Claims
- 1. A method for operating a hearing aid comprising:
receiving an acoustic signal having a low frequency component and a high frequency component; providing an electrical signal representative of the acoustic signal, the electrical signal having a corresponding low frequency component and a high frequency component; and filtering the electrical signal in response to detecting a presence of a magnetic field, wherein the high frequency component of the electrical signal is modified.
- 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further includes modifying the high frequency component of the electrical signal by attenuating the high frequency component.
- 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further includes boosting a gain for the low frequency component substantially concurrent with modifying the high frequency component.
- 4. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting a presence of a magnetic field includes detecting the presence of the magnetic field using a reed switch.
- 5. The method of claim 1, wherein filtering the electrical signal to modify the high frequency component includes filtering the electrical signal using a low pass filter.
- 6. The method of claim 1, wherein filtering the electrical signal to modify the high frequency component includes switching from a set of stored parameters to another set of stored parameters to modify a frequency response of a programmable analog hearing aid.
- 7. The method of claim 1, wherein filtering the electrical signal to modify the high frequency component includes digitally modifying a frequency response of the hearing aid.
- 8. The method of claim 1, wherein filtering the electrical signal in response to detecting a presence of a magnetic field includes enabling the filtering using transistor switches in conjunction with a switch responsive to the magnetic field.
- 9. A hearing aid comprising:
a microphone for providing an electrical signal representative of a received acoustic signal having a low frequency component and a high frequency component; a means for filtering the electrical signal; and a means for automatic switching responsive to a change in detection of a magnetic field, wherein, upon detecting a presence of a magnetic field, the means for automatic switching enables the means for filtering the electrical signal to modify the high frequency component of the electrical signal.
- 10. The hearing aid of claim 9, wherein the means for filtering the electrical signal attenuates the high frequency component of the electrical signal.
- 11. The hearing aid of claim 9, wherein the hearing aid further includes means for boosting a gain of the low frequency component of the electrical signal.
- 12. The hearing aid of claim 9, wherein the means for automatic switching includes a reed switch.
- 13. The hearing aid of claim 9, wherein the means for automatic switching includes a magnetic solid state sensor.
- 14. The hearing aid of claim 9, wherein the hearing aid further includes transistor switches to enable the means for filtering the electrical signal.
- 15. The hearing aid of claim 9, wherein the low frequency component is less than about 1000 Hz.
- 16. The hearing aid of claim 9, wherein the low frequency component is less than about 3000 Hz.
- 17. The hearing aid of claim 9, wherein the low frequency component is between about 300 Hz and about 1000 Hz.
- 18. A hearing aid comprising:
a microphone for providing an electrical signal representative of a received acoustic signal having a low frequency component and a high frequency component; a switch coupled to the microphone, the switch responsive to a change in detection of a magnetic field; and a low pass filter coupled to the switch, wherein, upon detecting a presence of a magnetic field, the switch automatically switches to enable the low pass to filter out the high frequency component of the electrical signal.
- 19. The hearing aid of claim 18, wherein the switch includes a reed switch.
- 20. The hearing aid of claim 18, wherein the switch includes a magnetic solid state sensor.
- 21. The hearing aid of claim 18, wherein the low pass filter is a passive filter.
- 22. The hearing aid of claim 18, wherein the low pass filter is an active filter.
- 23. The hearing aid of claim 18, wherein the hearing aid further includes a signal processor and an amplifier adapted to boost a gain of the low frequency component of the electrical signal over a predetermined frequency range of the low frequency component.
- 24. The hearing aid of claim 23, wherein the predetermined frequency range of the low frequency component includes the frequencies of the low frequency component above 300 Hz.
- 25. A hearing aid comprising:
a microphone for providing an electrical signal representative of a received acoustic signal having a low frequency component and a high frequency component; a first memory adapted to provide standard parameters for operating the hearing aid; a second memory adapted to provide parameters for operating the hearing aid with a communication device; a signal processor coupled to the microphone, the signal processor response to parameters provided by the first and second memories; and a switch responsive to a change in detection of a magnetic field, wherein, upon detecting a presence of a magnetic field, the switch automatically switches to enable the second memory to provide parameters for generating a frequency response with increased low frequency gain and reduced high frequency gain relative to a frequency response generated using parameters from the first memory.
- 26. The hearing aid of claim 25, wherein the second memory provides parameters for substantially reducing the high frequency component of the electrical signal while boosting a gain for the low frequency component of the electrical signal.
- 27. The hearing aid of claim 25, wherein the first memory provides parameters for processing the electrical signal such that a frequency response conforms to a prescription target.
- 28. The hearing aid of claim 25, wherein the switch includes a reed switch.
- 29. The hearing aid of claim 25, wherein the switch includes a magnetic solid state sensor.
- 30. A hearing aid comprising:
a microphone for providing an electrical signal representative of a received acoustic signal having a low frequency component and a high frequency component; a signal processor configured to digitally control transmitting an output signal representative of the acoustic signal; and a switch responsive to a change in detection of a magnetic field, wherein, upon detecting a presence of a magnetic field, the switch automatically switches to enable the signal processor to digitally modify a frequency response to increase a low frequency gain and reduce a high frequency gain.
- 31. The hearing aid of claim 30, wherein the signal processor is further configured to substantially filter out the high frequency component while boosting a gain for the low frequency component.
- 32. The hearing aid of claim 30, wherein the switch includes a reed switch.
- 33. The hearing aid of claim 30, wherein the switch includes a magnetic solid state sensor.
- 34. A hearing aid comprising:
a circuit board; a microphone; a switch responsive to a magnetic field; an inductive element; a preamplifier coupled to the inductive element; and a switch control, the switch control energizes a circuit that includes the inductive element in response to the switch detecting a magnetic field, while de-energizing a microphone circuit that includes the microphone, wherein the preamplifier, the inductive element, and the switch control are integrated onto the circuit board.
- 35. The hearing aid of claim 34, wherein the switch includes a reed switch.
- 36. The hearing aid of claim 34, wherein the switch includes a magnetic solid state sensor.
- 37. The hearing aid of claim 34, wherein the preamplifier is adapted to set a sensitivity of the inductor element to that of a hearing aid microphone.
- 38. The hearing aid of claim 34, wherein the switch control includes a transistor switch for the microphone and a transistor switch for the inductive element.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/659,214, filed on Sep. 11, 2000, the specification of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Continuation in Parts (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09659214 |
Sep 2000 |
US |
Child |
10284877 |
Oct 2002 |
US |