INVESTIGATIONS ON ULTRASOUND FOR ENERGY SUPPLY AND DATA TRANSMISSION IN NEURAL IMPLANTS
PIs
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Thomas Stieglitz
Prof. Dr. techn. Stefan J. Rupitsch
Summary
Current implantable medical devices are either batterypowered like deep brain simulators or come with aninductive link as cochlear implants with the need of highdata rates and power supply. These establishedtechniques limit, however, miniaturization and systemcomplexity and pose challenges in MR imaging ofpatients [Erhardt 2018]. Furthermore, it is hardlypossible to design implant networks that could be usedto interface with different target structures and toestablish true multilateral communication to optimizesystem performance and minimize adverse effects(Fig. 1). Inductive and radio frequency coupling islimited by attenuation losses in the tissue. We suggestultrasound (US) as source for power and data transmission for implantable medical devices since it allows for longer distances in the humanbody. For these challenging tasks, fast switching electronics to steer and control US beams andtransmit data is indispensable. We need power efficient electronics to reduce heating of humantissue and minimize power input. Besides US, transmission of energy and data from anextracorporeal control system into the body will be done via inductive coupling [Stöcklin 2021; Volk2015] to take advantage of experience in medical devices. In doing so, we will overcomechallenges in variations of acoustic impedances over time when using wet matching materials onthe skin.
We like to join our experiences in both, neural implants and low energy consumption ultrasonictransducers development [Schott 2021] and transfer this knowledge into talkative power devices.
Related Publication
Erhardt J.B, E Fuhrer, O.G. Gruschke, J. Leupold, M.C. Wapler, J. Hennig J., T.Stieglitz*, J.G.Korvink*: "Should patients with brain implants undergo MRI?" J. Neural Eng.15 (04), 2018
Schott D.J., A. Gabbrielli, W. Xiong, G. Fischer, F. Höflinger, J. Wendeberg, C. Schindelaheur,S.J. Rupitsch, "Asynchronous chirp slope keying for underwater acoustic communication,",Sensors 21(9), 3282, 2021.
Stoecklin S., A. Yousaf, G. Gidion, L. Reindl, S.J. Rupitsch, "Simultaneous power feedback andmaximum efficiency point tracking for miniaturized RF wireless power transfer systems",Sensors 21(6), 2023, 2021.
Volk T., S. Gorbey, M. Bhattacharyya, W. Gruenwald, B. Lemmer, L.M. Reindl, T. Stieglitz, D.Jansen, "RFID Technology for Continuous Monitoring of Physiological Signals in SmallAnimals". IEEE Trans Biomed Eng. 62(2),2015.