Leadless Pacemaker with Integrated Battery and Redundant Welds
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional cardiac pacemakers are bulky and invasive due to the need for a separate hermetic housing to contain the battery compartment, which increases the size and complexity of the device, leading to difficulties in implantation and patient comfort.
Innovation Solution
A leadless cardiac pacemaker design that integrates the battery and electronics compartment without a separate hermetic housing, using dual-redundant welds to ensure safety and eliminate the need for an additional enclosure, allowing the device to be smaller, thinner, and less invasive.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a separate hermetic housing is used to contain the battery compartment, then safety is improved by protecting the patient from battery leaks, but the device size and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the battery compartment housing with the electronics compartment housing into a single integrated hermetic housing. This eliminates the need for separate hermetic enclosures while maintaining the safety function of protecting the patient from battery leaks. The integrated housing reduces device complexity and size while preserving the protective function through unified hermetic sealing.
2Reliability
If a separate hermetic housing is used to contain the battery compartment, then safety is improved by protecting the patient from battery leaks, but the device volume increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the battery compartment and electronics compartment into a single hermetic housing structure. This integration eliminates the volume required for a separate outer hermetic housing while maintaining patient safety through the unified hermetic seal. The shared housing walls and single hermetic barrier reduce the overall device volume compared to nested separate housings.
3Reliability
If dual-redundant welds are used to seal the battery compartment, then reliability is improved by ensuring containment, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dual-redundant welds as a preemptive safety measure to ensure battery compartment containment. The first weld provides primary sealing, while the second weld serves as a redundant barrier that compensates for potential defects in the first weld. This beforehand cushioning approach prioritizes containment reliability over manufacturing simplicity, ensuring patient safety through layered protection.
4Ease of operation
If the pacemaker is miniaturized by integrating compartments, then ease of implantation is improved, but safety risks increase from potential battery leaks
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the battery compartment and electronics compartment into a single hermetic housing to miniaturize the pacemaker for easier implantation. Simultaneously, it employs dual-redundant welds and hermetic sealing to maintain safety by preventing battery electrolyte leaks. The integrated design with reinforced sealing eliminates the safety risks that might arise from miniaturization by concentrating containment functions in a unified hermetic structure.
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 design results in a smaller, lighter, and less invasive pacemaker that is easier to implant, reducing the risk of complications and improving patient comfort while maintaining safety through dual-redundant welding for containment of hazardous materials.
Implementation Method 1
a first weld joining the battery compartment housing to the electronics compartment housing
Data Source
Figure 1A~1C
Figure 2A~2C
Figure 3A~3C
AI summary
A leadless cardiac pacemaker that does not require a separate hermetic housing surrounding the battery and electronics compartments is provided. The cardiac pacemaker can include a battery disposed in a battery housing and a set of electronics disposed in an electronics housing. In some embodiments, the battery housing and the electronics housing can comprise an external surface of the pacemaker. The pacemaker can include a first set of welds separating the battery from the set of electronics, and a second set of welds separating the set of electronics and the battery from an exterior of the housing. Various embodiments for achieving dual-redundant welds are also provided.