Development of a Minimally Invasive Battery Charger and Analysis of Energy Production Levels to Meet the Energy Needs of Implantable Biomedical Devices

Project no. 23925 · Status: Kapanmış (Yayın bekleniyor) · 2022

Summary

<p>Implantable&nbsp;cardiovascular&nbsp;electronic&nbsp;devices,&nbsp;particularly&nbsp;pacemakers,&nbsp;significantly&nbsp;improve&nbsp;the&nbsp;quality&nbsp;of&nbsp;life&nbsp;for&nbsp;many&nbsp;patients&nbsp;and&nbsp;help&nbsp;regulate&nbsp;the&nbsp;functions&nbsp;of&nbsp;vital&nbsp;organs.&nbsp;However,&nbsp;the&nbsp;limited&nbsp;battery&nbsp;lifespan&nbsp;of&nbsp;these&nbsp;devices&nbsp;(7–10&nbsp;years)&nbsp;often&nbsp;necessitates&nbsp;multiple&nbsp;surgical&nbsp;interventions&nbsp;over&nbsp;a&nbsp;patient’s&nbsp;lifetime.&nbsp;This&nbsp;issue&nbsp;is&nbsp;especially&nbsp;critical&nbsp;in&nbsp;young&nbsp;and&nbsp;pediatric&nbsp;patient&nbsp;groups,&nbsp;where&nbsp;repeated&nbsp;surgical&nbsp;procedures&nbsp;pose&nbsp;substantial&nbsp;risks&nbsp;and&nbsp;complications.&nbsp;Each&nbsp;battery&nbsp;replacement&nbsp;surgery&nbsp;carries&nbsp;a&nbsp;risk&nbsp;of&nbsp;infection&nbsp;and&nbsp;may&nbsp;lead&nbsp;to&nbsp;complications&nbsp;that,&nbsp;in&nbsp;some&nbsp;cases,&nbsp;can&nbsp;result&nbsp;in&nbsp;death.&nbsp;In&nbsp;this&nbsp;thesis,&nbsp;a&nbsp;piezoelectric-based&nbsp;energy&nbsp;harvester&nbsp;was&nbsp;designed&nbsp;and&nbsp;fabricated&nbsp;to&nbsp;meet&nbsp;the&nbsp;energy&nbsp;demand&nbsp;of&nbsp;implantable&nbsp;pacemakers&nbsp;without&nbsp;requiring&nbsp;external&nbsp;intervention.&nbsp;The&nbsp;energy&nbsp;harvester,&nbsp;constructed&nbsp;using&nbsp;a&nbsp;dual-layer&nbsp;lead&nbsp;zirconate&nbsp;titanate&nbsp;(PZT)&nbsp;piezoelectric&nbsp;material,&nbsp;was&nbsp;engineered&nbsp;to&nbsp;generate&nbsp;energy&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;vertical&nbsp;body&nbsp;motion&nbsp;occurring&nbsp;during&nbsp;human&nbsp;walking.&nbsp;To&nbsp;demonstrate&nbsp;the&nbsp;feasibility&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;piezoelectric&nbsp;energy&nbsp;harvester,&nbsp;a&nbsp;robot&nbsp;capable&nbsp;of&nbsp;modeling&nbsp;the&nbsp;vertical&nbsp;displacement&nbsp;of&nbsp;human&nbsp;gait&nbsp;was&nbsp;developed.&nbsp;Using&nbsp;this&nbsp;robotic&nbsp;platform,&nbsp;which&nbsp;simulates&nbsp;walking&nbsp;motion&nbsp;along&nbsp;the&nbsp;z-axis,&nbsp;tests&nbsp;were&nbsp;conducted&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;0.5–2&nbsp;Hz&nbsp;frequency&nbsp;range.Experimental&nbsp;results&nbsp;showed&nbsp;that&nbsp;at&nbsp;2&nbsp;Hz,&nbsp;the&nbsp;device&nbsp;produced&nbsp;a&nbsp;maximum&nbsp;open-circuit&nbsp;voltage&nbsp;of&nbsp;Vocmax&nbsp;=&nbsp;3.13&nbsp;V,&nbsp;a&nbsp;maximum&nbsp;short-circuit&nbsp;current&nbsp;of&nbsp;Iscmax&nbsp;=&nbsp;82.98&nbsp;µA,&nbsp;and&nbsp;a&nbsp;maximum&nbsp;power&nbsp;output&nbsp;of&nbsp;Pmax&nbsp;=&nbsp;24.7&nbsp;µW&nbsp;at&nbsp;the&nbsp;optimal&nbsp;load&nbsp;resistance&nbsp;of&nbsp;38.88&nbsp;kΩ.&nbsp;After&nbsp;converting&nbsp;the&nbsp;AC&nbsp;output&nbsp;to&nbsp;DC&nbsp;using&nbsp;a&nbsp;bridge&nbsp;rectifier&nbsp;circuit,&nbsp;242&nbsp;µJ&nbsp;of&nbsp;energy&nbsp;was&nbsp;stored&nbsp;in&nbsp;a&nbsp;100&nbsp;µF&nbsp;capacitor&nbsp;within&nbsp;48&nbsp;seconds.&nbsp;This&nbsp;stored&nbsp;energy&nbsp;meets&nbsp;the&nbsp;approximately&nbsp;15&nbsp;µJ&nbsp;required&nbsp;for&nbsp;modern&nbsp;pacemaker&nbsp;pacing&nbsp;pulses.&nbsp;The&nbsp;findings&nbsp;demonstrate&nbsp;that&nbsp;this&nbsp;piezoelectric&nbsp;energy&nbsp;harvester&nbsp;has&nbsp;the&nbsp;capacity&nbsp;to&nbsp;power&nbsp;low-power-consuming&nbsp;pacemakers&nbsp;(1–10&nbsp;µW).</p>

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