Hearing deficiencies can range from partial to complete hearing loss. Often, an individual's hearing ability varies across the range of audible sound frequencies, and many individuals have hearing impairment with respect to only select acoustic frequencies. For example, an individual's hearing loss may be greater at higher frequencies than at lower frequencies.
Hearing aids have been developed to alleviate the effects of hearing losses in individuals. In instances where the individual's hearing loss varies across frequencies. Conventionally, hearing aids range from ear pieces configured to amplify sounds to more sophisticated hearing aid devices that are configurable by a hearing health professional.
While hearing aids are often effective at compensating for the effects of hearing loss, hearing aids are expensive, small, and easy to lose. Unfortunately, lost hearing aids are often not covered by insurance. Thus the loss of a hearing aid can severely impact the quality of life of the individual, especially if they are unable to replace it.
Replacing a hearing aid can often cost the user thousands of dollars. Unfortunately, losing a hearing aid is a common occurrence. It is possible to purchase replacement plans, however, the replacement plans; while not as expensive as a new hearing aid, often cost hundreds of dollars, charge a replacement fee in addition to the plan fees, and require the user to go a period of time without the use of the lost hearing aid.
In the following description, the use of the same reference numerals in different drawings indicates similar or identical items.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds