Patent ID: 7873420

Claim:
A cochlear implant system, the system comprising: a speech processor for converting an incoming acoustic signal into an encoded signal, the speech processor adapted for placement external to a user; a stimulation module for stimulating an electrode array as a function of the encoded signal received from the speech processor, the stimulation module adapted for placement internal the user; and wherein one of the stimulation module and the speech processor includes a first password preprogrammed in non-volatile memory for transmitting to the other one of the stimulation module and the speech processor, the other one of the stimulation module and the speech processor including a second password preprogrammed in non-volatile memory, wherein a match between the first password and the second password causes a first mode of operation in which the electrode array is stimulated as a function of the encoded signal, and wherein a mismatch between the first password and the second password causes a second mode of operation that prevents the electrode array from being stimulated as a function of the encoded signal, such that the speech processor is not interchangeable between stimulation modules with different passwords.