Who Invented the Hearing Aid?

The hearing aid, as we know it today, has a long and rich history, going back over 100 years. The history of hearing aids and the evolution of this common device we all know started in the 16th century. Up until this point, it was assumed that those with hearing loss had other disabilities too. The next phase in the evolution of the hearing aid was in the 17th century when the ear trumpet was invented, which came in a number of shapes and sizes and was made from a wide variety of materials, from sheet iron to even animal horns. 

Frederic C Rein invented the collapsible trumpet in 1800’s to make a trumpet more pleasing to the eye which led to the acoustic headband. But the first electronic hearing aid was created as a direct result of Alexander Graham Bell's invention of the telephone in 1876. As the telephone had technology to control the frequency, distortion and loudness of sounds, this comprised the key components of a hearing aid.

The evolution of the electric hearing aid

Miller Reese Hutchison created the first electric hearing aid in 1898. The design harnessed an electric current, which helped the device to amplify any weak signals. In 1911, Louis Weber created the Esha-Phonophor, a device intended as a gift for a friend but this hearing aid design caught on, and eventually led to the company Siemens. As the company improved their hearing aid designs, they rose to be a household name in hearing aid manufacturing.

The advent of the vacuum hearing aid

The 1920’s saw the introduction of vacuum tube hearing aids, which expanded on the concept of hearing aids further. The tubes were able to transform speech into electric signals. The signal was then amplified. But the big problem with vacuum tubes was the sheer size of them. The hearing aids were the size of filing cabinets, which was not so easy to carry around.

Gradually advancements in technology paved the way for parts to be shrunk into a small box. However, the hearing aid was still difficult to use. Portable hearing aids around this time needed large battery packs, and as the batteries didn't last long, this proved bothersome for the average user. 

The transition to the transistor

When the transistor was invented in 1948, this replaced the vacuum tubes in hearing aids and the portability, as well as the useability of the devices combined with less distortion helped many people. As a result, this became widely popular and hearing aid sales boomed across the world, leading to more interest in advancing hearing aid devices.

The start of digital hearing aids

With the creation of the microprocessor in the 1970s, this paved the way for digital technology. Multi-channel amplitude compression and the invention of the microprocessor resulted in the ability to shrink technology which eventually paved the way for high-speed processors in the 1980s, where hearing aids began to evolve at a rapid rate.

The digital boom

As the 1980s came and went and silicon became the main material for transistors, the flexibility and portability of hearing aids progressed infinitely. 1996 saw hearing aids make the upgrade to the form we know today. Digital hearing aids gradually incorporated additional features and with the ability to customize hearing aids to the wearer, by the 2000s, digital hearing aids comprise the vast majority of the hearing aid market. 

Where next?

As hearing aids develop and become more personal to the user this is where we stand today. The personal nature of hearing aids, with so many different aspects of the listening experience being tailored to the user, as well as features like Bluetooth allowing you to connect to devices like your telephone and your television, the journey of the hearing aid has come a long way. In fact, the improvements aren't slowing down. 

With every passing year, there is a shift in the core design of hearing aids to make it more customizable to the user. This is why it's so important if you think you may have a hearing issue to consult an audiologist. Many people think the hearing aid is a bulky device that everyone can see. With the improvements of hearing aid technology, they are so subtle the vast majority of people wouldn’t notice.

Hearing aids are continuously evolving and if you are concerned that your hearing is slowing down and you need an audiologist to conduct a hearing test to show you just how great hearing aids can be for your life, get in contact with Physicians Hearing Center call today at (334) 441-4090 to book an appointment.