In-Ear Energy Harvesting for Wearables Technologies from Jaw-Joint Deformation

这项拟议的研究计划的目标是促进人类在进食和说话活动中因下颌关节运动而导致的耳道变形领域的最先进知识。这些知识将有助于开发微型入耳式微能量收割机，能够将这种机械能转化为包括助听器在内的各种电子入耳式可穿戴设备的电力来源。 为了实现这一目标，将开展四个相关的研究项目，包括两名硕士(MS)和两名博士生(PhD)，目的是：a)量化每天因耳道变形而产生的典型机械能；b)研究耳道变形并确定安装了定制听筒的人耳道的应力-应变特性；c)建立耳道、入耳器和嵌入式微能量收集器之间的机械耦合模型；d)为个性化设计的微能量收集器建立一个参数模型，以匹配每个耳道的形态。 这项拟议的研究计划将提供与人类耳道静态和动态变形相关的独特知识。这些知识对各种医学领域的研究都非常感兴趣，从舒适的生物医学入耳设备(听力保护器、助听器、通信耳机等)的机械设计。对于治疗颞下颌关节紊乱病(TMJ)，合适的耳道变形模型是关键。 该研究项目的成果也将对入耳式微能收割机的设计有明显的好处。这种技术将有利于我们的加拿大工业合作伙伴EERS Technologies 4.0 Inc.，为其自己的电子听力保护和噪声中通信耳机产品线提供未来的动力，目前正在NSERC-EERS工业研究主席的耳内技术由申请人持有。最后，将这项技术授权给助听器制造商，最终可能会导致自主助听器的开发，并将极大地缓解目前必须每周更换助听器电池的3亿用户的压力。

The goal of the proposed research program is to advance state-of-the-art knowledge in the field of human earcanal deformations resulting from jaw-joint movement during eating and speaking activities. Such knowledge will help to develop miniaturized in-ear micro-energy harvesters able to transform this mechanical energy into a source of electrical power for all kinds of electronic in-ear wearable devices, including hearing aids. To achieve this, four interrelated research projects, involving 2 master's degree students (MS) and 2 doctoral students (PhD), will be conducted to: a) quantify the typical amount of mechanical energy generated on a daily basis from earcanal deformation, b) study earcanal deformations and determine the stress-strain properties of the human earcanal fitted with a custom earpiece, c) model the mechanical coupling between the earcanal, the in-ear device and the embedded micro-energy harvester, d) develop a parametric model for the individualized design of a micro-energy harvester that matches each individual earcanal morphology. The proposed research program will provide unique knowledge relating to the human earcanal's static and dynamic deformation. Such knowledge is of great interest for various medical fields of research, from the mechanical design of comfortable biomedical in-ear devices (hearing protectors, hearing aids, communication earpieces, etc.) to the treatment of temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ), a medical condition where proper models of earcanal deformation are key. The outcome of the research program will also be of clear benefit for the design of in-ear micro-energy harvesters. Such technology could benefit our Canadian industrial partner, EERS Technologies 4.0 Inc., for the future powering of its own product line of electronic hearing protection and communication-in-noise earpieces currently being developed within the NSERC-EERS Industrial Research Chair in In-Ear technologies held by the applicant. Finally, the licence of the resulting technology to hearing-aid manufacturers could ultimately lead to the development of self-powered hearing-aids and would be a great relief to the 300 million users who currently have to change their hearing aid batteries on a weekly basis.