TETS Misalignment Alerts Based on Implant Battery Thresholds
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Transcutaneous energy transfer systems (TETS) face challenges in maintaining consistent power delivery to implantable medical devices due to coil misalignment and variations in patient movement, leading to frequent and bothersome alerts that can cause sleep deprivation and desensitization, impacting the effectiveness of power transfer and device functionality.
Innovation Solution
A system with an external controller and implantable controller that operates in two modes: one generating alerts when power efficiency drops below a threshold and another when the implantable controller's power source is low, with adjustable alert timing and inhibition to minimize unnecessary notifications, and includes a display for visual and audible alerts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If alerts are generated frequently to notify patients of coil misalignment and power transfer issues, then patient awareness and safety are improved, but patient sleep quality and comfort deteriorate due to sleep deprivation and alert fatigue
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the alert generation parameters by introducing a duration threshold - alerts are only generated when misalignment persists for a predetermined time period rather than immediately upon detection. This parameter change filters out transient misalignments during normal movement while maintaining awareness of sustained problems that require patient attention.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary monitoring and evaluation of misalignment duration before triggering an alert. By预先 assessing whether the misalignment persists beyond a threshold duration, the system prepares to alert only when necessary, avoiding premature notifications during temporary positioning issues.
2Reliability
If alerts are generated for every misalignment event to ensure continuous power delivery, then power transfer reliability is improved, but patient desensitization to alerts occurs reducing alert effectiveness
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the alert triggering parameter from immediate detection to duration-based detection, requiring misalignment to persist for a predetermined time before alert generation. This parameter modification reduces alert frequency while maintaining reliability by filtering out transient misalignments that do not threaten continuous power delivery.
3Reliability
If the system continuously monitors power transfer efficiency to detect misalignment, then power delivery reliability is improved, but the frequency of notifications increases causing patient burden
Solution Approach 1:
The system modifies the notification parameter by introducing a time duration threshold - notifications are generated only when misalignment persists for a predetermined period. This parameter change reduces the frequency of patient notifications while maintaining continuous monitoring for reliability, filtering out transient issues during normal movement.
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 approach reduces the frequency of misalignment notifications, ensuring timely alerts only when necessary, thereby improving patient sleep and reducing alert fatigue while maintaining continuous power delivery to implantable medical devices.
Implementation Method 1
a receiving coil configured for transcutaneous inductive communication with the transmission coil
Data Source
AI summary
A system for minimizing misalignment notifications for a TETS having an implantable blood pump, an external controller having a power source and a processing circuitry, a transmission coil in communication with the external controller, a receiving coil configured for transcutaneous inductive communication with the transmission coil, and an implantable controller in communication with the receiving coil and the implantable blood pump. The implantable controller having a power source configured to receive power from the receiving coil. The processing circuitry may be configured to: operate in a first mode where an alert is generated when a power efficiency transfer between the transmission coil and the receiving coil is below a first predetermined threshold; and operate in a second mode where the alert is only generated when the power remaining in the power source for the implantable controller is below a first predetermined power source threshold.