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Earwax removal at Chalfont hearing centre Buckinghamshire
Earwax removal at Chalfont hearing centre Buckinghamshire
Earwax removal at The Chalfont hearing centre. Chalfont hearing centre is a premier private family run business with Leon Cox at the helm. Hearing tests and hearing aids are to be found at Chalfont hearing centre alongside ear wax removal using Micro-suction or the traditional water irrigation technique (ear syringing).
The very latest digital hearing aids by all the main manufacturers are available. Trail hearing aids are also available but please as Leon for a more comprehensive idea how this works in the Chalfont area.
Book now for your ear wax removal or for a hearing test.
Chalfont hearing centre, News:
GN Hearing Launches AI Personalized Hearing Solutions
GN Hearing announced that it has launched “the world’s first” hearing solutions that intuitively adapt to a hearing aid user’s personal preferences in any given sound environment. This breakthrough technology employs GN’s artificial intelligence (AI) solution in tandem with Apple’s Siri virtual assistant. The announcement was made at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2019 in Las Vegas.
It follows GN’s longstanding commitment to progressing hearing aid technologies through extensive research and development programs. This new offering follows years of investment in GN’s dedicated in-house AI research center, investments in AudEERING, and extensive collaboration with other partners and academic research institutes. The launch helps to extend GN’s innovation footprint and partnership philosophy in the hearing care industry by what GN calls an “intuitive and personalized hearing solution.”
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“At GN, we believe that technology is at its best when it helps address people’s everyday needs and challenges,” said Marcus Desimoni, CFO of GN and Interim CEO of GN Hearing. “Employing AI technology in GN’s products brings this specific technology and innovation to the hearing aid space and is the first step in the journey to create a seamless hearing experience that will allow hearing aid users to ‘forget’ that they are wearing one. This is core to GN’s purpose of making life sound better.”
The new offering is an added benefit to the company’s latest 2.4 GHz product portfolio from ReSound and Beltone, and it will be reaching users in February 2019. Through the use of AI, GN expects to deliver a continuous stream of new user benefits through future software releases. This will enable users to always be at the forefront of innovation by updating existing GN Hearing instruments with new features.
Hearing tests Chalfont
When GN was established 150 years ago, the company introduced the world’s first telegraph line from Europe to Asia, creating the Internet of its time. It is this same pioneering spirit that is being applied today to transform lives, helping people hear more, do more, and be more than they ever thought possible.
Source: GN Hearing
Hearing tests Chalfont, Bucks
Hearing tests Chalfont, Bucks
Hearing tests in Bucks are available at the Chalfont Hearing Centre. Covering the the whole of Buckinghamshire and offers the very latest in hearing tests and other hearing related services such as ear wax removal using Microsuction and the traditional water irrigation technique (sometimes referred as ear syringing).
Chalfont hearing centre ear wax removal
The latest digital hearing aids would be offered after a comprehensive hearing test. These can be discussed after the test depending what your hearing loss (if any) are needed. Small in the ear digital hearing aids to the more powerful over the ear hearing aids are all available.
Chalfont hearing News:
Eargo hearing aids. Chalfont hearing centre, ear wax removal, digital hearing aids and hearing tests.
Hearing aids have been getting a lot better over the years thanks to the tiny electronic hardware that can be packed inside and smart algorithms that produce great sound.
Henley hearing tests
Eargois a company that’s trying to introduce new features to hearing aids to make them more comfortable, easier to use, and cheaper to afford, an important issue in this field.
Henley hearing aids
The new Eargo Neo hearing aids are almost invisible when inside the ears. They have tiny “Flexi Palms” soft tips that keep the hearing aids inside the ear comfortably while optimizing the sound quality. They have a 16 hour battery life per charge, but a recharge case can be used to refresh the Neos on the go. Something useful when taking a plane ride.
Hearing centres Bucks
Hearing centres in Bucks
Hearing centres in Bucks including the Chalfont hearing centre that cover the Amersham to the North west and Rickmansworth to the East. If you are looking for a family owned and totally independent hearing centre then look no further than the Chalfont hearing centre.
Leon Cox is a highly regarded audiologist and is the lead at Chalfont. Also owns and run the Henley hearing Clinic at Henley. Reception and will gladly make you feel welcome and make sure that your are up to date with appointments and info. If you are in need of hearing aid adjustments or ear wax removal, all can be done from the Chalfont hearing centre.
