How hearing aids work
There are numerous state-of-the-art hearing instruments available, but they all have certain characteristics in common. They are made to selectively increase the volume of the sounds you want to hear. They can make soft sounds audible, while at the same time making loud sounds comfortable, thus providing relief in both noisy and quiet situations.
No hearing instrument can solve every hearing problem or restore normal hearing, but they are designed to provide selective amplification so that you can hear and understand better.
A microphone:
A microphone picks up sound and converts from acoustic signal, that is, one recognised by the human ear, to an electronic signal that can be recognised by the amplifier.
The digital signalling processor:
The Digital Signalling Processor allows the use of special features such as Sound Smoothing and Feedback Cancellation.
An amplifier:
The Amplifier processes the electronic signals, making sounds louder. More emphasis is now being placed on what types of sounds are amplified. For example, some people are able to hear some frequencies better than others.
A receiver:
The receiver converts the electronic signal back into an acoustic signal that the wearer is then able to hear.
Hearing instrument technology has improved greatly over the years and we are now in an exciting time where digital hearing instruments are accessible to everyone. Today’s instruments offer not only superb performance, but are smaller, more efficient, and more comfortable than ever before.
The sophisticated technology of digital instruments means that they don’t just make all sounds louder. They can differentiate between sounds – separating them and presenting them in different ways.
The wearer can focus on specific sounds like speech and make it easier to hear over background noise. In short, there are fewer reasons to avoid taking action!
