Hearing Loops of the Future? – Bluetooth Hearing Aids & Auracast Broadcast Audio
Hearing Loops of the Future? – Bluetooth Hearing Aids & Auracast Broadcast Audio
Have you heard about the new technology that connects hearing aids, headphones or other Bluetooth devices to wireless audio broadcasts in public places? In this post, I’ll talk about the newly announced Auracast broadcast audio and also explain how this could replace existing technology known as hearing loops in public places.
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Hi, I’m Dr. Derek – audiologist, audio engineer, and musician with ProFitHearing.com bringing you the best insight in today’s latest hearing aids, headphones, and audio technology to improve your life. If you have concerns about your hearing, always consult with your local physician or audiologist.
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Hearing Loops Replaced by Auracast Broadcast Audio?
The Bluetooth Special Interest Group has announced Auracast broadcast audio. This is the feature of Bluetooth LE that was previously known as Audio Sharing.
So, why is this a big deal?
Auracast broadcast audio allows for audio streaming to an unlimited number of nearby Bluetooth devices. These devices can include hearing aids, cochlear implants, earbuds, headphones and speakers. Previously, Bluetooth technology would only stream audio between two paired devices. The ability to stream audio to unlimited devices is game changing for public venues.
Broadcast audio in a public venue could be live audio like someone speaking into a microphone, or recorded audio like music or TV sound transmitted wirelessly to someone’s listening device. You could be waiting at the airport and hear the public TV sound streaming to your hearing aids while the person next to you listens to the same audio with their wireless earbuds. This technology can be applied to any public space like the gym, theater, church, or conference center.
Auracast broadcast audio also extends to personal listening devices like tablets and smartphones. So, for example you and a friend could be watching the same movie on your smartphone while you both listen to the audio with different Bluetooth earbuds.
Use of Auracast broadcast audio for hearing aids and cochlear implants is similar to older technology known as the hearing loop which is an assistive listening system.
Hearing loops are loops of wire or inductive loops that can be installed into public places to surround the perimeter of the room. Hearing aids and cochlear implants with a built-in telecoil or small coil of wire inside can wirelessly receive audio from an installed loop system through a process called induction. Loop systems might be found in places like a theater or church.
The advantage of both Auracast broadcast audio and hearing loops is that the audio signal that you’re listening to is not degraded by noise in your environment nor is sound quality affected by distance away from the sound source. This technology can be especially helpful to people with hearing loss who have difficulty hearing in challenging listening environments.
Hearing Loops of the Future?
If you think the Auracast broadcast audio feature would be something you would enjoy using, let me know by commenting below! To learn more about the latest Bluetooth LE features see this post HERE. If you received value from this post, go to https://www.youtube.com/profithearing and check out all the videos on our YouTube channel.
-Dr. Derek