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$1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

sciencemag.org

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Re: $1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

#31

Post by anamexis »

jononor wrote: post #25
anamexis wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's not true, the $1 figure for all of the parts. Here's the original, search for "Table 1" for the BOM https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal...

Good luck sourcing 3d-printed casings at 0.06 USD, or PCB at 0.05 USD a piece, even in 10k or higher scale. And of course in addition to the BOM comes production costs.

The casing is just a rectangular plastic box with some holes in it, I'm sure you could get some made at that price.

Even if the PCB costs 5x the quoted price, you're still rounding down to $1.

That said, I have no idea what production costs are for something like this.

Re: $1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

#32

Post by jlgaddis »

jononor wrote: post #9

Based on the MAX9814 chip, which costs 0.75 USD in 2.5K volume, leaving 0.25 USD for everything else. The design is not integrated much (many connectors), so assembly costs will be high. It also requires 2xAA batteries as a consumable, which consumer has to pay as well. So this is not a 1 USD hearing aid in any way. And if current units are 500 USD, then going down to 50 or 10 USD would already be a huge improvement.

I'm not surprised that someone who can fit two "AA" batteries in their ear has trouble hearing!

Re: $1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

#33

Post by SeasonalEnnui »

rini17 wrote: post #7

Hearing aids (nor cochlear implants, for that matter) do not "restore hearing", except for light hearing loss. They are only like crutches (not even wheelchair). For example, to follow conversations or phone/skype with multiple people is very exhausting even with fancy device, because in most cases the "bandwidth" to the brain just isn't available. That said, the hearing aids vendor lock-in is really atrocious and ca…

Multiple-decades of hearing aid wearing here. I agree with most of that. I ended up buying the programmer for my aids to do small tweaks (not the prescription/audiogram, just the program configuration where you can edit the level of DSP in various situations).

I would say that this latest generation of hearing aids (Phonak Marvel) is the first generation where I've felt like they've got it right. Direct bluetooth connection that just works, and with a very wide range of volume adjustment (older models that used add-on streamer would not go loud enough). People receiving my voice over bluetooth, using the hearing aid's onboard microphones, report good sound quality. Magic.

Re: $1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

#34

Post by mgerdts »

brento wrote: post #18

I was told I could benefit from hearing aids, but was told they would cost $5K to $8K depending on which ones I wanted. I've decided for now that I'll put up with the issues associated with not having them for now. I was also told they blue tooth doesn't work very well if you have an android phone, so I'm hoping that there can be some real innovation and competition in this space to drive the prices down and also imp…

If you can find your way to Costco, make an appointment with their audiologist. The test is free and hearing aids are less than $900 each. Follow-up visits are free. You do not need a Costco membership unless you decide to make a purchase. If you are unhappy with your purchase you can get a refund on the hearing aids and the membership.

I believe that most of their hearing aids support bluetooth, but only when you get a pair. I only need one, so no bluetooth for me.

I've had fittings by two people at Costco. One is an audiologist and the other was less credentialed, but I forget the title. I could hear better when fitted by the audiologist.

Re: $1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

#35

Post by boogies »

KSteffensen wrote: post #29
ampdepolymerase wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For a few dollars more it is possible to put a FPGA with perhaps a neural accelerator on it. It may tremendously simplify some of the DSP stack. More importantly, there should be a full-proof app or UI to allow the user to tune the hearing aid appropriately (or coupled with a training course for audiologists in the targeted regions to do so).

Hearing aids are tremendously constrained with regards to power and mechanics. There is no way you will be able to get an FPGA in a hearing aid. An FPGA runnning complex DSP algorithms will: 1. Get hot. I don't want a +60C FPGA in my ear. 2. Eat up the battery. The batteries are small and fiddly to replace for an 85 year old with bad eyes and arthritis in the fingers. They should last for at least a week before needi…

> a connector, which take up precious volume. Wireless recharging requires a coil with the same problem.

Couldn’t a “connector” just be a tiny gold contact to meet another in a charging cradle/case like a smart watch or wireless earbuds? Would that be too big?

Re: $1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

#36

Post by madspindel »

rini17 wrote: post #7

Hearing aids (nor cochlear implants, for that matter) do not "restore hearing", except for light hearing loss. They are only like crutches (not even wheelchair). For example, to follow conversations or phone/skype with multiple people is very exhausting even with fancy device, because in most cases the "bandwidth" to the brain just isn't available. That said, the hearing aids vendor lock-in is really atrocious and ca…

It's because it's a medical device. The OTC Hearing Aid Act will change that so Bose (and I would guess Samsung and Apple in the future) can sell hearing aids directly to consumers.

