Contact lens for the ear comes on the market

Mannheim-based start-up Vibrosonic is launching its "hearing contact lens". The device is invisible and is said to be better than normal hearing aids.

Medtech Vibrosonic has launched its hearing contact lens. The device, which is no bigger than a button, is inserted into the ear and is invisible. The behind-the-ear module with the battery can be flexibly removed while the hearing contact lens remains in the ear. The contact lens for the ear is suitable for patients with mild to moderate hearing problems.

Unlike competing products, the device sits directly on the eardrum and amplifies vibrations directly to the ossicles. This mimics natural hearing as much as possible, and especially low and very high-pitched sounds are heard better and without feedback. "The low tones are crucial when enjoying music, for example, because they make the sound richer," says CEO Dominik Kaltenbacher. "Being able to hear high tones well is important for understanding speech, because the coded overtones make up the character of a voice." The hearing aid is suitable for people aged 18 and over and must be custom-made.

Vibrosonic was spun out of the Fraunhofer Project Group for Automation in Medicine and Biotechnology in 2016. Also involved was the University of Tübingen ENT clinic. Vibrosonic now employs 27 people.