Project Grant R43DC014236

The University of Louisville received a $100,000 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation to develop a virtual reality software for improving the hearing aid fitting process. Under the NSF Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships program (CFDA 47.084), the university will create an algorithm and VR simulation software allowing patients to directly compare their natural hearing to aided hearing while wearing hearing aids in realistic sound fields. The software seeks to provide...

This $295,825 Project Grant award from the National Institute on Aging (CFDA 93.866 Aging Research) will support the development of a smartphone-based machine learning software system to enhance speech and reduce background noise for over-the-counter hearing aid devices. The goal is to improve the accessibility, affordability, and acceptance of hearing aids for underserved rural and minority populations who currently face significant barriers to obtaining effective hearing care. The funding will...

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), under the Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders program (CFDA 93.173), awarded a $673,350 Project Grant to Xyken, LLC to create an accessible, low-cost, and customized hearing aid manufacturing system. The proposed solution leverages smartphone-based 3D ear imaging, automated shell generation, and 3D printing combined with modular electronic integration. This effort aims to effectively reduce the...

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) awarded a $275,371 Project Grant (CFDA 93.173) to Auricle Health Inc. to develop an extracochlear device to restore hearing for patients with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). The funding will support refinement of the electrode design, demonstration of electrical stimulation of the cochlear nerve in animal models, and evaluation of the long-term safety and durability of the implant. This project aims to create a...

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) awarded a $292,694 Project Grant under CFDA 93.173 "Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders" to Silicon Audio RF Circulator, LLC (dba Silicon Audio, LLC), a small business based in Austin, TX. The award will fund the development of high signal-to-noise ratio miniature microphones for hearing assistive devices. The project aims to leverage recent advances in thin-film piezoelectric materials...

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) awarded a $306,872 Project Grant under the Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders program (CFDA 93.173) to Iotamotion, Inc. The goal of this 1-year award, with a period of performance from July 15, 2025 to June 30, 2026, is to develop a novel electromagnetic (EM) tracking system called EMOTO that can be integrated into Iotamotion's robotic-assist cochlear implant (CI) insertion system. The EMOTO system...

The University of Iowa received a $1,199,085 project grant award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Computer and Network Systems under the CFDA program "Computer and Information Science and Engineering". The funding supports the development of new signal processing algorithms and configuration methods to personalize hearing aids and improve speech understanding, sound quality, and user satisfaction for individuals with hearing loss. The project aims to create two...

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), under the Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders program (CFDA 93.173), awarded a $306,073 Project Grant to Iotamotion, Inc. to develop a navigation-based cochlear implant insertion system that optimizes trajectory while enabling slow and consistent electrode array insertions. The goal is to improve short and long-term hearing outcomes for cochlear implant patients by enhancing structural preservation...

This federal Project Grant award, funded by the National Institute on Aging (CFDA 93.866 - Aging Research), is focused on understanding the effectiveness of cochlear implants and hearing aids in real-world settings for older adults with age-related hearing loss (ARHL), both with and without mild cognitive impairment or dementia. The $1,495,307 award, which runs from September 1, 2024 to June 30, 2029, will collect real-world data via a smartphone ecological momentary assessment (EMA) system to...

This federal Project Grant award from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), under the Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders program (CFDA 93.173), provides $674,021 to advance the development of an implantable middle-ear microphone system. The award aims to refine and test a prototype microphone, called the UMIC, that can be used in totally-implantable cochlear implants to take advantage of outer-ear acoustic benefits. Key objectives...