Open Source System for Audio Processing

本提案是对RFA-DC-16-002的回应，NIDCD在该提案中寻求支持 声学信号处理工具，有可能加快研究，并促进 助听器的选配方法大约15%的美国成年人报告某种程度的 听力问题，12.7%的12岁及以上的美国人患有双侧听力损失（HL）。2008年 助听器行业调查MarkeTrack VIII报告称，只有不到十分之一的轻度听力损失患者使用 放大，而只有四分之十的中度至重度听力损失的人使用放大， 大量听力受损人口没有康复。助听器选配的注意事项 由于采用情况多样且复杂，因此自付费用很高，是一个需要解决的问题。事实上， 参议院2013财年拨款报告语言“强烈敦促NIDCD支持研究赠款， 助听器的价格可能会降低，因此这种助听器可以让更多的人获得和负担得起。 人“作为促进国家听力保健的主要联邦机构，NIDCD正在积极寻求 从公共卫生角度解决无障碍问题。除了成本之外， 助听器的使用仍然是音质问题，助听器仍然不能完全满足所有人的需求。 听力受损消费者的需求。 Creare及其在Boys Town国家研究医院（BTNRH）的合作者计划开发和 传播开源音频处理平台，以刺激助听器（HA）研究的创新。的 这一努力的结果将是一个用户友好的，便携式的，可拆卸的和可佩戴的“主助听器”（MHA）， 将允许在更广泛的范围内合作开发和开放交换新的处理算法， 听力研究界，包括学术界和工业界。MHA中使用的硬件具有 开放的、已发布的设计架构，使用电子市场上当前可用的组件。我们 设想三个级别的用户：（1）“专家”用户直接在固件中实现和测试新算法 通过使他们能够访问硬件的基本特征（音频输入和输出， 电源管理、内务管理等）; (2)“开发者”用户在软件应用程序上进行交互 编程接口（API）级，以修改已经在固件中实现的算法的参数，以及 评估他们在各种条件下的表现;（3）“专业”用户可以访问 “预编程”算法通过简单的用户界面进行一定程度的参数控制， 可穿戴式主助听器提供的放大变体的相对优势。

This proposal responds to RFA–DC-16-002, in which the NIDCD is seeking to support the development of acoustic signal processing tools that have the potential to accelerate research studies and to facilitate the translation of novel algorithms for hearing aids. Approximately 15% of American adults report some degree of hearing trouble, and 12.7% of Americans aged 12 and over experience bilateral hearing loss (HL). The 2008 hearing aid industry survey MarkeTrack VIII reports that less than 1 in 10 people with mild hearing loss uses amplification, while only 4 in 10 people with moderate-to-severe hearing loss use amplification, leaving still a large swath of the hearing impaired population without rehabilitation. While the reasons for poor hearing aid adoption are diverse and complex, out-of-pocket costs rank high as an issue to be addressed. And in fact, the Senate Report Language for FY2013 appropriations “strongly urges NIDCD to support research grants that could lead to less expensive hearing aids, so such aids could become accessible and affordable to more people." As the lead federal agency promoting the nation’s hearing healthcare, NIDCD is actively seeking to address accessibility from the public health perspective. Aside from cost, one of the primary barriers to hearing aid adoption remains sound quality, and the sense that hearing aids are still not quite able to meet all the needs of hearing impaired consumers. Creare and its collaborators at Boys Town National Research Hospital (BTNRH) plan to develop and disseminate an open-source audio processing platform to spur innovation in Hearing Aid (HA) research. The result of this effort will be a user-friendly, portable, upgradable and wearable “master hearing aid” (MHA) that will allow collaborative development and the open exchange of new processing algorithms within the broader hearing research community, including both academia and industry. The hardware used in the MHA has an open, published design architecture, using components currently available on the electronics market. We envision three levels of users: (1) “expert” users implement and test new algorithms directly in firmware through an interface that gives them access to the basic features of the hardware (audio input and output, power management, housekeeping, etc.); (2) “developers” users interact at the software application programming interface (API) level to modify parameters of the algorithms already implemented in firmware and evaluate their performance in a variety of conditions; and (3) “professional” users have access to “pre-programmed” algorithms with some degree of parameter control through a simple user interface, to test the relative benefits of amplification variants available with the wearable master hearing aid.