3. How a Cochlear Implant Works

Cochlear implant systems convert everyday sounds into coded electrical impulses. These electrical pulses stimulate the hearing nerve, and the brain interprets them as sound. As the brain receives sound information very quickly, sounds are heard as they occur.

1.	Sounds are picked up by the microphone of the speech processor.
2.	The speech processor analyses and codes sounds into a special pattern of electrical pulses.
3.	These pulses are sent to the coil and are transmitted across the intact skin (via radio wave) to the implant. view
4.	The implant sends the pulses to the electrodes in the cochlea. view
5.	The electrodes stimulate the cochlea at very high rates. view
6.	The auditory nerve picks up the signal and sends it to the auditory centre in the brain. The brain recognizes these signals as sound. view