Retinal prosthesis with efficient processing circuits
First Claim
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1. A medical device, comprising:
- a first array of electrodes, configured for implantation in contact with tissue in an eye of a living subject;
a second array of light-sensing elements, which are configured to output respective signals and a representation of a mean level of the signals, in response to light that is incident on the elements; and
a third array of conversion circuits, coupled to receive from the second array the signals from the light-sensing elements and the representation of the mean level of the signals, and configured to generate pulses to drive the electrodes at respective frequencies determined responsively to differences between the received signals and the representation of the mean level.
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Abstract
A medical device includes an array of electrodes, configured for implantation in contact with tissue in an eye of a living subject. Driver circuitry is configured to drive the electrodes in an alternating pattern, such that different groups of the electrodes are driven to stimulate the tissue during different, predetermined respective time periods. A power sensor, may be coupled to deactivate a first group of the electrodes when the available electrical power drops below a predetermined threshold, while a second group of the electrodes remains active. Other embodiments are also described.
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Citations
25 Claims
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1. A medical device, comprising:
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a first array of electrodes, configured for implantation in contact with tissue in an eye of a living subject; a second array of light-sensing elements, which are configured to output respective signals and a representation of a mean level of the signals, in response to light that is incident on the elements; and a third array of conversion circuits, coupled to receive from the second array the signals from the light-sensing elements and the representation of the mean level of the signals, and configured to generate pulses to drive the electrodes at respective frequencies determined responsively to differences between the received signals and the representation of the mean level. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A medical device, comprising:
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a first array of electrodes, configured for implantation in contact with tissue in an eye of a living subject; a second array of light-sensing elements, which are configured to output respective signals in response to light that is incident on the elements; and a third array of conversion circuits, coupled to receive the signals from the light-sensing elements, and configured to generate pulses to drive the electrodes at respective frequencies determined responsively to the received signals, the driving by the third array of conversion circuits including providing an overshoot in the respective frequencies in response to a change in an intensity of the incident light on a given light-sensing element. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method for neural stimulation using a medical device comprising:
- a first array of electrodes, configured for implantation in contact with tissue in an eye of a living subject;
a second array of light-sensing elements, which are configured to output respective signals and a representation of a mean level of the signals, in response to light that is incident on the elements; and
a third array of conversion circuits, coupled to receive from the second array the signals from the light-sensing elements and the representation of the mean level of the signals, and to generate pulses to drive the electrodes at respective frequencies determined responsively to differences between the received signals and the representation of the mean level, the method comprising the steps of;providing the first array of electrodes for implantation in contact with the tissue in the eye of the living subject; providing the second array of light-sensing elements to output the respective signals in response to the light that is incident on the elements; and generating the pulses to drive the electrodes at the respective frequencies determined responsively to the differences between the signals output by the light-sensing elements and the representation of the mean level of the signals. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
- a first array of electrodes, configured for implantation in contact with tissue in an eye of a living subject;
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20. A method for neural stimulation using a medical device comprising:
- a first array of electrodes, configured for implantation in contact with tissue in an eye of a living subject;
a second array of light-sensing elements, which are configured to output respective signals in response to light that is incident on the elements; and
a third array of conversion circuits, coupled to receive the signals from the light-sensing elements, and to generate pulses to drive the electrodes at respective frequencies determined responsively to the received signals, the driving by the third array of conversion circuits including providing an overshoot in the respective frequencies in response to a change in an intensity of the incident light on a given light-sensing element, the method comprising the steps of;providing the first array of electrodes for implantation in contact with the tissue in the eye of the living subject; providing the second array of light-sensing elements to output the respective signals in response to the light that is incident on the elements; and generating pulses to drive the electrodes at the respective frequencies determined responsively to the signals, including the overshoot in the frequencies in response to the change in the intensity of the incident light on the given light-sensing element. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
- a first array of electrodes, configured for implantation in contact with tissue in an eye of a living subject;
Specification