Cardiac Support System Wireless Power Transfer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current implantable cardiac support systems face challenges with high power consumption, requiring external batteries and percutaneous wires, which restrict mobility and cause discomfort, and existing wireless power transfer systems are inefficient due to heat generation and alignment issues.
Innovation Solution
An implantable cardiac support system featuring a rotary blood pump powered by an implantable power module with a wireless power transfer subsystem using magnetic resonance coupling, allowing for efficient energy transfer over a significant distance without the need for percutaneous wires or external batteries, enabling extended operation and improved mobility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If percutaneous wires and external batteries are used to power the blood pump, then sufficient power can be provided for operation, but patient mobility is restricted and discomfort increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the power source from external location and places it inside the patient's body as an implantable battery. This eliminates the need for percutaneous wires and external battery packs, thereby resolving the mobility restriction while providing sufficient power for pump operation through the implanted power source
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a wireless power transfer system as an intermediary between external power sources and the implanted pump. This allows power to be transmitted through the skin without physical wire penetration, eliminating both percutaneous wire risks and external battery burdens while maintaining full pump operation capability
2Ease of operation
If inductive coupling is used for wireless power transfer, then percutaneous wires can be eliminated, but heat generation increases and alignment precision is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the operating frequency parameter of the wireless power transfer system to resonate at specific frequencies that maximize power transfer efficiency while minimizing resistive heating. By tuning the inductive coupling parameters, the system achieves effective wireless power delivery with reduced heat generation at the skin interface
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs periodic modulation of the power transfer signal to allow duty cycling, where the wireless power transmission occurs in periodic bursts rather than continuously. This reduces cumulative heat generation while maintaining adequate average power delivery to the implanted pump
3Duration of action of moving object
If implantable battery capacity is increased to provide full day operation, then operation duration extends, but device size increases beyond implantable limits
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a rechargeable implantable battery that can be periodically recharged through wireless power transfer while still implanted in the patient. This allows the battery to be sized for short-term operation (eliminating the need for large capacity batteries) while maintaining full-day operational capability through nightly or periodic recharging without increasing device volume
Solution Approach 2:
The patent designs the implantable power system to serve multiple functions: the same wireless power receiver serves both as a power source during operation and as a recharge mechanism. This multi-functionality allows the system to achieve extended operation duration through iterative charging cycles rather than requiring a single large-capacity battery
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system achieves efficient blood flow with an Energy Conversion Ratio (ECR) of 1.0 or greater, providing sustained blood flow for 24 hours from a 40 Watt-hour rechargeable energy source, reducing heat-related issues and enhancing patient mobility and comfort.
Implementation Method 1
a receiving coil assembly coupled to the power module, wherein the receiving coil assembly is implantable into the human body, and a transmitting coil assembly magnetic resonance coupled to the receiving coil assembly
Implementation Method 2
a transmitting coil assembly magnetic resonance coupled to the receiving coil assembly, wherein the transmitting coil assembly is utilized to electromagnetically transfer energy to the receiving coil assembly
Data Source
AI summary
A high efficiency cardiac support system is suitable for chronic use in treating heart failure, wherein the system includes an implantable rotary blood pump, an implantable power module, a wireless power transfer subsystem, a patient monitor, and a programmer. In a cardiac support system, the cumulative efficiencies of the components of the system are capable of providing therapeutically effective blood flow for a typical day of awake hours using the energy from a single wireless recharge of an implanted rechargeable energy source. Moreover, the implantable rechargeable energy source may be recharged during a normal sleep period of 8 hours or less. The system may provide full or partial cardiac support without the need for external wearable batteries, controllers, or cables.