Bone conduction hearing implants for the rest of us

Yeah, the only problem is the Atlantic Ocean, but next time I’m in South America I’ll tap into my family’s fun bag of tricks… they can cut and stitch and own all sorts of X-ray equipment so… fun times

It was never intended for implantation, but I explored the possibility of DIY hearing aids - the work I did, however, didn’t get far. Latency sucks when you’re amplifying local sounds, but this isn’t really the idea (well, it can be, but we’re talking more having the magnet end of a bone conductor inside).

I know the soft tragus is around, but needs this massive loop thing under your shirt.

I’ve got a bone conduction kit thing here, i wonder if we could separate the magnet bit out.

An update on my bone conduction set: it’s a Cynaps (one coil is busted unfortunately), and appears to be exactly what we’d need. Two magnets, one with the coil, one external to it and separated by plastic. We could basically implant the external magnet.

Photos inbound.

I wonder if we could use xG3’s.

I’ve had a look into the setup required and it appears beyond anything we could do ourselves. The “proper” method appears to involve ossification of an anchor for the magnet. In short, screwing a titanium screw into your skull then mounting the magnet on that.

Yeah I watched videos of the procedure. Not something you want to do with a Dremel and a hand drill :slight_smile:

33 posts were merged into an existing topic: Body Augmentation / Reduction Discussion

I’ve contacted the n-th hearing specialist to ask whether I would be eligible for implantation of a bone conduction hearing aid as a person without any hearing impairement, and for once the reply wasn’t entirely negative. Interesting…

It probably won’t pan out, but who knows. If it does however, I’m looking at 15,000 euros in (obviously not covered) medical bills. Almost tempting :slight_smile:

keep us updated, very interesting none the less

Well like I said, it probably won’t pan out. I’m being referred to a surgeon who will probably tell me off. There’s a chain of people you have to convince if you want anything done in the medical world. That’s hard enough when there’s a real medical necessity and you’re the requester (I know that first-hand). For non-necessities, it’s almost impossible. But miracles happen sometimes…

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Good luck man. €15k is pretty steep, but hopefully you can work something out.

This would still need an external piece in physical contact with the implant, right? We’re not talking implanted bluetooth headphones here?

I’m looking at this guy

It’s a bone-anchored transducer excited by an induction coil. There is a magnetically affixed sound processor that transmits power and signal to it:

There is apparently a version of the sound processor that doesn’t have a microphone, and only relays external audio from BT or 3.5mm jack - which is what I’d be looking at, since I can hear natural sounds just fine.

Also, it’s induction, so I’m hoping it can be reversed-engineered and DIY’ed.

If you’re curious to see how the implant is installed, there’s a surgery video (warning: not for the faint of heart):

So, just a tad beyond a body modder’s abilities :slight_smile:

That’s what I thought. If you still have to have something external like that, what is the benefit over earbuds? Implanted replacements for headphones are something I’ve always found interesting but if you still need the external “let me put my transducer on” then I lack the imagination to see the benefit. What’s your idea??

  • No dangling wires
  • Nothing irritating my ear canals (I can’t stand earbuds for more than 20 minutes, they’re unbearable)
  • Ability to hear naturally and get external audio at the same time
  • Inconspicuous - as in, listen to an interesting podcast discreetly in a meeting that bores the shit out of me
  • Hacking potential
  • Shit, it’s just cool :slight_smile:

What a strange comment though: it’s like asking why one would implant a RFID transponder when a card can do the job :wink:

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I’m not knocking your idea, I still think it’s cool and want to see it. I appreciate that I am far from the smartest person on this forum so I was asking in earnest. Points 2, 3, and 6 are definitely legit, the rest… I don’t see a benefit over wireless bluetooth buds like these ones for example; you’ll still need to carry them, charge them, you can lose them, they can be stolen, etc… I’d argue that one of those earbuds would be far more discrete than having that thing on the side of your head.

Answer: So I don’t have to carry the card, I can’t lose it, it can’t be stolen. You still need to carry/remember/charge/etc the external portion of the sound processor.

Yeah I grok it. What I mean was, you can get 95% of the benefits of an RFID implant with a simple wearable like a rubber bracelet. If you wear it all the time, after some time you plain forget about it, and you’re not likely to lose it. But it’s not cool, and for those of use who can’t stand wearing watches of jewelry, it’s not an option.

Also, yeah, I’d love a direct interface to my brain - audio, video, controls, whatever - that I don’t need an external bit of kit for, and that I never need to charge. But that’s still science fiction. I have to settle for what’s available.

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agreed that it can be argued either way, hell you can get bone conduction headphones for under 100 bucks on amazon. that clears up having things in your ears and having natural audio come in while listening to your headphones,

this is more just about it being able to be done, less on its full encompassing usability, and as rosco said, best he can get right now

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You know, if I just wanted practicality, I wouldn’t implant anything. For instance, if I wanted almost all the benefits of an NFC implant without the drawbacks, I’d stick an NFC nail on one of my fingernails. The only difference with an implant is, I would have to replace it every few weeks - depending on how often I clip my nail. That’s the only difference, literally.

Similarly, I don’t need a xBT either: I can get my temperature just as quickly with an el-cheapo infrared thermometer from the supermarket.

But it’s not the same, is it. I want to research human augmentation (at my small, insignificant amateur level with zero access to research facilities). That means modifying my body and seeing what happens with my new internal gadgetry: how it integrates into my life, how it changes me as a person. I want the permanence of it.

Kind of like someone going for a tattoo when they could simply order custom-printed temporary tattoo patches and renew them every few weeks. The latter is more practical, but it’s just not the same.

I want the technology inside of me to become part of me. The modification to my sense of self is what I want to explore, as well as the practical side of implants - if that makes any sense.

Anyway, the point is moot: the surgeon answered me and (politely) told me to get stuffed and come back when I’m deaf. As expected: doctors don’t do body upgrades, only body repairs.

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did you ask the doctor to repeat himself because you couldn’t hear him with your hearing impediment?

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That particular joke wouldn’t have worked too well, seeing as though he answered me by email :wink:

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