POWERING AND READING IMPLANTED DEVICES

• US 20160135917A1
• Filed: 05/12/2014
• Published: 05/19/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: University of Pittsburgh of The Commonwealth System of Higher Education
• Original Assignee: University of Pittsburgh of The Commonwealth System of Higher Education
• Inventors: MICKLE, MARLIN H., STACHEL, JOSHUA R., BOCAN, KARA NICOLE-SIMMS, SEJDIC, ERVIN
• Granted Patent: US 10,080,624 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/076 Permanent implantations telemetry using implanted circuitry A61B5/0031; implanted stimulators for therapy A61N1/3605, A61N1/362, A61N1/372
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/686 Permanently implanted devices, e.g. pacemakers, other stimulators, biochips A61B5/6861 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/98 using electromagnetic means, e.g. transponders
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/38 for elbows or knees
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/3067 for data transfer
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/3071 Identification means; Administration of patients
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 23/2962 Measuring transit time of reflected waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 3/02 using radio waves
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0615 of weighted versions of same signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0686 Hybrid systems, i.e. switching and simultaneous transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0689 using different transmission schemes, at least one of them being a diversity transmission scheme

Abstract

A method of providing RF energy to a wireless transponder device includes outputting primary RF energy in a form wherein the primary RF energy comprises a plurality of RF bursts, with each consecutive pair of the RF bursts being separated by an associated time interval, and outputting secondary continuous wave RF energy in between each of the RF bursts of the primary RF energy during at least a portion of each of the associated time intervals. Also, a reader device implementing this method.

Claims

1. An RFID reader device, comprising:

a primary RF source structured to output primary RF energy in a form wherein the primary RF energy comprises a plurality of RF bursts, each consecutive pair of the RF bursts being separated by an associated time interval; and

a supplemental RF source structured to output secondary continuous wave RF energy in between each of the RF bursts of the primary RF energy during at least a portion of each of the associated time intervals.

2. The RFID reader device according to claim 1, further comprising a touch probe coupled to the primary RF source and the supplemental RF source, the touch probe being structured to receive the primary RF energy and the secondary continuous wave RF energy and to provide the primary RF energy and the secondary continuous wave RF energy to a wireless transponder device through a direct electrical connection not over an air interface between the touch probe and the wireless transponder device.

3. The RFID reader device according to claim 2, wherein the direct electrical connection is through transcutaneous contact.

4. The RFID reader device according to claim 1, further comprising control circuitry structured to detect an end of each of the RF bursts and responsive to each detection cause the supplemental RF source to output the secondary continuous wave RF energy during at least a part of the time interval associated with the RF burst.

5. The RFID reader device according to claim 4, wherein the supplemental RF source comprises an RF oscillator.

6. The RFID reader device according to claim 5, wherein the primary RF source is part of a COTS RFID reader device and the supplemental RF source and the control circuitry are separate from the COTS RFID reader device.

7. A method of providing RF energy to a wireless transponder device, comprising;

outputting primary RF energy in a form wherein the primary RF energy comprises a plurality of RF bursts, each consecutive pair of the RF bursts being separated by an associated time interval; and

outputting secondary continuous wave RF energy in between each of the RF bursts of the primary RF energy during at least a portion of each of the associated time intervals.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising receiving the primary RF energy and the secondary continuous wave RF energy in a touch probe and providing the primary RF energy and the secondary continuous wave RF energy to the wireless transponder device through a direct electrical connection not over an air interface between the touch probe and the wireless transponder device.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the direct electrical connection is through transcutaneous contact.

10. The method according to claim 7, further comprising detecting an end of each of the RF bursts and responsive to each detection causing the secondary continuous wave RF energy to be output during at least a part of the time interval associated with the RF burst.

11. A method of reading a sensor device associated with a wireless transponder device, comprising:

receiving an output of the sensor device, the output having a transient response portion followed by a stead state portion; and

determining a reading for the sensor device based on the transient response portion and not the steady state portion of the output.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the determining is based on a characteristic of the transient response portion.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the characteristic is a time constant of the transient response portion.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the sensor device exhibits RC dynamics, RL dynamics, or a combination of RC dynamics and RL dynamics.

15. A wireless transponder device, comprising:

electronic circuitry structured to receive an Output of a sensor device associated with the wireless transponder device, the output having a transient response portion followed by a steady state portion, and determine a reading for the sensor device based on the transient response portion and not the steady state portion of the output.

16. The wireless transponder device according to claim 15, wherein the electronic circuitry is structured to determining the reading based on a characteristic of the transient response portion.

17. The wireless transponder device according, to claim 16, wherein the characteristic is a time constant of the transient response portion.

18. The wireless transponder device according, to claim 15, wherein the sensor device exhibits RC dynamics, RL dynamics, or a combination of RC dynamics and RL dynamics.