External Charger for a Medical Implantable Device Using Field Inducing Coils to Improve Coupling
First Claim
1. An external charger for use with an implantable medical device, comprising:
- a primary coil for producing a first magnetic field for providing power to the implantable medical device;
a plurality of position determination coils for producing second magnetic fields; and
an alignment sensing circuit for determining an alignment of the primary coil relative to the implantable medical device, wherein the determination is based on electrical measurements taken from the plurality of position determination coils.
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Accused Products
Abstract
By incorporating magnetic field-inducing position determination coils (PDCs) in an external charger, it is possible to determine the position of an implantable device by actively inducing magnetic fields using the PDCs and sensing the reflected magnetic field from the implant. In one embodiment, the PDCs are driven by an AC power source with a frequency equal to the charging coil. In another embodiment, the PDCs are driven by an AC power source at a frequency different from that of the charging coil. By comparing the relative reflected magnetic field strengths at each of the PDCs, the position of the implant relative to the external charger can be determined. Audio and/or visual feedback can then be communicated to the patient to allow the patient to improve the alignment of the charger.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. An external charger for use with an implantable medical device, comprising:
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a primary coil for producing a first magnetic field for providing power to the implantable medical device; a plurality of position determination coils for producing second magnetic fields; and an alignment sensing circuit for determining an alignment of the primary coil relative to the implantable medical device, wherein the determination is based on electrical measurements taken from the plurality of position determination coils. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method for assessing the alignment between an external charger and an implantable medical device, comprising:
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producing from a primary coil of the external charger a first magnetic field for providing power to an implantable medical device; producing from each of a plurality of position determination coils a second magnetic field; sensing reflections of the second magnetic fields from the implanted medical device at the plurality of position determination coils; and determining an alignment of the external charger relative to the implantable medical device, wherein the determination is based on electrical measurements taken from the plurality of position determination coils. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification