The Oticon Opn is an Internet-connected hearing aid that works like stereo headphones with surround sound.
More than 35 million Americans and 11 million Britons suffer from some form of hearing loss. Innovations in hearing assistance range from real-time theatre captioning to hearing aids that double as fashion accessories. Now, through customization and connectivity, hearing device specialist Oticon’s latest creation, the Oticon Opn, uses a microchip system to recreate realistic surround sound. The hearing aids are also Internet-enabled, allowing wearers to connect to the If This Then That (IFTTT) system for custom sound management.
The left and right devices communicate, providing wearers with accurate spatial awareness of where sound is coming from. Via Bluetooth, the hearing aids also act as stereo headphones. Wearers can answer phone calls, listen to the TV and radio, and chat via Internet applications. With IFTTT, users can set up bespoke alerts and tasks. These can range from an in-ear alert when the doorbell rings to linking a baby monitor to the system or turning on the coffee machine whenever the hearing aids are activated. They can also link to smoke detectors in case of an emergency. This means that a signal from a smoke alarm can be sent directly to the Opn instruments, letting the wearer know that the smoke alarm has been activated.
The core, everyday purpose of this hearing aid is to make it easier for wearers to handle noisy environments in which there are multiple speakers.
This is one of the key functions of the human ear and one that is most difficult to overcome during hearing loss. The smart hearing aids do this using machine learning to seek out sounds they recognize as voices, typically within certain frequencies, and by dulling all other background sounds. Inside each hearing aid a Velox sound processor powers the firm’s proprietary BrainHearing technology. This alters only the parts of the signal that the individual ear doesn’t hear well, boosts softer speech and voices, and removes feedback.
Each hearing aid can also be customized to the user’s skin tone and fashion requirements, and the specific sound profile can be acutely tailored to address only the areas of hearing loss they suffer from. Child versions are also available, and the Oticon ON app lets users manage settings via their smartphones.
As well as simply assisting with day-to-day tasks, it has been proven that there are wider benefits from improving your hearing through hearing-aid technology. A new study shows there is a higher risk of accelerated cognitive decline due to withdrawal from social activities for individuals with hearing loss who do not actively use hearing aids. The study documented hearing loss and cognitive decline among a group of nearly 4,000 volunteers over a 25-year period.
According to research, by far the single most important thing we can do to maintain our brains as we age is to stay mentally engaged, through an active social life with friends, family and business associates. Healthy hearing is a key part of staying involved with people and the world around us. The study showed that people with hearing loss who used hearing aids and were socially active experienced cognitive decline at a rate similar to those without hearing loss.
By helping to restore communication abilities, at least partially, hearing aids may help improve mood, increase social interactions, and enable more participation in cognitively stimulating activities and thereby slow cognitive decline. With these benefits and the practical and safety implications, this smart, customizable technology is the future of hearing assistance.
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Website: www.oticon.com
Contact: peoplefirst@oticonusa.com
Company name: Oticon
Innovation name: Oticon Opn
Country: United States
Industries: Audio / Entertainment & culture / Health & wellbeing / Internet Of Things