Cochlear implant devices
AssigneeCochlear Limited
InventorsGraeme Milbourne Clark, Lawrence Thomas Cohen, Peter Andrew Busby
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Abstract
An improved hearing prosthetic implant and method of stimulating are disclosed. The method comprises stimulating an electrode array using a set of current stimuli having different geometries, so as to provide a more regular and monotonic set of pitch percepts for a user. In one embodiment, this may be achieved by combining different modes of stimulation for a patient, so that some channels utilise one mode and other channels utilise one or more different modes.
Claims10
A method of stimulating a cochlea using a hearing prosthetic implant having a plurality of individually addressable electrodes including electrodes of a first group defining a first current distribution geometry and electrodes of a second group defining a second current distribution geometry, and a stimulator device adapted to provide to said first and second electrode groups stimuli corresponding to sound signals, the method comprising:
- generating a first stimuli using the stimulator device in response to a first sound having a first pitch;
- selecting automatically by the stimulator device, based on the first stimuli and the electrodes in the first group of electrodes, a first stimulation mode from a mixture of stimulation modes;
- applying said generated first stimuli, using said first selected stimulation mode, to the first group of individually addressable electrodes to stimulate the cochlea;
- generating a second stimuli using the stimulator device in response to a second sound having a second pitch;
- selecting automatically by the stimulator device, based on the second stimuli and the electrodes in the second group of electrodes, a second stimulation mode from a mixture of stimulation modes;
- applying said generated second stimuli, using said second selected stimulation mode, to the second group of individually addressable electrodes to stimulate the cochlea.
A method of stimulating a cochlea using a hearing prosthetic implant having a plurality of individually addressable electrodes, said method comprising:
- generating a first stimuli in response to a first sound having a first pitch;
- selecting automatically, based on the first stimuli and the electrodes in a first group of electrodes, a first stimulation mode from a mixture of stimulation modes;
- applying said generated first stimuli, using said first selected stimulation mode, to the first group of individually addressable electrodes to stimulate the cochlea;
- generating a second stimuli using the stimulator device in response to a second sound having a second pitch;
- selecting automatically, based on the second stimuli and the electrodes in a second group of electrodes, a second stimulation mode from a mixture of stimulation modes;
- applying said generated second stimuli, using said second selected stimulation mode, to a second group of individually addressable electrodes representing a second current distribution geometry to stimulate the cochlea.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.