Chalfont hearing news:
BIHIMA Releases Q3 Results on UK Hearing Aid Sales
The British and Irish Hearing Instrument Manufacturers Association (BIHIMA) announced its release of the Q3 results of its members, providing a picture of current trends and developments within the UK and Irish hearing care markets.
According to BIHIMA’s announcement, the “most significant” development is the continued growth in the number of units distributed through the private market in the UK: the number of unit sales increased by 2,756 units (3.5%) from the previous year and by 2,638 (3.3%) from Q2 2018. YTD (year-to-date) unit sales were also up 3.8% from 2017.
Meanwhile, the BIHIMA reports that the NHS side of the market slowed down in the same period: unit sales were flat compared to Q3 2017 and decreased by 7445 (2.2%) from Q2 2018. YTD units were down 1.6% from 2017.
BIHIMA also tracks the trends in the types of technology being selected by patients in the private sector. In the private sector, the RITE/RIC (receiver-in-the-ear technology) continues to grow in popularity and now represents 69.4% of all sales, up 1.7% from Q3 2017.
“We are seeing solid growth in the private hearing care sector which is in line with expectations based on our aging population and also points to evolving public awareness of the hearing technology produced by our manufacturers which can have transformative results,” said the BIHIMA chairman, Paul Surridge.
In its role as the voice for the hearing technology industry, BIHIMA regularly monitors the market and releases the results of its members every quarter.
To keep up to date with the latest market information, download the results here: https://www.bihima.com/resources/statistics/.
Source: BIHIMA
Best ear wax removal Bucks
Best ear wax removal Bucks
The Chalfont hearing centre is an independent hearing company based at Little Chalfont Bucks. Family owned and run by Leon Cox, Chalfont hearing centre offer the very latest in digital hearing aids, hearing accessories and ear wax removal using Micro-Suction. With the sister site in Henley-Upon-Thames we cover the whole of Buckinghamshire. You are never far from the premier hearing company of Buckinghamshire.
Chalfont Hearing Centre News:
Starkey Releases World’s First Hearing Aid with Fall Detection and Alerts to Livio AI Users
Starkey Hearing Technologies, Eden Prairie, Minn, has released its new Fall Detection and Alert feature in Livio AI hearing aids to a limited number of hearing professionals, and plans to offer the feature to all dispensing professionals and their clients in late February, according to CTO Achin Bhowmik, PhD, in an interview with Hearing Review on Tuesday, December 18. Using integrated sensors, the Fall Detection and Alert feature is designed to automatically detect falls and send messages to as many as three contacts.
Fall detection sensors are currently implemented in all Livio AI devices as part of its standard hardware platform, and Starkey has been working on the Fall Alert feature to maximize its utility for end users prior to the system’s widespread implementation.
Falls are a massive public health problem, particularly for older adults. It’s estimated that injuries due to falls will account for $67.7 billion in public health spending by 2020, and according to the National Council on the Aging (NCOA) falls are currently responsible for an older adult being admitted to a US emergency room every 11 seconds. Additionally, people with hearing loss are particularly susceptible to falls. A Johns Hopkins study suggests that having hearing loss triples the risk of falls for people age 40 and older—and the findings hold up regardless of whether their hearing loss is moderate or severe.
How Starkey Fall Detection and Alerts work. Starkey’s new Fall Detection system is said to have several benefits over existing stand-alone medical alert systems, which are typically attached to a lanyard around the neck. “The first key advantage is that a hearing aid is almost always in your ear during your active hours, making for one less thing to carry or remember. One of the major problems with medical alert systems is getting people to wear them,” says Bhowmik. “Second, we have two fall detection sensors [in binaural fittings] for the right side and the left side, whereas most fall detection systems have only one. And the way the two sensors are spaced apart and the way in which you hold your head, we can get better and more accurate results than neck-worn sensors designed to detect falls.”
Starkey CTO Achin Bhowmik spoke about the possibility of fall detection and other sensor-based capabilities at the 2018 Starkey Expo held in January.
If you are in Somerset
According to Bhowmik, part of Starkey’s recent research has revolved around what constitutes an actual fall as opposed false-positives such as quick downward movements or even accidentally dropping the hearing aid. “If you take the hearing aid off your ear and drop it on the ground, you will not get a false-positive for falling with Livio AI,” says Bhowmik. “We have been working on [eliminating false-positives] for over a year. A good AI system is only as good as the data you train the system with. In this particular case, if the left hearing aid detects a fall, it immediately checks with the right hearing aid to see if the data matches what would indicate a fall for the system. Unless it detects a fall from the hearing aids in tandem for both the right and left sides of the head, the device will eliminate those non-fall events and false-positives.”
