Description
ABSTRACT
This seminar work is on a hearing aid which is described as a device designed to improve hearing. Hearing aids are classified as medical devices in most countries, and regulated by the respective regulations. Hearing aids are the best option for correcting hearing loss and resuming a high quality of life. Hearing aids contain at least one microphone to pick up sound, a computer chip that amplifies and processes sound, a speaker that sends the signal to your ear and a battery for power. Hearing aids are incapable of truly correcting a hearing loss; they are an aid to make sounds more accessible.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
COVER PAGE
TITLE PAGE
APPROVAL PAGE
DEDICATION
ACKNOWELDGEMENT
ABSTRACT
CHAPTER ONE
- INTRODUCTION
- BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
- PROBLEM STATEMENT
- OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
- ADVANTAGES OF THE STUDY
- SCOPE OF THE PROJECT
- BENEFIT OF USING HEARING AID
- PROBLEM OF USING HEARING AID
- APPLICATION OF THE STUDY
- RESEARCH QUESTION
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
- OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY
- USES OF THE STUDY
- REVIEW OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF HEARING AID
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
- BASICS OF THE SYSTEM
- SYSTEM BLOCK DIAGRAM
- POWER SUPPLY UNIT
- DESIGN ANALYSIS OF INPUT TRANSDUCER
- PRE-AMPLIFIER DESIGN
- MEDIUM POWER AMPLIFIER STAGE
- RC DECOUPLING UNIT
- OUTPUT UNIT
- MATERIALS USED AND CONSTRUCTION
- CONCLUSION
- RECOMMENDATION
- REFERENCES
CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Hearing aid is described as small, wearable electronic devices which enable a person to hear sounds better and understand speech more clearly, providing an overall improvement in communication ability. The basic components of a hearing aid are a microphone, signal conditioning, a receiver also known as a speaker, and a battery. The microphone converts the sound into an electric signal. The signal then undergoes conditioning that can be as simple as amplifying all of the sound equally, to more advanced equalization involving a digital signal processor. The receiver converts the electronic signal back to sound, and the battery powers the electronics according to Schum, D.J. (2004).
There are four main styles of hearing aids on the market today. From largest to smallest, they are behind the ear (BTE), in the ear (ITE), in the canal (ITC), and completely in the canal (CIC). The BTE style sits behind the ear with a clear tube going to an earmold in the ear to deliver the sound. A variation on this style is called an open-fit-behind-the-ear (OTE) where the earmold is replaced by a small tip, resulting in a more open feeling. Other variations include replacing the tube with wires and moving the receiver from the behind the ear to inside the ear. This style fills up most of the outer ear and appears as a solid mass. The ITC style moves some of the hearing aid into the ear canal and reduces the space taken up in the outer ear, but is still plainly visible. The CIC style is the smallest of them all, as it fits completely inside the ear canal, thus nearly disappearing from view.
There are many features available for today’s hearing aids, including volume control, remote control, tele-coil, direct audio input, FM reception, Bluetooth capabilities, directional microphone, compression, clipping, frequency shifting, wind-noise management, data logging, self-learning, moisture resistance, and earmold venting. Some of these features require external area to implement and become more difficult to include as the size of hearing aids shrinks, while other features can be implemented in all hearing aids.
Volume control is performed manually with buttons or a rotary dial on the hearing aid. A remote control eliminates the need for buttons and dials on the hearing aid and can be used to control all the features of the hearing aid. A telecoil is an alternate input other than the microphone, and it originally picked up the magnetic signal generated by older telephones with speakers driven by magnetic coils so that listeners could hear better when talking on the telephone. Today’s telephones and other alternate listening devices build-in this capability in order to work with a telecoil and specifically indicate that they are hearing aid compatible. Direct audio input and FM reception are other ways to input sound or speech into the hearing aid, the first using a wired connector as an input, and the other an FM radio receiver (Schum, D.J. 2004).
1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT
Hearing loss is among the top three major health conditions in older adults and has been identified as a major modifiable risk factor for dementia. It is therefore imperative that older adults receive effective treatment for hearing loss in a timely manner to prevent losses in social, emotional, and cognitive function. Hearing loss is a critical health concern in the rapidly aging population. This device was invented to solve hearing loss problem seen in people most especially aged people. This device makes some sounds louder so that a person with hearing loss can listen, communicate, and participate more fully in daily activities. A hearing aid can help people hear more in both quiet and noisy situations.
1.3 AIM AND OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT
This seminar aim is to improve the benefit of hearing aids for older adults. The objectives of this work are:
- To study the benefit, application and operation of hearing aid
- To make speech or audio signal more audible
- To make speech more intelligible and to correct impaired hearing as measured by audiometry.
1.4 ADVANTAGES OF HEARING AID
The main purpose of hearing aids is to make you hear better. Hearing aids make you hear better in almost all situations: at home, when going out, when traveling or commuting in public transport, at family gatherings and other social event, at the workplace and in many other situations.
Hearing aids also help you hear what is being said on the TV or in the radio much better and you can enjoy music more than if you did not use hearing aids.
1.5 SCOPE OF THE PROJECT
Hearing aids work by amplifying sound through a four-part system:
- The microphone receives sound and converts it into a digital signal.
- The amplifier increases the strength of the digital signal.
- The speaker produces the amplified sound into the ear.
- Power supply: nickel battery is used as the power supply.
1.6 BENEFIT OF USING HEARING AID
Quality of life and health: The vast majority of hearing aid users declare that their hearing aids have improved their quality of life. Several studies have also found that both physical and mental health are better among people with hearing loss who use hearing aids than among those who do not use hearing aids. Physical and mental stress is lower and hearing aid users experience better sleep than non-users. Scientific studies have found that the use of hearing aids reduces cognitive decline and the risk of developing dementia. Wearing hearing aids helps protect your brain. Untreated hearing loss increases the risk and the degree of distress, depression, somatisation and loneliness and becoming dependent on others.
Social life and work life: In surveys, hearing aid users state that the use of hearing aids gives a better social life with improved family relations and personal relationships. Hearing aid users also state that hearing aids are helpful on the job. Furthermore, the use of hearing aids also has a positive impact on employment and earnings. People who use hearing aids are less unemployed and earn more than hard of hearing people who do not use hearing aids.
1.7 PROBLEM OF USING HEARING AID
Some hearing aid comes with non-replaceable battery which can only be dispose when the battery dies, this means that hearing aid with non-replaceable battery can be costly than the one that has replaceable battery because if the battery dies one have to dispose it. Hearing aid can be noisy when the battery gets low.
- APPLICATION OF THE STUDY
These hearing aids are build for medical practitioners with hearing loss who use stethoscopes. The hearing aid is built into the speaker of the stethoscope, which amplifies the sound. Hearing aid can also be used by aged people or people suffering from problem to improve their hearing.
1.9 RESEARCH QUESTION
- What is an objective hearing test?
- What is the purpose of audiology?
- Why you should get a hearing aid?
- What are the 4 parts of a hearing aid?
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