Pump device with a detection device

Abstract

Pump device with a pump (8) and an energy supply device (5, 18), wherein the pump has a conveying element (9, 11) which conveys a fluid by means of supplied energy, wherein the pump has a transport state and an expanded state and wherein at least a first element (9, 9a, 10, 10', 11) of the pump has a different shape and / or size in the transport state than in the expanded state, characterized by a detection device (12, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29) which detects whether at least the first element is in the expanded state with regard to shape and / or size.

Description

[0001] The invention lies in the field of mechanical engineering and precision engineering and relates to a pump device.

[0002] Pumps are used to pump fluids, especially liquids, and are available in a wide variety of designs. Particularly interesting for many applications are pumps that are either particularly compact or can be modified in shape, allowing them to be transported to a difficult-to-access location in a transport state. An expanded or operating state can then be created in which individual elements of the pump can have a different shape and / or size than in the transport state.

[0003] Examples of such pumps are expandable catheter pumps, which are inserted through a blood vessel into a patient's body and can be pushed into a heart chamber, for example, where they can be expanded.

[0004] This typically involves expanding a pump rotor and a housing. The rotor usually carries one or more impeller blades that are radially compressible and expandable, either alone or together with a hub. For this purpose, impeller blades can be attached to a hub in a bendable or pivotable manner, or they can be inherently compressible through manufacture as a foam body. Occasionally, such impeller blades also contain components made of a shape-memory alloy such as nitinol, which exhibits superelastic properties and temperature-dependent shape properties. A corresponding rotor can then be radially compressed with little force and, at a suitable temperature once the compression force is removed, automatically returns to its original shape.

[0005] Principles are also known according to which a corresponding pump is actively erected / expanded by external actuation after transport to the site of use (WO 94 / 05347 A1). However, such designs require corresponding actuation devices and elements for transmitting such actuation, which requires increased electrical, pneumatic, or mechanical complexity.

[0006] Pump principles are also known in which the conveying blades of a rotor are erected during start-up by the fluid back pressure with increasing speed of the rotor until an operating state in which the rotor is maximally expanded in the radial direction.

[0007] What all of the above principles have in common is that, once the pump is brought to the site of use, expansion of the pump elements is initiated or enabled. However, reaching the fully expanded state (this is advantageously the operating state) is not absolutely certain. Therefore, there is a risk that, despite appropriate activation, the pump will not reach the operating state at all or only partially. This poses a significant risk, particularly when such pumps are used in biological applications, as either bodily fluids such as blood are damaged when the pump is started up, or if the pump is damaged, pump elements can enter a bodily fluid such as blood.

[0008] This can happen, for example, if a pump rotor is set in rotation without having reached its operating position or without the surrounding housing having been expanded to the desired diameter. In this case, impeller blades can break or be inadvertently operated in the transport position, causing the rotor to develop excessive speed due to insufficient fluid resistance, damaging components of the blood or other body fluids. If the speed is controlled or regulated, the pump might operate with insufficient flow capacity.

[0009] Against the background of the prior art, the present invention is based on the object of designing a pump device in such a way that disadvantages caused by operating the pump in a compressed or insufficiently expanded state are avoided.

[0010] The object is achieved according to the invention with the features of patent claim 1.

[0011] It is provided that the pump device comprises a pump and an energy supply device, wherein the pump has a conveying element that conveys a fluid by means of supplied energy, wherein the pump has a transport state, which is, for example, a compressed or folded state, and an expanded or unfolded state, and wherein at least a first element of the pump has a different shape and / or size in the transport state than in the operating state. Furthermore, a detection device is provided that detects whether at least the first element is in the expanded state with regard to shape and / or size.

[0012] The first element has a different shape and / or size in the transport state than in the expanded or operating state, so that the pump has deformation capabilities and can be adapted to the transport path it will take to reach the site of use. The first element can be, for example, a conveyor blade, a rotor, or a pump housing.

[0013] For example, it can be provided that at least one first element consists at least partially of an elastically deformable, in particular compressible and expandable material.

