Implant Head Plug Socket With Integrated Fluid and Light Channels
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing implantable medical devices lack the ability to integrate additional functionalities such as fluid and light transmission without significantly increasing their size, while maintaining electrical stimulation capabilities.
Innovation Solution
A head section design incorporating a blind-hole plug contact socket with coaxially arranged conductive contact rings and insulating sealing rings, enclosed by a potting compound, which includes a media channel and a mounting plate integrated into the potting compound to support a media channel and optical fiber, allowing for additional fluid and light transmission.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If additional functionalities such as fluid and light transmission are integrated into implantable medical devices, then therapeutic capabilities are enhanced, but device size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent embeds media channels (fluid and optical) within the existing head part structure by integrating them into the potting compound and connecting elements. The media channels are nested within the blind-hole plug contact socket structure, allowing fluid and light transmission functionalities to be incorporated without adding external volume to the device.
Solution Approach 2:
The head part structure is designed to serve multiple functions simultaneously: electrical contact through contact rings, fluid transmission through media channels, and light transmission through optical fibers. The connecting element and potting compound structure supports all these functions within a single integrated component, enhancing versatility without requiring separate dedicated structures for each function.
2Adaptability or versatility
If media channels and optical fibers are integrated into the head part, then additional transmission functionalities are enabled, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The media channels are formed within the potting compound before final assembly. The connecting element is prepared with integrated media channel structures beforehand, and optical fibers and fluid channels are embedded during the potting compound curing process. This preliminary integration simplifies subsequent assembly steps compared to post-assembly integration of separate components.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines multiple functions (electrical contact, fluid transmission, light transmission) into a single integrated head part structure. The potting compound serves as both structural support and as the medium containing media channels. The connecting element integrates both mechanical connection and media channel routing functions, reducing the total number of separate components and simplifying manufacturing.
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
Enables the expansion of implantable medical devices to include fluid and light transmission without altering their size, enhancing therapeutic capabilities while maintaining electrical functionality.
Implementation Method 1
electrically insulating, elastically deformable sealing ring
Implementation Method 2
enclosed by a hardened potting compound
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
The invention relates to a head part of an implantable medical device, to a method for producing same, and to a plug assembly which can be fitted into the head part. The head part has a head part housing which has at least one blind hole-type plug contact socket with a socket opening and a socket base lying axially opposite the socket opening, wherein at least one electrically conductive contact ring element and an electrically insulating and elastically deformable seal ring, which are enclosed by a solidified casting compound, are joined together along the plug contact socket in a coaxial arrangement and in an axially serial sequence. The invention is characterized in that the socket base is delimited by a connection means, said connection means being at least partly enclosed by the solidified casting compound and being attached to at least one media channel, which opens into the blind hole-type plug contact socket and is at least partly enclosed by the solidified casting compound and which has one channel end that faces away from the connection means and is connected to a media source. The at least one media channel is designed in the form of a fluid line, and the media source is a fluid pump which is connected to a fluid reservoir. The plug assembly has a plug body in an adapted manner to the media channel, said plug body comprising at least one inner hollow channel, one side of which leads to the distal plug body end. Additionally, the distal plug body end has a joint contour that ensures a flush joint between the hollow channel and the media channel, which opens into the blind hole-type plug contact socket, when the plug assembly is fitted within the plug contact socket.