MEDICAL DEVICE RECHARGE SYSTEMS USING A CONTROLLER IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATION WITH A SEPARATE RECHARGE DEVICE

• US 20120197351A1
• Filed: 01/28/2011
• Published: 08/02/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Medtronic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Original Assignee: Medtronic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Inventors: Olson, David P., Torgerson, Nathan A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,634,927 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/61
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3787 from an external energy source

Abstract

Medical device recharging systems include a controller and a separate recharge device that communicate wirelessly together to provide recharging to an implantable medical device. Either the controller or the recharge device may also communicate wirelessly with the implantable medical device to obtain recharge status and other information. There may be multiple recharge devices present within communication range of the controller, and the controller may determine which recharge device to activate depending upon proximity of each recharge device to the implantable medical device. The controller may allow the recharge device that is active at any given time to change so that the patient having the implantable medical device can move about in the area where the recharge devices are located while recharging continues.

Claims

1. A method of recharging an implantable medical device, comprising:

initiating wireless communications between a first controller and a first recharge device that provide first recharge instructions from the first controller to the first recharge device to control recharging; and

transferring recharge energy from the first recharge device to the implantable medical device in accordance with the first recharge instructions.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless communications between the first controller and the first recharge device are far field communications.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the far field communications have a frequency of at least 400 Megahertz.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the far field communications have a frequency of at least 2400 Megahertz.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

initiating wireless communications between the first controller and a second recharge device that provide second recharge instructions from the first controller to the second recharge device to control recharging; and

transferring recharge energy from the second recharge device in accordance with the second recharge instructions.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

initiating wireless communications between the first controller and the implantable medical device to obtain recharge status information from the implantable medical device; and

generating the first recharge instructions at the first controller based on the recharge status information.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the wireless communications between the first controller and the implantable medical device are far field communications.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

initiating wireless communications between the first recharger and the implantable medical device to obtain recharge status information from the implantable medical device, wherein the wireless communications between the first controller and the first recharge device provide the recharge status information from the first recharge device to the first controller; and

generating the first recharge instructions at the first controller based on the recharge status information from the recharge device.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the wireless communications between the first recharger and the implantable medical device are far field communications.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

initiating wireless communications between the controller and the implantable medical device to obtain recharge status information from the implantable medical device; and

generating the first recharge instructions at the first controller based on the recharge status information from the implantable medical device.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the wireless communications between the first recharger and the implantable medical device are near field communications.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

sensing by the first controller the presence of the first recharge device;

in response to sensing the presence of the first recharge device, initiating the wireless communications between the first controller and the first recharge device.

13. A medical system, comprising:

a first controller having a wireless communication circuit;

a first recharge device having a wireless communication circuit in wireless communication with the wireless communication circuit of the first controller and having a wireless recharge circuit, the first recharge device receives first recharge instructions from the first controller and generates recharge energy in the recharge circuit based on the first recharge instructions; and

an implantable medical device having a wireless recharge circuit having wireless coupling to the wireless recharge circuit of the first recharge device to receive recharge energy from the first recharge device.

14. The medical system of claim 13, wherein the wireless communication circuit of the first controller is a far field communication circuit and wherein the wireless communication circuit of the first recharge device is a far field communication circuit.

15. The medical system of claim 14, further comprising a second recharge device having a wireless communication circuit and a wireless recharge circuit, the controller initiates wireless communications with the second recharge device that provide second recharge instructions from the first controller to the second recharge device to control recharging, and wherein the second recharge device transfers recharge energy to the implantable medical device in accordance with the second recharge instructions through a coupling of the wireless recharge circuit of the second recharge device and the wireless recharge circuit of the implantable medical device.

16. The medical system of claim 13, wherein the wireless communication circuit of the second recharge device is a far field communication circuit.

17. The medical system of claim 13, wherein the first controller initiates wireless communications with the implantable medical device to obtain recharge status information from the implantable medical device, and wherein the first controller generates the first recharge instructions based on the recharge status information.

18. The medical system of claim 17, wherein the implantable medical device includes a wireless far field communication circuit and wherein the wireless communications initiated by the first controller with the implantable medical device are far field communications.

19. The medical system of claim 13, wherein the first recharge device initiates wireless communications with the implantable medical device to obtain recharge status information from the implantable medical device, wherein the wireless communications between the first controller and the first recharge device provide the recharge status information from the first recharge device to the first controller, and wherein the first controller generates the first recharge instructions based on the recharge status information from the first recharger.

20. The medical system of claim 19, wherein the implantable medical device includes a wireless far field communication circuit and wherein the wireless communications initiated by the first recharger with the implantable medical device are far field communications.

21. The medical system of claim 19, wherein the controller initiates wireless communications with the implantable medical device to obtain recharge status information from the implantable medical device, and wherein the first controller generates the first recharge instructions based on the recharge status information from the implantable medical device.

