Synchronous telemetry transmission between a programmer and an autonomous device

• US 5,899,931 A
• Filed: 06/04/1997
• Issued: 05/04/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sorin CRM USA (MicroPort Scientific Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Ela Medical S.A. (LivaNova Plc)
• Inventors: Lee, Chik Yam, Deschamp, Herve
• Primary Examiner(s): Kamm, William E.
• Assistant Examiner(s): LAYNO, CARL HERNANDZ
• Application Number:
  US08/869,133
• Time in Patent Office: 699 Days
• Field of Search: 607/32, 607/60, 128/903
• US Class Current: 607/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 7/041 using special codes as synchronising signal
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/903 Radio telemetry

Abstract

An active implanted medical device, particularly an active implantable medical device, and its external programmer having a bi-directional synchronous transmission of data. The active implanted medical device (10) includes a timing clock (18) and circuits for the emission/reception of signals operating under the temporal control of the timing clock of the active implanted medical device. The programmer (24) includes a timing clock (42) and circuits for the emission/reception of signals, operating under the temporal control of the programmer timing clock. The device (10) and programmer (24) exchange data there-between using a bi-directional synchronous serial connection, in which the programmer timing clock (42) is a programmable clock, adjustable in phase, and the programmer has a synchronization control circuit (32, 36, 38, 40) cooperating with its programmable timing clock, to analyze a signal received from the active implanted medical device and to lock in phase the programmer programmable timing clock on the timing clock of the active implanted medical device.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

an active implanted medical device;

a programmer for said active implanted medical device; and

a bi-directional synchronous serial connection for signals passing between the active implanted medical device and the programmer;

the active implanted medical device (10) further comprising a timing clock having a frequency (18) and means for emitting a telemetry signal to pass to the programmer and for receiving a telemetry signal passing from the programmer, said means operating under a temporal control of the active implanted medical device timing clock;

the programmer (24) further comprising a programmable timing clock (42) having a frequency that is adjustable in phase, means for emitting a telemetry signal to pass to the active implanted medical device and for receiving a telemetry signal passing from the active implanted medical device, said means operating under the temporal control of the programmer timing clock, a means of synchronization control (32, 36, 38,

     40) cooperating with said programmable clock for analyzing a telemetry signal received from the active implanted medical device and to lock in phase the programmable clock on the active implanted medical device timing clock.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the active implanted medical device means for emitting further comprises a programmer synchronization frame (132) to establish initially a synchronism between the active implanted medical device and the programmer, and the means of synchronization control further comprises means to receive the synchronization frame, to correlate the received synchronization frame (S_j) with a reference pattern (T_j), to determine a difference (l) in phase based on the correlation, and to offset the programmable clock by a value corresponding to said determined phase difference.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the programmer means for emitting further comprises an interrogation signal (130) emitted to pass to the active implanted medical device, said interrogation signal being recognizable by the active implanted medical device even in the absence of synchronism of the transmission, and wherein the active implanted medical device emits the synchronization frame in response to said interrogation signal.

4. The system of the claim 2, in which the synchronization frame comprises a periodic signal and the means of synchronization control comprises means for averaging said periodic signal before correlation with the reference pattern.

5. The system of the claim 1, wherein the means of control of synchronization of the programmer comprises means to receive a data frame emitted by the active implanted medical device, to correlate the continuation by periodicity of the received data frame (<

S>

_j) with a reference pattern, to determine a temporal difference (l) based on said correlation, and to offset the programmable clock of a value corresponding to this difference to maintain the programmable clock locked in phase on the active implanted medical device timing clock.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the means of control of synchronization of the programmer further comprises a programmable digital circuit (38).

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the programmable digital circuit further comprises a memory, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a control program for said DSP.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein said control program further comprises a downloaded program, in a manner to be able to modify this program without hardware modification of the programmer.

9. A method of telemetry between an active implanted medical device and a programmer comprising:

providing the active implanted medical device with a timing clock having a first frequency;

providing the programmer with a timing clock having a second frequency which is programmable in phase;

transmitting a synchronization signal from said active implanted medical device under the control of the active implanted medical device timing clock;

detecting the synchronization signal at the programmer;

analyzing the detected synchronization signal and determining a difference in phase between said synchronization signal and said second frequency, and

adjusting said programmer programmable clock to lock in phase said programmer programmable clock on said active implantable medical device timing clock.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein transmitting the synchronization signal further comprises providing a telemetry signal having at least two symbols therein, and analyzing the detected synchronization signal further comprises averaging the at least two symbols and comparing the averaged symbols to a reference pattern and determining the difference based on the average and the reference pattern.

11. The method of claim 9 further comprising transmitting an interrogation signal from the programmer to the active implanted medical device, wherein the step of transmitting the synchronization signal occurs in response thereto.

12. The method of the claim 9, further comprising:

subsequent to locking in phase the programmable clock, transmitting a data signal from the active implanted medical device to the programmer, correlating in the programmer the continuation by periodicity of the data signal (<

S>

_j) with a reference pattern, determining a temporal difference (l) based on said correlation, and adjusting the programmable clock by a value corresponding to the determined temporal difference to maintain the programmer programmable clock locked in phase on the active implantable medical device timing clock.

13. A programmer system having bi-directional synchronous telemetry communications for use with an active implanted medical device having a timing clock and telemetry signals emitted under temporal control of said timing clock, comprising:

a programmer head having a coil for receiving a telemetry signal, an analog to digital converter having an analog input corresponding to a received telemetry signal and a digital output corresponding to said analog input, the analog to digital converter having a sample rate control input to control the rate of sampling of the analog signal;

a programmable timing clock having an output frequency that is adjustable in phase;

means for processing the digital output from said analog to digital converter, determining a difference in phase between the digital output and the programmable timing clock output frequency, and adjusting the phase of the programmable timing clock to lock it in phase with the digital output.

14. The programmer system of claim 13, wherein the processing means further comprises means to receive a synchronization signal, to correlate the received synchronization signal (S_j) with a reference pattern (T_j), to determine a difference (l) in phase based on the correlation, and to offset the programmable clock by a value corresponding to said determined phase difference.

15. The programmer system of claim 14, wherein the processor means further comprises means for emitting an interrogation signal (130), said interrogation signal being recognizable by an active implanted medical device even in the absence of synchronism of the transmission.

16. The programmer system of claim 14, in which the processing means further comprises means for identifying a received synchronization signal containing a periodic signal therein and averaging said periodic signal before correlation with the reference pattern.

17. The programmer system of claim 13, wherein the processor means comprises means to receive a data frame signal emitted by an active implanted medical device, to correlate the continuation by periodicity of the received data frame signal (<

S>

_j) with a reference pattern, to determine a temporal difference (l) based on the correlation, and to offset the programmer programmable clock by a value corresponding to the determined temporal difference to maintain an established synchronism.

18. The programmer system of claim 13, wherein the processor means further comprises a programmable digital circuit (38).

19. The programmer system of claim 18 wherein the programmable digital circuit further comprises a digital signal processor (DSP), a DSP memory, and a control program for said DSP.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising a microcomputer unit having a reprogrammable program memory, wherein said control program for the DSP is initially stored in said program memory and is downloadable to the DSP memory for operating the DSP, and wherein the operation of the DSP can be modified by a reprogramming of the control program stored in the program memory without hardware modification of the programmer.