Cochlear implant stimulation with low frequency channel privilege

A computer program product for use on a computer system for activating stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer usable medium having computer readable program code thereon, the computer readable program code including:

• program code for processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• program code for extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group that define electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• program code for selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals in a recurring stimulation cycle based on the electrode stimulation groups based on a pulse weighting function that uses channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue wherein for at least one stimulation group the program code for selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals varies over time which specific stimulation electrodes are activated in each stimulation cycle;
• and
• program code for developing the electrode stimulation signals into the set of output electrode pulses based on patient specific factors.

A method of activating stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant electrode, the method comprising:

• processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group that define electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals in a recurring stimulation cycle based on the electrode stimulation groups based on a pulse weighting function that uses channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue, wherein for at least one stimulation group, selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals includes varying over time which specific stimulation electrodes are activated in each stimulation cycle;
• and
• developing the electrode stimulation signals into the set of output electrode pulses based on patient specific factors.

An implantable stimulation arrangement for generating electrode stimulation signals for stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant, the arrangement comprising:

• a preprocessor filter bank for processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• an information extractor for extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group based on a group pulse rate defined for each electrode stimulation group to define electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• a pulse selector for selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals based on a pulse weighting function that uses channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue;
• and
• a pulse shaper for developing the electrode stimulation signals into a set of output electrode pulses to the stimulation electrodes based on patient specific factors.

A computer program product for use on a computer system for activating stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer usable medium having computer readable program code thereon, the computer readable program code including:

• program code for processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• program code for extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group based on a group pulse rate defined for each electrode stimulation group to define electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• program code for selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals based on a pulse weighting function that uses channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue;
• and
• program code for developing the electrode stimulation signals into the set of output electrode pulses based on patient specific factors.

A method of activating stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant electrode, the method comprising:

• processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group based on a group pulse rate defined for each electrode stimulation group to define electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals based on a pulse weighting function that uses channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue;
• and
• developing the electrode stimulation signals into the set of output electrode pulses based on patient specific factors.

An implantable stimulation arrangement for generating electrode stimulation signals for stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant, the arrangement comprising:

• a preprocessor filter bank for processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• an information extractor for extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group that define electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• a pulse selector for selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals based on a pulse weighting function that uses time-constant channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue;
• and
• a pulse shaper for developing the electrode stimulation signals into a set of output electrode pulses to the stimulation electrodes based on patient specific factors.

A computer program product for use on a computer system for activating stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer usable medium having computer readable program code thereon, the computer readable program code including:

• program code for processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• program code for extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group that define electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• program code for selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals based on a pulse weighting function that uses time-constant channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue;
• and
• program code for developing the electrode stimulation signals into the set of output electrode pulses based on patient specific factors.

A method of activating stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant electrode, the method comprising:

• processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group that defines electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals based on a pulse weighting function that uses time-constant channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue;
• and
• developing the electrode stimulation signals into the set of output electrode pulses based on patient specific factors.

An implantable stimulation arrangement for generating electrode stimulation signals for stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant, the arrangement comprising:

• a preprocessor filter bank for processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• an information extractor for extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group that define electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• a pulse selector for selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals based on a pulse weighting function that uses time-varying channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue;
• and
• a pulse shaper for developing the electrode stimulation signals into a set of output electrode pulses to the stimulation electrodes based on patient specific factors.

A computer program product for use on a computer system for activating stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant, the computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer usable medium having computer readable program code thereon, the computer readable program code including:

• program code for processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• program code for extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group that define electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• program code for selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals based on a pulse weighting function that uses time-varying channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue;
• and
• program code for developing the electrode stimulation signals into the set of output electrode pulses based on patient specific factors.

A method of activating stimulation electrodes in a cochlear implant electrode, the method comprising:

• processing an input acoustic audio signal to generate a plurality of band pass signals each representing an associated band of audio frequencies;
• extracting stimulation signal information from the band pass signals based on assigning the band pass signals to a plurality of electrode stimulation groups each containing one or more stimulation electrodes, and generating a set of stimulation event signals for each electrode stimulation group that defines electrode stimulation timings and amplitudes;
• selecting a set of electrode stimulation signals from the stimulation event signals based on a pulse weighting function that uses time-varying channel-specific weighting factors favoring lower frequencies for activating the stimulation electrodes to stimulate neighboring audio nerve tissue;
• and
• developing the electrode stimulation signals into the set of output electrode pulses based on patient specific factors.