22. The medical system of claim 19, wherein the wireless communication circuit of the first controller is a far field communication circuit and wherein the wireless communication circuit of the first recharge device is a far field communication circuit.

23. The medical system of claim 13, wherein the first controller senses the presence of the first recharge device and in response to sensing the presence of the first recharge device, initiates the wireless communications with the first recharge device.

24. A method of recharging an implantable medical device, comprising:

sensing the presence of a first recharge device; and

in response to sensing the presence of the first recharge device, instructing the first recharge device to begin the transfer of recharge energy from the first recharge device to the implantable medical device.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

prior to instructing the first recharge device to begin the transfer of recharge energy, sensing the presence of a second recharge device;

detecting which of the first recharge device and second recharge device is in closer proximity to the implantable medical device; and

when detecting that the first recharge device is in closer proximity to the implantable medical device, then communicating with the first recharge device to continue the transfer of energy to the implantable medical device.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising:

after instructing the first recharge device to begin the transfer of energy from the first recharge device to the implantable medical device, detecting that the second recharge device is in closer proximity to the implantable medical device; and

after detecting that the second recharge device is in closer proximity to the implantable medical device, then communicating with the second recharge device to continue the transfer of recharge energy to the implantable medical device.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein detecting which of the first recharge device and second recharge device is in closer proximity comprises detecting whether the first recharge device and the second recharge device have recharge loads when outputting recharge energy.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein detecting which of the first recharge device and second recharge device is in closer proximity comprises when the first recharge device is outputting recharge energy and the second recharge device is not outputting recharge energy, detecting whether the implantable medical device is receiving recharge energy.

29. The method of claim 25, wherein detecting which of the first recharge device and the second recharge device is in closer proximity comprises detecting whether the first recharge device is being moved.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising activating a wireless communication circuit of the first recharge device upon detection of the first recharge device being moved and subsequently sending a response from the first recharge device upon receiving an instruction from the first controller via the wireless communications.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the wireless communications are far field communications.

32. The method of claim 24, wherein sensing the presence of the first recharge device comprises polling for the first recharge device using a communication key stored by both the first controller and the first recharge device.

33. A medical system, comprising:

an implantable medical device;

a first recharge device; and

a controller, wherein the controller senses the presence of the first recharge device and in response to sensing the presence of the first recharge device, instructs the first recharge device to begin the transfer of recharge energy from the first recharge device to the implantable medical device.

34. The medical system of claim 33, wherein prior to instructing the first recharge device to begin the transfer of recharge energy, the controller senses the presence of a second recharge device, detects which of the first recharge device and second recharge device is in closer proximity to the implantable medical device, and upon detecting that the first recharge device is in closer proximity to the implantable medical device, instructs the first recharge device to transfer recharge energy to the implantable medical device.

35. The medical system of claim 34, wherein after instructing the first recharge device to begin the transfer of energy from the first recharge device to the implantable medical device, the controller detects that the second recharge device is in closer proximity to the implantable medical device, and after detecting that the second recharge device is in closer proximity to the implantable medical device, the controller communicates with the second recharge device to transfer recharge energy to the implantable medical device.

36. The medical system of claim 34, wherein the controller detects which of the first recharge device and second recharge device is in closer proximity by detecting whether the first recharge device and the second recharge device have recharge loads when outputting recharge energy.

37. The medical system of claim 36, wherein the controller detects which of the first recharge device and second recharge device is in closer proximity by detecting whether the implantable medical device is receiving recharge energy when the first recharge device is outputting recharge energy and the second recharge device is not outputting recharge energy.

38. The medical system of claim 34, wherein the controller detects which of the first recharge device and the second recharge device is in closer proximity by detecting whether the first recharge device is being moved.

39. The medical system of claim 38, wherein the controller sends a signal to activate a wireless communication circuit of the first recharge device upon detecting that the first recharge device is being moved, and wherein the first recharge device subsequently sends a response upon receiving an instruction from the controller via the wireless communications.

40. The medical system of claim 39, wherein the wireless communications are far field communications.

41. The medical system of claim 33, wherein the controller senses the presence of the first recharge device by polling for the first recharge device using a communication key stored by both the first controller and the first recharge device.

42. A method of recharging an implantable medical device, comprising:

initiating wireless communications between a first controller and the implantable medical device that provide first recharge instructions from the first controller to the implantable medical device to control recharging;

initiating wireless communications between the implantable medical device and a recharge device to provide the first recharge instructions from the implantable medical device to the first recharge device; and

transferring recharge energy from the first recharge device to the implantable medical device in accordance with the first recharge instructions.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein the wireless communications between the first controller and the implantable medical device are far field communications.

44. The method of claim 42, wherein the wireless communications between the implantable medical device and the first rechargers are near field communications.