Open community platform for hearing aid research

项目摘要 在这里，我们对新的解决方案进行研究，以改进和新的类型 听力障碍康复的技术设备。 用于动态压缩、频率压缩、场景分析的新算法 基于降噪和语音增强算法以及反馈管理 将结合以下主题进行研究、实时实施和评估： 不同类型的听力障碍。对于可实现算法的现实评估， 效益，基准和评估程序进行了研究，涉及工具和 变复杂度虚拟声环境中主观系统性能评估 从简单的静止空间场景到具有移动声音的复杂声学场景 来源和接收器位置。 完整的基准测试系统，包括不同的声学场景，实时信号 处理系统包括一组基线算法以及基线仪器 措施将公布开源作为一个“开放的社区平台，为助听器 研究”。该平台包括开发和集成自己的信号处理的手段 算法以及工具性措施。通过这种方式，该平台可以实现可持续发展 助听器的研究，并提供了手段，做比较研究的基础上，准， 一套标准的基准。 促进算法，工具测量以及新的 技术解决方案，该项目将组织基于开放平台的社区挑战赛。 研究人员将被邀请贡献算法和/或工具措施， 该平台随后将由项目联营体进行基准测试和主观测试。 结果将在有关会议的一次特别会议上分发，此外， 在同行评审的期刊出版物上发表算法和结果。 为了培养转化为应用程序的实时算法开发系统的平台 还将为最近的基于ARM处理器的硬件平台提供， 开发和评估可穿戴音频设备的工作演示器，即所谓的 “hearables”。 通过发布开放平台，包括 一套标准的处理算法和拟合选项下的开源“copyleft” 许可证，如GNU通用公共许可证GPLv 3。除了这个开源的 许可证，商业许可证选项允许在平台的基础上进行产品开发， 案例闭源组件，例如，具体的商业算法，需要包括在内。这 双许可证方法类似于其他学术机构所做的，参见，例如，许可证 MIT的FFTW软件的选项。 总而言之，该项目导致了更加综合、可持续和有重点的研究， 改善听力设备。

Project Summary  Here we conduct research towards new solutions that lead to an improvement and to new types of technical devices for the rehabilitation of hearing impairment. Novel algorithms for dynamic compression, frequency compression, auditory-scene-analysis based noise reduction and speech enhancement algorithms as well as feedback management will be researched, implemented in real-time and evaluated in combination in subjects with different types of hearing impairment. For a realistic assessment of the achievable algorithm benefit, benchmarking and evaluation procedures are researched that involve instrumental and subjective system performance evaluation in virtual acoustic environments of varying complexity that range from simple stationary spatial scenes to complex acoustic scenes with moving sound sources and receiver position. The complete benchmarking system including the different acoustic scenes, the real-time signal processing system including a set of baseline algorithms as well as the baseline instrumental measures will be published open-source as an “open community platform for hearing aid research”. The platform includes means to develop and integrate own signal-processing algorithms as well as instrumental measures. This way, the platform enables sustainable hearing-aid research and provides the means to do comparative studies based on a quasi- standard set of benchmarks. To foster collaborative research efforts on algorithms, instrumental measures as well as new technical solutions, the project will organize a community challenge based on the open platform. Researchers will be invited to contribute algorithms and/or instrumental measures on the platform, which will then be benchmarked and subjectively tested by the project consortium. Results will be disseminated in a special session of a relevant conference, in addition to publishing the algorithms and results in peer-reviewed journal publications. To foster transfer into applications, the real-time algorithm development system of the platform will also be provided for recent ARM-processor based hardware platforms that allow for the development and evaluation of working demonstrators of wearable audio devices, so-called “hearables”. Long-term sustainability of the approach is ensured by publishing the open platform including the set of standard processing algorithms and fitting options under an open-source “copyleft” license, such as the GNU General Public License GPLv3. In addition to this open-source license, a commercial license option allows product development on the basis of the platform in case closed-source components, e.g., specific commercial algorithms, need to be included. This dual license approach is similar to what other academic institutions do, see, e.g., the license options of the FFTW software of MIT. In summary, the project leads to more integrated, sustainable and focused research towards improving hearing devices in general.