Long Life, Rechargeable Hearing Aid

We will develop a high reliability, high-energy, rechargeable power cell that will be small enoughto be incorporated in an in-the-ear (ITE) device and contain adequate power to operate a hearing aidreliably for 1 day, with backup power to operate for an additional 2 days (assuming normal hearing aidusage). The rechargeable cell will last for the entire 3-5 year lifetime of the hearing aid. Included is thedesign of a simple, reliable charge system that will have minimal maintenance requirements. The hearingaid will normally be placed into the charge receptacle each evening for 6 hours, to be fully recharged bymorning. In Phase I, the feasibility of the concept will be established by designing the specific hearingaid cell configuration, modeling the performance of this cell from experimental data, and fabricating aprototype cell device for demonstration of the ability to provide adequate power for the hearing aid overthe appropriate discharge time, and to demonstrate the recyclability of the battery at the required chargerate. A solid-state lithium-based technology will be adapted to this hearing aid product.