Bendable Catheter Arms with Varied Flexibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electrophysiology catheters face challenges in controlling and predicting the position of multiple electrode members due to their unpredictable and irregular configurations, leading to unreliable mapping and ablation procedures in the heart.
Innovation Solution
A catheter with an expandable electrode assembly or basket comprising bendable arms with varying flexibility, where the intermediate portion is more flexible than the distal and proximal portions, allowing for enhanced positioning and resistance to undesirable inversion, achieved through design features like tapered sides, openings, or composite material layers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If multiple electrode arms are used to improve mapping efficiency, then mapping productivity increases, but control over individual electrode positions deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter is divided into multiple independent electrode arms or spines that can be controlled separately. Each arm can be independently positioned and oriented, allowing simultaneous mapping at multiple locations while maintaining individual control over each electrode's position.
Solution Approach 2:
The electrode arms are designed to be dynamically controllable, allowing the operator to adjust the position and orientation of each arm independently during the procedure. This dynamic control enables adaptation to the irregular shapes and sizes of the heart chamber while maintaining productivity.
2Ease of operation
If electrode arms are made steerable to improve positioning ability, then ease of operation improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter shaft and electrode arms incorporate curved or flexible sections that allow steering and bending without requiring complex mechanical joints. The curved geometry enables natural deflection and positioning while maintaining structural integrity and relatively simple construction.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the catheter is made flexible to navigate irregular heart chambers, then adaptability improves, but control precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter is segmented into a flexible shaft portion for navigation and a more rigid electrode array portion for precise positioning. This segmentation allows the distal end to be steered into position while the electrode arms maintain sufficient rigidity for accurate and stable electrode placement.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the catheter have different mechanical properties - the proximal shaft is flexible for navigation, while the distal electrode arms are stiffer for precise positioning. This local variation in mechanical quality allows the catheter to satisfy both navigation and positioning requirements simultaneously.
Data Source
AI summary
In various embodiments, a catheter comprising an expandable electrode assembly or basket is provided. In specific embodiments, the basket is particularly useful for mapping electrical activity at one or more locations within the heart. The basket can comprise a plurality of bendable or deflectable arms. At least one of the arms may have varied flexibility over its length in the form of one or more discontinuities of stiffness or flexibility at an elbow region or other variances in flexibility over the arm's length. Such variance in flexibility may allow the arm to assume a different bent configuration or respond to external factors more positively than possible with an arm having a static or near static flexibility or stiffness over its length.