Detecting Empty Medical Pump Reservoir via Energy Patterns
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Solution Overview
Problem
Implantable fluid delivery devices face challenges in accurately determining when the reservoir is empty or near empty, leading to potential under-infusion or over-infusion of therapeutic agents, as the initial amount of fluid or the amount delivered can be incorrect, and existing methods lack effective empty-reservoir detection.
Innovation Solution
The system includes a medical device with a reservoir, a medical pump, a sensor, and a processor that detects properties associated with the energy required to energize the pump mechanism, such as current waveforms or noise characteristics, to determine when the reservoir is empty or near empty, using sensors like coil current sensors, voltage sensors, and noise sensors to analyze the energy patterns and initiate alarms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If existing methods are used to determine reservoir empty status, then the device complexity is reduced, but the measurement precision of reservoir empty detection is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The pump system detects its own empty reservoir status by monitoring its own operational parameters (current, voltage, power consumption) during pump strokes. The sensor detects changes in energy requirements that occur when pumping from an empty reservoir, allowing the system to self-diagnose without external intervention or complex additional detection mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces mechanical or physical detection methods with electrical sensing. Instead of using mechanical level sensors or physical probes to detect reservoir emptiness, the system uses electrical sensors to monitor current, voltage, and power consumption patterns during pump operation, substituting mechanical detection with electrical measurement.
2Productivity
If the pump continues to operate from an empty reservoir, then the productivity is maintained, but the loss of energy increases due to inability to detect empty reservoir
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously monitors pump operational parameters (current, voltage, power consumption) and uses this feedback to detect changes in energy requirements. When the sensor detects patterns indicating an empty reservoir, the system can respond by stopping pump operation or alerting the user, preventing further energy waste from attempting to pump from an empty reservoir.
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
This solution enables precise detection of an empty or near-empty reservoir, preventing under- or over-infusion by analyzing energy patterns and noise characteristics, ensuring consistent and effective delivery of therapeutic agents.
Implementation Method 1
A sensor may be used to detect a change in current waveform, voltage, or power consumption associated with energizing the actuation mechanism
Implementation Method 2
the actuator makes a noise at an end of the pump stroke
Implementation Method 3
the actuator makes a noise at an end of the pump stroke
Data Source
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AI summary
A medical device system (10) comprises a reservoir (30) configured to store a therapeutic fluid and a medical pump (40) configured to deliver the therapeutic fluid from the reservoir to a patient. The system also comprises a sensor (100) that can detect a characteristic associated with the pump and a processor to determine if the characteristic detected indicates the reservoir is empty or near empty. The characteristic may comprise a property associated with the energization of an actuation mechanism configured to be energized to provide a pump stroke. The characteristic may also comprise a characteristic of a noise made by an actuator within the pump at the end of a pump stroke.