Automatic On-Off Charger for an Implantable Medical Device
First Claim
1. A charger, comprising:
- a coil; and
control circuitry configured to automatically provide power to an implantable medical device (IMD) in the charger'"'"'s vicinity by;
evaluating a voltage across the coil or a current through the coil during one or more periodic activations of the coil; and
energizing the coil to provide power to the IMD when the voltage or the current indicates that the IMD is possibly in the charger'"'"'s vicinity.
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Abstract
An external charger for an implantable medical device is disclosed which can automatically detect an implant and generate a charging field. The technique uses circuitry typically present in an external charger, such as control circuitry, a Load Shift Keying (LSK) demodulator, and a coupling detector. An algorithm in the control circuitry periodically issues charging fields of short duration in a standby mode. If the coupling detector detects the presence of a conductive material, the algorithm issues a listening window during which a charging field is generated. If an LSK reply signal is received at the LSK demodulator, the external charger can charge the implant in a normal fashion. If a movement signature is detected at the LSK demodulator indicative of a predetermined user movement of the external charger, a charging field is issued for a set timing period, to at least partially charge the IPG battery to restore LSK communications.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A charger, comprising:
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a coil; and control circuitry configured to automatically provide power to an implantable medical device (IMD) in the charger'"'"'s vicinity by; evaluating a voltage across the coil or a current through the coil during one or more periodic activations of the coil; and energizing the coil to provide power to the IMD when the voltage or the current indicates that the IMD is possibly in the charger'"'"'s vicinity. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method, comprising:
automatically providing power to an implantable medical device (IMD) from a coil in a charger by; evaluating a voltage across the coil or a current through the coil during one or more periodic activations of the coil; and energizing the coil to provide power to the IMD when the voltage or the current indicates that the IMD is possibly in the charger'"'"'s vicinity. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A charger, comprising:
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a coil; means for evaluating a voltage across the coil or a current through the coil during one or more periodic activations of the coil; and means for automatically energizing the coil to provide power to the IMD when the voltage or the current indicates that the IMD is possibly in the charger'"'"'s vicinity. - View Dependent Claims (20)
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Specification