Chalfont Hearing Centre
Starkey Livio AI hearing aid.
The hearing care professional will be able to activate Fall Detection and Alerts through an easy-to-use interface within the fitting software for Starkey’s Livio AI hearing aids. The user can then enter the Auto Alert contacts—up to three people who are to be alerted in the event of a fall within the Thrive Hearing App. When a fall is detected by the system, an audio prompt asks the user if they have fallen. He or she then has 60 seconds to provide an Event Cancellation and stop the outgoing Fall Alert messages from being sent to their designated contacts. If the hearing aid user has fallen and elects to send the Fall Alert message to his/her contacts, they receive confirmation when each contact has been successfully reached.
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The system also allows for a Manual Alert which can be activated by simply pressing the hearing aid button, sending an alert for a fall or non-fall related event. “Maybe you didn’t fall, but instead just felt dizzy or were otherwise forced to sit down on the floor,” explains Bhowmik. “Obviously, this is not a fall. But you can still use the Manual Alert to get help when you need it. By tapping a button, you can send an automatic alert to your contacts, telling them you need assistance.”
This is just another step in the direction of making the hearing aid a multi-purpose, multi-functional device, according to Starkey.
To learn more about Starkey’s Livio AI you can visit: https://www.starkey.com/hearing-aids/technologies/livio-artificial-intelligence-hearing-aids
Beaconsfield hearing aids
Beaconsfield hearing aids
The Chalfont hearing aid centre covers the whole of Buck including Beaconsfield and Amersham. Suppliers of high end digital hearing aids including hearing accessories, hearing aid batteries and ear wax removal. Leon Cox the lead audiologist at The Chalfont hearing centre is a highly experienced expert on hearing and hearing tests. Please book an appointment if you need Micro-suction ear wax removal.
Chalfont Hearing Centre News:
Original story by: The Hearing Review
Researchers Identify Gene Associated with Age-related Hearing Loss
An international group of researchers, led by Ronna Hertzano, MD, PhD, associate professor, Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM), and Michael Bowl, PhD, program leader track scientist, Mammalian Genetics Unit, MRC Harwell Institute, UK, have identified the gene that acts as a key regulator for special cells needed in hearing.
Ronna Hertzano, MD, PhD
The discovery of this gene (Ikzf2) will help researchers better understand this unique type of cell that is needed for hearing and potentially develop treatments for common age-related hearing loss, UMSOM announced.
Bucks hearing aids
“Outer hair cells are the first inner ear cells lost as we age,” said Hertzano, whose research will be published in the journal Nature. “Age-related hearing loss happens to everyone. Even a 30-year-old has lost some of the outer hair cells that sense higher pitch sounds. Simple exposure to sound, especially loud ones, eventually causes damage to these cells.”
The inner ear has two kinds of sensory hair cells required for hearing. The inner hair cells convert sounds to neural signals that travel to the brain. This compares to outer hair cells, which function by amplifying and tuning sounds. Without outer hair cells, sound is severely muted and inner hair cells don’t signal the brain. Loss of outer hair cells is said to be the major cause of age-related loss of hearing.
About the Research
Hertzano’s group, in collaboration with Ran Elkon, PhD, senior lecturer, Department of Human Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, Sackler Faculty of Medicine in Tel Aviv, Israel, took a bioinformatics and functional genomics approach to discover a gene critical for the regulation of genes involved in outer hair cell development. Bowl’s group studied mice from the Harwell Aging Screen to identify mice with hearing loss. Bowl identified mice with an early-onset hearing loss caused by an outer hair cell deficit. When the two groups realized that they were studying the same gene, they began to collaborate to discover its biological function and role in outer hair cell development. The gene is Ikzf2 gene, which encodes helios. Helios is a transcription factor, a protein that controls the expression of other genes. The mutation in the mice changes one amino acid in a critical part of the protein, which impaired the transcriptional regulatory activity of helios in the mice.
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To test if helios could drive the differentiation of outer hair cells, the researchers introduced a virus engineered to overexpress helios into the inner ear hair cells of newborn mice. As a result, some of the mature inner hair cells became more like outer hair cells. In particular, the inner hair cells with an excess of helios started making the protein prestin and exhibited electromotility, a property limited to outer hair cells. Thus, helios can drive inner hair cells to adopt critical outer hair cell characteristics.
