• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.321-327
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• 2010

Most of the ear shells of hearing aids are manufactured manually, and it is one of the reasons that the cost of the custom-made hearing aids can be increased. Thus it is required to manufacture the ready-made ear shell for the purpose of easy manufacturing and decrease in cost. In this study, we extract parameters in order to manufacture the ready-made ear shell for CIC type hearing aids and simulate to reconstruct the ear shell using the extracted parameters. To parameter extraction, we set up the eleven parameters for the ready-made ear shell based on anatomical characteristics of the ear canal, and we found values of the parameters from twenty-one impressions in their 20s and twelve impressions in their 60s using aperture detection and feature detection algorithms. Classifying the parameters by size, we also determine the parameters of ready-made ear shell into three types for people in their 20s and two types for people in their 60s. Each ready-made ear shell was simulated to reconstruct using figured parameters, and evaluated the rate of agreement with unused impressions for setting parameters. To evaluate the ready-made ear shell, we calculate the volume ratio and intersection between of the each impression and ready-made ear shell, and the intersection ratio using the intersection volume and ready-made ear shell volume. As a result, the volume ratio was about 70%, and volume match ratio was also up to 70%. It means that the ready-made ear shell we simulated is the significantly matched to impression.

• The Transactions of The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers
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• v.60 no.5
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• pp.1055-1061
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• 2011

In this study, main parameters: aperture, first bend and second bend which express a structure of ear canal are extracted in order to modeling and manufacture the ready-made ear shells of hearing aids. The proposed parameter extraction method consists of 2 important algorithms, aperture detection and feature detection. In the aperture detection algorithm, aperture of 3-D scanned virtual ear impression and parameters relating to ear shell of hearing aid are determined. The feature detection algorithm detects first bend, second bend, and related parameters. Through these two algorithms, parameters for aperture, first bend, and second bend are extracted to model the ready-made ear shell of hearing aid. The values of these extracted parameters from 36 people's right ear impression are analyzed and measured statistically. As a result of the analysis, it has been found that it is possible to classify ready-made ear shell parameters by age and size. The ready-made ear shell parameters are classified 3-size for 20 years old and 2-size for 60 years olde. Using 3D rhino program, virtual ready-made ear shell is reconstructed by parameters of every type, and simulated to model it. A final product was produced by transferring simulation result with rapid prototyping system. The modeled ready-made ear shell is evaluated with the objective and subjective method. Objective method is the comparison volume ratio and overlapped volume ratio of ear impression from randomly chosen 18 people and ready-made ear shell. And subjective method is that the final product of ready-made ear shell is used by users and the satisfaction number drawn from well fitting and comfortable testing was evaluated. In the result of the evaluation, it has been found that volume ration is 70%, big and middle size ready-made ear shell products are possible, and the satisfaction number is high.