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The Effect of Ear Canal Orientation on Tympanic Membrane Motion and the Sound Field Near the Tympanic Membrane

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Abstract

The contribution of human ear canal orientation to tympanic membrane (TM) surface motion and sound pressure distribution near the TM surface is investigated by using an artificial ear canal (aEC) similar in dimensions to the natural human ear canal. The aEC replaced the bony ear canal of cadaveric human temporal bones. The radial orientation of the aEC relative to the manubrium of the TM was varied. Tones of 0.2 to 18.4 kHz delivered through the aEC induced surface motions of the TM that were quantified using stroboscopic holography; the distribution of sound in the plane of the tympanic ring P TR was measured with a probe tube microphone. The results suggest that the ear canal orientation has no substantial effect on TM surface motions, but P TR at frequencies above 10 kHz is influenced by the ear canal orientation. The complex TM surface motion patterns observed at frequencies above a few kilohertz are not correlated with simpler variations in P TR distribution at the same frequencies, suggesting that the complex sound-induced TM motions are more related to the TM mechanical properties, shape, and boundary conditions rather than to spatial variations in the acoustic stimulus.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Diane Jones at the Eaton-Peabody Laboratory (EPL) of the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary (MEEI) for help in acquiring temporal bone specimens. Ivo Dobrev and Morteza Khaleghi from the Center for Holographic Studies and Laser Micro-mechaTronics (CHSLT) at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) have provided technical assistances in the use of the Holographic Interferometry system. Nima Maftoon and Melissa McKinnon from MEEI for commenting on the manuscript. This work was supported by NRSA 1F32DC009949-01, 1R03DC011617-01, and R01-DC008642 from NIDCD and a donation from L. Mittal. JG was funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Eaton-Peabody Laboratory, Department of Otology and Laryngology, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, 243 Charles Street, Boston, MA, 02114, USA

    Jeffrey Tao Cheng, Michael Ravicz, Jérémie Guignard, Cosme Furlong & John J. Rosowski

  2. Center for Holographic Studies and Laser Micro-mechaTronics, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 100 Institute Road, Worcester, MA, 01609, USA

    Cosme Furlong

  3. Speech and Hearing Bioscience and Technology Program, MIT-Harvard Division of Health Sciences and Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA

    John J. Rosowski

Authors
  1. Jeffrey Tao Cheng
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  2. Michael Ravicz
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  3. Jérémie Guignard
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  4. Cosme Furlong
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  5. John J. Rosowski
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Correspondence to Jeffrey Tao Cheng.

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Cheng, J.T., Ravicz, M., Guignard, J. et al. The Effect of Ear Canal Orientation on Tympanic Membrane Motion and the Sound Field Near the Tympanic Membrane. JARO 16, 413–432 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10162-015-0516-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10162-015-0516-x

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