Funding for the research was provided by Action on Hearing Loss UK, the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) at the National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Defense (DOD).
As Professor Steve Brown, PhD, director, MRC Harwell Institute, said, “The development of therapies for age-related hearing loss represents one of the big challenges facing medicine and biomedical science. Understanding the genetic programs that are responsible for the development and maturation of sound-transducing hair cells within the inner ear will be critical to exploring avenues for the regeneration of these cells that are lost in abundance during age-related hearing loss. The teams from the University of Maryland and the MRC Harwell Research Institute have given us the first insights into that program. They have identified a master regulator, Ikzf2/helios, that controls the program for maturation of outer hair cells. Now, we have a target that we can potentially use to induce the production of outer hair cells within damaged inner ears, and we are one step closer to offering treatments for this disabling condition.”
Original Paper: Chessum L, Matern MS, Kelly MC, et al. Helios is a key transcriptional regulator of outer hair cell maturation. Nature. November 21, 2018.
Source: University of Maryland School of Medicine, Nature
Image: University of Maryland School of Medicine
Hearing solutions for Buckinghamshire
Hearing solutions for Buckinghamshire
Hearing solutions, Bucks, Hearing aids and earwax
Hearing solutions, Bucks, Hearing aids and earwax available at the Chalfont hearing centre near Beaconsfield and Amersham. The Chalfont hearing centre is conveniently situated between Watford and High Wycombe but covers the whole of Bucks. They also cover South Bucks and North Buckinghamshire. If you are suffering with blocked ears or think you may have ear wax issues please make an appointment with our receptionist to see Mr Leon Cox the lead audiologist. If you are in need of a comprehensive hearing test, theChalfont hearing centre can help there too. Dispensing thousands of hearing ads through their time in Bucks, Leon Cox knows a thing or two about hearing aids. The very latest digital hearing aids are available.
Chalfont hearing news:
Cochlear and GN Expand Smart Hearing Alliance Collaboration
Cochlear Limited (ASX: COH), a maker of implantable hearing solutions, and GN (GN.CO), a manufacturer of intelligent audio solutions, signed a new agreement to “significantly expand” their Smart Hearing Alliance collaboration, GN announced on its website.
The Smart Hearing Alliance was established in 2015 to develop the most integrated, best-in-class hearing solutions—giving hearing aid and cochlear implant recipients access to the latest in connectivity and wireless technology, and helping bimodal recipients to achieve seamless connectivity between a cochlear implant in one ear, and a GN hearing aid in the other. The deepening of this relationship includes joint research and development, shared technology, and strengthened global Smart Hearing Alliance commercial collaboration between Cochlear and GN Hearing, the hearing aid division of the GN Group.
Bucks hearing tests
Cochlear and GN Hearing are now strengthening focus on their integrated product offering and expanding their presence in the clinical hearing aid and implantable hearing solutions markets globally. According to the announcement, the vision for this new collaboration will include a focus on fast-moving connectivity and wireless technology to allow for closer integration between Cochlear and GN Hearing technologies. The two companies will leverage research and development investment to jointly develop firmware and software technologies.
In addition to technology sharing, the two companies will strengthen the commercial collaboration and work together to enable clinicians to deliver a more seamless solution and best-in-class hearing experience to their patients.
GN Hearing CFO Marcus Desimoni and Cochlear CEO and President Dig Howitt welcomed the signing of the expanded agreement.
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Desimoni said: “This strengthened alliance is an important step forward for the millions of people around the world with disabling hearing loss—making the most advanced technology more accessible and simplifying the experience with more integrated solutions. GN Hearing is committed to advancing what is possible for people with hearing loss. This strategic partnership is a very smart and cost-effective way to expand the R&D capacity of both companies to reach our goals.”
Howitt said: “At Cochlear, we’re driven to develop hearing solutions that empower people to connect with others and live a full life. By expanding our collaboration with GN Hearing, we’re able to bring the latest in connectivity and wireless technology to our implant recipients more quickly. We’re also able to give bimodal recipients—those using a cochlear implant in one ear, and a hearing aid in the other—unparalleled performance and a seamless experience with both devices. As two leaders in our areas of hearing health, this collaboration demonstrates our commitment to design and bring to market the best hearing solutions available.”
