# Plug-And-Play Cochlear Electrode Array - Diversity Supplement.

> **NIH NIH R44** · MEMSTIM, LLC · 2021 · $12,861

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Worldwide, approximately 466 million people suffer from disabling hearing loss. When conventional hearing
aids provide no appreciable benefit, cochlear implants are a solution. Current cochlear implants, while
beneficial in their use, are limited in their capabilities by hand-assembly of wire-bundled electrode arrays. Hand
assembly is very costly, extremely labor-intensive, and inadequate in implementing new strategies in
Otolaryngology for improving speech recognition and music appreciation.
MEMStim LLC proposes a plug-and-play advanced-manufacturing solution that relies heavily on 3D printing.
By printing conductive and nonconductive silicones, biocompatible pluggable arrays can be printed to any size,
length, shape or thickness, from several microns to tens of millimeters. Most importantly, the integrated
connectors plug readily onto stimulators by way of a novel micro-socket technology. The micro-sockets are
compatible and slide right onto the feedthrough pins. The printer resolution can output pluggable connectors
that are compatible with pin-to-pin pitches smaller than 100 μm (edge-to-edge), allowing for enhanced
miniaturization.
The 3D printed soft elastomeric arrays differ from wire-bundle cochlear implants in that they are less
stiff and more susceptible to small changes in strain [add reference?]. They fall within a category of
devices called “bioelectronics”, which have a Young’s Modulus (100 Pa-10MPa) in the range of most
biological matter such as nerve tissue. Due to this difference, the candidate will strengthen our case
to the FDA and cochlear manufacture’s themselves by conducting further electrical and mechanical
tests to prove the functionality and durability under strain. The tests will also help us better
understand the durability and reliability limits of our plug-and-play arrays for other neurostimulator
application areas, such as spinal cord stimulators and deep brain stimulators.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10328845
- **Project number:** 3R44DC018763-01S1
- **Recipient organization:** MEMSTIM, LLC
- **Principal Investigator:** angelique johnson
- **Activity code:** R44 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $12,861
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2021-03-15 → 2022-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10328845

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10328845, Plug-And-Play Cochlear Electrode Array - Diversity Supplement. (3R44DC018763-01S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10328845. Licensed CC0.

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