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Design study of a Miniaturized Displacement Transducer (MDT) for an active middle ear implant system

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Abstract

People suffering from moderate to severe hearing loss can be treated with active middle ear implants. A new approach in this field is to implant an electromechanical transducer onto the round window membrane in order to improve coupling and be able to treat patients with middle-ear problems. In this paper the design study for a miniaturized displacement transducer (MDT) for the round window is presented. Based on a requirement analysis, the basic principle and analytical modeling of the actuator is shown. A parameter variation study results in an optimized actuator configuration that is able to generate an amplification of 110 dB SPL theoretically. As a next step this actuator has to be manufactured and tested.

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Acknowledgment

Support from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is gratefully acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA, Nobelstr. 12, 70569, Stuttgart, Germany

    D. Kaltenbacher & J. Schächtele

  2. Hearing Research Center, Department of Otolaryngology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany

    E. Goll, H. Arnold, E. Dalhoff & H-P. Zenner

  3. The Natural and Medical Sciences Institute, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany

    C. Burkhardt

Authors
  1. D. Kaltenbacher
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  2. J. Schächtele
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  3. E. Goll
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  4. C. Burkhardt
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  5. H. Arnold
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  6. E. Dalhoff
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  7. H-P. Zenner
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Correspondence to D. Kaltenbacher.

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Kaltenbacher, D., Schächtele, J., Goll, E. et al. Design study of a Miniaturized Displacement Transducer (MDT) for an active middle ear implant system. Biomed Microdevices 16, 805–814 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10544-014-9884-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10544-014-9884-y

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