MINIATURE WIRELESS BIOMEDICAL TELEMETRY DEVICE

• US 20100222686A1
• Filed: 10/02/2008
• Published: 09/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/03/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: University of Utah Research Foundation (State of Utah)
• Original Assignee: University of Utah Research Foundation (State of Utah)
• Inventors: Dudek, F. Edward, Fisher, John H.
• Granted Patent: US 9,474,461 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/486
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2503/40 Animals
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0006 ECG or EEG signals
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/318 Heart-related electrical modalities, e.g. electrocardiography [ECG]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/369 Electroencephalography [EEG] devices for psychotechnics A61B5/16
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4094 Diagnosing or monitoring seizure diseases, e.g. epilepsy

Abstract

Provided herein are embodiments of a miniature wireless biomedical telemetry device along with systems and methods for its use. A miniature amplifier and transmitter allow recording of physiological signals from small animals, such as rats, mice and birds, as well as humans. The device is positioned externally and is easily replaceable, as is its battery, so surgical complications and other problem problems are minimized.

Claims

1. A wireless biomedical telemetry system comprising:

one or more electrodes or sensors, wherein said one or more electrodes or sensors are configured to monitor physiological parameters or environmental conditions of a subject;

a miniaturized device weighing less than one gram and having a volume less than one cubic centimeter and comprising a wireless transmitter and a power source, wherein said wireless transmitter is operably connected to the one or more electrodes or sensors and converts the monitored physiological parameters or environmental conditions of the subject into a modulated signal;

an antenna, wherein said antenna is capacitively coupled with said wireless transmitter for receiving the modulated signal; and

a receiver operably connected to said antenna, wherein said receiver demodulates said modulated signal to monitor the physiological parameters or environmental conditions of the subject,

wherein the miniaturized device is mounted to the subject with minimally invasive procedures and at least a portion of the miniaturized device is external to the subject.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the wireless transmitter is a multi-channel wireless transmitter.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the transmitter is a FM transmitter.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the transmitter is a PWM transmitter.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the power source is a battery.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein said transmitter operates 270 days or longer from a single battery.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein the battery can be replaced in the miniaturized device without surgical invasion of the subject.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the power source is one or more photodiodes.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the antenna is one of a plurality of antennae.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the monitored physiological parameters include one or more of EEG, ECG, and blood pressure.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the environmental conditions include one or more of temperature and pressure.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the subject is a rat or a mouse.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the subject is a human.

27. The system of claim 1, wherein the antenna is planar and said antenna further comprises a ground plane and a capacitive isolation shield located between said antenna and the ground plane and the distance between the antenna and the ground plane is controlled.

14-26. -26. (canceled)

28. A method of wireless biomedical telemetry comprising:

at least partially implanting a miniaturized device weighing less than one gram and having a volume less than one cubic centimeter and comprising a wireless transmitter and a power source into a subject, wherein said wireless transmitter is operably connected to one or more electrodes or sensors and converts monitored physiological parameters or environmental conditions of the subject into a modulated signal and wherein the miniaturized device is at least partially implanted into the subject with minimally invasive procedures and at least a portion of the miniaturized device is external to the subject; and

receiving, by a receiver operably connected with an antenna, wherein said antenna is capacitively coupled with said wireless transmitter, the modulated signal from said wireless transmitter, wherein said receiver demodulates said modulated signal to monitor the physiological parameters or environmental conditions of the subject.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein at least partially implanting a miniaturized device weighing less than one gram and having a volume less than one cubic centimeter and comprising a wireless transmitter and a power source into a subject further comprises at least partially implanting the miniaturized device having the wireless transmitter that is a multi-channel wireless transmitter.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein at least partially implanting a miniaturized device weighing less than one gram and having a volume less than one cubic centimeter and comprising a wireless transmitter and a power source into a subject further comprises at least partially implanting the miniaturized device having the wireless transmitter that is a FM transmitter.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein at least partially implanting a miniaturized device weighing less than one gram and having a volume less than one cubic centimeter and comprising a wireless transmitter and a power source into a subject further comprises at least partially implanting the miniaturized device having the wireless transmitter that is a PWM transmitter.

32. The method of claim 28, wherein at least partially implanting a miniaturized device weighing less than one gram and having a volume less than one cubic centimeter and comprising a wireless transmitter and a power source into a subject further comprises at least partially implanting the miniaturized device having a battery as the power source.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein said transmitter operates 270 days or longer from a single battery.

34. The method of claim 32, wherein the battery can be replaced in the miniaturized device without surgical invasion of the subject.

35. The method of claim 28, wherein at least partially implanting a miniaturized device weighing less than one gram and having a volume less than one cubic centimeter and comprising a wireless transmitter and a power source into a subject further comprises at least partially implanting the miniaturized device having one or more photodiodes as the power source.

36. The method of claim 28, wherein receiving, by a receiver operably connected with an antenna comprises the receiver operably connected with a plurality of antennae.

37. The method of claim 28, wherein the monitored physiological parameters of the subject include one or more of EEG, ECG, and blood pressure.

38. The method of claim 28, wherein the environmental conditions include one or more of temperature and pressure.

39. The method of claim 28, wherein the subject is a rat or a mouse.

40. The method of claim 28, wherein the subject is a human.