Using Bluetooth Technology to
Solve Assistive Listening ChallengesBluetooth技術で 聴覚補助の課題を解決する

Assistive Listening Tomorrow

Industry experts anticipate Auracast™ broadcast audio will become the next-generation assistive listening system. There’s a good probability that this will eventually come to fruition, but complete market saturation could take years, maybe even decades, to realize. In the interim, its ability to function in tandem with existing assistive listening technologies will enhance accessibility for a wider range of people with hearing loss.

The low cost of installing Auracast™ broadcast audio will be a big benefit. In many regions, legislation has driven the deployment of an assistive listening system. If systems can be deployed at a lower cost, the benefits they provide visitors in public spaces will incentivize venues to install them.

Thomas Olsgaard, VP of hardware platforms for GN ReSound, points out that hearing loop systems require a wire running through the walls, floor, or ceiling, meaning someone will have to install and maintain it. With Auracast™ broadcast audio, there is the option to put a broadcaster on the wall, hook it up, and it works – increasing ease of use.

Auracast™ broadcast audio will be highly reliable and relatively inexpensive to deploy, especially compared to the costs associated with a hearing loop retrofit. “The exciting thing about Bluetooth LE Audio,” according to Einhorn, “is that it addresses almost all, if not all, of the limitations of the current technologies. If you have a venue that supports Auracast™ broadcast audio, it is possible that Auracast™-enabled hearing aids can be designed so that all a consumer would need to do is flip a switch on their hearing aid just the way they used to do with loops, and they will be connected to stream it all.”

Until the technology becomes widely available and accessible, the coexistence of Auracast™ broadcast audio and existing assistive listening systems is critical for hearing aid users. The International Federation of Hard of Hearing People (IFHOH) recommends that manufacturers of hearing aids and cochlear implants continue to integrate telecoils into their products.

Recently, the IFHOH published a declaration that states, “it is important to have both telecoil and Auracast™ technologies in hearing aids and cochlear implants until most users will feel they can rely on Auracast™ broadcast audio.” IFHOH recognized that one of the most important and impactful promises of Auracast™ broadcast audio is to assist hard-of-hearing individuals to hear better in venues where hearing aids and cochlear implants are insufficient to function. The IFHOH said it “foresees a world where FM, infrared, and hearing loop systems (including those found in taxis, ticket counters, airports, theatres, etc.) will function for the foreseeable future alongside Auracast™ systems.”

Going Beyond Assistive Listening

Overcoming the challenges of traditional assistive listening technologies by using a familiar, proven technology ubiquitous in most consumer audio devices will provide the added benefits of enabling broader deployment and increasing the availability of assistive listening for people with hearing loss. It will also expand the applicability of this type of audio access to consumers with all levels of hearing health.

Rasmus Abildgren, principal engineer with Bose explains that with Auracast™ broadcasts, there is an opportunity to create an assistive listening system that can benefit not only those with hearing loss but also those who can’t hear what is being presented. Auracast™ broadcast audio is not only beneficial to those using hearing aids, it is also beneficial to the general public.

Public locations – including conference centers, movie theaters, transportation centers, places of worship, and more – will deploy Auracast™ broadcast audio to promote better living through better hearing for everyone. Linda Kozma-Spytek, consultant and professional adviser on technology to the Hearing Loss Association of America, notes that the concept of providing an interoperable, universal, and widely deployed service is something the hearing loss community has not really had access to with other assistive listening systems. “The existing solutions also form connectivity silos because they are separate from and incompatible with the wireless connectivity used with general consumer audio electronics. Removing those connectivity silos puts us on the path to more inclusive communication access for people with hearing loss,” said Kozma-Spytek. “Delivering ubiquitous, universal audio connectivity for people using hearing devices and mainstream audio products alike is now in the realm of possibility.”