Apparatus and prosthetic device for providing electronic correction of auditory deficiencies for aurally handicapped persons

Claim 1

Apparatus useful for measuring human auditory deficiency and/or providing compensatory amplification for aurally handicapped persons comprising: input circuit means for receiving complex phonic signals to be selectively amplified over a plurality of pass bands, selective audio amplification means comprising a plurality of independently adjustable filter means having adjacent pass bands for enabling independent adjustment of amplification within each of a plurality of adjacent audio pass bands, said amplification means being coupled with said input circuit means for receiving signals therefrom and each of said filter means providing output signals, a plurality of compression means, each compression means coupled to the output of a corresponding filter means for providing output signal compression when the output signals from said corresponding filter means exceeds a predetermined level, and summation means for combining the output signals after the output signals have been acted on by said plurality of compression means.