Student Researchers Build New Technology for Better Hearing Devices

Researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) have received a $3.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to help them develop better hearing devices, reports NBCDFW.com . Their work will concentrate on creating new algorithms that could enhance the performance of cochlear implants in blocking out background noise. "Most implant recipients are only seeing a small percentage of the auditory stimuli that you and I get with full hearing capability," said UTD Professor John Hansen. His students will be able to test their new audio processing algorithms with a new mobile research platform in the lab or in natural settings where implant users face the most challenges. "This now allows people to test drive new algorithms on the fly," Hansen noted. The students are assembling many mobile research platforms to ship globally to other scientists similarly committed to helping the hearing-impaired.