Bluetooth 5.2 LE Audio will solve the vendor lock-in. So the future looks bright for us with hearing loss.

Edit: And with iOS 14 you can use AirPods Pro as hearings aids by adding an audiogram to the Apple Health app. Works really well.

Re: $1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

#37

Post by loa_in_ »

KSteffensen wrote: post #29
ampdepolymerase wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For a few dollars more it is possible to put a FPGA with perhaps a neural accelerator on it. It may tremendously simplify some of the DSP stack. More importantly, there should be a full-proof app or UI to allow the user to tune the hearing aid appropriately (or coupled with a training course for audiologists in the targeted regions to do so).

Hearing aids are tremendously constrained with regards to power and mechanics. There is no way you will be able to get an FPGA in a hearing aid. An FPGA runnning complex DSP algorithms will: 1. Get hot. I don't want a +60C FPGA in my ear. 2. Eat up the battery. The batteries are small and fiddly to replace for an 85 year old with bad eyes and arthritis in the fingers. They should last for at least a week before needi…

About the precious volume and heat - the technology still seems very unimpressive given we have wireless earbuds in stores. Mounting something behind the ear doesn't seem very extravagant these days and vendors only profit from this forced conservative approach because it smothers any potential competition that thinks it has to be this way.

Re: $1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

#38

Post by csunbird »

KSteffensen wrote: post #29
ampdepolymerase wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For a few dollars more it is possible to put a FPGA with perhaps a neural accelerator on it. It may tremendously simplify some of the DSP stack. More importantly, there should be a full-proof app or UI to allow the user to tune the hearing aid appropriately (or coupled with a training course for audiologists in the targeted regions to do so).

Hearing aids are tremendously constrained with regards to power and mechanics. There is no way you will be able to get an FPGA in a hearing aid. An FPGA runnning complex DSP algorithms will: 1. Get hot. I don't want a +60C FPGA in my ear. 2. Eat up the battery. The batteries are small and fiddly to replace for an 85 year old with bad eyes and arthritis in the fingers. They should last for at least a week before needi…

is it possible to use the users phone for those calculations ?

Think about a dumb hearing aid, with a microphone and bluetooth connection, which is able to connect to any compatible phone and phone does the processing.

Re: $1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

#39

Post by kube-system »

tyingq wrote: post #27
anamexis wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The MAX9814 is the microphone. Here's the BOM which shows the full breakdown coming in under $1. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal... (Table 1)

Just the BOM image so it's easier to read: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/figure/image?size=... Also, I'm not sure where he's getting the prices. Prices for the MAX98306 and MAX9814 seem higher, even in high quantities, than what he's showing.

Interesting that they list the cost of raw PLA pellets for the "mass production cost" of the 3d printed case.

This is starting to smell like an exercise in making an incorrect BOM to justify the result they were looking for. Nobody will 3d print you a case for $0.06. If what they meant was that they'd 3d print the case themselves, then it should be the filament or resin listed on the BOM. You probably can get a plastic part pretty close to that price, but not 3d printed, it would be injection molded.

Re: $1 hearing aid could treat millions with hearing loss

#40

Post by jaclaz »

subhashp wrote: post #24

My mother has been wearing Hearing Aids for over 20 years. These days she has trouble with hearing what is on TV even with a powerful hearing aid. Most times she just sits quietly in front of the TV watching moving pictures. I have always wondered why it is so difficult to make hearing aid which can be connected to a bluetooth enabled TV or Mobile phone, so senior citizens can watch TV or talk to their loved one. Wha…

Well, my mom has one of those.

They are actually two pieces, one is a match-box sized thingy that can connect to Bluetooth devices and that she wears around her neck that transmits to the devices in her ears and also has a microphone, it is very handy as she can easily answer the phone by pressing a button on it (leaving the telephone in the bag, it works as hand-free) and it also has two buttons that can regulate the volume of the hearing aids (the volume of her hearing aids can be regulated also through a teeny-tiny button on the back of the hearing aid, right hand one up, left hand down, but she simply cannot find/push them properly).

We got the above first to better adjust volume and for the telephone use, then she started getting issue with the TV and we bought the following.

Then there is a small transmitter connected to the TV that can link to the matchbox-like device (that has a fourth button to connect/disconnect to the TV device), it has both RCA plug and an optical input.

She is very, very happy of this setup for the TV, much more than what she had before (wireless headphones).

Prices are steep, to give you an idea, if I recall correctly:

hearing aids € 2,500

neck matchbox-like thingy € 250

TV transmitter € 300

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