[0014] As a result, the at least one first element can change from the transport state to the expanded state by elastic deformation, such as bending, compression, extraction or similar effects.

[0015] For example, such a pump can be pushed through a hose, pipe, or channel system by first reducing its volume through radial compression and then expanding it again at the point of use. Such principles are particularly well-established in micropumps used in medicine, where the pump itself and, if applicable, the housing are radially compressed for transport.

[0016] It is advisable to ensure that the first element has reached the expanded state before commissioning the pump. For example, the first element can be a pump rotor with at least one conveying blade, whereby the rotor only achieves the required pumping capacity when it has expanded accordingly. If the rotor is surrounded by a housing, it must be ensured that the housing has expanded before commissioning. Accordingly, the detection device can be equipped with a sensor and monitors the expansion state of the housing and / or the rotor or a conveying blade. This can be achieved, for example, by the detection device containing a strain gauge as a sensor, which is attached to a conveying blade, or a position sensor, which can, for example, monitor the relative position of conveying blades to a hub.

[0017] If such a pump is put into operation too early, without the expanded state being reached, there would be a risk that the conveying blades would become caught on the pump casing or elsewhere and possibly break off, but in any case the pump would be slowed down.

[0018] It can also happen that due to insufficient expansion of the rotor, it does not work correctly and that its pumping capacity is insufficient.

[0019] The energy supply device can advantageously be designed as a mechanical drive, and the conveying element can be movable and driven by the drive. The typical case is thus a rotatably driven pump rotor with conveying blades.

[0020] However, other pumping principles are also conceivable, for example, with an alternately expanded and compressed balloon element that intermittently displaces fluid from a chamber and thus pumps it. Furthermore, pumping principles without moving parts are also conceivable, in which the pumping element, for example, generates an electric or magnetic field that acts on a fluid with appropriate material parameters to be pumped by corresponding field effects.

[0021] Even with such non-moving conveyor elements, it can be useful to detect their expansion state.

[0022] Advantageously, a conveying element can be inflatable, bendable, pivotable, or elastically compressible and expandable. This can be achieved, for example, by making the conveying element entirely or partially from an elastic foam or by providing an elastic wire frame over which a membrane is stretched to form a conveying blade. The frame is elastically compressible in the radial direction and automatically returns to its original shape when the compression force is removed. A corresponding conveying blade can also be attached to the hub as an expandable or bendable body and only be raised at the start of operation due to the resulting fluid counterpressure.

[0023] In addition to a conveying element or a rotor, a pump housing that is also compressible can also be provided.

[0024] In this case, it is particularly important that both the pumping element, such as a rotor, and the pump housing are expanded prior to commissioning. This can occur automatically due to the effects mentioned above, either by holding the pump radially together during transport and then releasing the connection after transport. This can be achieved, for example, by guiding the pump in a hollow catheter during transport and pushing it out of the hollow catheter after transport or at the end of transport, so that the radial holding force outside the hollow catheter is eliminated and the pump automatically expands elastically.

[0025] However, active expansion can also be provided by a corresponding actuating device such as small levers or other devices that act on the rotor and the housing.

[0026] Advantageously, the detection device changes a signal state when the first element reaches the expanded state. This allows the pump's status to be actively communicated to a person operating the pump. For example, the status can be communicated via a visual or acoustic signal.

[0027] The detection device can also be configured to emit a signal as long as the expanded state is not reached. This signal can thus serve as a warning signal that the pump cannot yet be put into operation.

[0028] If a signal is only emitted when the expanded state is reached, this ensures that in the event of a defect in the detection device, as long as no signal is emitted, the pump will not be put into operation for safety reasons, even if it has actually already reached the expanded state due to a defective sensor.

[0029] The detection device can also be configured to block the energy supply device until the expanded state is reached. This automatically ensures, without operator intervention, that the pump will not be started until the expansion of the expandable elements is confirmed.

[0030] Advantageously, it can also be provided that the detection device monitors the load of the energy supply device during operation and determines whether the operating state has been reached by comparing it with a reference value or a reference pattern.

