A cochlear implants is surgically placed in the inner ear and connected to a receiver placed around the ear. It picks up sound and transmits it as electrical impulses to the brain. The way the receiver does this is through a processor. It converts audio streams into digital data. The data then goes to another chip where the data is translated into electrical impulses. The electrical impulses are then passed down an electrode, which stimulates a nerve that causes the brain hear sounds. The implant system effectively bypasses the damaged sound-detecting hair cells an directly stimulates the auditory nerve. They are of no help to people with a damaged cochlea or auditory nerve.
