# US 12,225,350 B2 · Hearing device and a hearing system comprising a multitude of adaptive two channel beamformers > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,225,350 B2 - Document ID: US12225350B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/405,455 - Filed: 2024-01-05 - Published: 2024-05-09 - Granted: 2025-02-11 - Earliest claimed: 2018-09-27 - Assignees: Oticon A/S - Applicants: Oticon A/S - Inventors: Eleni Koutrouli; Michael Syskind Pedersen; Jesper Jensen; Jan M. De Haan - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12225350B2 ## CPC - H04R 25/407: {Circuits for combining signals of a plurality of transducers} - H04R 25/405: {by combining a plurality of transducers} - H04R 25/604: {of acoustic or vibrational transducers} - A61N 1/36038: {Cochlear stimulation} - H04R 1/406: {microphones} - H04R 25/55: {using an external connection, either wireless or wired} - H04R 2225/021: Behind the ear [BTE] hearing aids - H04R 2225/55: Communication between hearing aids and external devices via a network for data exchange - H04R 2225/67: Implantable hearing aids or parts thereof not covered by H04R25/606 - H04R 2430/25: Array processing for suppression of unwanted side-lobes in directivity characteristics, e.g. a blocking matrix - H04R: LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; ELECTRIC HEARING AIDS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS (producing sounds with frequency not determined by supply frequency G10K) - A61N: ELECTROTHERAPY; MAGNETOTHERAPY; RADIATION THERAPY; ULTRASOUND THERAPY (measurement of bioelectric currents A61B; surgical instruments, devices or methods for transferring non-mechanical forms of energy to or from the body A61B18/00; anaesthetic apparatus in general A61M; incandescent lamps H01K; infrared radiators for heating H05B) ## Abstract A binaural hearing system comprises first and second hearing aids, each comprising antenna and transceiver circuitry allowing the exchange of audio signals between them and a BTE-part adapted for being located at or behind the external ear (pinna) of the user and comprising front and rear input transducers providing respective front and rear electric input signals. Each of the hearing aids comprises primary and secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformers each providing a spatially filtered signal based on first and second beamformer-input signals. The primary and secondary 2-channel beamformers are coupled in a cascaded structure. The inputs to the primary 2-channel beamformers are, locally generated, front and rear electric input signals. The inputs to the secondary 2-channel beamformer may be beamformed signals from the first and second hearing aids respectively. The spatially filtered signal of the secondary 2-channel beamformer may comprise an estimate of a target signal in the environment of the user. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A hearing aid comprising: at least two input transducers used to convert sound in an environment of the hearing aid to respective first and second electric input signals, processing circuitry for establishing a primary adaptive 2-channel beamformer and a secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformer, each of the primary and secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformers providing an output signal for reducing noise in connection with a target direction based on first and second beamformer-input signals, said primary and secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformers being coupled in a cascaded structure such that: said first and second beamformer-input signals of the primary adaptive 2-channel beamformer are the first and second electric input signals, one of the first and second beamformer-input signals of the secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformer is the output signal of the primary adaptive 2-channel beamformer, and the other of the first and second beamformer-input signals of the secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformer is an external audio input signal received via transceiver circuitry or an input signal from a third input transducer in the hearing aid, wherein the output signal of the secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformer provides an estimate of a target signal. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) A hearing aid according to claim 1 comprising an ITE part adapted for being located in or at the ear canal, and wherein the ITE part comprises an ITE-input transducer. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) A hearing aid according to claim 1 comprising a processor configured to process said estimate of said target signal by applying a frequency and level dependent gain/attenuation according to the user's needs. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) A hearing aid according to claim 1 wherein said hearing aid comprises an output transducer configured to provide stimuli perceivable as sound for the user based on said estimate of said target signal. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) A hearing aid according to claim 1 wherein said primary or secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformers are minimum variance distortionless response (MVDR) beamformers. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) A hearing aid according to claim 1 wherein said primary or secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformers are implemented by applying complex weights in a signal path with complex sub-band analysis/synthesis filter banks. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) A hearing aid according to claim 6 wherein said complex weights are calculated based on a Generalized Sidelobe Canceller (GSC) structure comprising a target-adaptive omni-directional beamformer and a target cancelling beamformer and a noise-adaptive scalar β. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) A hearing aid according to claim 1 wherein an adaptive parameter of said primary or secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformer is determined from the first and second beamformer-input signals for said first or second 2-channel beamformers, respectively. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) A hearing aid according to claim 1 wherein said input transducers each comprise a microphone. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) A hearing aid according to claim 1 comprising a BTE-part comprising two or three microphones. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) A hearing aid according to claim 1 comprising a BTE-part comprising at least three microphones, which—when worn by the user—are located on a straight line as a linear array, or are located two and two on first, second, and third straight lines, which together form a triangle. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) A hearing aid according to claim 1 being adapted to establish a communication link to an auxiliary device to provide that information or audio can be exchanged or forwarded from one to the other. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) A hearing aid according to claim 12 wherein the auxiliary device comprises a user interface allowing the user to indicate a location of or a direction of arrival to a target sound source. ### Claim 14 (depends on 12) A hearing aid according to claim 12 wherein said auxiliary device comprises one or more of a remote control, a smartphone, a portable electronic device, a wearable electronic device, and a smartwatch. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) A binaural hearing aid system comprising first and second hearing aids according to claim 1 and further comprising an auxiliary device, the binaural hearing aid system being adapted to establish a communication link between the first or second hearing aid and the auxiliary device to provide that information or audio can be exchanged or forwarded from one to the other. ### Claim 16 A method of operating a hearing aid, where the hearing aid comprising: at least two input transducers used to convert sound in an environment of the hearing aid to respective first and second electric input signals, the method comprising providing a primary adaptive 2-channel beamformer, a secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformer, and that each of the primary and secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformers providing an output signal for reducing noise in connection with a target direction based on first and second beamformer-input signals, and that said primary and secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformers are coupled in a cascaded structure configured to provide that: said first and second beamformer-input signals of the primary adaptive 2-channel beamformer are the first and second electric input signals, one of the first and second beamformer-input signals of the secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformer is the output signal of the primary 2-channel beamformer, and the other of the first and second beamformer-input signals of the secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformer is an external audio input signal received via transceiver circuitry or an input signal from a third input transducer in the hearing aid, wherein the output signal of the secondary adaptive 2-channel beamformer provides an estimate of a target signal.