[0031] The sensor of the detection device can thus be arranged remotely from the pump, for example, near the energy supply device, in order to monitor from there whether irregular behavior of the energy supply device indicates an increased or changed resistance during pump operation. Alternatively, the detection device can also be provided with a sensor located directly on the pump.

[0032] There, the pump's components can be monitored directly much more easily if appropriate sensors, such as strain gauges, are installed. It is then possible to determine, independently of pump operation, whether the pump has already reached operating condition—i.e., whether it has expanded accordingly. For example, the shape of the individual impeller blades can be monitored using applied strain gauges, or the angle between the impeller blades and the hub can be monitored when the impeller blades are angled away from the hub during expansion.

[0033] It is also possible, for example, to monitor an electrical resistance corresponding to a current path from the pump housing via the impeller blades and the hub, whereby in the expanded state the impeller blades or other parts of the rotor should not touch the pump housing and thus the resistance is high, while in the compressed state there is contact between the pump housing and other parts of the pump, so that the electrical resistance is reduced in this state.

[0034] Similarly, an electrical capacitance between the pump housing and parts of the rotor or the entire rotor can be monitored, whereby the capacitance is influenced by the distance between these components.

[0035] The inductance of the housing or rotor can also be monitored, whereby the inductance is influenced by the shape of the housing or rotor. If, for example, the housing or rotor contains a metal framework, such as nitinol, which deforms (hyper-)elastically when changing from the transport state to the expanded state, the inductance of the housing or rotor also changes depending on the layout of the electrically conductive framework components. The change in this inductance can be detected, for example, by monitoring the reactance of the housing or rotor. Another option, for example, could be to wrap the housing with an elastically deformable electrical conductor which changes its resistance when changing from the transport state to the expanded state and, because of its coil-shaped arrangement, also changes its inductance.

[0036] A further variant may provide for an additional conductive path, for example, a wire or several mutually contacting wires made of electrically conductive material, to be introduced into the pump. This conductive path is separated or torn, i.e., interrupted, by an expansion movement, so that when the path's resistance is monitored, a change occurs when the path is interrupted. Such a wire or conductive path can, for example, completely surround the pump in the compressed state and be arranged around it, in particular, be taut.

[0037] It can also be provided that the monitored path surrounding the pump or elements of the pump, which is non-conductive in the compressed state, only becomes conductive upon expansion by displacement of a conductor.

[0038] For example, an electrical conductor can be integrated into the catheter to transmit the signal from the pump head to the proximal catheter section.

[0039] In this sense, a pump device with the following features is also proposed as a separate invention: Pump device with a pump head and a catheter, wherein the catheter has a proximal end that can be placed outside a human or animal body and a distal end located towards the pump head, wherein the pump head has a mechanically movable pump member and an energy supply device running from the proximal to the distal end of the catheter is provided for driving the pump member in the form of a flexible shaft, wherein the catheter has an additional electrical conductor and / or a light guide running from the proximal end of the catheter to the distal end of the catheter.

[0040] This makes it possible for the first time for a mechanically driven pump to transmit additional electrical signals from the pump head to the proximal end located outside the human / animal body, where a medical operator can stand. This makes it possible, for example, to perform control functions to ensure or monitor correct function.

[0041] Electrical signals can be transmitted from the pump head and / or light can be guided to the pump head via a fiber optic cable. Depending on the expansion state, it can be reflected, for example, by the first element and guided to the proximal, outer end of the fiber optic cable. For this purpose, parts of the first element can be mirrored, for example.

[0042] A further embodiment of the invention may provide that the sensor monitors a holding device which compresses the pump and which is expandable or from which the pump is removable.

[0043] The holding device can be, for example, the end of a hollow catheter in which the pump is housed during transport. The pump is compressed by the surrounding hollow catheter until it is pushed out of the hollow catheter after being brought to the site of use, for example with the aid of a drive shaft or another pull or catheter tube as a pushing tool. Once the pump has been pushed out of the hollow catheter, the compressive holding force of the hollow catheter is removed, allowing the pump elements to expand elastically. This process can be additionally supported by other measures such as slow rotation of the pump rotor or manipulation with additional pulling or pushing elements.

