ftcar when 45° to the AND Paystotocy oF THE Avprrory SYSTEM - ciariER 2 Loudspeaker “WS: WY Head Shadow [eras High Frequency shor waveenatn //; J CLLETADLLELDPLAL EE (eX sures - tne aoa ws 4 right compared to when it is 45° to the left Ge. 45° versus 315°). The sound level at the right eardrum is greater when the sound ‘comes from 45° to the right (“near ear”) com- pared to when it comes from 45° to the left (far ear”). Notice that the shape of the curve also changes depending on the azimuth, This graph shows the results at two repro- sentative azimuths. Curves obtained from ‘many azimuths all around the head would reveal a continuum of these kinds of differ- ences (Shaw, 1974) Low frequencies have wavelengths that are long relative to the size of the head, so Figure 2-17, Sound coming from @ Joudspeaker off to right side (a) ar ives differently at the two ears An acoustical shadow (the head shadow effect) occurs for high-irequency sounds because their wavelengths are small compared to the sizeof the head (b) Because of their large wave- lengths, low-frequency sounds are not subjected to a head shadow be- cause they are able to bend around the head (0). that diffraction can occur. In other words, they are able to bend around the head to the far ear with little if any loss of level (Fig. 2~ 170. However, the sound will arrive at the near ear earlier than at the far ear, constitut- ing an inter-ear (interauraD time difference. Interaural intensity and time differences pro- vide the principal cues needed for directional hearing Pinna Effect. What does the pinna do for u: thas long been known that any ampli tion provided by the pina is essentially neg ike appearance, ligible in spite of its funnelBssrvriais or Auprovocy Ear Canal Transfer Funeten lor the Fight Ear with Laudepaaer at Azimuth of “49 Degioes Fight (2s he "Near Ear) and 45 Degrees Let fas ihe "Far Ear”) 49! Left Gain at the Earcrum (48) ‘Ore ge eese8s 8 19000 Frequency (Hz) Figure 2-18, The azimuth effect Ear canal transfer functions of the right ear when the Joudspeaker 's located at azimuths of 45° tothe right (a “near ear” situation”) versus 45° 10 the let (@ “far ear” situation”). Dased on data by Shaw (1974) and Shaw & Vaillancourt (1985) and that its main contribution to hearing is in the realm of sound source localization (Bekesy & Rosenblith, 1958). (To appreciate the importance of the pinna directional hear- ing, one has only to watch a cat orient its pinnae toward a sound source.) The pinne rovides sound localization cues because its asymmetrical and irregular shape, ridges, “and depressions modify the spectram of a sound ina way thai depends on the direction “of the Source (lauert, 1962). ‘The simplest ‘example i that sounds coming, from the rear are obstructed by the pinna so that some of the high-frequency components of their spec tra are attenuated compared to the same sounds arriving from the front. ‘These kinds of pinna-telated spectral differences are par ticularly important when inter-ear sound dif ferences are negligible or absent. This is the case for localizations in the medial plane and or when trying to localize sounds with just one ear 54 ‘The Middle Ear Transformer The sound signal that reaches the ear in the form of eir vibrations must be transmitted to the cochlea, which is a fluid-filled system. The impedance of the cochlear fluids is much ‘greater than the impedance of the air. Asa result, most of the sound energy would be reflected back if airborne sound were to impinge directly on the cochlear fluids, and only about 0.1% of it would actually be transmitted. This situation is analogous to the reflection of eizborne sound energy off the water's surface at the beach, which is, why you cannot hear your friends talking when your head is uncer the water. Tho middle ear system overcomes this imped ance mismatch by acting as a mechanical transformer that boosts the original signal so that energy can be efficiently transmitted to the cochlea ‘The trensformer function of the middle ear is accomplished by the combination of three mechar vantage ) the the tyn action c tributio Here, ares of ted tot jast as thumbt of its p vided 0 pressur The drum c attach middle valves membr manub,AroMY AND Puysiotocy or rie Auptrony Siri» curren 2 mechanisms, including (1) the area ratio ad vantage of the eardrum to the oval window, 2) the curved membrane buckling effect of the tympanic membrane, and (3) the lever action of the ossicular chain. The largest con: tribution comes from the area advantage Here, the force that is exerted over the larger area of the tympanic membrane is transmit ted to the smaller area of the oval window, just as the force applied over the head of a thumbtack is concentrated onto the tiny area of its point (Fig. 2-19). Pressure is force di vided over area (p= F/A),so that concentrat ing the same force from a larger area of the eardrum down to a smaller area of the oval ‘window results