Inductively rechargeable external energy source, charger, system and method for a transcutaneous inductive charger for an implantable medical device
DCFirst Claim
1. A system, comprising:
- an implantable medical device comprising a secondary coil; and
an external device comprising;
a primary coil adapted to be transcutaneously coupled to the secondary coil to transfer energy to the implantable medical device;
a housing having a side adapted to be positioned in proximity to the secondary coil when the primary coil is transcutaneously coupled to the secondary coil;
a temperature sensor adapted to provide an output indicative of a temperature of the side of the housing; and
control circuitry adapted to control the transfer of energy to the implantable medical device based on the output of the temperature sensor to limit a temperature to which a patient is exposed during the transfer of energy to the implantable medical device.
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Litigations
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Accused Products
Abstract
A mechanism for transferring energy from an external power source to an implantable medical device is disclosed. A sensor may be used to measure a parameter that correlates to a temperature of the system that occurs during the transcutaneous coupling of energy. For example, the sensor may measure temperature of a surface of an antenna of the external power source. The measured parameter may then be compared to a programmable limit. A control circuit such as may be provided by the external power source may then control the temperature based on the comparison. The programmable limit may be, for example, under software control so that the temperature occurring during transcutaneous coupling of energy may be modified to fit then-current circumstances.
112 Citations
24 Claims
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1. A system, comprising:
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an implantable medical device comprising a secondary coil; and an external device comprising; a primary coil adapted to be transcutaneously coupled to the secondary coil to transfer energy to the implantable medical device; a housing having a side adapted to be positioned in proximity to the secondary coil when the primary coil is transcutaneously coupled to the secondary coil; a temperature sensor adapted to provide an output indicative of a temperature of the side of the housing; and control circuitry adapted to control the transfer of energy to the implantable medical device based on the output of the temperature sensor to limit a temperature to which a patient is exposed during the transfer of energy to the implantable medical device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method for transferring energy from an external device comprising a housing and a primary coil to an implantable medical device, the method comprising:
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while a side of the housing is positioned in proximity to a secondary coil of the implantable medical device, transcutaneously coupling the primary coil to the secondary coil to transfer energy to the implantable medical device; providing, via a temperature sensor of the external device, output indicative of a temperature of the side of the housing; and controlling the transfer of energy from the primary coil to the secondary coil based on the output indicative of the temperature of the side of the housing to limit a temperature to which a patient is exposed during the transfer of energy to the implantable medical device. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A system for transferring energy to an implantable medical device, comprising:
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a primary coil adapted to be transcutaneously coupled to a secondary coil of the implantable medical device to transfer energy to the implantable medical device; a housing having a side adapted to be positioned in proximity to the secondary coil when the primary coil is transcutaneously coupled to the secondary coil; a temperature sensor adapted to provide an output indicative of a temperature of the side of the housing; and control circuitry adapted to control the transfer of energy to the implantable medical device based on the output of the temperature sensor to limit a temperature to which a patient is exposed during the transfer of energy to the implantable medical device. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24)
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Specification