[0044] A sensor can be provided at the end of the hollow catheter to signal when the pump has been fully extended from the hollow catheter. This provides a certain degree of certainty that the pump has expanded automatically.

[0045] Various sensors mentioned and described above can also be combined and logically interconnected to gain greater certainty as to whether the pump has actually been expanded before it is put into operation.

[0046] In the following, the invention is shown and described using an exemplary embodiment in a drawing. Fig. 1 schematically shows a cardiac catheter pump being pushed through a blood vessel into a heart chamber, Fig. 2 the pump off Fig. 1 after reaching the ventricle and expanding, Fig. 3 a first signal processing of detector signals, Fig. 4 a second processing of detector signals, Fig. 5 processing of detector signals with additional control of the drive device, Fig. 6 signal processing in which the connection between the drive device and the pump is interrupted in certain cases, Fig. 7 a detection device arranged on the drive device, Fig. 8 a pump in compressed form, Fig. 9 the pump off Fig. 8 in expanded form, Fig. 10 a pump positioned in compressed form in a cardiac catheter, Fig. 11 a detection device of a pump which measures an electrical resistance, Fig. 12 a detection device that measures the resistance of a wire spanning a pump, Fig. 13 a detection device similar to that of Fig. 12 with a broken conductor. Fig. 14 a pump in the compressed state, surrounded by a non-conductive path, Fig. 15 the pump off Fig. 14 in at least partially expanded state with closed conductor path, Fig. 16 a pump schematically in a longitudinal section while it is compressed at the end of a hollow catheter and Fig. 17 the pump off Fig. 16 outside the catheter in the expanded state.

[0047] Fig. Figure 1 schematically shows a heart chamber 1 into which a blood vessel 2 opens, through which a hollow catheter 4 is inserted via a sheath 3. The hollow catheter has a rotating shaft 5 in its cavity, which can be driven at high speeds, typically more than 10,000 revolutions per minute, by a motor 6.

[0048] The shaft 5 drives a pump 8 at the distal end 7 of the hollow catheter 4, which in the illustration of the Fig. 1 is still compressed at the end of the hollow catheter.

[0049] The pump can be inserted into the heart chamber 1, for example, by means of the shaft 5 or other elements not shown from the end of the hollow catheter 4. The resulting state is shown in the Fig. 2, where the pump 8 is shown in expanded form. A rotor 9 is shown schematically inside a pump housing 10.

[0050] The rotor 9 has conveying blades 11 projecting radially from a hub, which are rolled up, folded in or otherwise compressed in the compressed state of the pump.

[0051] In the in the Fig. 2, the pump 8 is operational, ie it is in the expanded state and can pump blood by rotating the rotor. Fig. 1, however, the pump 8 is shown in the transport state, ie it is compressed within the hollow catheter 4.

[0052] The transition from the compressed form of the pump to the expanded form can, for example, occur when the external compression forces are eliminated due to the inherent elasticity of the pump housing 10 and the rotor 9.

[0053] However, additional manipulation elements may also be provided, such as, for example, pulleys that run along the hollow catheter 4 on its outside or in the lumen and that can cause the pump to open and expand by applying tension or pressure to the pump.

[0054] Finally, the pump can also be expanded, for example, by slowly rotating the rotor so that, for example, the fluid counterpressure of the blood that is caught in the conveying blades 11 causes them to be erected.

[0055] The pump housing 10 can also be inflated by a slight overpressure generated by the rotor.

[0056] It is also conceivable to equip the pump with inflatable cavities, for example, by constructing the pump housing 10 as a double-walled balloon, and the rotor also having inflatable cavities in both the impeller blades and, if applicable, in the hub. In this case, the individual elements of the pump must be connected to a controllable pressure source via hydraulic or pneumatic lines. These components can also be made of a foam that automatically assumes its expanded shape once compression forces are removed.

