Military Need:

Effective teamwork and face-to-face communication are essential to military operational success and warfighter survivability, both of which are compromised during firefights where impulse noise cancellation deteriorates a team’s ability to communicate vocally

WISSPER

Wearable Integrated Speaker-less Sound Protection using Electrostimulative Resonance (WISSPER)

While currently deployed noise cancellation systems work well at cancelling harmful sound, they lack a continuous communication feature during variable high noise situations, leading to inconsistent use. This is especially true of active duty personnel in combat theatres where long-term comfort, loss of situational awareness, and difficulty in persistent communications across different noise environments lead to non-use during these time periods

Vivonics, Inc. and Mayo Clinic auditory researchers are developing a system that will deliver both the desired hearing protection and face-to-face communication capabilities during such variable noise situations through the combination of proven, currently deployed hearing protection systems and a novel device that selectively and non-invasively communicates around this protection.

Disclaimer: This material is based upon work supported by the US Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Natick Contracting Division under Contract No. W911QY-19-P-0118. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the US Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Natick Contracting Division.

(Award W911QY-19-P-0118 is titled: Wearable Integrated Speaker-less Sound Protection using Electrostimulative Resonance (WISSPER)

Product under development, not yet available for commercial sale