Hearing aids Buckinghamshire
This collaboration aims to improve the hearing outcomes for more people with moderate to profound hearing loss. In developing more integrated bimodal hearing solutions, Cochlear and GN Hearing have focused on helping to achieve greater connectivity for people—not only between the two companies’ devices, but also with Apple and Android technology. Most recently, Cochlear and GN Hearing collaborated to bring to market the what is said to be the “first Made for iPhone” Smart Bimodal Solution, enabling recipients to synchronize streaming to both ears from a compatible iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. The Nucleus® 7 Bimodal Solutionis delivered by using a Cochlear Nucleus 7 Sound Processor in one ear, a compatible ReSound hearing aid in the other ear, and a paired iPhone or iPod touch to control functionality for both hearing devices.
The Smart Hearing Alliance delivers bimodal solutions connecting Cochlear Nucleus cochlear implants, Cochlear Baha bone conduction implants, wireless accessories, and ReSound hearing aids.
Source: GN, Cochlear Ltd
Image: GN, Cochlear Ltd
New type of hearing aid for Buckinghamshire
New type of hearing aid for Buckinghamshire
We are always on the look out for new hearing tech at the Chalfont hearing centre. Today we are posting a review on the newly available Sivantos hearing aids that buck the trend of how hearing aids should look like.
Chalfont hearing news:
Sivantos Launches New Form Factor with Signia Styletto SLIM RIC
Signia Styletto
Why should a hearing aid looklike a hearing aid? That’s the question Sivantos engineers asked themselves when designing the new Signia Styletto receiver-in-the-canal (RIC) hearing aid which is being launched today. Styletto is a rechargeable SLIM RIC that features a contemporary design and breaks the mold of traditional behind-the-ear (BTE) hearing aids by taking advantage of how its lithium-ion battery technology doesn’t need to conform to the traditional size and shape of a button cell. The new RIC, which uses the Signia Nx platform with Own Voice Processing (OVP), also comes with an extremely small charger which offers fast charging solutions as well as three full charges on the go.
Bucks hearing tests
“There are people who look at a hearing aid and really don’t see it matching their style,” says Eric Branda, AuD, director of product management at Sivantos Inc, Piscataway, NJ. “We see all these people wearing large Bluetooth headsets flashing on their ears—huge devices on their ears—and yet [the hearing industry has] struggled to get them to adopt hearing aids, and I think it really comes down to the fact that we keep asking them to wear what looks like a hearing aid.”
Styletto uses a slim-pin design instead of the current coin or button-cell design.
Stylistic freedom by thinking outside the button cell. In terms of the history of hearing aids, Branda points out that, going all the back to the original body-worn devices and moving into today’s CIC and RIC devices, hearing aid sizes and styles have been dictated by the size and shape of button cell batteries. Although lithium-ion rechargeable batteries have also been built in this coin design, they’re not restricted to it—as demonstrated by the new Styletto SLIM RIC. Instead, it departs from the traditional coin cell look by using a slim pin design to create a new form factor.
“With today’s battery technology, we can take a new approach,” says Branda. “Rather than being discreet by being invisible, we can be discreet and drive acceptance withvisibility, which is a novel approach for people with hearing loss.”
Differentiating a hearing aid practice by appealing to different wearers. With its slim, elegant design that harkens to other high-tech product categories, Styletto provides a new option for those who might be put off by the traditional look of a hearing aid. In a US study of 500 mostly new users (92%) with moderate hearing loss, Sivantos found that when participants were given a choice between traditional BTE (Motion) or RIC (Pure) designs, or given the option of no hearing aid at all, more than half (57%) opted for the RIC, 19% selected the BTE, while almost one-quarter (24%) chose to go without a hearing aid. However, when the new Styletto was inserted into the study as an option, 90% of the participants selected a hearing aid: 65% of the study participants selected the SLIM RIC design, while about equal percentages opted for either the BTE and RIC (13% and 12% respectively), and only 10% chose no hearing aid at all.
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Similarly, when consumers looked at a simulated practice storefront window with a standard portfolio, only about 16% of the participants chose an offering without Styletto, while 84% of people chose an offering with the new aid.
Branda says that this indicates Styletto provides dispensing professionals with a new product that aligns more closely with patients’ style and view of themselves. “It may come down to the fact that people know what a hearing aid looks like,” he says. “But, when they see Styletto, they think ‘I can see myself wearing that and it doesn’t make me look like a hearing aid wearer.’”
Recharging case for Styletto.