ina proportional boost in the pressure at the oval window. The curved membrane buckling mecha- nism is illustrated in Figure 2-20. The ear- drum curves from its rim at both ends to its attachment to the manubrium toward the middle. As a result, eardrum vibration in- volves greater displacement for the curved membranes and less displacement for the manubrium, which might be envisioned as a Tympanic S Membrane % eed & Larger Aveo CZ Same Force | Lower Pressure | Duckling effect. A boost in force accompa- nies the smaller displacement of the manu rium because the product of force and displacement must be the sameon both sid ofa lever (F, xD, =F, x D,). The third and smallest contributor to the middle ear trans former mechanism is the lever action of the ossicular chain. Figure 2-21 shows how the malleus constitutes the longer leg of this le ver and the incus is the shorter leg, as well es the axis of rotation. How much of a boost docs this trans former mechanism provide? To answer this question we can plug come representative values into the relationships just discussed. The area of the eardrum is roughly 85mm"; however, only about two-thirds of this area vibrates effectively (Bekesy, 1960), s0 that the effective area of the eardrum is something like 56.7 mm®. The area of the oval window is roughly 32mm. Hence, the area ratio is 56.7 to32, 07 177 tol. The ossicular lever ratio is about 1.3 to 1. So far, the tofal advantage is 177 x 1.3 = 23 to I. In terms of prossure the decibel value of this ratio would be Stapedial tapes. Fooiplate ‘Oval Window Key) S (Gmall Area) ‘ial Arca Some Force ice >” PressuRE Force appliod to & arg ‘Deal concentsted rao smaer area Figure 2-19, The area advantage involves concentrating the force applied over the tym. panic membrane to the smaller area of the oval window.Essevtiats of Avptonocy Post. qued. © Figure 2-20. (a) The curved membrane buckling principle involves a boost in force at the or AXIS OF ROTATION ‘manubrium because it moves with less displacement than the curved eardrum membra (@) Variations in the amount of displacement are shown by concentric contours in this photograph and corresponciing drawing of the vibration pattern of the cat's eardrum at 500H2. The two areas of concentric contours on both sides of the manubrium show the eardrum’s vibration pattern agrees with the curved membrane principle. From Tonndort & Khanna (1970), with permission of Aun Otol Rhinol Laryagal 20 x log(23/1) =27dB. However, if we add the curved membrane buckling advantage of 2 to 1, the ratio becomes 23 x 2 = 46 to 1 In decibels of pressure, the total advantage now becomes 20 x log(46/1) = 33dB. This is only an approximation; the actual size of the pressure advantage varies considerably with frequency (Nedzelnitsky, 1980). Inner Ear ‘The Cochlea Recall the inner ears set up like a duct inside of a duct The outer duct is called the os- seous or bony labyrinth because its wallsare made of the surrounding bone. The inside ductis made of membranous materials and is Asis Rotatior More Les thus cal resente It is this ap Figure the aud lea. Th steel pi pliable closed way int the pie nd lel chambe pletely upper ¢ the low We nov coloring middle we pou ing inte find the chambe hose de end of bersare the opeAnatomy aND PuystoLooy oF THe Auprrory System - ciuren 2 Shearing Force Pivot Prot Reticular ch imbue POR! Poigt Lamina sending of Cla "(Bailar Meare . Osceous Spiral Bi34 He Tamina ee a Figure 2-39, Relative motion between the basilar and tectorial membranes places a shear- aa ing force on the stereocila so they are bent away from the modiolus when the cochlear duct the is displaced upward. Based on Davis, 1958, lar lial, which appears as a deviation or shift in hair cells appears to modify the mechanics of vot the de (direct current) baseline. the organ of Corti so that the inner hair cells ions Recall that the outer hair cells are directly “ean be activated by faint sound levels and the connected to the tectorial membrane, receive respond faithfully to narrow frequency neural signals from the olivocochlear bundle, jechanism appears fo account capability of motility. These for the sensitivity needed to hear soft sounds, e nstitute an active, micro- and the ability to hear fine frequency distinc “mechanical eystem that sensitizes and fine. tions. Figure 2-40 shows an example of the “funes the responsiveness of the cochlea. In sharply tuned response (tuning curve) of a is to ‘other words, the motile activity of the outer normal cochlea that is seen only in live ani- 20 | al | «0 Fgure2-40._ Thesharpy peaked curve reveals the very narrow, mechanical ning of the bast ~ eee eed oss fealty cocklen Garrow! The sharp peak is lost when the inte. grity of the cochlea is compro- ° 411ity 1] mised, or postmortem, as shown 1000 2000 5000 10000 20000 -=«DY ‘the other curve. Idealized curves based on findings by Frequency (Hz) Sellick etal (1982) Stimulus Level (dB SPL) 75