<p>In news that will come as music to the ears of those with partial hearing loss, two Bengaluru-based students have developed a hearing aid that can be worn like spectacles, thereby addressing a major issue with hearing aids: social stigma. </p>.<p>Nishanth Shastry and Rakshanda B Reddy, second-year Electronics and Communication students from MVJ College of Engineering, are the brains behind the fashionable device, BoCo.Aid, which doesn’t need to be inserted into the ear.</p>.<p>The device works on a bone conduction transfuser system, which is installed in the device. </p>.<p>In simple terms, a coil in the device gathers sound. Adjacent to it is a plate which vibrates and passes it onto the temporal bone, which sends it to the cochlea enabling a person to hear. </p>.<p>Speaking to <span class="italic">DH</span>, Shastry said since the device doesn’t need insertion in the ear, it would help patients who have an issue with the auditory canal.</p>.<p>However, the limitation is that one would not be able to use it in case of senso-neural damage or damage to the cochlea.</p>.<p>“We worked in consultation with a few ENT specialists around Bengaluru. We have a prototype and hope to approach the industry soon,” Shastry said.</p>.<p>Shastry, who hails from Mangaluru, said he conceptualised the device even before he entered college. </p>.<p class="CrossHead Rag"><strong>Social stigma</strong></p>.<p>One of the major concerns the students hope to address is stigma. “When someone has a problem with seeing and wears spectacles, it is not seen as an impairment. Yet, when someone cannot hear and wears an aid, there is a stigma associated with it,” he said.</p>.<p>The device will be broader than conventional glasses at the rim in order to accommodate hardware. The battery operated device will function for about 12 hours and can be recharged.</p>.<p>The duo hope to make the device available for about Rs 10,000.</p>
<p>In news that will come as music to the ears of those with partial hearing loss, two Bengaluru-based students have developed a hearing aid that can be worn like spectacles, thereby addressing a major issue with hearing aids: social stigma. </p>.<p>Nishanth Shastry and Rakshanda B Reddy, second-year Electronics and Communication students from MVJ College of Engineering, are the brains behind the fashionable device, BoCo.Aid, which doesn’t need to be inserted into the ear.</p>.<p>The device works on a bone conduction transfuser system, which is installed in the device. </p>.<p>In simple terms, a coil in the device gathers sound. Adjacent to it is a plate which vibrates and passes it onto the temporal bone, which sends it to the cochlea enabling a person to hear. </p>.<p>Speaking to <span class="italic">DH</span>, Shastry said since the device doesn’t need insertion in the ear, it would help patients who have an issue with the auditory canal.</p>.<p>However, the limitation is that one would not be able to use it in case of senso-neural damage or damage to the cochlea.</p>.<p>“We worked in consultation with a few ENT specialists around Bengaluru. We have a prototype and hope to approach the industry soon,” Shastry said.</p>.<p>Shastry, who hails from Mangaluru, said he conceptualised the device even before he entered college. </p>.<p class="CrossHead Rag"><strong>Social stigma</strong></p>.<p>One of the major concerns the students hope to address is stigma. “When someone has a problem with seeing and wears spectacles, it is not seen as an impairment. Yet, when someone cannot hear and wears an aid, there is a stigma associated with it,” he said.</p>.<p>The device will be broader than conventional glasses at the rim in order to accommodate hardware. The battery operated device will function for about 12 hours and can be recharged.</p>.<p>The duo hope to make the device available for about Rs 10,000.</p>