Portable rechargeability for the wearer. The Styletto’s recharging case is very small, and reportedly offers 19 hours of full-day use with a 3-hour charge. If the wearer forgets to charge the device, they can drop it into the charger for 30 minutes and be able to use the device for 5 hours, says the company. The charger also carries three additional full charges. Thus, if the user starts out in the morning with a full charge and the charger is fully charged, they actually have four days of portable battery capacity available to them, according to Sivantos. The charger also contains an LED indicator to view the status of the charging, as well as an automatic on/off feature which means that the charger can serve as the primary carrying case.
The Styletto recharging/carrying case is exceptionally small and carries 3 full charges.
Nx technology. The Styletto hearing aid uses Signia Nxsignal processing which is designed to emphasize a natural experience using Sivantos’ Own Voice Processing (OVP) technology. Signia’s ear-to-ear wireless (Ultra HD e2e®) is used in OVP as well as the hearing aid’s Narrow Directionality for a more natural sound quality and better speech intelligibility in noise. The wireless technology also enables the device’s Twin Phone capabilities, which allows the wearer to place the phone up to the ear, obtain the acoustic signal, and then the hearing aid wirelessly sends the signal to the opposite ear for binaural advantage during the phone call.
The sleek instrument does not have push-buttons or a volume control. For those who want more control, the touchControl®App is a downloadable cell phone application that allows for the changing of volume, programs, and directionality. Similarly, miniPocket™, which resembles a keychain type remote control, allows for volume and program changes.
Styletto is available in all three of the Nx performance levels (7/5/3) and uses a Size M (60/119) receiver in lengths 2 and 3. The device is applicable for people with mild to moderately severe losses (60 dB gain).
For more information, visit pro.signiausa.com
Buckinghamshire hearing aids
Hearing aids at the Chalfont Hearing Centre covering Bucks and beyond
The Chalfont hearing centre are a truly independent small hearing company based in Little Chalfont. Leon Cox is a fully qualified audiologist and a member of the professional body of hearing experts. Fully comprehensive hearing test, ear wax removal using Micro-Suction and the traditional ear wax removal using water irrigation. For a full hearing test please call to book an appointment.
Hearing test
Our comprehensive hearing tests are conducted with the latest hearing and digital audiology equipment. Please go here to watch our hearing test video and other hearing related videos. If you feel you need a hearing test them please call Sam on reception to book an appointment.
Digital hearing aids
We pride ourselves on dispensing the very latest digital hearing aids supplied by the leading hearing aid manufacturers. The digital hearing aids of today are more advanced than you could imagine. They connect wirelessly with your mobile phone, iPad, and T.V. just ask Leon Cox our lead audiologist to advice you on hearing aid connectivity.
Chalfont hearing News:
Widex Announces New Insights into EVOKE Hearing Aid’s AI Function
Widex announced the first data gathered from the WIDEX EVOKE™ hearing aid, which is said to achieve “a new level of Artificial Intelligence (AI)” through machine learning, and is helping to bring new insights into how users are taking control of their sound environment to improve their hearing experience, according to the company.
Denmark-based Widex launched the WIDEX EVOKE hearing aid in April. The hearing aid is reportedly the first to give users the ability to employ real-time machine learning that can solve the tricky hearing problems that users face in their daily lives.
“We launched WIDEX EVOKE with SoundSense technology to put users back in control of the most difficult hearing situations,” said Jens Brehm Nielsen, data science & machine learning architect at Widex. “And we can see that EVOKE users have taken the opportunity to do that and, in the process, are helping us understand more about them. That information will help us to make the EVOKE and future hearing aids even better.”
Hearing aids in Bucks
SoundSense Learn is an AI system, because AI is said to refer to systems that solve tasks humans are inherently good at—such as driving a car, doing the dishes, etc. SoundSense Learn expands into entirely new applications by helping end users adjust their hearing aids in the moment, reportedly something that no humans can replicate to the same degree of accuracy, according to Widex.
The SoundSense Learn smartphone app is connected to the EVOKE hearing aids and uses machine learning to guide users in optimizing the settings to their exact needs. The app gathers a variety of anonymous data such as how often they turn the volume up or down, which sound presets they use, and how many custom settings they create—including those made with SoundSense Learn.
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Tagging of custom settings has proved to be one of the interesting pieces of data generated by EVOKE.
“We found that many people have created a setting and tagged it with, for instance, ‘work’ which suggests that it is something that our end users need and want,” said Nielsen. “And from SoundSense Learn we already have an idea of how they like the settings.”
