Improving speech perception for hearing-impaired listeners using audio-to-tactile sensory substitution with multiple frequency channels
Improving speech perception for hearing-impaired listeners using audio-to-tactile sensory substitution with multiple frequency channels
Cochlear implants (CIs) have revolutionised treatment of hearing loss, but large populations globally cannot access them either because of disorders that prevent implantation or because they are expensive and require specialist surgery. Recent technology developments mean that haptic aids, which transmit speech through vibration, could offer a viable low-cost, non-invasive alternative. One important development is that compact haptic actuators can now deliver intense stimulation across multiple frequencies. We explored whether these multiple frequency channels can transfer spectral information to improve tactile phoneme discrimination. To convert audio to vibration, the speech amplitude envelope was extracted from one or more audio frequency bands and used to amplitude modulate one or more vibro-tactile tones delivered to a single-site on the wrist. In 26 participants with normal touch sensitivity, tactile-only phoneme discrimination was assessed with one, four, or eight frequency bands. Compared to one frequency band, performance improved by 5.9% with four frequency bands and by 8.4% with eight frequency bands. The multi-band signal-processing approach can be implemented in real-time on a compact device, and the vibro-tactile tones can be reproduced by the latest compact, low-powered actuators. This approach could therefore readily be implemented in a low-cost haptic hearing aid to deliver real-world benefits.
Fletcher, Mark
ac11588a-fafe-4dbb-8b3c-80a6ff030546
Verschuur, Carl A.
5e15ee1c-3a44-4dbe-ad43-ec3b50111e41
Perry, Samuel W.
20d3988a-66fd-427c-b732-d686a67f4a8f
16 August 2023
Fletcher, Mark
ac11588a-fafe-4dbb-8b3c-80a6ff030546
Verschuur, Carl A.
5e15ee1c-3a44-4dbe-ad43-ec3b50111e41
Perry, Samuel W.
20d3988a-66fd-427c-b732-d686a67f4a8f
Fletcher, Mark, Verschuur, Carl A. and Perry, Samuel W.
(2023)
Improving speech perception for hearing-impaired listeners using audio-to-tactile sensory substitution with multiple frequency channels.
Scientific Reports, 13 (1), [13336].
(doi:10.1038/s41598-023-40509-7).
Abstract
Cochlear implants (CIs) have revolutionised treatment of hearing loss, but large populations globally cannot access them either because of disorders that prevent implantation or because they are expensive and require specialist surgery. Recent technology developments mean that haptic aids, which transmit speech through vibration, could offer a viable low-cost, non-invasive alternative. One important development is that compact haptic actuators can now deliver intense stimulation across multiple frequencies. We explored whether these multiple frequency channels can transfer spectral information to improve tactile phoneme discrimination. To convert audio to vibration, the speech amplitude envelope was extracted from one or more audio frequency bands and used to amplitude modulate one or more vibro-tactile tones delivered to a single-site on the wrist. In 26 participants with normal touch sensitivity, tactile-only phoneme discrimination was assessed with one, four, or eight frequency bands. Compared to one frequency band, performance improved by 5.9% with four frequency bands and by 8.4% with eight frequency bands. The multi-band signal-processing approach can be implemented in real-time on a compact device, and the vibro-tactile tones can be reproduced by the latest compact, low-powered actuators. This approach could therefore readily be implemented in a low-cost haptic hearing aid to deliver real-world benefits.
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s41598-023-40509-7
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Accepted/In Press date: 11 August 2023
Published date: 16 August 2023
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
Our warmest thanks to Ezza Akis for her invaluable help with participant recruitment, to Helen Fletcher for being the female voice in the phoneme corpus, and to Alex and Joshua Fletcher for facilitating the voice recording and paper writing process. Our sincerest thanks also to Gary Parker for technical support and—as so often—to Ben Lineton for helpful feedback on the experimental design and statistical analysis. Salary support for author MDF was provided by the University of Southampton Auditory Implant Service (UK) and the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (grant ID: EP/W032422/1). Salary support for author SWP was provided by the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (grant ID: EP/T517859/1) and the University of Southampton Auditory Implant Service (UK).
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© 2023, Springer Nature Limited.
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Local EPrints ID: 481241
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/481241
ISSN: 2045-2322
PURE UUID: efb362c0-0927-4804-8f42-effa2815d50f
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Date deposited: 21 Aug 2023 16:39
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 04:04
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Samuel W. Perry
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