Active medical implant

• US 8,401,647 B2
• Filed: 02/17/2010
• Issued: 03/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/20/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Biotronik SE & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Biotronik VI Patent AG (Biotronik SE & Company KG)
• Inventors: Weiss, Ingo, Knorr, Stefan
• Primary Examiner(s): Gedeon, Brian T
• Application Number:
  US12/707,127
• Publication Number:
  US 20100217354A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,126 Days
• Field of Search: 607/33, 607/35
• US Class Current: 607/35
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3785 generated by biological activity or substance, e.g. body movement

Abstract

An active medical implant, in particular a medical electronic device having a power supply which has a mechanical vibrator or rotor which is induced to vibrate and/or rotate by movements of the patient wearing the implant and/or external excitation and is energetically connected to an electronic consumer and/or an energy storage mechanism, such that a portion of the kinetic energy generated by the vibration and/or rotation is input into the consumer and/or energy storage mechanism.

Claims

1. An active medical implant comprising:

a medical electronic device having a power supply, the medical electronic device including a mechanical vibrator and/or rotor that is induced to vibrate and/or rotate by external excitation from a source external to a patient having the active medical implant implanted therein to generate kinetic energy, wherein the vibrator and/or rotor is energetically connected to an electronic consumption mechanism and/or an energy storage mechanism, such that a portion of the kinetic energy generated with the vibration and/or rotation of the vibrator and/or rotor is input into the electronic consumption mechanism and/or the energy storage mechanism,

wherein the vibrator is designed to be vibration-capable in more than one direction.

2. The active medical implant according to claim 1, further comprising a mechanical-electric converter connected to the vibrator and/or rotor, wherein the energy storage mechanism includes a reservoir of electricity.

3. The active medical implant according to claim 2, wherein the reservoir of electricity includes a battery or capacitor.

4. The active medical implant according to claim 2, wherein the mechanical-electric converter includes a piezoelectric element.

5. The active medical implant according to claim 2, wherein the mechanical-electric converter includes an electromagnetic converter, and wherein the implant further comprises a torque converter optionally connected upstream from the electromagnet converter.

6. The active medical implant according to claim 5, wherein the electromagnetic converter comprises a coil-magnet arrangement or a generator.

7. The active medical implant according to claim 1, wherein the energy storage mechanism includes a mechanical energy storage mechanism, and wherein a mechanical-electric converter for converting stored mechanical energy into electric operating power for the patient is connected to the mechanical energy storage mechanism.

8. The active medical implant according to claim 7, wherein the mechanical energy storage mechanism comprises a flywheel.

9. The active medical implant according to claim 1, wherein the vibrator and/or rotor is arranged in a shared housing with the operative electric components of the implant.

10. The active medical implant according to claim 1, wherein the vibrator and/or rotor is arranged outside of a housing containing the operative electric components of the implant and in a portion of a body with a high intensity of movement of the patient wearing the implant, the vibrator and/or rotor electrically connected to the housing of the operative electric components.

11. The active medical implant according to claim 1, wherein the vibrator and/or rotor comprises multiple vibrators and/or rotors having different directions of vibration and/or axes of movement and/or different natural frequencies.

12. The active medical implant according to claim 1, wherein the more than one direction comprises three dimensions.

13. The active medical implant according to claim 1, wherein the vibrator has an independently variable direction of vibration and/or the rotor has an independently variable axis of rotation.

14. The active medical implant according to claim 13, wherein the vibrator with the variable direction of vibration and/or the rotor with the variable axis of rotation includes means for adjusting the direction of vibration and/or the axis of rotation as a function of the body position and/or movements of the patient wearing the implant.

15. The active medical implant according to claim 1, wherein the vibrator and/or rotor comprises function components and/or carrying components of the implant, which are suspended in a housing so they are vibration-capable and/or vibratable.

16. The active medical implant according to claim 15, wherein the vibrator and/or rotor comprises a carrying frame of the implant having the function components mounted therein.

17. The active medical implant according to claim 1, wherein the vibrator and/or rotor is designed to receive the external excitation at a frequency tuned to its natural frequency.

18. The active medical implant according to claim 17, wherein an electric mechanical converter for excitation by an external alternating electromagnetic field is connected to the externally excitable vibrator and/or rotor.

19. The active medical implant according to claim 18, wherein the electric mechanical converter comprises a piezo element or an electromagnetic converter.