In this project, we will study the mechanical and acoustical effects of attaching medical devices to the human tympanic membrane. We will create models of the human middle-ear with and without the medical devices and validate the models with experimental Laser-Doppler Vibrometry measurement results. We will use our validated models to perform parametric studies for different medical devices and find their effects on human hearing. More information about this project will be provided soon. The following figures show some of the results of the FEM model of the middle-ear (without any medical devices) at different frequencies.
Figure 1 – The amplitude of vibration of structures in the middle-ear (including tympanic membrane, ossicles, joints, and ligaments) at the excitation frequency of 800 Hz in the direction of parallel to the stapes footplate piston-like motion. The excitation was uniform pressure applied to the entire tympanic membrane area laterally. The amplitude of excitation was 1 Pa.
Figure 2 - The amplitude of vibrations of structures in the middle-ear at excitation frequecny of 5000 Hz in the direction of parallel to the stapes footplate piston-like motion. It can be seen that the tympanic membrane has a more complicated vibration pattern in comparison to the low-frequency response of Figure 1. The excitation was uniform pressure applied to the entire tympanic membrane area laterally. The amplitude of excitation was 1 Pa.