Thoracic Cavity Sensor Placement for Motion Artifact Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Implantable sensors face significant challenges due to motion artifacts caused by skeletal muscle motion, which can saturate amplifiers and corrupt signal acquisition, especially when monitoring physiological characteristics like heart sounds.
Innovation Solution
Positioning sensors within the thoracic cavity, such as beneath the xyphoid process, minimizes skeletal muscle interaction, reducing motion artifacts and allowing for clearer signal acquisition without the need for extensive filtering.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If sensors are positioned on the body surface or near skeletal muscle, then ease of implantation is improved, but motion artifacts increase and signal quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions the sensor placement from the two-dimensional body surface to the three-dimensional interior space of the thoracic cavity. By moving the sensor inside the body cavity rather than on the surface, the system achieves both improved signal quality (by avoiding muscle motion) and maintained ease of implantation (through minimally invasive catheter-based delivery methods)
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces the thoracic cavity as an intermediary space between the external environment and the heart. The sensor is placed in this intermediate zone where it can detect heart sounds without direct contact with moving skeletal muscles, thus mediating between the need for easy access and high signal quality
2Measurement precision
If sensors are positioned within the thoracic cavity to reduce motion artifacts, then measurement precision is improved, but implantation complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the catheter assembly multi-functional by combining the sensing function with the delivery function. The same catheter that delivers the sensor to the thoracic cavity also serves as the pathway for sensor placement and potential retrieval, eliminating the need for separate complex implantation instruments
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter-based delivery system is self-contained and self-guiding, using the body's own anatomical pathways (veins, arteries) to navigate to the target location. This eliminates the need for external guidance systems or complex surgical exposure, allowing the device to service itself through the natural body conduits
3Measurement precision
If extensive signal filtering is applied to remove motion artifacts, then measurement precision is improved, but loss of information increases and device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs the motion artifact reduction action preemptively by placing the sensor in a location (thoracic cavity) where motion artifacts are already minimized. This preliminary positioning prevents the generation of large motion artifacts rather than requiring post-processing filtering to remove them
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the potential harm of being inside the thoracic cavity (proximity to moving structures) into a benefit by carefully selecting the placement location. The sensor is positioned in a zone where the beneficial effect (reduced skeletal muscle motion) outweighs the potential harm, thus eliminating the need for aggressive filtering that would lose signal information
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed techniques include monitoring a physiological characteristic of a patient with a sensor that is mounted to an inner wall of a thoracic cavity of the patient, and sending a signal based on the monitored physiological characteristic from the sensor to a remote device.