Biosense, Inc.

International Business Machines Corporation

Other

Biosense Webster, Inc.

Alango Technologies

Alexander A Goldin

Michael Levin

Avraham Matcovitch

Assaf Govari

Meir Bar-Tal

Asher Holzer

Alex Radzishevsky

Margarita Osadchy

Ishay Berkovich

Meir Bar-tal

The invention relates to a method of suppressing undesired noise in a hearing aid, the hearing aid comprising a handheld unit, in which a microphone is integrated, and another microphone located externally of the handheld unit and connected thereto. The method includes the steps of converting a signal from the integrated microphone and a signal from the external microphone into digital signals; dividing the digital signal from the integrated microphone and the external microphone into frequency sub-bands, computing the current spectral amplitude of the integrated microphone sub-band signal and the current spectral amplitude of the external microphone sub-band signal; computing the ratio of the current spectral amplitude of the external microphone sub-band signal to the current spectral amplitude of the integrated microphone sub-band signal; modifying the integrated microphone sub-band signal according to the calculated ratio; and computing a full-band output signal from the integrated microphone sub-band signals.

Method of suppressing undesired noise in a hearing aid

A method for tracking a position of an object includes generating alternating current (AC) magnetic fields at two or more frequencies in a vicinity of the object using at least one field generator. The AC fields are sensed using a field sensor associated with the object. Corresponding AC data points that are indicative of amplitudes and directions of the AC fields at the field sensor are produced, wherein at least some of the sensed AC fields are subject to a distortion. A dependence of the AC data points on the frequencies of the AC fields is extrapolated to a target frequency so as to determine the amplitudes and directions of the AC fields with a reduced level of the distortion. Position coordinates of the object relative to the at least one field generator are calculated responsively to the extrapolated data points.

Distortion-immune position tracking using frequency extrapolation

A method for multifunctional processing of signals in frequency subbands performs subband decomposition and signal processing in two stages. A fullband signal is first splitted, with downsampling, into wide frequency subband (WFS) signals. Processing algorithms not requiring a high frequency resolution but benefiting from downsampling (such as subband acoustic echo cancellation), are applied to the WFS signals by wide subband processing blocks. Processed WFS signals are splitted, preferably without downsampling, into groups of narrow frequency subband (NFS) signals. The NFS signals are processed using processing algorithms (noise suppression, etc.) requiring a higher resolution. Processed NFS signals are synthesized into processed WFS signals, which are recombined into an output signal. Two-stage processing makes it possible to optimize signal processing, while keeping computational costs at low level and avoiding undesirable time delays. Preferred embodiments of the inventions are intended for use as an echo canceller/noise suppressor in voice communication terminals.

Two stage frequency subband decomposition

A method for measuring near-field electrical activity at a location in a heart comprising introducing into the heart a catheter. The catheter comprises an elongated tubular body having a distal region and a circumferential recess along the length of the distal region, a first electrode mounted on the distal region in close proximity to the circumferential recess, and a second electrode mounted within the circumferential recess. The distal region is positioned at the location in the heart so that the first electrode is in direct contact with heart tissue and the second electrode is not in direct contact with heart tissue but is in contact with blood. A first signal is obtained with the first electrode, and a second signal is obtained with the second electrode. The first signal and the second signal are compared to obtain the near-field electrical activity at the location in the heart.

Bipolar mapping of intracardiac potentials using recessed electrodes

A system for detecting electrode-tissue contact comprises a catheter having a location sensor and a distal tip electrode. The catheter preferably further comprises a reference electrode that is preferably protected from making contact with tissue. The system further comprises a signal generator to transmit test signals to the distal tip and reference electrodes. Tissue contact is detected by comparing the signals across the tip electrode to a return electrode versus the signal across the reference electrode to a return electrode. Ablation energy may be delivered to the distal tip electrode if contact of the electrode with tissue is detected.

System and method for detecting electrode-tissue contact

A system for detecting electrode-tissue contact comprises a multi-electrode catheter having a location sensor and a plurality of contact electrodes. The catheter preferably further comprises a reference electrode that is preferably protected from making contact with tissue. The system further comprises a signal generator to transmit test signals to each of the contact electrodes and to the reference electrode. Tissue contact is detected by comparing the signals across the tip electrode to a return electrode versus the signal across the reference electrode to a return electrode. Ablation energy may be delivered to the contact electrodes if contact of the electrode with tissue is detected.

Multi-electrode catheter, system and method

Bipolar mapping of intracardiac potentials with electrode having blood permeable covering

A method and device for adaptive echo cancellation in a voice communication system wherein a reference signal x is sent over the system from a transmitting device and comprising an adaptive filter for removing any echo signal from a primary signal d received in answer to reference signal x, and said adaptive filter having a plurality of coefficients the value of which at each time n being computed from the value of the same coefficient at time n&minus;1 modified by a normalization factor depending upon the energy of said reference signal and provided by a normalization factor controlling unit. The normalization factor is the maximum value between a first value representing the energy of reference signal x at time n and a second value depending on a value of the normalization factor previously stored during a preceding predetermined interval time multiplied by an attenuation factor less than 1.

Adaptive echo cancellation device in a voice communication system

Multi-channel recording system for audio signals comprising a general purpose computer (13) having a sound card (18) with two analog-to-digital converters (20, 22) for receiving two analog audio signals and recording these signals into digital form into a memory, and comprising an analog multiplexer (10, 12) arranged to combine a plurality n of input audio signals in analog form and to supply two resulting multiplexed signals (14, 16) to the analog-to-digital converters (20, 22), the computer (13) being arranged to function as a digital de-multiplexer (28, 30) for recovering the input audio signals in digital form and recording them into memory.

Growing community of inventors

Haifa, Israel

Alexander A Goldin