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A virtual acoustics solution for more realistic clinical testing |
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There have been exciting recent developments in technology, including on the EHS project, to improve spatial hearing outcomes for hearing aid and cochlear implant. As a result, there has been an increased emphasis on assessment of the spatial hearing abilities of HA and CI users for clinical and research purposes. Currently, a large, acoustically-treated space and an expensive system with several loudspeakers in a ring around the listener is required for such assessment to be carried out.
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A mock-up of the two-speaker virtual acoustics system that we are currently developing
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We have developed an alternative system, which recreates the physical characteristics of sounds at the ears created by a loudspeaker ring using just three loudspeakers. This virtual acoustics (VA) system can be used in a small space and offers far greater control of the perceived sound location than a loudspeaker ring.
As well as being able to reproduce sound fields produced by the more simple sounds that are commonly used in clinic and research, our VA system can reproduce complex acoustic scenes, such as a busy café or a car journey, with outstanding levels of realism. The system therefore has huge potential to be used for delivering relevant tests of real-world performance. Another appealing feature of this new system is its low cost. Currently, the hardware being used for this system costs approximately £1,300, compared to around the £13,000 for technology currently used in clinic.
As well as being able to reproduce sound fields produced by the more simple sounds that are commonly used in clinic and research, our VA system can reproduce complex acoustic scenes, such as a busy café or a car journey, with outstanding levels of realism. The system therefore has huge potential to be used for delivering relevant tests of real-world performance. Another appealing feature of this new system is its low cost. Currently, the hardware being used for this system costs approximately £1,300, compared to around the £13,000 for technology currently used in clinic.
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Images from our work calibrating the new Oticon cochlear implant processors that will be used to evaluate the performance of our virtual acoustics system
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The virtual acoustics team
Dr Mark Fletcher
Principal investigator |
Eric Hamdan
VA system creator |
Professor Carl Verschuur
Clinical specialst |
Sam Perry
Specialist technician |
Dr Bradford Backus
Oticon Medical UK |
Prof. Nicci Campbell
Advanced audiological testing |
Dr Filippo Fazi
Virtual acoustics specialist |
