System for capturing electrooculography signals

A portable electrooculography (EOG) signal capture system comprising:

• a sensor array adapted for being located at one of a left or right ear of a user, the sensor array comprising a number Ns of electric potential sensors, respectively, for sensing respective electric potentials from the user's head, where Ns is larger than or equal to two;
• and
• electronic circuitry coupled to the sensor array and configured to provide at least two different combined signals (SBF1, SBF2), each being representative of a weighted combination of said electric potentials, or of voltage difference signals, and wherein a difference between said at least two different combined signals (ΔPBF=SBF1−SBF2) represents an electrooculography signal (ΔPEOG) from one or both eyes of said user, said electrooculography signal (ΔPEOG) representing a current eye gaze used to estimate a current eye gaze angle Δθ of the user,
• wherein said electronic circuitry receives a reference potential from a reference sensor, and
• said portable electrooculography (EOG) signal capture system comprises respective differential buffers to provide respective voltage difference signals from said electric potentials and said reference potential,
• wherein functionality of the portable EOG signal capture system is controlled via the current eye gaze angle Δθ.

A non-transitory computer readable medium storing an application comprising executable instructions configured to be executed on an auxiliary device to implement a user interface for a hearing device adapted for being located at or in an ear of a user, said hearing device comprising a portable electrooculography signal capture system comprising:

• a sensor array adapted for being located at one of a left or right ear, the sensor array comprising a number Ns of electric potential sensors, respectively, for sensing respective electric potentials from the user's head, where Ns is larger than or equal to two;
• and
• electronic circuitry coupled to the sensor array and configured to provide at least two different combined signals (SBF1, SBF2), each being representative of a weighted combination of said electric potentials, or of signals derived therefrom, and wherein a difference between said at least two different combined signals (ΔPBF=SBF1−SBF2) represents an electrooculography signal (ΔPEOG) from one or both eyes of said user, said electrooculography signal (ΔPEOG) representing a current eye gaze used to estimate a current eye gaze angle Δθ of the user,
• wherein said combined signals (SBF1, SBF2) are determined from said electric potentials from the user's head by applying beamformer weights representative of first and second beam patterns (BP1, BP2), respectively, which implement beam patterns that do not attenuate signals from respective first and second target directions of an eye ball of the user, wherein
• the user interface is configured to allow a user to select functions of the hearing device for eye gaze control,
• said functions include one or more of selecting a ‘Beamforming’ mode of operation, controlling ‘Volume’ and selecting an ‘Active wireless receiver,’ and
• ‘Beamforming’ is controlled by horizontal eye gaze, and ‘Volume’ is controlled by vertical eye gaze.