Using telemetry coupling as a surrogate for recharger coupling
First Claim
1. A method for utilizing a recharging unit to recharge a rechargeable power source of an Implantable Medical Device (IMD), comprising:
- transmitting at least one telemetry signal between the recharging unit and the IMD;
determining, by a communication circuit, an indication of signal strength of the at least one telemetry signal; and
based on the indication of signal strength, determining, by a control circuit, whether adequate determining whether adequate recharge coupling efficiency exists to initiate a recharge session;
wherein transmitting at least one telemetry signal between the recharging unit and the IMD comprises receiving at least one telemetry signal by the recharging unit and wherein determining an indication of signal strength of the at least one telemetry signal comprises determining a signal strength of the at least one telemetry signal received by the recharging unit.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Telemetry signal strength is used for positioning a primary recharge coil of a recharging unit at a location proximate to an Implantable Medical Device (IMD) in preparation to recharge a rechargeable power source of the IMD. An antenna of the recharging unit is positioned proximate to the IMD, a telemetry session is initiated between the two devices, and a value indicative of the telemetry signal strength is obtained. Using a known correspondence between telemetry signal strength and recharge coupling efficiency for the IMD/recharging unit pair, the telemetry signal strength value is used to determine whether adequate recharge coupling may be achieved between the pair of devices. If so, a recharge session may be established. Otherwise, the antenna is repositioned and the process is repeated. The correspondence between telemetry signal strength and recharge coupling efficiency for the device pair may be developed empirically or using modeling.
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Citations
37 Claims
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1. A method for utilizing a recharging unit to recharge a rechargeable power source of an Implantable Medical Device (IMD), comprising:
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transmitting at least one telemetry signal between the recharging unit and the IMD; determining, by a communication circuit, an indication of signal strength of the at least one telemetry signal; and based on the indication of signal strength, determining, by a control circuit, whether adequate determining whether adequate recharge coupling efficiency exists to initiate a recharge session; wherein transmitting at least one telemetry signal between the recharging unit and the IMD comprises receiving at least one telemetry signal by the recharging unit and wherein determining an indication of signal strength of the at least one telemetry signal comprises determining a signal strength of the at least one telemetry signal received by the recharging unit. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. For use by a recharging unit that is adapted to recharge a power source of an Implantable Medical Devices (IMD), a storage device configured to store programmed instructions to cause a control circuit of the recharging unit to perform a method, comprising:
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transmitting a telemetry signal between the IMD and the recharging unit; obtaining an indication of signal strength of the telemetry signal; and determining, based the indication of signal strength, whether to initiate a recharge session between the recharging unit and the IMD; wherein transmitting at telemetry signal between the IMD and the recharging unit comprises receiving a telemetry signal by the recharging unit and wherein obtaining the indication of signal strength comprises obtaining a signal strength of the telemetry signal received by the recharging unit. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. A system, comprising:
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a coil of a recharging unit configured to receive a telemetry signal from an Implantable Medical Device (IMD); a communication circuit configured to provide an indication of a strength of the telemetry signal received by the coil; and a control circuit configured to determine, based on the indication of signal strength, whether recharge coupling efficiency is adequate to initiate a recharge session between the recharging unit and the IMD. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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29. A system, comprising:
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an external coil configured to exchange a telemetry signal with an internal coil of an Implantable Medical Device (IMD); a communication circuit configured to provide an indication of signal strength of the exchanged telemetry signal; and a control circuit configured to determine based on the indication of signal strength whether recharge coupling efficiency is adequate. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37)
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Specification