Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Auditory system wikipedia , lookup
Telecommunications relay service wikipedia , lookup
Sound from ultrasound wikipedia , lookup
Lip reading wikipedia , lookup
Hearing loss wikipedia , lookup
Hearing aid wikipedia , lookup
Noise-induced hearing loss wikipedia , lookup
Sensorineural hearing loss wikipedia , lookup
Audiology and hearing health professionals in developed and developing countries wikipedia , lookup
Pivit Technologies Inc School of Engineering Science ♦ Burnaby, BC ♦ V5A 1S6 Project [email protected] January 22, 2007 Mr. Lakshman One School of Engineering Science Simon Fraser University Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6 Re: ENSC440 Project Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid Dear Mr. One: Hearing loss is a growing concern for many Canadians. Hearing aids are ineffective for individuals with severe inner ear damage and methods utilizing sight are limited by the necessity to observe everything that one wishes to hear. At Pivit Technologies Inc., we aim to deliver acoustic information using the sense of touch to assist the hearing impaired with daily activities requiring an awareness of noise. We believe the ability to interact and “feel” the sounds of their environment will result in an improved standard of living for the hearing impaired. Our goal is to design and build a PC controlled tactile hearing pad capable of stimulating the skin through vibrations to determine the viability of delivering acoustic information through the sense of touch. We detail the key elements of our design, our proposed scheduling, and an assessment of the costs involved in the attached document, Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid. Pivit Technologies Inc. is comprised of four dedicated, hard-working individuals: Ryan Dickie, David Dickin, Mehran Eghtesad, and Merle Kinkade. Please feel free to contact me by phone at 604-787-4871 or send any questions, comments, or concerns via email to [email protected]. Sincerely, David Dickin CEO Pivit Technologies Inc. Enclosure: Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid Project Team: Ryan Dickie David Dickin Mehran Eghtesad Merle Kinkade Contact: [email protected] Submitted to: Lakshman One – ENSC 440 Steve Whitmore – ENSC 305 School of Engineering Science Simon Fraser University Issued: January 22, 2007 Revision: 1.1 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid Executive Summary Hearing loss is a significant health issue. Research shows it is the 4th largest chronic disability in Canada and its consequences are far reaching. It affects physical and emotional health, employment, financial stability, social and cultural participation. People are losing their hearing at a faster rate compared to past generations due to industrial and recreational noise. -- Canadian Hard of Hearing Association.[1] Clearly, hearing loss is a growing concern, yet we often take our sense of hearing for granted. It is difficult to imagine how life would change if our ears stopped detecting sound. Conventional hearing aids act by amplifying sound vibrations; however, if the damage to the inner ear is significant, there is little recourse for an individual. When hearing aids are unable to assist, the individual must then rely heavily upon methods involving the sense of sight to perform their daily functions. These methods, while helpful, fail to notify the individual at the moment a sound is made and require a constant alertness of their surroundings which can limit their ability to function at their full potential. All noise is inherently composed of tones at varying frequencies. Our goal is to utilize this quality to transmit audio information to an individual through vibrotactile transducers attached to the skin. With time, a hearing impaired individual would be able to distinguish between the vibrations of different frequencies and associate them with the original audio information. Combined with visual aids such as lip reading, this device could improve the quality of life of a hearing impaired individual by providing them the means to becoming more efficient, productive, and successful. At Pivit Technologies Inc., we recognize the need to implement new methods that will enable the hearing impaired to perform everyday functions and decrease the physical, emotional, and social side effects of hearing loss. The company is comprised of four enthusiastic engineering students who are dedicated to this endeavor: Ryan Dickie, David Dickin, Mehran Eghtesad, and Merle Kinkade. Their combined technical expertise encompasses analog/digital system design, real-time and embedded systems, software and firmware development and basic biology. Thus affording the knowledge base necessary to research and produce a working prototype. The goal of this project is to research and develop a prototype tactile hearing aid to be used in experiments. The results of these experiments will be used to determine whether this method of sound recognition is a viable concept and lay a foundation for future tactile sensory devices. The project has been scheduled over a 13 week period and has an estimated cost of $250 which we expect to have financed through external sources. ________________________________________________________________________ ii Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................... 1 2. SYSTEM OVERVIEW ...................................................................................................................... 2 3. EXISTING SOLUTIONS AND PRODUCTS .................................................................................. 3 4. PROPOSED DESIGN SOLUTION................................................................................................... 4 5. SOURCES OF INFORMATION ...................................................................................................... 5 6. BUDGET.............................................................................................................................................. 6 1.1 1.2 EXPENSES..................................................................................................................................... 6 INCOME ........................................................................................................................................ 