PMID: 9445852Jan 31, 1998Paper

An implantable piezoelectric hearing aid transducer for inner ear hearing loss. I: Development of a prototype

HNO
H LeysiefferH P Zenner

Abstract

Implantable hearing aids can form the basis of new surgical techniques for dealing with hearing problems originating in the inner ear, provided they are fully implantable. Accordingly, a comprehensive, interdisciplinary, combined project was initiated at the ENT clinic of the University of Tübingen which was to conclude with operations to improve hearing via fully implantable hearing aids. A novel electromechanical transducer for implantable hearing aids based on the piezoelectric principle is described. Unlike the piezoelectric transducers reported so far, this transducer does not rely on the bimorphic principle but on a circle-shaped, heteromorphic combination system consisting of a piezoceramic disc and metal membrane. The transducer can be hermetically sealed and is designed for implantation into the mastoid. Transfer of mechanical oscillations to an ossicle in the middle ear is effected by a directly fixed coupling rod or via suitable coupling elements. The transducer is highly tuned with a resonance frequency at the upper end of the spectral transfer range (greater than 10 kHz). Below this resonance and down to low frequencies, the frequency response of elongation is smooth with amplitudes of around 20 nm. At low and midd...Continue Reading

Citations

Oct 20, 2001·The Annals of Otology, Rhinology, and Laryngology·M M MaassenH P Zenner

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