OpenEarable 1.4: Dual Microphones Earpiece to Capture In-Ear and Outer-Ear Audio Signals

In recent years, earables have emerged as a focal point for exploring novel sensing principles on the ears. OpenEarable, an open reference platform, has been developed to integrate various sensors in and around the ears. However, it has thus far lacked the capability to capture audio both inside the ear canal and outside simultaneously. To address this gap, we introduce a novel earpiece for OpenEarable equipped with two microphones, designed to mimic commercial earbuds like AirPods, which commonly restrict access to internal microphones. This new earpiece utilizes the interchangeable 8-pin connector earpiece concept of OpenEarable, enabling the exploration of algorithms that leverage both internal and external sounds captured at the ears (e.g., noise canceling). By updating the existing app and dashboard, OpenEarable 1.4 seamlessly integrates with the existing suite of devices within the OpenEarable ecosystem. We validate the earpiece by showcasing its abilities to occlude the ear canal and measure the heartbeat of a wearer. The enhancement of OpenEarable facilitates streamlined and large-scale audio data collection, advancing the development of novel earable technologies.