Methods and systems for providing metered doses of a compound to an individual
First Claim
1. An implantable pump for providing metered doses of a compound to an individual, said implantable pump comprising:
- a chamber for storing an individual dose of the compound;
an inlet valve fluidly coupled to said chamber for controlling a flow of the compound into said chamber, wherein said inlet valve is an electrically actuated valve;
an inlet valve driver circuit electrically coupled to said inlet valve and operable for opening and closing said inlet valve;
an outlet valve fluidly coupled to said chamber for controlling a flow of the compound out of said chamber and into the individual, wherein said outlet valve is an electrically actuated valve;
an outlet valve driver circuit electrically coupled to said outlet valve and operable for opening and closing said outlet valve;
a battery;
a charging circuit comprising a capacitor, said charging circuit operatively coupled to said battery for charging of said capacitor, said capacitor, when charged, operable for supplying power to said inlet valve driver circuit and said outlet valve driver circuit; and
an interlock circuit, wherein said interlock circuit is operable to prevent said inlet valve driver circuit from electrically actuating the inlet valve to open the inlet valve and to prevent said outlet valve driver circuit from electrically actuating the outlet valve to open the outlet valve during the same time interval.
11 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An implantable pump for providing metered doses of a compound to an individual is described. The implantable pump includes a chamber for storing an individual dose of the compound, an inlet valve fluidly coupled to the chamber for controlling a flow of the compound into the chamber, and an outlet valve fluidly coupled to the chamber for controlling a flow of the compound out of the chamber and into the individual. The pump includes an inlet valve driver circuit operable for opening and closing the inlet valve, and an outlet valve driver circuit operable for opening and closing the outlet valve. A battery and a charging circuit that includes a capacitor are included in the implantable pump. The charging circuit is operatively coupled to the battery for charging of the capacitor. The charged capacitor is operable for supplying power to the valve driver circuits.
8 Citations
17 Claims
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1. An implantable pump for providing metered doses of a compound to an individual, said implantable pump comprising:
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a chamber for storing an individual dose of the compound; an inlet valve fluidly coupled to said chamber for controlling a flow of the compound into said chamber, wherein said inlet valve is an electrically actuated valve; an inlet valve driver circuit electrically coupled to said inlet valve and operable for opening and closing said inlet valve; an outlet valve fluidly coupled to said chamber for controlling a flow of the compound out of said chamber and into the individual, wherein said outlet valve is an electrically actuated valve; an outlet valve driver circuit electrically coupled to said outlet valve and operable for opening and closing said outlet valve; a battery; a charging circuit comprising a capacitor, said charging circuit operatively coupled to said battery for charging of said capacitor, said capacitor, when charged, operable for supplying power to said inlet valve driver circuit and said outlet valve driver circuit; and an interlock circuit, wherein said interlock circuit is operable to prevent said inlet valve driver circuit from electrically actuating the inlet valve to open the inlet valve and to prevent said outlet valve driver circuit from electrically actuating the outlet valve to open the outlet valve during the same time interval. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method for operating an implantable pump, the implantable pump including an inlet valve, an outlet valve, an inlet valve driver circuit, an outlet valve driver circuit, a charging circuit that includes a storage capacitor for supplying a voltage to the valve driver circuits, an interlock circuit, and a battery for operating the charging circuit, said method comprising:
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charging the capacitor in the charging circuit using the battery; operating the inlet valve driver circuit, using the charged capacitor, to electrically open the inlet valve, wherein said inlet valve is an electrically actuated valve; maintaining the inlet valve in an open configuration to allow a compound stored in a reservoir to pass into an accumulator; operating the inlet valve driver circuit to electrically close the inlet valve; charging the capacitor in the charging circuit using the battery; operating the outlet valve driver circuit, using the charged capacitor, to electrically open the outlet valve, wherein said outlet valve is an electrically actuated valve; maintaining the outlet valve in an open configuration to allow a compound stored in the accumulator to pass into a user of the implantable pump; operating the outlet valve driver circuit to electrically close the outlet valve; and preventing the inlet valve driver circuit from using the charged capacitor to electrically open the inlet valve and preventing the outlet valve driver circuit from using the charged capacitor to electrically open the outlet valve during the same time interval using the interlock circuit. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A circuit for controlling operation of an electrically actuated inlet valve and an electrically actuated outlet valve of an implantable pump, the electrically actuated inlet valve operable to allow a metered dose of a compound to pass from a reservoir to an accumulator, the electrically actuated outlet valve operable to allow the metered dose to pass from the accumulator into a user of the implantable pump, said circuit comprising:
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an inlet valve driver circuit operable for opening and closing the electrically actuated inlet valve; an outlet valve driver circuit operable for opening and closing the electrically actuated outlet valve; a battery; a charging circuit comprising a capacitor, said charging circuit operatively coupled to said battery for charging of said capacitor, said capacitor operable for supplying power to said inlet valve driver circuit and said outlet valve driver circuit and further operable for preventing said battery from directly supplying current to said inlet valve driver circuit and said outlet valve driver circuit; and an interlock circuit operable to prevent said inlet valve driver circuit from electrically actuating the inlet valve to open the inlet valve and to prevent the outlet valve driver circuit from electrically actuating the outlet valve to open the outlet valve during the same time interval. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17)
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Specification