Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 16, 2026
Systematic Hearing Performance Evaluation Process for Adolescents with Cochlear Implantation at Early Ages
Published on: March 24, 2023
Genetic algorithms for adaptive psychophysical procedures: recipient-directed design of speech-processor MAPs
Gregory H Wakefield1, Chris van den Honert, Wendy Parkinson
1Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA. ghw@umich.edu
Objectives:
The goal of the research is to evaluate the application of genetic algorithms (GAs) in listener-directed optimization of audio-processing designs. We hypothesize that cochlear-implant recipients can use a GA-guided adaptive psychophysical search procedure to select useful designs from among a large number of speech processor MAPS.
Design:
An adaptive psychophysical procedure was developed in which a listener's preferred four out of eight speech processor MAPs were updated according to a genetic algorithm. Experiments involving cochlear-implant recipients were conducted to characterize both the convergence behavior of the adaptive procedure as well as properties of the MAPs optimized by the recipient.
Results:
Results from five cochlear-implant recipients indicate that the adaptive procedure converges to useful speech processor MAPs within twenty iterations.
Conclusion:
The results suggest a means whereby a potentially large number of audio-processing designs can be searched efficiently by a human listener without requiring excessive amounts of feedback or prior knowledge about the listener's preferences. In the case of cochlear-implant recipients, it may be possible to use this procedure as an aid to the clinician in the fitting of a speech processor MAP.