[0057] A key factor in ensuring increased operational safety is that the pump's expansion status is also checked and verified, so that, for example, a treating physician can decide whether the pump can be put into operation.

[0058] Various types of sensors can be provided for this purpose, which are described in more detail below.

[0059] Based on the Fig. Figure 3 shows how a signal coming from such a sensor can be processed.

[0060] The sensor is in the Fig. 3 is designated 12. It delivers a signal to a decision device 13, which decides based on the sensor signals whether the pump is expanded or not, or whether a specific element of the pump is expanded. If the expanded state is reached (yes), signal path 14 is selected. If the expanded state is not reached (no), signal 15 is sent. Depending on the state of the pump, a signal is sent in the Fig. 3 For example, a light signal is emitted when the expanded state is reached or suppressed as long as the expanded state is not reached.

[0061] The light signal assignment can also be exactly the opposite, so that a light signal is emitted as long as the expanded state is not reached, and this goes out as soon as the expanded state is reached.

[0062] Instead of light signals, other types of signals such as acoustic signals can also be sent.

[0063] In the Fig. 4 shows that according to the same structure as in the Fig. 3 when the expanded state is reached and the signal state 14 (yes) is accordingly assumed, a switch 16 to a signal element is interrupted, while the same or another switching element is closed when the signal state 15 (no) is assumed.

[0064] Instead of a signal element, other elements can also be connected to the corresponding switches 16 to achieve certain desired effects.

[0065] In the Fig. Figure 5 shows a configuration in which a manually operable switch 17 is provided in series with a switch 16, which is actuated in response to a signal, and which actuates the pump drive 18. This results in signal 14 being output and switch 16 being closed when the expanded state is reached (yes). Thus, the drive can be switched on by actuating switch 17.

[0066] As long as the signal for reaching the expanded state is not given (no), designated by the signal 15, the switch 16 remains, as in the lower half of the Fig. 5, so that switch 17 can be actuated, but this does not activate drive 18. Drive 18 is thus blocked by sensor 12 or its signal processing.

[0067] In the Fig. 6 is a variant of the Fig. 5, in which the signal processing actuates a switch 19 that allows or blocks the transfer of energy from the drive 18 to the pump 8. Once the expanded state of the pump is reached, indicated by signal 14, the switch 19 is closed, and the energy can flow from the drive 18 to the pump. As long as the expanded state is not reached, indicated by signal 15, the switch 19 remains open, and the effect of the drive does not reach the pump.

[0068] The examples for a drive control of the Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 can also be processed with signal processing according to the examples of Fig. 1 to 4 are combined so that a signal perceptible outside the body appears or disappears, and the energy supply to the drive device is enabled or disabled.

[0069] The switch 19 can be designed, for example, as an electrical switch, but also as a pneumatic or hydraulic valve that is arranged in the drive train.

[0070] It can also be a clutch that blocks the transmission of torque via the shaft by switching the clutch to the disengaged state in which no torque is transmitted.

[0071] Fig. 7 schematically shows the arrangement of a sensor 20 directly on the drive 18, wherein the sensor 20 measures, for example, the current flowing through the drive or in another way the load of the drive.

[0072] If the pump is not yet in the expanded state, the load on the drive will be higher than in the expanded state, since the pump will either not move at all or only with large friction losses.

[0073] The load is detected by the sensor 20 and compared with reference values ​​or reference patterns by means of a processing device 21 as part of the detection device, wherein the device 21, if it is determined that the expanded state has not yet been reached, can influence the drive 18, for example, switch it off.

[0074] In this case, the sensor 20 is typically located away from the pump and closer to the drive, ie in the Fig. 1 and Fig. 2, it is arranged near the electric motor 6 or its power source. It can also be provided that the corresponding motor, either an electric motor or, for example, a microturbine, can be arranged at the distal end of the hollow catheter 4, so that in this case the sensor 20 is also arranged there.