6 7. SCHEDULES ...................................................................................................................................... 7 8. TEAM ORGANIZATION ................................................................................................................. 8 9. COMPANY PROFILE....................................................................................................................... 9 10. CONCLUSION............................................................................................................................. 10 11. REFERENCES............................................................................................................................. 11 ________________________________________________________________________ iii Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 1. Introduction The underlying purpose is to develop a system to assist the hearing impaired. According to the Canadian Council on Social Development (CCSD), of the people in the working age group with a hearing disability, approximately 45.7% are employed. For those with severe or total loss of hearing, approximately 32% are employed [2]. There is a clear need for assistance in these demographics and it is our purpose to aid such individuals in becoming more successful. There are two main electro-mechanical contributors to hearing loss: conduction deafness and sensorineural hearing loss [3]. Conduction deafness involves a mechanical deficiency in the transmission of sound and can often be addressed by hearing aids which amplify the sound reaching the ear. However, there are many cases where proper conduction is simply not possible or correctable by surgery. Sensorineural hearing loss involves a deficiency in the neural pathways and is more difficult to correct. One approach is a surgical implant method requiring direct stimulation of the cochlear nerve. Our tactile hearing aid could be used by an individual with either type of hearing loss without any invasive devices or surgery. It is intended to be a low cost, reconfigurable system which can be used in conjunction with other techniques such as lip reading to help the hearing impaired communicate and increase awareness of the noises around them. Since we intend on using vibrotactile transducers to pass on auditory information, a user’s hearing capabilities are irrelevant. The only requirement is a sense of touch. The downside of this approach is that human skin is highly unlikely to be able to interpret these vibrations coherently on the first attempt. However, with time and practice a user may learn to understand these sensations in a meaningful manner. There exists the possibility that we may be unable to convey any meaningful information through the skin regardless of how well our device is built. Because of this possible outcome we are defining our primary project goal to include both designing and developing a prototype capable of mapping audio input frequency information to an array of vibrotactile transducers and conducting experiments to determine whether basic sounds can be interpreted using this prototype. A secondary objective is to facilitate research and allow users to find the optimal audio transforms in order to test the limits of this technology and tactile input in general. The system is designed to be reconfigurable through software. ________________________________________________________________________ 1 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 2. System Overview Figure 1 is a high level representation of our Tactile Hearing Aid. Environmental noise is captured by the microphone and sent to the Acoustic to Tactile Processing block. This block will be implemented with software in a PC, its purpose is to analyze the sound’s frequency characteristics and map them onto the “Tactile Hearing” Pad which is attached to the user. This pad is equipped with vibrating components (vibrotactile transducers), which produce the tactile sensations representing the captured sound. Over time, a hearing impaired person could learn to interpret these vibrations and the acoustic information they represent. Acoustic to Tactile Processing “Tactile Hearing” Pad Figure 1: High Level System Block Diagram ________________________________________________________________________ 2 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 3. Existing Solutions and Products Several attempts were made during the 1970’s and 80’s to produce tactile sensory aids for both deaf and blind individuals. Some of these devices were tested and are the subject of various research papers. Some were even commercially available. Audiotact: Manufactured by Unitech Research Inc. in Madison, WI, this was a 32 channel electrotactile array that can be strapped to the abdomen. This tactile prosthesis “aided in discrimination of phonemes by lipreading, but was not of benefit in subject repetition of connected text [4].” Tacticon: “Saunders et al. (1981 ) developed an auditory prosthesis which adjusts the perceived intensity of 16 electrodes, each corresponding to the sound intensity in a given passband in the audio spectrum. This (formerly) commercially available device, the Tacticon™, provided enough "auditory" feedback to improve the speech clarity of deaf children, and to improve auditory discrimination and comprehension in some older patients [4].” Tactaid: Currently commercially available Audiological Engineering Corp., this tactile device can “process the information electronically and send a signal containing important features of that sound to the vibrators,” according to the Tactaid website (www.tactaid.com). The details of such processes are not described in detail. However, some research has been done to show that the use of this device can improve speech tracking by a trained deaf adult when combined with lip reading [5]. ________________________________________________________________________ 3 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 4. Proposed Design Solution The majority of our efforts will be focused on designing a pad which can transmit information to the skin easily and effectively. There are two main methods to convey such information to the skin: electrotactile and vibrotactile transducers. The use of electrotactile transducers in tactile hearing aids and tactile imaging aids is well documented. It is possible to stimulate the skin with safe levels of current at a