Some hearing aids give users the ability to customize their sound experience by adjusting frequency bands to boost or cut bass, middle or high tones. Adjusting frequencies works well in many situations once the initial settings have been set by a skilled audiologist. However, some situations are so complex that hitting the right combination of adjustments can be difficult.
“Widex hearing aids are well known for the quality of their sound,” said Nielsen. “But SoundSense Learn has added an extra layer of quality sound on top of that by using a machine learning algorithm together with reinforcement learning—the two key ingredients in state-of-the art AI algorithm, that enables the algorithm to learn in the moment.
“The algorithm learns an optimal setting every time a user finds the sound to be a little below expectations in a given sound environment. It learns these settings by simply asking the user to compare two settings that are carefully picked by the algorithm. This allows it to learn an optimal setting in a new environment very fast.”
By collating and analyzing the anonymous data WIDEX EVOKE will continue to become even smarter as time passes.
Source: Widex
Image: Widex
Best hearing test in Bucks
Hearing loss can be over come with todays new digital hearing aids. Chalfont hearing centre, Bucks
Hearing aids and ear wax at the Chalfont hearing centre
Ear wax can be a debilitating condition if not treated. Your hearing will suffer and you maybe become less involved in your surroundings. Not being able to hear properly really can be a pain in the ear in more ways than one. At the Chalfont hearing centre we can asses your ears, if there is ear wax to be removed then we can do this painlessly and very quickly using Micro-Suction. You don’t feel anything at all and it can be done very very quickly by Leon Cox the lead audiologist at the Chalfont hearing centre.
Ear wax removal
Book an appointment and we can soon sort out any hearing issues or ear wax issues. Todays hearing aids/instruments really are breathtaking on how they have evolved in the last 5 years. These digital hearing aids are something else when it comes to connectivity. They will connect to your iPhone, Android phone and wearable digital watches. Ask us to give you more information.
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Chalfont hearing centre News:
Phonak Launches Marvel with Universal Binaural Streaming and New Level of Sound Quality
PARC Research Audiologist Lori Rakita, AuD, explains how the AutoSense OS 3.0 technology classifies streamed media in real-time for optimized listening.
New levels of binaural sound quality and universality. One key feature that immediately jumps out in Audéo M is its sound quality. For real audiophiles and others accustomed to hi-fi systems, the sound quality in today’s hearing aids is very good, but can still prompt them to ask why the devices can’t sound like stereo headphones. Of course, the problem—which has been around even before made-for-iPhone (MFi) systems became available—stems primarily from the venting of the aid for real-life environmental speech and sounds. This provides the important natural sound benefits associated with open-fit aids, but has required a trade-off in streamed sound quality. With the Audéo M, Phonak has reinserted a clear richer sound into streamed music, TV, or other devices via hearing aids—and demonstrated fairly dramatic differences in a paired comparison test. The system features AutoSense OS 3.0 which reportedly classifies streamed media for optimized listening.
Phonak staff members Barb VanSomeren; Lori Rakita, AuD; Kailen Berry, AuD; Jan Metzdorff, Abby Poyser, AuD; Christine Jones, AuD, Nicole Klutz, AuD, and John Urbaniak at Phonak US headquarters near Chicago.
“We have the first classifier that also operates on the streamed signal,” said Christine Jones, AuD, Phonak US vice-president of Audiology and director of the Phonak Audiology Research Center (PARC) in Warrenville during a presentation at the media event. “Some of the early work we did highlighted that there was an opportunity with streaming—as with the unique listening environments that can also be encountered by patients—where someone’s preferences may be very different than when listening to streamed speech, or dialog in media, movies, etc. Listening goals can be different, and sound quality preferences can be different. So, now we are not only classifying the environmental sounds, but we can also classify those streamed sounds to deliver the best possible experience under all listening conditions.”
Although the advanced design of the previous Audéo B-Direct model is award-winning, it does not feature binaural streaming. With the new Audéo M, wearers can now binaurally stream audio content, including smartphone calls, music, eBooks, and more, to both ears from any Bluetooth device.
Phonak points out that iPhones account for only 13% of smartphone use worldwide compared to 86% for the Android OS, and wearers’ choices have been limited primarily to hearing aids that utilize the MFi protocol. Additionally, even with IOS-compatible devices, some forms of MFi hearing aid streaming (eg, streaming from MacBooks and iMacs) were unavailable until now. SWORD 3.0 is capable of running Bluetooth Classic, Bluetooth LE, AirStream Technology (for TV), and Binaural VoiceStream Technology for high-speed data transmission between the two hearing aids in a binaural fitting. The new system even works with Siri and LiveListen. (Phonak’s proprietary Roger 2.4 GHz signal will also have direct streaming capabilities to the hearing aid next fall.)
