Reference Structure for a Tracking System
First Claim
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1. A system to determine the position of an instrument within a volume of a patient, comprising:
- a first set of electrodes positioned on the patient;
a drive system operable to drive the set of electrodes to inject a current into the volume of the patient;
a processor operable to control the drive system; and
a first reference electrode fixedly positioned on a surface of the patient at a first reference location and operable to sense a voltage based on the current injected into the volume of the patient;
a processor to determine a reference electrical property at the first reference position;
wherein the first reference electrode patch is positioned on a ventral side of the patient and operable to sense an electrical property at the first fixed reference location on the patient based on the injected current.
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Abstract
An volume of a patient can be mapped with a system operable to identify a plurality of locations and save a plurality of locations of a mapping instrument. The mapping instrument can include one or more electrodes that can sense a voltage that can be correlated to a three dimensional location of the electrode at the time of the sensing or measurement. Therefore, a map of a volume can be determined based upon the sensing of the plurality of points without the use of other imaging devices. An implantable medical device can then be navigated relative to the mapping data.
129 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A system to determine the position of an instrument within a volume of a patient, comprising:
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a first set of electrodes positioned on the patient; a drive system operable to drive the set of electrodes to inject a current into the volume of the patient; a processor operable to control the drive system; and a first reference electrode fixedly positioned on a surface of the patient at a first reference location and operable to sense a voltage based on the current injected into the volume of the patient; a processor to determine a reference electrical property at the first reference position; wherein the first reference electrode patch is positioned on a ventral side of the patient and operable to sense an electrical property at the first fixed reference location on the patient based on the injected current. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A method of determining a position of an instrument within a volume of patient with a reference member, comprising:
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connecting to the patient a set of axis electrodes; injecting a current into the patient with the set of axis electrodes; positioning a first reference electrode on the patient at a first reference position; evaluating an electrical property based on input of the first reference electrode including measuring a voltage drop of a patient-to-axis electrode interface; positioning an instrument with a position element into the patient; evaluating the electrical property within the patient based at least in part on sensing with the position element; and determining a position of the instrument based on the evaluated electrical property. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method of determining the position of an instrument within a volume of a patient, comprising:
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positioning at least three sets of electrodes on the patient; driving the at least three sets of electrodes to inject a current along three substantially orthogonal axes into the volume of the patient; fixedly positioning a first reference electrode on a ventral surface of the patient at a first reference position; sensing a voltage based on the current injected into the volume of the patient; and automatically determining a reference electrical property at the first reference position. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification