Detachable Casing for Cochlear Implant Electrode Arrays
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Solution Overview
Problem
Cochlear implant electrode insertion poses challenges due to the delicate nature of the inner ear structures, leading to potential trauma and damage, such as sensory cell damage, mis-insertion, and hemorrhaging, particularly due to the bulkiness and rigidity of existing electrode arrays which are often designed to accommodate stylet channels, limiting flexibility and increasing trauma risks.
Innovation Solution
A detachable casing system that temporarily stiffens and straightens the electrode array, allowing for precise control during insertion, and is designed to be removable, reducing the need for stylet channels and minimizing trauma by facilitating thinner, more flexible electrode array designs, which can be manipulated using a companion surgical tool to minimize insertion forces and improve insertion accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If electrode arrays are designed with stylet channels to provide stiffness and straightness during insertion, then electrode control during insertion is improved, but the electrode arrays become bulkier and less flexible, increasing trauma risk
Solution Approach 1:
The electrode array is divided into two independent components: the flexible electrode array itself and a separate detachable casing. The casing provides the stiffness and straightness needed for controlled insertion, while the electrode array maintains its thin, flexible design for minimal trauma. After insertion, the casing is detached and removed, leaving only the slender electrode array in place.
Solution Approach 2:
A detachable casing serves as an intermediary tool that temporarily accompanies the electrode array during insertion. The casing acts as a mediator that provides mechanical support and guidance without becoming a permanent part of the implanted device. The casing can be detached and removed after insertion is complete.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If electrode arrays are made thinner and more flexible to reduce trauma, then trauma risk is reduced, but electrode control during insertion deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system separates the functions of trauma reduction and insertion control into different components. The thin, flexible electrode array minimizes trauma risk, while the separate detachable casing provides the stiffness and straightness needed for precise control during insertion. This segmentation allows both requirements to be satisfied simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The detachable casing acts as an intermediary that temporarily provides mechanical support during insertion. It enables the thin electrode array to be controlled and positioned accurately without compromising its flexible, low-trauma design. The casing is removed after insertion, leaving the electrode array in its beneficial thin and flexible state.
3Shape
If stylet channels are included in electrode array design, then electrode straightness is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional bulk and material
Solution Approach 1:
The straightening function is extracted from the electrode array design itself and placed into a separate detachable casing. This eliminates the need for stylet channels, reducing the electrode array to a simpler, thinner structure without internal cavities or complex features. The casing provides straightness temporarily during insertion, then is removed.
Solution Approach 2:
The detachable casing serves as an intermediary structure that provides straightness and rigidity during insertion without being integrated into the electrode array. This keeps the electrode array design simple and minimizes device complexity, while still achieving the necessary straightness through the temporary casing.
4Strength
If rigid electrode arrays are used to maintain structural integrity, then electrode strength is improved, but flexibility deteriorates, limiting ability to navigate curved cochlear paths
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the functions of strength and flexibility into separate components. The electrode array is designed to be thin and flexible for navigating curved cochlear paths, while the detachable casing provides structural rigidity and strength during insertion. This segmentation allows the electrode array to be highly adaptable without sacrificing overall structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The detachable casing acts as a temporary intermediary that provides structural strength and rigidity during the insertion process. It enables the flexible electrode array to maintain its adaptability for navigating curved paths while still achieving the necessary structural integrity through the supporting casing during manipulation and insertion.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus configured to receive and manipulate a cochlear implant type electrode array, where at least the front portion of the electrode, includes an outer, detachable casing or tube, where the casing is attached along the circumference of main axis of an electrode array. Predetermined portions of outer removable casing are slid off and/or removed from the electrode array by the apparatus, during electrode array insertion surgery. The removable casing, temporarily encasing the electrode array, provides a variety of functions, including, imparting additional rigidity to thin, flexible type electrode arrays, straightening pre-curved electrodes, and the like. The linear structure, provided by certain embodiments, combined with the additional rigidity, provides a surgeon additional control of an electrode array during cochlea implantation surgery. The apparatus includes a predetermined means for removable casing detachment and/or removal from an electrode array, and at least one actuator configured for surgical electrode insertion.