Expandable impeller pump
Granted: April 19, 2011
Patent Number:
7927068
An impeller includes a hub, and a plurality of blades supported by the hub, the blades being arranged in at least two blade rows. The impeller has a deployed configuration in which the blades extend away from the hub, and a stored configuration in which at least one of the blades is radially compressed, for example by folding the blade towards the hub. The impeller may also have an operational configuration in which at least some of the blades are deformed from the deployed configuration…
System for preventing diastolic heart failure
Granted: January 4, 2011
Patent Number:
7862501
A pumping system for assisting the circulatory system of a patient, wherein the system includes a rotary flow blood pump by a first cannula connected to a portion of the left side of the heart and a second cannula connected to the aorta; and characterised in that the pumping speed of said pump is adjusted in accordance with measurements from a pressure sensor mounted in or on an inner wall of a portion of the left side of the heart.
Tuning DC brushless motors
Granted: December 28, 2010
Patent Number:
7859208
A method of tuning a DC brushless motor, wherein measurement of back EMF voltage is used to detect changes in the torque requirements caused by variation in the operating conditions of the DC brushless motor, the method including varying the timing of the driving signals to the motor to compensate for the changes in the torque requirements.
Pulsatile control system for a rotary blood pump
Granted: December 14, 2010
Patent Number:
7850594
A system for controlling the speed of a rotary blood pump. The system oscillates the speed of the pump to produce pulsed pressure at the outlet of the pump. The speed is oscillated synchronously with the natural cardiac cycle. The natural cardiac cycle is determined using a pulsatility index calculated from the back EMF produced by the pump.
Heart assist device with expandable impeller pump
Granted: November 30, 2010
Patent Number:
7841976
An impeller includes a hub and at least one blade supported by the hub. The impeller has a stored configuration in which the blade is compressed so that its distal end moves towards the hub, and a deployed configuration in which the blade extends away from the hub. The impeller may be part of a pump for pumping fluids, such as pumping blood within a patient. A blood pump may include a cannula having a proximal portion with a fixed diameter, and a distal portion with an expandable…
Heart pump connector
Granted: November 2, 2010
Patent Number:
7824358
A heart assist device connection system comprises an inflow connector in fluid-tight communication with an inflow section of a heart assist device. The connector is configured to be releasably connected to an inlet extension inserted into a patient's ventricle. The connector has one or more recesses configured to match a protrusion on the inlet extension. The system also comprises an outflow connector in fluid communication with an outflow section of the heart assist device. The outflow…
Rotary blood pump
Granted: September 28, 2010
Patent Number:
7802966
Various “contactless” bearing mechanisms including hydrodynamic and magnetic bearings are provided for a rotary pump as alternatives to mechanical contact bearings. In one embodiment, a pump apparatus includes a pump housing defining a pumping chamber. The housing has a spindle extending into the pumping chamber. A spindle magnet assembly includes first and second magnets disposed within the spindle. The first and second magnets are arranged proximate each other with their respective…
Axial flow blood pump
Granted: September 21, 2010
Patent Number:
7798952
An axial flow rotary blood pump including an impeller (5) adapted to be magnetically rotated within a housing by the interaction of magnets disposed on or in the impeller and stators disposed on or in the housing. The impeller includes at least one support ring (2) supporting a plurality of blades (4), and a hydrodynamic bearing (3) that operates at least axially and radially in respect of an axis of rotation of the impeller (5).
Multilayer composite vascular access graft
Granted: August 31, 2010
Patent Number:
7785438
A multilayer composite vascular access graft and a method of constructing such a graft are disclosed. The mcVAG has improved performance characteristics, which include desirable handling characteristics such as ease of suturing, kink resistance and the ability to serve as a cannulation route soon after the implant procedure.
Flexible stent and method of making the same
Granted: July 20, 2010
Patent Number:
7758629
A stent that can be made of self-expandable members and balloon expandable members is described. The members can be held together by a polymer layer, polymer rings or discreet polymer connectors. Methods of making and using the stent are also described.