[0075] In the Fig. 8 schematically shows a pump 8 in the compressed state with a collapsed housing 10 and a rotor 9, the conveying blades 11 of which are also compressed, for example folded onto the hub 9a.

[0076] Strain gauges 22, 23, 24 are shown, wherein the strain gauge 22 is arranged on a conveyor blade, the strain gauge 23 in the attachment area of ​​a conveyor blade to the hub 9a and the strain gauge 24 outside on the housing 10.

[0077] The strain gauges are each glued on and register changes in the shape and size of the carrier material. They are each connected via cables to an evaluation device 25, which registers the extent of deformation during the pump's expansion process. The signals from the individual strain gauges can be combined, with the logic of this combination being designed in various ways. For example, the reaching of the operating state can only be signaled when all strain gauges report an expansion of the element they are monitoring, or when at least two of these elements, or even a single element, reports reaching the expanded state. A corresponding signal is sent to the drive 18.

[0078] In the Fig. 9 is the pump from the Fig. 8 shown in expanded state.

[0079] The Fig. Figure 10 shows the end 7 of a hollow catheter 4, in which a pump 8 is compressed. The pump 8 is connected to the motor 6 via the shaft 5 through the hollow catheter 4. Both the housing 10 and the rotor 9 with the impellers are compressed.

[0080] The housing 10' is shown in a dashed state after the pump has expanded. An insertion cone 26 is also shown, through which the pump 10 is retracted into the hollow catheter 4 and radially compressed there before being removed from the patient's body.

[0081] Two sensors 27, 28 are provided within the hollow catheter 4, which signal whether the pump is in the area of ​​the hollow catheter they represent and monitor or has already been extended from it. In the illustration of the Fig. 10, the pump has already passed through the area of ​​sensor 27, but sensor 28 still signals that the pump is compressed in this area. After extending from the hollow catheter, sensor 28 will signal that it is exposed and that the pump has been extended from the hollow catheter and thus expanded. The corresponding signals are processed in a signal processing device 25 and, if necessary, forwarded to the drive 18.

[0082] Fig. 11 shows a sensor 29, which is designed as a resistance measuring sensor and is connected in series to a current source 30 and to the pump housing 10 and to a conveying blade 11 via two lines 31, 32. Both the housing 10 and the conveying blade can, for example, be made of an at least partially conductive material or be coated with such a material, so that the electrical circuit via the lines 31, 32 via the sensor 29 and between the conveying blade 11 and the pump housing 10 is closed as soon as the conveying blade 11 touches the housing 10.

[0083] In this case, it would signal that the pump is not in operating mode.

[0084] As soon as the contact between the conveyor blade 11 and the housing 10 is released, the detection device signals that the expanded state has been reached.

[0085] Fig. Figure 12 shows a resistance monitor for a closed wire ring 33 surrounding a compressed pump 10. If the wire breaks during pump expansion, the resistance in the ring doubles because one of the current paths is interrupted. This is registered by sensor 29, and the expanded state is signaled accordingly.

[0086] Fig. 13 shows a similar setup as Fig. 12 with a ring conductor 34 interrupted between the supply lines 35, 36, which is, for example, integrated into a closed insulating ring. If the insulating ring breaks at a point where the ring conductor 34 runs, the current path through the ring conductor is interrupted, which is registered by the sensor 29.

[0087] Fig. 14 shows a similar device as Fig. 13 with a compressed pump 10, but in contrast to Fig. 13 The circuit of the ring conductor 33a is initially open in the transport state and is closed in the expanded state of the pump, i.e., the operating state. The advantage of this variant is that the expanded state is only displayed if the ring conductor itself is not defective. In the version according to Fig. 13, a defective, accidentally interrupted ring conductor would possibly indicate the reaching of the expanded state even if this had not (yet) been achieved. In a design according to Fig. 14 this would not be possible, which provides additional security for the system against malfunction.

[0088] Fig. 15 shows the pump 10 with the device of Fig. 14 in expanded state with closed ring conductor 33b.

