionally further processing steps, the signal is transferred back to the time domain (IFFT) and then used to activate a receiver 51, possibly after a digital-to-analog (D/A) conversion step (approaches without an explicit D/A step, for example with pulsewidth modulated signals are also possible).

(35) In the above-described embodiments of microphone devices, the pressure microphone and the pressure difference microphone are always arranged on top of each other or side by side. This is often advantageous but not necessary. Rather the microphones may be independently arranged.

(36) Also, in the described embodiments, the centers of the membranes both located on the same plane parallel to the perpendicular bisector of the locations of the sound port openings of the pressure difference microphone. Also this may be advantageous but is not a necessity, rather arrangements where the microphones are arranged ‘side by side’ or in an other configuration are possible, as long as the condition is met.

(37) Further, while in the depicted embodiments the membranes are parallel (this sometimes being advantageous because of easier implementation) this is not necessary. Rather, the membranes may be at an angle with respect to each other, for example 90°. Especially, in the configuration of FIG. 8, one of the microphones may be turned by 90° compared to the depicted variant.

(38) Finally, the effective, equivalent acoustic centers of the pressure microphone and the pressure difference microphone in the above embodiments generally coincide. However, this is not a necessity. Rather, the acoustic centers may be offset with respect to each other as long as the condition is essentially met. For example, the centers may be offset with respect to each other in a vertical direction (perpendicular to the casing surface plane) if the casing has according features at its surface. Also, the centers may be slightly shifted sideways with respect to each other, as discussed above.

(39) FIG. 13 yet depicts a microphone device 1 that is not according to the first aspect of the invention in that the acoustic centers of the pressure microphone 11 and of the pressure difference microphone 12 do not coincide. In the depicted configuration, the pressure microphone and the pressure difference microphone share a common port 3, whereas an other port 2 is coupled to a sound inlet opening of the pressure difference microphone only.

(40) When the signals of the microphones 11, 12 of FIG. 13 are combined for beamforming, the signal processing has to include electronic delay compensation prior to combination to account for the different locations of the acoustic centers of the two microphones.