Annular Cuff electrode based on carbon nanotube conductive fiber and preparation method and application thereof
By using a combination of carbon nanotube conductive fibers and flexible insulating resin substrates in the Cuff electrode to form a ring-shaped Cuff electrode with a ring structure, it solves the problem of difficulty in balancing high conductivity and biocompatibility in the existing technology, and achieves efficient Neural electrical signal detection and applications in flexible materials.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202411575559.7
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2024-11-06
- Publication Date
- 2025-01-21
AI Technical Summary
Existing Cuff electrodes are difficult to reduce damage to tissue and improve biocompatibility while maintaining high conductivity, and flexible materials are not yet mature enough in this regard.
A ring-shaped Cuff electrode based on carbon nanotube conductive fibers is used to form a ring structure through a combination of a flexible insulating resin substrate and carbon nanotube conductive fibers to wrap the nerve bundle to be detected. The carbon nanotube conductive fibers are in circumferential contact with the nerve bundle to achieve Electrode design with both high conductivity and flexibility.
This design reduces tissue damage and damage while maintaining high conductivity and flexible materials, improves biocompatibility, and improves electrical signal strength and detection accuracy.
Smart Images
Figure CN119326415A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The invention belongs to the technical field of biological peripheral nerve detection, and specifically relates to a ring-shaped Cuff electrode based on carbon nanotube conductive fibers, and a preparation method and application thereof. Background Art
[0002] The peripheral nervous system is a neural network outside the central nervous system. Its main function is to transmit information from various parts of the body to the brain. Cuff electrodes, as peripheral nerve electrodes, are also constantly developing. They can be used as a tool to extract peripheral nerve electrical signals. After implantation, they can maintain stable signal recording for a long time. They have good conductivity and insulation. There are many kinds of materials for existing Cuff electrodes, such as platinum wire, nickel-chromium alloy wire and other materials. The future development direction of Cuff electrodes is to obtain electrodes that can reduce damage to tissues and improve biocompatibility while maintaining high conductivity; flexible materials can play a key role in reducing tissue damage, so it is crucial to choose flexible and highly conductive materials. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop a new type of Cuff electrode in this field. Summary of the invention
[0003] Based on the above-mentioned shortcomings and deficiencies in the prior art, one of the objects of the present invention is to at least solve one or more of the above-mentioned problems in the prior art. In other words, one of the objects of the present invention is to provide a ring-shaped Cuff electrode based on carbon nanotube conductive fiber and a preparation method and application thereof that meet one or more of the above-mentioned needs.
[0004] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object of the invention, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:
[0005] A ring-shaped Cuff electrode based on carbon nanotube conductive fibers, comprising a flexible insulating resin substrate and a plurality of parallel carbon nanotube conductive fibers attached to the surface of the flexible insulating resin substrate, wherein the flexible insulating resin substrate is wound to form a ring structure and fixed by a surgical thread, so that a nerve bundle to be detected is wrapped in the ring structure, and the carbon nanotube conductive fibers on the inner surface of the ring structure are used to circumferentially contact with the nerve bundle to be detected;
[0006] One end of the carbon nanotube conductive fiber extends out of the flexible insulating resin substrate as a wiring terminal.
[0007] As a preferred solution, the carbon nanotube conductive fibers are partially embedded in a flexible insulating resin substrate.
[0008] As a preferred solution, the flexible insulating resin substrate is epoxy resin.
[0009] As a preferred solution, the number of the carbon nanotube conductive fibers is 2 to 15.
[0010] The present invention also provides a method for preparing the annular Cuff electrode as described in any of the above schemes, comprising the following steps:
[0011] (1) preparing carbon nanotube conductive fibers;
[0012] (2) preparing a flexible insulating resin substrate and attaching a plurality of carbon nanotube conductive fibers in parallel to the surface of the flexible insulating resin substrate;
[0013] (3) A flexible insulating resin substrate is wound to form an annular structure and fixed by surgical thread to wrap the nerve bundle to be detected in the annular structure, and the carbon nanotube conductive fibers on the inner surface of the annular structure are used to make circumferential contact with the nerve bundle to be detected.
[0014] As a preferred solution, all or part of the terminals of the carbon nanotube conductive fibers are connected to an electrical signal detector.
[0015] As a preferred solution, the annular Cuff electrode is used for segmented and time-sharing detection of the nerve bundle to be detected.
[0016] As a preferred solution, the terminals of some carbon nanotube conductive fibers are connected to an electrical stimulation pulse generator.
[0017] As a preferred solution, the magnitude of the current is regulated by an electrical stimulation pulse generator to perform different electrical stimulation tests on the nerve bundle to be tested.
[0018] As a preferred solution, the health status of the nerve bundle to be detected is determined based on the electrical signal detected by the electrical signal detector.
