Assembly for wireless energy communication to an implanted device

• US 7,650,187 B2
• Filed: 11/17/2004
• Issued: 01/19/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Deutsches Zentrum Fã¼R Luft- Und Raumfahrt E.V.
• Original Assignee: Deutsches Zentrum Fã¼R Luft- Und Raumfahrt E.V.
• Inventors: Gruber, Robin, Schmid, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): Sykes; Angela D
• Assistant Examiner(s): STOKLOSA, JOSEPH A
• Application Number:
  US10/989,381
• Publication Number:
  US 20050107847A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,889 Days
• Field of Search: 607/60, 607/32, 607/61, 607/33, 623/3.27
• US Class Current: 607/33
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3787 from an external energy source

Abstract

An assembly for wireless energy communication to an implanted device comprises an external belt (7) accommodating a wearer control (1) followed by controller (2), a battery pack (4), an inverter (3), a transmission coil (8) connected in parallel by a plurality of capacitors, and an infrared transceiver 9. Provided furthermore is an implanted device comprising a receiver coil (11) having the same dimensions as the transmission coil (8), a rectifier following said receiver coil (11), an infrared transceiver (10) followed by a controller and an sensor assembly (17) assigned thereto as well as a battery pack (16) for powering said implanted device via an energy manager (14).

Claims

1. An assembly for wireless energy communication to an implantable device configured to be implanted in a wearer, comprising:

an external belt configured to accommodate a first plurality of elements, the first plurality of elements comprising;

a wearer control;

a first controller connected to the wearer control;

a first battery pack for normally supplying power to and directly powering the implantable device;

an inverter operatively connected to and controlled by the first controller;

a transmission coil for transmitting the power supplied by the battery pack and connected in parallel to a plurality of capacitors; and

an infrared transceiver; and

the implantable device comprising an implant electronics module comprising;

a receiver coil having the same dimensions as said transmission coil configured to receive the power transmitted by the transmission coil;

a rectifier operatively connected to said receiver coil;

an infrared transceiver;

a second controller operatively connected to the infrared transceiver;

a sensor assembly assigned and operatively connected to the second controller;

an energy manager operatively connected to the rectifier; and

a second battery pack operatively connected to the energy manager for powering said implantable device responsive to the energy manager in the absence of power being supplied by the first battery pack;

wherein said wearer control comprises a display and a processor for faultless communication and analysis of data signals for controlling the frequency and power of the inverter that are communicated by infrared to and from said implantable device;

wherein said transmission coil is operable at a field strength that is regulated at said implanted device;

wherein the implant electronics module continually measures the voltage made available to it, compares the measured voltage to a required voltage, and transmits the measured voltage and comparison results to the wearer control, such that only a sufficient amount of energy is communicated to said implantable device to operate said implanted device.

2. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said inverter is an HF inverter and the assembly further comprises a MOSFET transistor power bridge for converting the voltage of said first battery pack into an AC voltage having a frequency and pulse width as dictated by the processor of said wearer control.

3. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said transmission coil comprises a few windings each comprising a plurality of wires each insulated from the other.

4. The assembly as set forth in claim 3, wherein said transmission coil comprises three windings each comprising approx. 600 to 800 separate wires of copper each insulated from the other.

5. The assembly as set forth in claim 4, wherein each of said three windings comprises 720 wires of copper each insulated from the other, each having a wire gauge in the region of 0.1 mm.

6. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said transmission coil is configured as an oval-shaped ring.

7. The assembly as set forth in claim 6, wherein said oval-shaped transmission coil has outer dimensions in the region of 100 mm×

150 mm.

8. The assembly as set forth in any of the preceding claims, further comprising very low impedance capacitors having a total capacitance of 1 μ

F, wherein said transmission coil is circuited in parallel by the very low impedance capacitors.

9. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said receiver coil comprises a larger number of center tapped windings than said transmission coil.

10. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said receiver coil comprises twelve center-tapped windings each comprising 100 to 150 wires of copper.

11. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein said receiver coil is configured flexible.

12. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, further comprising a capacitor having a capacitance of 47 to 100 μ

F circuited in parallel between middle and end or both ends of said receiver coil.

13. The assembly as set forth in claim 12, wherein said capacitor is a polypropylene capacitor.

14. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein both said transmission coil and said receiver coil are sheathed in a tube of body-compatible material.

15. The assembly as set forth in claim 14, wherein said body-compatible material is silicone.

16. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein the infrared transceiver in the external belt and the infrared transceiver in the implantable device forms a half-duplex infrared communication device in the region of said transmission coil and receiver coil.

17. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein the implant electronics module comprises an audible sound device for emitting an audible warning signal for alerting the wearer to critical operational situations.

18. The assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein the wearer control is operable to increase or reduce the pulse of the transmitter frequency responsive to the measured voltage and the comparison results transmitted to the wearer control indicating that the battery is almost fully charged, or is almost drained so that correspondingly more or less power is communicated.