EDN's 18th Annual Innovation Awards Finalists
-- EDN, February 1, 2008
|
&& PREVIOUS FINALIST | MAIN | NEXT FINALIST >> Category: Digital ASSPs WINNER: Ezairo 5910 hearing-aid IC (AMI Semiconductor)  People suffering hearing loss have been big beneficiaries of Moore’s Law; the increase in processing power and decrease in the size of ICs make smaller and smaller hearing aids possible. Still, many hearing aids process just the voiceband—a tremendous benefit to affected people. However a wider band allows those affected to fully enjoy richer sounds, including music. Such a hearing aid is the precise target of AMI Semiconductor’s Ezairo 5910 RASSP (reconfigurable application-specific signal processor). The IC provides hearing-aids the processing power to handle a wider portion of the frequency spectrum, low power for long battery life, and the ability to fit into tiny packages.Ezairo combines high-performance, 24-bit digital-signal processing and consumes less than 1 mA at full processing power. The 24-bit processor, versus 16-bit alternatives, supports sophisticated algorithms for adaptive-noise reduction, directional-sound pickup, and feedback cancellation. Ezairo can capture a 12-kHz range and has an input dynamic range of 110dB compared with these devices’ typical 90 dB, ensuring that users clearly hear soft and loud sounds. Ezairo’s technological advancements and small form factor mean that hearing-aid manufacturers can build small and cosmetically appealing devices that employ highly sophisticated signal-processing techniques, meeting the market demand for new “thin-tube,” behind-the-ear hearing aids. |
|
Talkback