[0019] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:
[0020] The present invention uses carbon nanotube conductive fibers as electrodes of the Cuff electrode, which has conductivity, flexibility, and biocompatibility. The carbon nanotube conductive fibers can also adapt to various biological shapes and surfaces, which can reduce the destruction and damage to tissues when used as flexible materials; it also has high conductivity, which is beneficial to the transmission and detection of electrical signals; the carbon nanotube conductive fibers also show good biocompatibility with neuronal tissues, and when the flexible carbon nanotube conductive fibers are used as electrodes, strong rejection reactions will not occur during the detection process, resulting in the destruction of biological characteristics; in addition, the Cuff electrode is designed as a ring structure, which is beneficial to improving the strength of the electrical signal.
[0021] The present invention can also control the modulus of the carbon nanotube conductive fiber by controlling the gas and liquid flow rates and the fiber drawing rate, thereby improving its flexibility and matching performance with the nerve bundle, which is beneficial for the carbon nanotube conductive fiber to adapt to the contraction or slippage of the nerve bundle. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0022] Figure 1is a schematic diagram of the preparation of the carbon nanotube conductive fiber of Example 1 of the present invention;
[0023] Figure 2 is a schematic structural diagram of an unwound Cuff electrode according to Example 1 of the present invention;
[0024] Figure 3 This is a structural diagram of the annular Cuff electrode of Example 1 of the present invention and its electrical signal detector and electrical stimulation pulse generator. DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention, the specific implementation methods of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the accompanying drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other accompanying drawings and other implementation methods can be obtained based on these accompanying drawings without creative work.
[0026] Embodiment 1:
[0027] The method for preparing the annular Cuff electrode based on carbon nanotube conductive fibers of this embodiment comprises the following steps:
[0028] (1) preparing carbon nanotube conductive fibers;
[0029] Ferrocene and thiophene are added to an ethanol solution to prepare a reaction liquid precursor, wherein the gas and liquid flow rates can be adjusted to control the reaction rate, and the carbon nanotube fibers are catalytically grown at a high temperature of 1200°C using a vertical furnace of a carbon nano growth device; the fiber drawing rate is then changed by adjusting the collection system, thereby changing the modulus of the carbon nanotube fibers, and finally the carbon nanotube conductive fibers are obtained and collected. Specifically, as Figure 1 As shown, the protective gases N2 and Ar are input into the vertical furnace through the gas control system 15, and the solution is pressed into the vertical furnace through the liquid input system 16. After the solution is treated at high temperature, it flows into the water seal tank, and then the drawing rate of the carbon nanotube fiber 18 to be dried is changed by adjusting the rotation speed of the collection system 17, thereby changing the fiber modulus of the carbon nanotube fiber, so that it has good flexibility and matches the nerve bundle, and passes it through the drying system to obtain the final carbon nanotube conductive fiber; the specific process can also refer to the existing technology, which will not be repeated here.
[0030] (2) preparing a flexible insulating resin substrate and attaching a plurality of carbon nanotube conductive fibers in parallel to the surface of the flexible insulating resin substrate;
[0031] Specifically, epoxy resin and curing agent are added in a certain ratio, and the epoxy resin is formed by spraying to obtain a flexible insulating resin substrate; wherein, when the epoxy resin is in a semi-cured state, the carbon nanotube conductive fibers can be embedded and attached to the surface of the flexible insulating resin substrate in parallel, and finally cured to directly achieve the attachment of the carbon nanotube conductive fibers, such as Figure 2 As shown, four carbon nanotube conductive fibers 1, carbon nanotube conductive fibers 2, carbon nanotube conductive fibers 3 and carbon nanotube conductive fibers 12 of target length are placed in parallel along the horizontal direction on the flexible insulating resin substrate 4 ( Figure 2 not shown).
[0032] (3) The flexible insulating resin substrate is wound to form an annular structure and fixed by a surgical thread, so that the nerve bundle to be detected is wrapped in the annular structure, and the carbon nanotube conductive fibers on the inner surface of the annular structure are used to circumferentially contact the nerve bundle to be detected;
[0033] Specifically, Figure 3 As shown, the flexible insulating resin substrate 4 is rolled up along a single horizontal direction to form a hollow tubular structure, the nerve bundle to be detected is inserted into the nerve bundle insertion port 10, and then the surgical thread 8 is tied at the port of the tubular structure to form a node 11 to fix the nerve bundle to be detected, so as to achieve fixed-point monitoring of the nerve bundle. An electrical stimulation system 14 (i.e., an electrical stimulation pulse generator) can also be used to transmit electrical stimulation to the nerve bundle to be detected through the wiring 13 and the carbon nanotube conductive fiber 12. After the nerve bundle to be detected is stimulated, the electrical signals transmitted by its different segments will eventually be transmitted to the electrical signal detector 9 through the wiring 5, wiring 6, and wiring 7 led out from the side wiring terminals, and detected.
[0034] Application Example 1:
[0035] First, the protective gas is input into the 1200℃ vertical furnace through the gas control system, and the solution is pressed into the 1200℃ vertical furnace through the liquid input system. After high-temperature treatment, the solution flows into the water seal tank, and then the drawing rate of the carbon nanotube fiber to be dried is changed by adjusting the rotation speed of the collection system, thereby changing the fiber modulus of the carbon nanotube fiber, making it have good flexibility and match the nerve bundle, and it is passed through the drying system to obtain the final carbon nanotube conductive fiber.
