Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 31, 2026

The Miniature Pig: A Large Animal Model for Cochlear Implant Research
Published on: July 28, 2022
A comprehensive model of human ear for analysis of implantable hearing devices
1Biomedical Engineering Laboratory, Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering and Bioengineering Center, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA. xiangming.zhang-1@ou.edu
Abstract:
A finite element (FE) model of the human ear including the ear canal, middle ear, and spiral cochlea was constructed from histological sections of human temporal bone. Multiphysics analysis of the acoustics, structure, and fluid coupling in the ear was conducted in the model. The viscoelastic material behavior was applied to the middle ear soft tissues based on dynamic measurements of tissues in our laboratory. The FE model was first validated using the experimental data obtained in human cadaver ears, and then used to investigate the efficiency of the forward and reverse mechanical driving with middle ear implant, and the passive vibration of basilar membrane (BM) with cochlear implant placed in the cochlear scala tympani. The middle ear transfer function and the cochlear function of the BM vibration were derived from the model. This comprehensive ear model provides a novel computational tool to visualize and compute the implantable hearing devices and surgical procedures.
Related Concept Videos
Anatomy of the Ear
The Cochlea
Hearing
The Auditory Ossicles
The aptly named stapes look very much like a stirrup. The three ossicles are unique to mammals, and each plays a role in...
Auditory Pathway
When viewed cross-sectionally, the cochlea reveals the scala vestibuli and scala tympani flanking the...