Rotary blood pump with opposing spindle magnets and contoured housing
Granted: July 13, 2010
Patent Number:
7753645
Various “contactless” bearing mechanisms including hydrodynamic and magnetic bearings are provided for a rotary pump as alternatives to mechanical contact bearings. In one embodiment, a pump apparatus includes a pump housing defining a pumping chamber. The housing has a spindle extending into the pumping chamber. A spindle magnet assembly includes first and second magnets disposed within the spindle. The first and second magnets are arranged proximate each other with their respective…
Rotary blood pump
Granted: March 23, 2010
Patent Number:
7682301
Various “contactless” bearing mechanisms including hydrodynamic, hydrostatic, and magnetic bearings are provided for a rotary pump as alternatives to mechanical contact bearings. These design features may be combined. In one embodiment, a pump housing has a spindle extending from a wall of the pump housing into a pumping chamber defined by the pump housing. The spindle has a stepped portion adjacent the wall. In one embodiment, the stepped portion is defined by a change in spindle…
Multilayer composite vascular access graft
Granted: November 20, 2007
Patent Number:
7297158
A multilayer composite vascular access graft and a method of constructing such a graft are disclosed. The mcVAG has improved performance characteristics, which include desirable handling characteristics such as ease of suturing, kink resistance and the ability to serve as a cannulation route soon after the implant procedure.
Flexible stent and method of making the same
Granted: October 30, 2007
Patent Number:
7288111
A stent that can be made of self-expandable members and balloon expandable members is described. The members can be held together by a polymer layer, polymer rings or discreet polymer connectors. Methods of making and using the stent are also described.
Adaptive speed control for blood pump
Granted: January 31, 2006
Patent Number:
6991595
A blood pump may be adapted to sense the onset of left ventricular collapse by monitoring a pulsatility index, and may adjust the pump speed to maintain the index at a setpoint. The pulsatility index may be measured by the amount of difference between the maximum and the minimum volume of flow through the pump during a particular time period. The setpoint may be increased when the onset of ventricular collapse is detected, for example, when the pulsatility index falls suddenly. The…
Coated vascular grafts and methods of use
Granted: September 6, 2005
Patent Number:
6939377
A vascular graft, such as an AAA stent graft, includes a core zone of PET fabric with a non-porous coating comprising a polyurethane, such as Thoralon®, disposed on at least one surface. The coating provides a barrier to prevent short and long term leakage of fluids through the pores of the PET fabric core zone. A method for sealing the pores of a porous PET graft includes the step of coating at least one surface of said graft with at least one polyurethane, or mixtures and combinations…
Flared coronary artery bypass grafts
Granted: November 23, 2004
Patent Number:
6821295
A bypass graft includes a tubular portion having an internal tubular diameter and a first end and a second end. The tubular portion has a central axis. A flared portion has an adjoining end, wherein the adjoining end of the flared portion is integrally formed on and is substantially concentric with the second end of the tubular portion, and a flared end, wherein the flared end has a flared end internal diameter, such that the internal flared end diameter is greater than the internal…
Transmission of information from an implanted medical device
Granted: August 3, 2004
Patent Number:
6772011
An implanted medical apparatus and external power source use the same coils for energy transfer to the implanted medical device as used for transmission of control signals from the implanted device. In one example, implanted circuitry generates a feedback control signal indicative of the load voltage level of a load-generating medical device and superimposes the feedback signal on an inductor capacitor (LC) tank circuit for detection by the external powering apparatus. The external…
Layered stent-graft and methods of making the same
Granted: June 22, 2004
Patent Number:
6752826
A stent-graft made of at least three concentric layers is disclosed. The inner and outer layers can be porous. The middle layer can be non-porous and encompasses a stent.
Transcutaneous energy transfer with circuitry arranged to avoid overheating
Granted: December 4, 2001
Patent Number:
6327504
A device, system and method for transcutaneous energy transfer (TET). Implanted circuitry suitable for conditioning the power delivered transcutaneously may be constructed in planar fashion, may be located in or near an implanted coil, and may be oriented such that the plane of the circuitry is substantially tangent to the lines of magnetic flux. The orientation of the circuitry may reduce eddy currents and their potentially harmful effects.
