Signia Introduces Xperience Platform with Motion Sensor Technology

Signia, a brand of WS Audiology A/S, has launched Signia Xperience, a new platform that reportedly introduces the world’s first combination of advanced acoustic sensors with a built-in motion sensor. Signia Xperience hearing aids are designed to provide a complete analysis of the wearer’s dynamic soundscape, allowing for automatic adjustments between sounds in front of and all around the wearer for a personalized listening experience.

Many hearing aid wearers have an active lifestyle and are always on the go—yet, current hearing aids don’t always keep up relative to hearing in noise. Existing hearing aids are sometimes unable to adapt to diverse listening environments as the wearer moves around. The Signia Xperience platform, built upon YourSound technology, was developed to fill this crucial gap and respond to rapid changes in the wearer’s environment.

YourSound Technology

With the new YourSound technology, Signia Xperience hearing aids can identify more variables from the environment than ever before and ensure they know what is important at every moment, according to the company. They also include a built-in motion sensor to take into consideration how the wearer’s movement affects their hearing in each situation. In a conversation with The Hearing Review, Signia Vice President of Clinical Education & Professional Relations Tish Ramirez, AuD, provided information about how the system can identify soundscapes in dynamic listening situations, and then intelligently apply omni-directional, directional, and narrow-band microphone technology in addition to advanced processing algorithms to improve the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in changing acoustic environments. For example, she described a “cocktail party” scene where a listener might wish to walk through the party and hear the “omni” environment, then stop to chat and enjoy a one-on-one conversation where narrow-band directionality might be engaged, but also benefit from detection of important noises in back (eg, a waiter asking if you need something) as the hearing aid adjusts accordingly.

In essence, the new Signia Xperience is designed to enable wearers to continuously benefit from the proper amount of frontal focus, says Dr Ramirez, while still being able to hear relevant speech from other directions, like when running in a park with friends or walking down a busy street. Although inertial sensors have been employed in other hearing aids, Dr Ramirez says this is the first time these sensors have been employed for addressing SNR, ambient modulation, own-voice features, and more, enhancing the hearing aid’s speech-in-noise performance in a wider variety of acoustic settings.

The three key features of YourSound technology are:

• Acoustic-motion sensors for a complete analysis of each wearer’s dynamic soundscape;
• Dynamic Soundscape Processing for natural sound and speech from any direction, in any situation—even when moving, and
• Own Voice Processing (OVP™) for a natural sounding own voice.

YourSound technology is delivered by the powerful Signia Xperience chip. It includes 80% more transistors and 7 times the memory of the previous Signia Nx chip, while being 60% smaller. As a result, the first two hearing aids on the platform, the Pure^® 312 X and the Pure^® Charge&Go X, are smaller yet more powerful than their predecessors.

A New Sound and New Look for Pure 312 X

Available now, the Pure 312 X includes all the benefits of the Signia Xperience platform in a new, appealing design created in collaboration with hearing care professionals and hearing aid wearers. With long-lasting exchangeable batteries, plus an optional telecoil (available in December), this high-performing receiver-in-canal (RIC) hearing aid is said to deliver a more personal hearing experience, with a clean, ergonomic design. Pure 312 X also has Bluetooth^® connectivity for effortless streaming of phone calls, music, and TV audio.

New Features for Pure Charge&Go X

Coming in November, Pure Charge&Go X is a RIC with Bluetooth connectivity that combines the advantages of the Signia Xperience platform with lithium-ion rechargeability. With 20% more charging capacity and 16% smaller than the previous Pure Charge&Go Nx, wearers benefit from a slim device that can support a long wear time even with streaming, says Signia.

Pure Charge&Go X features a rocker switch for easier adjustments and comes with a new inductive charger with a lid to protect the hearing aids as they charge. The charger also works as a dehumidifier and is designed to fit custom ear molds.

The new charger will be backward compatible to existing rechargeable Signia devices, and also affords a 30-minute fast-charge that can give wearers 6 hours of operation.

The Signia App: Three Apps in One

Along with these two new products, the Signia Xperience introduces a new app. The Signia app combines the three existing Signia apps—the myHearing app for remote telecare, touchControl app (for non-BT), and myControl app (for BT aids)— into one unified environment to meet every user’s needs, including:

• Providing wearers with direct support from a hearing care professional;
• Remote control so the wearer can personalize their hearing experience, and
• Easy management of streaming accessories to fully enjoy phone calls, music, and TV.

Available in S-Demos.

As with the Signia Nx, the new hearing aids will also be available for hearing care professionals in models that can be demonstrated to patients on a timed-trial basis.

Additional information about the Signia Xperience platform can be found at: https://pro.signiausa.com/signia-xperience/