LOUDNESS NORMALIZATION CONTROL FOR A DIGITAL HEARING AID

摘要

A digital user loudness normalization control is provided for implementation within a digital hearing aid or other personal amplification device having a digital signal processor. The digital hearing aid may be either a single-frequency channel system or a multi-channel system. The control alters the input/output characteristic or loudness function of the single channel device or in each channel of a multi-channel device in response to the loudness control signal and the input signal level. The control system can be programmed to provide numerous modes of operation including curvilinear compression, input compression, output compression, and combinations thereof for correcting an individual's hearing impairment. In an alternative embodiment, the control for an amplification device having multiple frequency channels may include an independent loudness control signal for each frequency channel.