Implantable cardiac system with a selectable active housing

• US 20040068303A1
• Filed: 10/04/2002
• Published: 04/08/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cameron Incorporated (Schlumberger NV)
• Original Assignee: Cameron Incorporated (Schlumberger NV)
• Inventors: Ostroff, Alan H.
• Granted Patent: US 7,062,329 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/37
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3752 Details of casing-lead connections

Abstract

The housing of an implantable cardiac device is selectively made active or passive by an external connector member, such as a shorting plug or lead connector inserted in its header. Advantageously, the header, the shorting plug, and the lead connector all are constructed and arranged to conform to a pre-selected standard in the industry, such as IS-4. The header includes an access hole that is provided with several housing connector elements connected either to the conductive surface or to an internal electrical circuit. The external connector members each have a shaft with external conductor elements. Each shaft includes conductors such as wires. The housing is made active by inserting into the header an external connector element having two of its external connector elements connected by a shorting wire.

Claims

1. An implantable cardiac system comprising:

a housing holding an electrical circuit and having a conductive surface and a header, the header being formed with an access hole and a plurality of housing connector elements arranged in the access hole that selectively couple to the conductive surface and the electrical circuit; and

an external connector member adapted to be inserted into the access hole, the external member being formed with a plurality of external connector elements being arranged and constructed to mechanically and electrically contact the housing connector elements when the external member is inserted into the access hole, wherein the electrical interactions between the external connector elements and the housing connector elements result in an active or passive cardiac system.

2. The implantable cardiac system of claim 1, wherein the external connector member includes a shaft having the external connector elements spaced axially along the shaft.

3. The implantable cardiac system of claim 1, wherein shorting elements are selectively connected between external connector elements to mechanically program the cardiac system active or passive.

4. The implantable cardiac system of claim 1, wherein the header further includes a first housing connector element coupled to the conductive surface and a second housing connector element coupled to the electrical circuit.

5. The implantable cardiac system of claim 4, wherein the external connector member further includes a first external connector element, a second external connector element and a shorting member coupling the first and second external connector elements, wherein when the external connector member is inserted within the access hole, the electrical connection between the external connector elements and the housing connector elements render the housing active.

6. The implantable cardiac system of claim 1, wherein said external connector member includes a shaft and said connector elements are spaced axially along said shaft.

7. The implantable cardiac system of claim 1, wherein the external connector member is a shorting plug.

8. The implantable cardiac system of claim 1, wherein the external connector member is a lead connector.

9. An implantable cardiac system comprising:

a housing comprising a conductive outer surface, a header, and an electrical circuit disposed within the housing, wherein the header further includes at least two access holes extending through the header and having a plurality of housing connector elements spaced axially along each of the access holes, wherein the housing connector elements are selectively connected to the conductive outer surface of the housing and the electrical circuit;

a lead connector sized and shaped to fit into one access hole and having a plurality of external connector elements being spaced axially along a proximal portion of the lead connector that mechanically and electrically couples to the plurality of housing connector elements; and

an external connector member sized and shaped to fit into a second access hole and having a plurality of external connector elements along a proximal portion of the external connector member that mechanically and electrically couples to the plurality of housing connector elements;

wherein the electrical interactions between the external connector elements on the lead connector and the external connector member with their corresponding housing connector elements result in an active or passive cardiac system.

10. The implantable cardiac system of claim 9, wherein the lead connector further includes a first external connector element, a second external connector element and a shorting member coupling the first and second external connector elements, wherein when the external connector member is inserted within the access hole, the electrical connection between the external connector elements and the housing connector elements render the housing active.

11. The implantable cardiac system of claim 9, wherein the external connector member is a second lead connector.

12. The implantable cardiac system of claim 11, wherein the first lead connector renders the cardiac system passive and the second lead connector renders the cardiac system passive.

13. The implantable cardiac system of claim 11, wherein the first lead connector renders the cardiac system passive and the second lead connector renders the cardiac system active.

14. The implantable cardiac system of claim 9, wherein the external connector member is a shorting plug.

15. The implantable cardiac system of claim 14, wherein the lead connector renders the cardiac system passive and the shorting plug renders the cardiac system passive.

16. The implantable cardiac system of claim 14, wherein the lead connector renders the cardiac system active and the shorting plug renders the cardiac system passive.

17. The implantable cardiac system of claim 14, wherein the lead connector renders the cardiac system passive and the shorting plug renders the cardiac system active.

18. An implantable cardiac system comprising:

a housing holding an electrical circuit and having a conductive surface and a header, the header being formed with an access hole and a plurality of housing connector elements spaced axially along the access hole and including a first housing connector element connected electrically to the conductive outer surface and a second connector element connected electrically to the electrical circuit; and

a shorting plug including a shaft sized and shaped to fit into the access hole, and having a plurality of external connector elements being spaced axially along the shaft, the shorting plug further including a shorting element adapted to electrically short between the first connector element and the second connector element;

wherein the shorting plug and header are sized and shaped to provide electrical contact between each of the external connector elements and the corresponding housing connector element when the shorting plug is inserted into the access hole.

19. The implantable cardiac system of claim 18, wherein the shorting plug includes several external connector elements including a ring disposed circumferentially about the shaft.

20. The implantable cardiac system of claim 18, wherein the shaft has a tip and one of said external connector elements is disposed at the tip.