Intracorporeal Sensor Deployment With Low-Obstruction Fixation
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge lies in securing intracorporeal devices, particularly in blood vessels like the pulmonary artery, without obstructing blood flow or causing vessel damage, while ensuring stable fixation and versatility across varying vessel sizes.
Innovation Solution
A delivery system with a delivery shaft and sheath, featuring a distal and proximal coupling mechanism, allows for secure deployment and fixation of intracorporeal devices using anchoring structures like wire loops, radial arrays, and daisy petal designs, minimizing vessel obstruction and relying on physical size and wire stiffness for stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the fixation device is made larger to prevent migration, then device stability is improved, but blood flow obstruction increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fixation device is divided into multiple segments or struts that can be deployed in a distributed manner along the vessel wall, rather than using a single large structure. This segmentation allows the device to achieve stable fixation through multiple contact points while maintaining adequate blood flow through the vessel lumen.
Solution Approach 2:
The fixation device is designed with a nested configuration where components are collapsed or folded within a delivery catheter during insertion, then expanded at the target site. This nesting principle allows the device to be delivered through small access points and deployed to a larger final configuration that provides stable fixation without requiring a large initial profile.
2Reliability
If the fixation device is made more rigid to maintain position, then device stability is improved, but vessel wall stress increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fixation device incorporates dynamic elements that allow it to adapt its rigidity based on the local vessel conditions. The device may transition from a flexible state during delivery to a more rigid state upon deployment, or include adjustable components that can be tuned to match the mechanical properties of the specific vessel, thereby maintaining stability while minimizing stress concentrations.
Solution Approach 2:
The device utilizes materials or structural features that change their mechanical parameters in response to the deployment environment. For example, shape memory alloys or phase-changing materials may be employed to transform the device from a compliant delivery state to a stable fixed state, achieving reliable positioning without imposing excessive stress on the vessel wall.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If the fixation device is made smaller to reduce vessel obstruction, then blood flow is improved, but device migration risk increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fixation device employs flexible membranes or thin-walled structures that can conform to the vessel wall while maintaining adequate mechanical engagement. These flexible elements provide sufficient friction and mechanical interlocking to prevent migration while presenting a minimal profile to the blood flow, thereby reducing obstruction.
4Adaptability or versatility
If the fixation device is made more complex to adapt to varying vessel sizes, then versatility is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fixation device is designed with universal features that allow it to function across a range of vessel sizes and anatomical configurations. This may include self-adjusting mechanisms, scalable geometries, or modular components that can be configured for different applications, providing versatility without requiring multiple specialized devices.
Data Source
AI summary
A delivery system for an intracorporeal device includes a sheath defining one or more lumens shaped to receive a delivery catheter or shaft and a guidewire. The system may include a delivery shaft having a distal coupling feature adapted to releasably couple with a proximal coupling feature of the intracorporeal device. The delivery system may further include a hub through which the delivery shaft and guidewire are passed. The delivery shaft may be coupled to a feature, such as a knob, that enables manipulation of the delivery shaft to decouple the distal fixation feature from the proximal fixation feature of the intracorporeal device in order to deploy the intracorporeal device within a patient.