“This means we now have universal binaural wireless connectivity,” said Dr Jones. “In order to have the best access to speech on the phone, it’s best to hear well with both ears. And, beyond that, we are the only product that now connects to not just Apple and Android, but any Bluetooth device. This opens up a new world of connectivity for people because of its universal nature…What this means is, that in those cases where something is not accessible through the Apple iPhone or device, it should be accessible through the hearing aid.”
Jones explained that Phonak has also created a sophisticated system called “Environmental Balance” that controls how users hear the streaming in addition to how they hear the surrounding environment, both of which can still be adjusted via the basic volume control. All of this has the potential to open up even more of the popular streaming applications.
Audéo Marvel wearers also benefit from hands-free Smartphone operation. Previously, hearing aid wearers using the MFi (and future ASHA) protocol needed to hold the smartphone up to their mouths and talk into the phone’s microphone to converse. The new hearing aids feature microphone inlets built directly into the housing, allowing wearers to have phone conversations by literally talking through their hearing aids.
Better processing and noise reduction, reducing cognitive load.Additionally, the enhanced SWORD OS incorporates Binaural VoiceStream Technology™ into Marvel hearing aids, a technology most recently employedin Advanced Bionics’ Naida CI sound processor. This four-microphone technology is reportedly capable of improving speech understanding by up to 60% in noisy places like restaurants, while simultaneously reducing the amount of effort by 19% required to listen and understand.1,2
“Audiology is at the heart of everything we do at Phonak,” said Sonova Group VP Martin Grieder in a press statement. “That’s why Marvel is such a game-changer for our industry. Marvel technology empowers people and provides a true ‘love at first sound’ experience. We believe the sound quality is second to none, and it begins the moment the person puts the hearing aids on.”
Phonak Audéo Marvel mini-charger.
Lithium-ion rechargeable technology for “a full day of streaming.” While no reliable statistics exist on the market penetration of rechargeable hearing aids, most experts estimate that about 17-20% of all hearing aids now feature rechargeability. Phonak has been a pioneer in rechargeable hearing aid technology, creating in 2016 the first lithium-ion hearing aids—a technology that appears to be gaining ground with hearing aid manufacturers.
According to Phonak, Marvel hearing aid wearers can enjoy a full day of hearing aid use—including streaming— on a single charge. The Audéo M rechargeable hearing aid also offers new features, automatically turning on or off when taken out or being placed into the charger. The system includes new LED lights and a new mini charger.
Remote fine-tuning and live voice-to-text transcription apps. With Marvel hearing aids comes the introduction of a suite of convenient smart apps. The myPhonak app allows wearers to have their hearing aids adjusted in real-time, in any situation, anywhere via videocall by the hearing care professional. It also gives consumers the ability to rate their hearing aid satisfaction in various environments and directly send this feedback to their hearing care professional.
The myCall-to-Text app reportedly provides live transcription of phone calls from the other party in more than 80 languages. This provides an extremely useful option for hearing aid users in noisy environments, or for people who prefer additional visual captions when using the phone.
New marketing campaign and rollout. A suite of marketing materials has been developed to promote the Marvel launch. Phonak US Vice-president of Marketing Barb VanSomeren explained that the marketing surrounding Marvel emphasizes its multifunctionality, providing consumers with access to the world of sound that we all want via enhanced sound quality, a constellation of devices and streaming options, and phone calls. The new marketing assets highlight Phonak technology, audiology leadership, and Marvel’s diverse capabilities, and includes a video series that features two women exploring all the different ways Marvel can be used in a contemporary format (eg, the women’s dialog resembles the TV show Grace and Frankie) .
The rechargeable Audéo M-R will be available in November along with the zinc air Audéo M-312, and Phonak will add the Audéo M-312T and Audéo M-13T in February 2019. A rechargeable version of Marvel with T-Coil (Audéo M-RT) and RogerDirect functionality will be available as a firmware upgrade in Fall 2019.
References
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Field Study News about Phonak StereoZoom in preparation, available by end of 2018 at www.phonakpro.com/evidence.
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Winneke A, Latzel M, Appleton-Huber J. Less listening- and memory effort in noisy situations with StereoZoom. Phonak Field Study News. Available at: www.phonakpro.com/evidence
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