[0089] Fig. 16 shows a device similar to that in Fig. 10 in the transport state, but designed such that a switch 37 is arranged at the proximal end of the catheter 38. The length of the catheter 38 in relation to the length of the hollow catheter 39 is dimensioned such that the pump head 40 has already fully assumed the expanded state (i.e., has left the hollow catheter 39) when the proximal end 41 of the hollow catheter 39 actuates the switch 37 (cf. Fig. 17). To prevent unintentional activation of the switch 37, it is advantageously designed or arranged in such a way that it cannot be activated by hand during manipulation. The switch 37 can be arranged outside the patient's body if the catheters 38, 39 are sufficiently long.

[0090] Fig. 17 shows the device from Fig. 16 in operating condition.

[0091] In Fig.17 also shows, by way of example, an optical monitoring device for the expanded state, supplemented by a proximal light source 100, a prism / beam splitter 102, a light guide 103 and an optical sensor 101. The light guide is guided to the pump head, guides light from the light source 100 there and returns reflected light to the optical sensor 101, depending on the compressed or expanded state.

[0092] The invention described serves to increase the operational reliability of compressible pumps and to reduce health risks, particularly in the medical field.

Claims

[1] Pump device with a pump (8) and an energy supply device (5, 18), wherein the pump has a conveying element (9, 11) which conveys a fluid by means of supplied energy, wherein the pump has a transport state and an expanded state and wherein at least one first element (9, 9a, 10, 10', 11) of the pump has a different shape and / or size in the transport state than in the expanded state, characterized by a detection device (12, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29) which detects whether at least the first element is in the expanded state with regard to shape and / or size. [2] Pump device according to claim 1, characterized by that the conveying element (9, 11) has an inflatable balloon element or a rotor with a conveying blade (11). [3] Pump device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized bythat the conveying element (9, 11) is inflatable, bendable, pivotable or elastically compressible and expandable. [4] Pump device according to claim 1 or one of the following, characterized by that the pump has a compressible and expandable housing (10, 10'). [5] Pump device according to claim 1 or one of the following, characterized by that the detection device (12, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29) changes a signal state when the first element reaches the expanded state. [6] Pump device according to claim 1 or one of the following, characterized by that the detection device (12, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29) emits a signal as long as the expanded state is not reached. [7] Pump device according to claim 1 or one of the following, characterized by that the detection device (12, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29) emits a signal as long as the expanded state is reached. [8] Pump device according to claim 1 or one of the following, characterized by that the detection device (12, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29) blocks the energy supply device (18) as long as the expanded state is not reached. [9] Pump device according to claim 1 or one of the following, characterized by that the detection device (12, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29) monitors the load of the energy supply device (18) during operation and determines whether the expanded state has been reached by comparison with a reference value or a reference pattern. [10] Pump device according to claim 1 or one of the following, characterized by that the detection device (12, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29) has a sensor (20) which is arranged directly on the pump (8) and in particular detects the expanded state independently of the operation of the pump (8). [11] Pump device according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized by that the sensor (22, 23, 24, 27, 28) is a position sensor. [12] Pump device according to one of claims 1 to 11, characterized by that the sensor (27, 28, 29) monitors a holding device (4, 33, 34) which compresses the pump (8) and which is expandable or from which the pump is removable. [13] Pump device according to one of claims 1 to 12, characterized by that at least one first element (9, 10, 10', 11) consists at least partially of an elastically deformable, in particular compressible and expandable material. [14] Pump device according to one of claims 1 to 13, characterized by that at least one first element (9, 10, 10', 11) changes from the transport state to the expanded state by elastic deformation. [15] Pump device with a pump head and a catheter, wherein the catheter has a proximal end that can be placed outside a human or animal body and a distal end located towards the pump head, wherein the pump head has a mechanically movable pumping member and an energy supply device extending from the proximal to the distal end of the catheter is provided for driving the pumping member in the form of a flexible shaft, characterized by that the catheter has an additional electrical conductor running from the proximal end of the catheter to the distal end of the catheter.

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