Terms of use
Terms of use of the platform
1. Who runs the platform. The EARPLANTED platform is run by the Faculty of Physics of the University of Bialystok. It is a research and rehabilitation tool for people with cochlear implants, provided free of charge. The platform is not a medical device, it does not replace a visit to a doctor or a speech therapist, and it is not a social network.
2. What you will find on the platform. The platform consists of two independent modules. Melodic lines trains the recognition of pitch and timbre. Speech perception trains speech understanding: you listen to fragments of a recording or of a text read by a synthesiser, repeat them in your own voice, and the application compares your utterance with the original text. You may use either module on its own.
3. How to become a user. Accounts are not created by users themselves. You fill in the registration form, giving an e-mail address and a few details needed for the research. The request is reviewed by the platform administrator. Once it is approved, you receive a user number and a starting password by e-mail. At your first login the application will ask you to set your own password.
4. Your account. You log in with your user number and password — not with your name. Do not share your password and do not set it to be the same as your user number. You can change the password at any time in the Account menu. One person uses one account — otherwise the research results stop being reliable.
5. What data we collect. We store: your user number, the e-mail address given at registration (used only for correspondence concerning the platform), the information from the registration form (year of birth, sex, implant side), the results of your work in both modules and — in the speech perception module — the recordings of your utterances together with their transcription. Results are used for scientific purposes in anonymised form only, that is without any information that would make it possible to establish who you are. Details are described in the privacy policy.
6. Material you upload. In the speech perception module you work with your own audio and text files. Upload only material you are entitled to use — you are responsible for its legality. The audio file is deleted from the server once the segment has been processed; what remains in the database are the results of your work.
7. Withdrawing from the platform. Participation is voluntary and you may withdraw at any time. You submit the request in the Account menu → Account deletion; you may give a reason, but you do not have to. You may also write to earplanted@uwb.edu.pl. Once the request has been processed, we delete the account and the personal data that allow you to be identified — only the research results remain, linked to the user number, with no way of establishing your identity. From that moment the results can no longer be attributed to a person, so they cannot be recovered or deleted on a separate request.
8. Access to the account. The administrator may block access to the platform if an account is used in a way that threatens the security of the platform or the integrity of the research. Blocking does not delete results. Access is restored by the administrator by setting a new password.
9. Technical requirements. You need a device with a web browser and an internet connection, with sound switched on. The speech perception module additionally requires a microphone, for which the browser will ask your permission. Practical hints can be found in the general advice and in the advice for the speech perception module.
10. Contact. For matters concerning the platform, your account and participation in the research, write to earplanted@uwb.edu.pl. Contact details of the hosting unit are on the Contact page.