[0036] Cut a rectangular flexible insulating resin with a length of 20mm and place it horizontally. Place three carbon nanotube conductive fibers in parallel along the horizontal direction above the flexible insulating resin. Then use one end of the carbon nanotube conductive fiber as a terminal. Wind the flexible insulating resin 2 times along a single horizontal direction to form a hollow tubular structure. First, select the target nerve bundle to be detected. Insert the nerve bundle to be detected from the nerve bundle insertion port of the hollow tubular structure wound by the flexible insulating resin embedded with carbon nanotube conductive fibers. Then, tie a knot at the end of the cylindrical structure with surgical thread to fix the nerve bundle, so as to achieve fixed-point detection of the nerve bundle. The electrical stimulation system can be used to electrically stimulate the nerve bundle to be detected, and then the electrical signal detector can be used to detect the nerve signals corresponding to different times, and the amplitude and frequency of the nerve signals can be calculated to determine the health status of the nerve bundle to be detected.
[0037] Application Example 2:
[0038] First, the protective gas is input into the 1200℃ vertical furnace through the gas control system, and the solution is pressed into the 1200℃ vertical furnace through the liquid input system. After high-temperature treatment, the solution flows into the water seal tank, and then the drawing rate of the carbon nanotube fiber to be dried is changed by adjusting the rotation speed of the collection system, thereby changing the fiber modulus of the carbon nanotube fiber, making it have good flexibility and match the nerve bundle, and it is passed through the drying system to obtain the final carbon nanotube conductive fiber.
[0039] Cut a rectangular flexible insulating resin with a length of 80mm and place it horizontally. Place twelve carbon nanotube conductive fibers in parallel along the horizontal direction above the flexible insulating resin. Then use one end of the carbon nanotube fiber as a connection and wind the flexible insulating resin 8 times along a single horizontal direction to form a hollow tubular structure. First, select the target nerve bundle to be detected, insert the nerve bundle to be detected from the nerve bundle insertion port of the hollow tubular structure wound by the flexible insulating resin embedded with carbon nanotube conductive fibers, and then tie a knot at the end of the cylindrical structure with surgical thread to fix the nerve bundle to achieve fixed-point detection of the nerve bundle. The electrical stimulation system can be used to electrically stimulate the nerve bundle to be detected, and then the electrical signal detector can be used to detect the nerve signals corresponding to twelve different time periods, and the amplitude and frequency of the nerve signals can be calculated to determine the health status of the nerve bundle to be detected.
[0040] The above description is only a detailed description of the preferred embodiments and principles of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, according to the ideas provided by the present invention, there will be changes in the specific implementation methods, and these changes should also be regarded as the protection scope of the present invention.
Claims
1. A ring-shaped Cuff electrode based on carbon nanotube conductive fibers, characterized in that: It comprises a flexible insulating resin substrate and a plurality of parallel carbon nanotube conductive fibers attached to the surface of the flexible insulating resin substrate. The flexible insulating resin substrate is wound to form an annular structure and fixed by a surgical thread so as to wrap a nerve bundle to be detected in the annular structure. The carbon nanotube conductive fibers on the inner surface of the annular structure are used to circumferentially contact the nerve bundle to be detected. One end of the carbon nanotube conductive fiber extends out of the flexible insulating resin substrate as a wiring terminal.
2. The ring-shaped Cuff electrode according to claim 1, characterized in that: The carbon nanotube conductive fibers are partially embedded in a flexible insulating resin substrate.
3. The annular Cuff electrode according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The flexible insulating resin substrate is epoxy resin.
4. The annular Cuff electrode according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The number of the carbon nanotube conductive fibers is 2 to 15.
5. The method for preparing the annular Cuff electrode according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: (1) preparing carbon nanotube conductive fibers; (2) preparing a flexible insulating resin substrate and attaching a plurality of carbon nanotube conductive fibers in parallel to the surface of the flexible insulating resin substrate; (3) A flexible insulating resin substrate is wound to form an annular structure and fixed by surgical thread to wrap the nerve bundle to be detected in the annular structure, and the carbon nanotube conductive fibers on the inner surface of the annular structure are used to make circumferential contact with the nerve bundle to be detected.
6. Use of the annular Cuff electrode according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: All or part of the terminals of the carbon nanotube conductive fibers are connected to an electrical signal detector for segmented and time-sharing detection of the nerve bundle to be detected.
7. The use according to claim 6, characterized in that: The terminals of some carbon nanotube conductive fibers are connected to an electrical stimulation pulse generator.
8. The use according to claim 7, characterized in that: The electric current is regulated by an electric stimulation pulse generator to perform different electric stimulation tests on the nerve bundle to be tested.
9. The use according to claim 6, characterized in that: The health status of the nerve bundle to be detected is determined based on the electrical signal detected by the electrical signal detector.
10. The use according to claim 6, characterized in that: The dynamic matching performance between the annular Cuff electrode and the spinal nerves is enhanced by regulating the modulus of the carbon nanotube conductive fiber.