limited frequency range [4]. The biggest disadvantage of electrotactile stimuli is their extremely limited range. It is difficult to distinguish between a “soft” and “hard” electric stimulation without using current levels that exceed pain thresholds of most individuals. Varying the frequency is also problematic since best results are obtained in a small frequency range; variations in which are indistinguishable by human tactile sensory [4]. Due to these limitations, electrotactile transducers are commonly used as on-off stimulations. Use of vibrotactile transducers has not been studied to nearly the same extent of electrotactile transducers. Contrary to electric stimulation, using vibration it is possible to vary the “hardness” and frequency of a single transducer. This gives an extra degree of freedom in the design and could potentially allow for the use of fewer transducers on a single pad. This is important because despite the large density of tactile nerves in most areas of the skin, the spatial resolution of the skin is fairly limited [4]. Spatial resolution refers the ability of the skin to distinguish between two or more stimuli that are close together. For this project we will be using vibrotactile transducers. Another important aspect of the design is the processing unit responsible for analyzing the sound signals and translating the information to be relayed to the tactile pad. This unit will be comprised of a microphone, a processing unit, and other necessary circuitry to interface with the tactile pad. We intend on using a PC as the processing unit for the prototype. If our results are promising then a commercial product would require a more mobile processing unit such as an off-the-shelf microprocessor, a DSP chip, or an FPGA. The purpose of this project is to determine the extent and limitations of the tactile sensory system to receive and translate sound information. Such measures will be quantified by outlining specific test procedures and conducting these tests on several individuals. These tests may include individuals that are deaf or hard of hearing, depending on the success rate obtained with hearing individuals. ________________________________________________________________________ 4 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 5. Sources of Information This project is primarily focused on researching the functionality and viability of a tactile hearing aid. As such, we will depend on previous research that has been done in this field to design and test our product. This research can be found in various engineering and medical journals. Online and library searches will be a great tool for finding and compiling this research. We can use biology and medical text books to learn more about the human hearing sense and apply that information to our project. We can also depend on previous course material and engineering text books for the more technical aspects of our design. The expertise of our advisors and mentors is also invaluable. Lucky One, Andrew Rawicz, Brad Oldham, Vinay Kotamraju, and Amir Niroumand all have experience and expertise in different areas from biomedical engineering, to hardware and software design techniques. Their expertise will undoubtedly be of great use to our company and we intend to utilize it when possible. Another valuable and unique source of information will be our potential target customers: hearing impaired individuals. We have already contacted the Greater Vancouver Association of the Deaf and they have graciously offered to help us by answering some preliminary questions about previous research in the area, other available tactile aids, and more detailed questions about the marketability of our product. They have also expressed interested in trying our prototype when it is ready. This will allow for testing in a wider range of individuals and should give us a better idea of the potential success rate of product. It will also help in the redesign and further testing of our product. ________________________________________________________________________ 5 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 6. Budget 1.1 Expenses An estimated budget for the equipment required to develop our prototype is given in Table 6-1. A contingency of 20% is included to cover unexpected costs. Item Microphone Transducers Pad/Velcro Wiring Pad Controller Circuitry Controller (PC) Contingency Description Capturing sound for analysis by the tactile hearing aid Vibrating modules used to transmit the information to the skin Used to place transducers on the skin in a specified array Various wiring and connectors for interfacing pad to the controller (PC) Circuitry for I/O interfacing of the pad to the PC Analyze sound signals and transmit information to the pad ~20% of total costs Total Cost $30 $100 $30 $20 $30 N/A $40 $250 Table 6-1: Projected Budget Summary 1.2 Income We will seek the competitive funding available through the ESSEF (Engineering Student Society Endowment Fund). Also, the Wighton Development Fund is a potential source of income. Their grants are competitive but treat projects benefiting human society preferentially; we believe our project fits well within this description. In the event that adequate funding cannot be obtained from outside sources then the group members shall split the remaining cost of the project. ________________________________________________________________________ 6 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 7. Schedules Figure 1 is a Gantt chart with our proposed schedule. Milestones are included as coloured diamonds in the chart. The milestones we chose are not the ENSC 305 document due dates. Instead, the milestones were chosen based on our desired progress in system design, development, and testing throughout the semester. Figure 2: Gnatt Chart with Scheduling and Milestones ________________________________________________________________________ 7 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 8. Team Organization Pivit Technologies Inc. is comprised of four individuals all working towards their engineering degree. We will be responsible for completing the design, prototyping, and testing of the tactile hearing aid as a group with each individual contributing to both the technical and non-technical aspects of the project. Our team is comprised of David Dickin (CEO), Merle Kinkade (CFO), Mehran Eghtesad (Senior