Neural stimulator system

• US 9,925,384 B2
• Filed: 09/01/2016
• Issued: 03/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Curonix Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Micron Devices LLC
• Inventors: Perryman, Laura Tyler, Larson, Patrick, Andresen, Chad
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Erica
• Application Number:
  US15/254,741
• Publication Number:
  US 20160367825A1
• Time in Patent Office: 572 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36125 Details of circuitry or electric components
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36142 for improving safety
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3708 for power depletion
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37223 Circuits for electromagnetic coupling
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37235 Aspects of the external programmer
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37241 providing test stimulations
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37247 User interfaces, e.g. input or presentation means
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37258 Alerting the patient
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3727 characterised by the modulation technique
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3787 from an external energy source
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation

Abstract

An implantable neural stimulator method for modulating excitable tissue in a patient including: implanting a neural stimulator within the body of the patient such that one or more electrodes of the neural stimulator are positioned at a target site adjacent to or near excitable tissue; generating an input signal with a controller module located outside of, and spaced away from, the patient'"'"'s body; transmitting the input signal to the neural stimulator through electrical radiative coupling; converting the input signal to electrical pulses within the neural stimulator; and applying the electrical pulses to the excitable tissue sufficient to modulate said excitable tissue.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

an external controller module comprising;

a first dipole antenna configured to;

transmit an input signal containing electrical energy to a second dipole antenna through electrical radiative coupling to wirelessly power a passive implantable neural stimulator that houses the second dipole antenna; and

one or more circuits configured to;

generate the input signal and send the input signal to the first antenna for transmission to the second antenna on the passive implantable neural stimulator such that the passive implantable neural stimulator, solely using the electrical energy contained in the input signal, (i) creates and applies one or more electrical pulses suitable for stimulation of neural tissue, and (ii) monitors the stimulation to generate a current limit feedback signal when a clipping event has occurred in which a characteristic of the one or more electrical pulses had been limited so as to prevent the one or more electrical pulses from exceeding a safety threshold; and

in response to the current feedback signal being received, attenuate the input signal so that clipping of the one or more electrical pulses is no longer required to keep the current within the safety threshold.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein one or more circuits configured to:

generate the input signal and send the input signal to the first antenna for transmission to the second antenna on the passive implantable neural stimulator such that the passive implantable neural stimulator, solely using the electrical energy contained in the input signal, measures one or more parameters of the electrical pulses including an amplitude of the one or more electrical pulses as applied to the neural tissue; and

adjust a power of the input signal based on the amplitude of the one or more electrical pulses.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the one or more circuits are configured to:

obtain a forward power signal that is reflective of an amplitude of a radio-frequency (RF) signal sent to the first antenna;

obtain a reverse power signal that is reflective of an amplitude of a reflected portion of the RF signal sent to the first antenna;

determine a mismatch value indicative of a magnitude of an impedance mismatch based on the forward power signal and the reverse power signal; and

adjust the parameters of the input signal based on the mismatch value.

4. The system of claim 1 further comprising the implantable neural stimulator, the implantable neural stimulator including:

one or more electrodes configured to apply the one or more electrical pulses to neural tissue;

one or more circuits configured to;

create the one or more electrical pulses;

supply the one or more electrical pulses to the one or more electrodes such that the one or more electrodes apply the one or more electrical pulses to neural tissue;

generate the current limit feedback signal; and

send the current limit feedback signal to the second antenna such that the second antenna transmits the current limit feedback signal to the first antenna through electrical radiative coupling.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the input signal also contains information encoding stimulus parameters for the one or more electrical pulses and the implantable neural stimulator is configured to create the one or more electrical pulses based on the information encoding stimulus parameters.

6. The system of claim 4 wherein the one or more circuits of the implantable neural stimulator are configured such that a level of the input signal directly determines an amplitude of the one or more electrical pulses applied to the neural tissue by the one or more electrodes.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein:

the implantable neural stimulator includes a plurality of electrodes;

the one or more circuits of the external controller module are configured to;

generate a control signal that designates which electrodes act as stimulating electrodes, which electrodes act as return electrodes that are located further away from the neural tissue being stimulated than the stimulating electrodes, and which electrodes are inactive; and

send the control signal to the first antenna such that the first antenna transmits the control signal to the second antenna through electrical radiative coupling; and

the one or more circuits of the implantable neural stimulator are configured to selectively designate each of the electrodes to act as a stimulating electrode, act as a return electrode, or be inactive based on the control signal.

8. The system of claim 6 wherein the implantable neural stimulator does not include an internal power source.

9. The system of claim 6 wherein the one or more circuits of the implantable neural stimulator include only passive components.

10. The system of claim 4 wherein the one or more circuits of the implantable neural stimulator are configured to:

limit a characteristic of the one or more electrical pulses applied to the neural tissue by the one or more electrodes so that the charge per phase resulting from the one or more electrical pulses remain below the threshold level ;

generate the limit feedback signal when the charge per phase resulting from the one or more electrical pulses would have exceeded the threshold level if the one or more circuits had not limited the characteristic of the one or more electrical pulses applied to the neural tissue by the one or more electrodes so that the charge per phase resulting from the one or more electrical pulses remained below the threshold level; and

send the limit feedback signal to the second antenna such that the second antenna transmits the limit feedback signal to the first antenna through electrical radiative coupling.

11. The system of claim 4 wherein the one or more circuits are configured to create the one or more electrical pulses such that the one or more electrical pulses result in a substantially zero net charge.

12. The system of claim 11 wherein, to create the one or more electrical pulses such that the one or more electrical pulses result in a substantially zero net charge, the one or more circuits of the implantable neural stimulator include at least one capacitor in series with the one or more electrodes.

13. The system of claim 4 wherein the one or more circuits of the implantable neural stimulator include:

a waveform conditioning component to create the one or more electrical pulses suitable for stimulation of neural tissue using electrical energy contained in the input signal;

an electrode interface connected to the waveform conditioning circuit, the electrode interface being configured to receive the one or more electrical pulses from the waveform conditioning circuit and supply the one or more electrical pulses to the one or more electrodes; and

a controller connected to the electrode interface, the controller being configured to generate the stimulus feedback signal and send the stimulus feedback signal to the second antenna.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein the waveform conditioning component includes:

a rectifier connected to the second antenna, the rectifier configured to receive the input signal from the second antenna and generate a rectified electrical waveform based on the input signal;

a charge balance component configured to create the one or more electrical pulses based on the rectified electrical waveform such that the one or more electrical pulses result in a substantially zero net charge at the one or more electrodes; and

a charge limiter configured to limit a characteristic of the one or more electrical pulses so that a charge per phase resulting from the one or more electrical pulses remains below a threshold level, wherein the limited electrical pulses are sent to the electrode interface through the charge limiter.