An audiometer is a machine used by ENT (ear, nose and throat) clinics and audiology centers to measure hearing loss. Audiometers are typically part of the equipment used during an audiometry test. There are both software and hardware-based audiometers available in the market.
Audiometers built as a physical device emit audio tones at varying intensities. During the hearing loss evaluation test, the machine's output is fed to headphones and heard in each ear separately by the subject. A feedback button that can be pressed enables the subject to acknowledge each tone as they hear it.
These machines can be standalone or connected to a computer that offers a full suite with easy control. There are many types and categorizations, including the basic division of all audiometers into air or bone conduction systems. They can be handhelds or portable devices, or a stationary full-fledged machine with all kinds of features.
Software-based systems function in pretty much the same way, sending out a tone to the subject on a headphone and collecting feedback through a button. The difference is in the way the tone is generated. In this case, the software merely sends out stored tones to the computer's sound card.
Audiometers built as a physical machine are more expensive, but provide the high degree of accuracy that hospitals, researchers and audiology centers need. Regular calibration is still essential to ensure the tone heard and the level shown in the display match each other. Proper calibration is also necessary to ensure a global standard for testing and measurement of hearing levels.
Audiometry software may be used as an alternative to a whole new machine. It will be cheaper and can be used by anyone at home and without assistance. However, calibration of the software is much more difficult and accuracy harder to obtain. People can still use it for regular testing, and only seek expert medical opinion if they discover any hearing loss.
The point of all this, whether it is a software or hardware-based system, is to find out exactly when the subject stops hearing the tone. This helps physicians diagnose hearing problems and provide treatment. It usually involves at least a bit of ear cleaning and perhaps some ear drops, if not a hearing aid or even surgery.
Industrial audiometric testing also needs the same audiometers, and the process followed is about the same as described above. However, subjects are not required to go the clinic or audiology center. Rather, a mobile lab packed with all the equipment and technicians is dispatched to the industrial facility to evaluate how workers are being affected by the onsite noise.
The results are not only used to evaluate hearing loss, but also to decide whether the facility needs to implement noise muffling mechanisms. Such regular on-site checkups may also be required in group health plans in order to protect workers from any further loss in their hearing ability. An audiometer used in such applications must be extremely accurate, calibrated to within fractions of a decibel.
Audiometers built as a physical device emit audio tones at varying intensities. During the hearing loss evaluation test, the machine's output is fed to headphones and heard in each ear separately by the subject. A feedback button that can be pressed enables the subject to acknowledge each tone as they hear it.
These machines can be standalone or connected to a computer that offers a full suite with easy control. There are many types and categorizations, including the basic division of all audiometers into air or bone conduction systems. They can be handhelds or portable devices, or a stationary full-fledged machine with all kinds of features.
Software-based systems function in pretty much the same way, sending out a tone to the subject on a headphone and collecting feedback through a button. The difference is in the way the tone is generated. In this case, the software merely sends out stored tones to the computer's sound card.
Audiometers built as a physical machine are more expensive, but provide the high degree of accuracy that hospitals, researchers and audiology centers need. Regular calibration is still essential to ensure the tone heard and the level shown in the display match each other. Proper calibration is also necessary to ensure a global standard for testing and measurement of hearing levels.
Audiometry software may be used as an alternative to a whole new machine. It will be cheaper and can be used by anyone at home and without assistance. However, calibration of the software is much more difficult and accuracy harder to obtain. People can still use it for regular testing, and only seek expert medical opinion if they discover any hearing loss.
The point of all this, whether it is a software or hardware-based system, is to find out exactly when the subject stops hearing the tone. This helps physicians diagnose hearing problems and provide treatment. It usually involves at least a bit of ear cleaning and perhaps some ear drops, if not a hearing aid or even surgery.
Industrial audiometric testing also needs the same audiometers, and the process followed is about the same as described above. However, subjects are not required to go the clinic or audiology center. Rather, a mobile lab packed with all the equipment and technicians is dispatched to the industrial facility to evaluate how workers are being affected by the onsite noise.
The results are not only used to evaluate hearing loss, but also to decide whether the facility needs to implement noise muffling mechanisms. Such regular on-site checkups may also be required in group health plans in order to protect workers from any further loss in their hearing ability. An audiometer used in such applications must be extremely accurate, calibrated to within fractions of a decibel.
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