Hardware Engineer) and Ryan Dickie (Senior Software Engineer). David will be responsible for managing the team as well as setting up meetings, delegating action items, and updating the meeting minutes. Merle is responsible for keeping track of financing, controlling costs while trying to obtain the necessary funding. Mehran is responsible for external contact with technical advisors, potential customers, and potential test subjects, as well as design and conducting of test scenarios. Ryan is responsible for maintaining the project file in electronic and hard copy format and also maintaining other shared electronic resources and software/document version control. More specific technical responsibilities will be decided based on our different skill sets, academic backgrounds, work experience, and most importantly interest. The next section gives a short biography for each team member as well as their areas of expertise and interests. ________________________________________________________________________ 8 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 9. Company Profile David Dickin (CEO) Dave has been an undergrad engineering student at SFU since September 2002 and is expected to graduate at the end of summer 2007. He is in the Electronics stream and has a strong interest in digital design. His previous employers include Sierra Wireless, Nokia Canada, and Broadcom Corporation. Dave has cultivated strong leadership skills over the past four and a half years by taking the lead on many course projects. His encouraging words, calm reasoning, open minded approach, and optimistic attitude allow him to settle disputes quickly and cleanly before shifting the group focus back towards project goals Merle Kinkade (CFO) Merle is a fourth-year Electronics Engineering student at Simon Fraser University. Through co-op terms at both VTech Communications and UTStarcom she has gained practical experience in various Computer Aided Design programs along with experience with PCB layout in analog and digital design. Her interests in technological advancements that will provide disabled persons an improved standard of living are well suited towards the goal of Pivit Technologies Inc. Mehran Eghtesad (Senior Hardware Engineer) Mehran is a fourth-year Electronics Engineering student, graduating from Simon Fraser University at the end of this year. His interests include RF and microwave electronics, digital design, and communication systems. With four co-op terms and more than 16 months of work experience in the high tech industry, Mehran has the technical expertise required to help Pivit Technologies achieve its goals. Mehran will be responsible for the hardware design and prototyping of the module and also designing test cases and scenarios for the research portion of this project. Ryan Dickie (Senior Software Engineer) Ryan is a senior Computer Engineering student at Simon Fraser University. Ryan's first foray into the business world was as proprietor of a small but successful desktop publishing company. After becoming an engineering student, Ryan has had a diverse set of job experiences. He spent his first work term on the Port of Vancouver managing various projects and consulting for a large capital project. He also gained invaluable supervisory experience. His second work term was for a chemical engineer and environmental consultant. This work is in fact still ongoing as a highly marketable product is in the later stages of development. Since January 2006, Ryan has been a member of the Medical Imaging Analysis Lab at SFU performing biomedical research. He specializes in biomedical image processing and computation cardiac anatomy of DTMRI volumes. His business and biomedical engineering experiences will no doubt be of value for this project. ________________________________________________________________________ 9 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 10. Conclusion Sound plays a vital part in our everyday lives. Think of how certain tasks or pastimes would be inaccessible if we were suddenly unable to hear; the simple pleasure of listening to a favorite song would no longer be able to lift one’s spirits. While it is important for those of us who still have full hearing capabilities to take precautions to prevent hearing loss, for those who currently experience the travesty of partial hearing loss or worse, complete deafness, the tactile hearing device would act as an aid to restoring some sense of normalcy to an individual’s life and help them to be more successful and effective in performing their daily tasks. Although similar devices currently exist in the market, the tactile hearing aid will focus on the use of vibrotactile transducers instead of electrotactile transducers to transmit audio information to the skin. Through testing and carefully planned experiments, the viability of this technology will be examined and the rate at which an individual is able to adapt to recognize specific patterns and translate them into audio information will be determined. Our scheduling and budgeting are realistic and well thought out. This careful planning will help ensure that our project is finished on schedule and within budget, providing valuable information about the commercial prospects of a vibrotactile hearing aid. ________________________________________________________________________ 10 Pivit Technologies Inc Proposal for a Tactile Hearing Aid 11. References [1] Canadian Hard of Hearing Association. “Hearing Loss is a Significant Health Issue.” Internet: http://www.chha.ca/documents/en/beyond_the_hearing_aid_8x11_ 01.pdf [18 Jan. 2007]. [2] Canadian Council on Social Development. “Combinations of Disabilities.” Internet: http://www.ccsd.ca/drip/research/drip19/index.htm [19 Jan. 2007]. [3] R. Seeley, T. Stephens, and P. Tate. Essentials of Anatomy and Physiology. McGraw Hill, 2007 [4] K. A. Kaczmarek and P. Bach-y-Rita, "Tactile displays," in Virtual Environments and Advanced Interface Design. W. Barfield and T. Furness, Eds. Oxford University Press, 1995. (invited review chapter) [5] M.P.Lych, R.E.Eilers, D.Kimbrough Oller, R.C.Urbano, P.J.Pero, “Multisensory Narrative Tracking by a Profoundly Deaf Subject Using an Electrocutaneous Vocoder and a Vibro-tactile Aid,” Jurnal of Speaching and Hearing Research, vol32, pp.331-338, June 1989. ________________________________________________________________________ 11