This disclosure relates to processing signals representative of sound for conveyance directly to the auditory system of a subject based on the identity of an input device.
Humans have traditionally perceived sound using the physiological auditory system. This perception of sound can now be supplemented by man-made audiological systems that convey sound information directly to a subject through components of the auditory system. Such audiological systems convey sound information directly to a subject's auditory system by stimulating the subject's auditory system without significant dissemination of sound waves into the surroundings. Audiological systems include hearing aids, cochlear implants, and other devices that include a microphone or other input element.
When such input elements are stimulated, they produce signals representative of sound. Such signals often are not immediately compatible with the auditory system and must be processed so that the sound information in the signal can be conveyed to the auditory system.
Such sound processing may include any of a number of different changes to the signal, including amplification, filtering, mixing, and encoding changes. The nature and extent of the changes can be based on factors such as the nature of the sound represented in the signal, the state of the auditory system, the nature of the interface between the auditory system and the audiological system, the characteristics of the input element, and the like.