Instrumentation in Audiology

-1 T/P class of 1h/s: brief exum of the contents and application of physical and math. concepts with ex. of Audiology.
-1 1h/s T/P class, help the student to apply the concepts and mechanisms in problem solving;
-1 PL class of 1h/s, carried out accompanied by lab activities, for processing experimental data, relating them to the contents of T/P.
Optional continuous assessment:
-reports of experimental activities (EA) to be resolved at each class (from a PL matrix).
-two written evaluation tests (PE1 + PE2) to be scheduled in the first week of classes (T/P matrix). The final score is given by the average of the classifications obtained at all evaluation moments:Final Grade = (AE + PE1 + PE2)/3, in which PE represents the average of the classification obtained in the various reports (SE), and PE1 and PE2 represents the evaluation obtained in the written evaluation tests. The mean of the components of the T/P and PL evaluation must be equal to or greater than 9 values.

The Curricular Unit of Instrumentation in Audiology will allow students to:
Assimilate the general concepts of electronics and electroacoustics applicable to the area of audiology; Classify, distinguish and characterize the different types of transducers; Assimilate the basic principles of analog signal processing; Characterize and identify the main components of the equipment; Identify calibration equipment; Distinguish the different maintenance and calibration procedures of audiometric equipment and their standards; Be updated about technological advances in electroacoustics applied in audiology.

Mathematics:Nº complexes – addition, multiplication, division and potentiation of complex numbers; conjugate of a complex number; geometric transformations.
Electricity and electronics fundamentals: Electric current-electric current intensity; electrical resistance and Ohm’s law; direct current circuits: voltage and current sources, association of passive components, Kirchhoff laws. Alternating current–fasorial representation of alternating current and sinusoidal voltage; RC, RL and RLC circuits; Resonance in series and parallel RLC circuits; concepts of impedance and electrical admittance; Generalised impedance/admittance: parallelism between acoustic, mechanical and electrical systems. Practical case. Passive filters. Operational amplifiers. Amplifiers. Electroacoustic instrumentation: Transducers: general description, classification, electromechanical principles, dynamic characteristics and performances.
Main components of the equipment. Calibrations, maintenance and standards.

NAO