Who Invented the Hearing Aid?

The hearing aid has progressed from a hand-held horn to the electronic hearing aids of today.

Hand-Held Horns

The first devices that were used as hearing aids were a type of hand-held horn or trumpet. These horns or trumpets were held up to the ear, and sound was directed in. They were either made of wood or metal. Occasionally, the horn or the trumpet was a hollowed out horn from an animal.

They were a crude type of hearing aids, and they only amplified sound by about fifteen decibels. However, they were successful for individuals with mild hearing loss, and for individuals that had poor hearing due to aging.

Curved Earpiece Hearing Aid

The first major improvement to these types of hearing aids came in 1836. An individual by the name of Alphonsus William Webster invented the curved earpiece that could be worn on the ear.

He received the first patent for this invention, and it was a British patent. This was the first record of a hearing aid that did not have to be physically held up to the ear.

Tooth-based Hearing Aid

In 1880, R.G. Rhodes then invented and patented a hearing device composed of a piece of cardboard or rubber that was placed against the teeth. When this was placed against the teeth, it helped the conduction of sound to the auditory nerve, and this helped an individual hearing improve.

However, the device was somewhat uncomfortable and cumbersome to use. It resembled a fan with cords, and individuals could control the speed, and by controlling the speed, they could change the sound.

First Electronic Hearing Aid

The first official record of an electric hearing aid was in 1880. Francis D. Clarke and M.G. Foster received a United States patent for an electric hearing aid. The device was called, “A Device for Aiding the Deaf to Hear.”

The device operated by amplifying sound against the skull, and then transferring the vibrations of this amplified sound to the inner ear.

In 1890, another electric hearing aid was invented by Alfonzo Miltmore. This hearing aid was much more advanced than previous models. It had an earphone, a carbon dust microphone, and a battery pack. However, the hearing aid received a lot of criticisms. Users felt that the aid was unreliable, and difficult to carry around.

Further Advancements in Hearing Aids

Battery-Operated Hearing Aid

The next advancement occurred in 1898 by the Dictograph Company. The company invented a hearing aid based on the model of a telephone. The hearing aid used a microphone to capture and amplify sound.

It was the first commercial carbon-type hearing aid that could be operated by batteries. However, the model was faulty because it was only successful at amplifying sounds with lower tones.

Body-Worn Electronic Hearing Aid

In the same year, Miller Reese Hutchinson came out with a better hearing aid. He was the founder of the Akouphone company, and he used a tabletop model in his hearing aid. His hearing aid was referred to as the Acousticon. The Acousticon was commercially available beginning in 1901.

The hearing aid was the first body worn electric hearing aid. This was more convenient for users because they didn’t have to physically hold any batteries that came with the hearing aid. Following the invention of the Acousticon, Harvey Fletcher invented a better version of the body-worn, electronic hearing aid.

A number of different individuals were vital in the development of this crucial and important piece of technology.