1. A slat for use in a covering for an architectural opening comprising in combination:
a nonwoven base including both binder and matrix fibers wherein the binder fibers include a thermo-sensitive sheath with a given melting temperature below the melting temperature of the matrix fibers and wherein the binder fibers and matrix fibers are thermo-mechanically bound together by melting said sheath and subsequently allowing it to cool, and
a resin material encapsulating the binder fibers and matrix fibers.
2. The slat of claim 1 wherein the binder fibers are a thermoplastic material.
3. The slat of claim 1 wherein the matrix fibers are a thermoset material.
4. The slat of claim 1 wherein the matrix fibers are a thermoplastic material.
5. The slat of claim 1 wherein said binder fibers and matrix fibers are stable at temperatures of 356\xb0 F.
6. The slat of claim 1 wherein said base includes two layers of blended binder fibers and matrix fibers with one layer being carded in the machine direction and the other layer carded in the cross direction.
7. The slat of claim 1 wherein said resin material is cross-linked in said base.
8. The slat of claim 1 wherein said slat has a transverse curvature molded therein by heat and retained by cross-linking said resin subsequent to molding the curvature.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A hearing assistance apparatus, comprising:
a sound sensor to receive acoustic signals and convert them into electrical signals;
a processor connected to process the electrical signals for hearing assistance;
an actual parameter storage for actual parameters;
a hypothetical parameter storage for hypothetical parameters;
a first storage for an actual usage log adapted to log processing of the electrical signals using the actual parameters; and
a second storage for a hypothetical usage log adapted to log processing of the electrical signals using the hypothetical parameters,
wherein the processor is adapted to update the actual usage log using the actual usage parameters and to update the hypothetical usage log using the hypothetical storage parameters.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising:
an analog-to-digital (AD) converter connected to convert analog sound signals received by the sound sensor into time domain digital data for processing by the processor.
3. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising:
a digital-to-analog (DA) converter connected to receive processed digital data from the processor and convert it to output analog signals.
4. The apparatus of claim 3, comprising:
a receiver to convert the output analog signals to sound.
5. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising:
a second hypothetical parameter storage for storing a second set of hypothetical parameters.
6. The apparatus of claim 5, comprising:
a third storage for a second hypothetical usage log, and wherein the processor is adapted to update the second hypothetical usage log using the hypothetical storage parameters.
7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sound sensor includes a first microphone and further comprising a second microphone, the processor adapted for determining omnidirectional and directional modes of operation based on the actual usage parameters and adapted for updating the actual usage log, the processor further adapted for updating the hypothetical usage log based on the hypothetical usage parameters.
8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sound sensor is a microphone and the processor is a digital signal processor adapted for hearing aid processing.
9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the digital signal processor includes the actual parameter storage, the hypothetical parameter storage, the first storage, and the second storage.
10. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a third storage for a second hypothetical usage log, and wherein the processor is adapted to update the second hypothetical usage log using the hypothetical storage parameters.
11. A hearing assistance apparatus, comprising:
a hearing assistance processor;
a microphone for receiving sounds and converting them into electrical signals for the hearing aid processor;
actual usage log means for recording parameters of the sounds by the processor using one or more actual usage parameters; and
hypothetical usage log means for recording parameters of the sounds by the processor using one or more hypothetical usage parameters.
12. The apparatus of claim 11, comprising a receiver for producing acoustic energy based on signals processed by the hearing assistance processor.
13. The apparatus of claim 11, comprising wireless interface means for transmitting actual usage.
14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein hypothetical usage is transmitted by the wireless interface means.
15. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising:
an analog-to-digital (AD) converter connected to convert analog sound signals received by the sound sensor into time domain digital data for processing by the processor;
a digital-to-analog (DA) converter connected to receive processed digital data from the processor and convert it to output analog signals; and
a receiver to convert the output analog signals to sound,
wherein the sound sensor includes at least one microphone and the processor is a digital signal processor.
16. The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising a telemetry interface configured to send data wirelessly to a remote storage.
17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the telemetry interface is configured for wireless communications according to a BLUETOOTH protocol.
18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the telemetry interface is configured for wireless communications according to a wireless network protocol, such as IEEE 802.11, IEEE 802.15, or IEEE 802.16.
19. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the telemetry interface is configured for cellular communications.
20. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the telemetry interface is configured for packetized communications.