Patents Examined by Scott Getzow
  • Patent number: 9855437
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for wireless power transfer and communications are provided. In one embodiment, a resonator of a wireless power transfer system comprises a plurality of links connected to another with hinges to form a coil housing, the coil housing being adjustable at the hinges to conform to a body of a patient, and a flexible conductor wire attached to the coil housing, the flexible conductor wire being configured to transmit or receive wireless power. The resonator can be infinitely adjusted at the hinges to conform the shape of the resonator to a patient's body. In some embodiments, a locking mechanism can be configured to lock the resonator into a preferred position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2018
    Assignee: TC1 LLC
    Inventors: John Duc Nguyen, Carine Hoarau, Stephen Zimmermann
  • Patent number: 9849286
    Abstract: Described herein are systems and methods for applying extremely low duty-cycle stimulation sufficient to treat chronic inflammation using feedback to adjust the off times between stimulations. In particular, the feedback include an assessment of the level of inflammation by the patient or the healthcare provider, or by measure the level of an inflammatory analyte or biomarker, or by detecting nerve activity correlated with inflammation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2017
    Assignee: SetPoint Medical Corporation
    Inventors: Jacob A. Levine, Michael A. Faltys
  • Patent number: 9848825
    Abstract: A wearable sensing band is presented that generally provides a non-intrusive way to measure a person's cardiovascular vital signs including pulse transit time and pulse wave velocity. The band includes a strap with one or more primary electrocardiography (ECG) electrodes which are in contact with a first portion of the user's body, one or more secondary ECG electrodes, and one or more pulse pressure wave arrival (PPWA) sensors. The primary and secondary ECG electrodes detect an ECG signal whenever the secondary ECG electrodes make electrical contact with the second portion of the user's body, and the PPWA sensors sense an arrival of a pulse pressure wave to the first portion of the user's body from the user's heart. The ECG signal and PPWA sensor(s) readings are used to compute at least one of a pulse transit time (PTT) or a pulse wave velocity (PWV) of the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 26, 2017
    Assignee: MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC
    Inventors: Dan Morris, T. Scott Saponas, Nicolas Villar, Shwetak Patel, Greg R. Smith, Desney Tan
  • Patent number: 9844666
    Abstract: A system for retaining a magnet in a cochlear implant, comprising a retainer embedded within an encapsulant of the cochlear implant, and a magnet case engaged with the retainer. A retainer for retaining a magnet within a cochlear implant comprising a number of first fasteners that couple with a number of corresponding second fasteners of a magnet case hermetically sealing the magnet, and a number of supports embedded within an encapsulant of the cochlear implant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 19, 2017
    Assignee: Advanced Bionics AG
    Inventors: Chuladatta Thenuwara, Mark B. Downing
  • Patent number: 9833620
    Abstract: An implantable processor arrangement is described for an active implantable medical device (AIMD) system implanted under the skin of a patient. An implantable communications coil arrangement is configured for transdermal transfer of an implant communications signal. An implantable processor is coupled to and controls the implantable communications coil arrangement so as to operate in two different communications modes. In a normal operation mode, the processor configures the communications coil arrangement for peridermal communication with an external communications coil placed on the skin of the patient immediately over the implantable communications coil arrangement. In a long range telemetry mode, the processor configures the communications coil arrangement for extradermal communication with an external telemetry coil located distant from the skin of the patient immediately over the implantable communications coil arrangement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignee: MED-EL Elektromedizinische Geraete GmbH
    Inventors: Jürgen Wissenwasser, Andreas Mitterer
  • Patent number: 9837934
    Abstract: Disclosed is a fibrous triboelectric generator. The fibrous triboelectric includes a first textile; a first electrode layer that is formed on a surface of the first textile; a friction layer that is formed on a surface of the first electrode layer and is able to be electrically charged by friction; and a second electrode layer that is able to undergo friction with the friction layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 25, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2017
    Assignee: Research & Business Foundation Sungkyunkwan University
    Inventors: Sang-Woo Kim, Ju-Hyuck Lee, Wanchul Seung, Hanjun Ryu, Hong-Joon Yoon, Keun Young Lee
  • Patent number: 9827419
    Abstract: Neurostimulation assemblies, systems, and methods make possible the providing of short-term therapy or diagnostic testing by providing electrical connections between muscles and/or nerves inside the body and stimulus generators and/or recording instruments mounted on the surface of the skin or carried outside the body. The assembly affords maximum patient mobility and comfort through differentiated components having minimal profiles and connected by way of detachable and adjustable connections.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 28, 2017
    Assignee: SPR Therapeutics, LLC
    Inventors: Joseph W. Boggs, II, Robert B. Strother, Kathryn W. Stager, Jonathan L. Sakai, Amorn Wongsarnpigoon, Matthew deBock, Devin Sell, Meredith McGee
  • Patent number: 9821158
    Abstract: A method of treating a metabolic condition in a patient, comprising: determining a target non-immediate effect of a therapy relating to treatment of a metabolic condition; and applying an electric field to an abdominal cavity of the patient in a manner designed to at least approach said target.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2015
    Date of Patent: November 21, 2017
    Assignee: MetaCure Limited
    Inventors: Benny Rousso, Tamar Harel
  • Patent number: 9801549
    Abstract: The invention is directed to an apparatus for finding a functional tissue area in a tissue region. The apparatus has a measurement illuminating device suitable for emitting measurement illumination to the tissue region and a camera which can capture light reflected by the tissue region. The camera has a green channel and/or a blue channel wherein there is a change in an optical property of the light reflected by the tissue region during the stimulation thereof which is undertaken at least intermittently. An evaluation unit captures the change in the optical property only by a signal of the green channel and/or of the blue channel of the camera. A display unit can display an output signal of the evaluation unit for the functional tissue area in the tissue region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 14, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2017
    Assignees: Carl Zeiss Meditec AG, Technische Universitaet Dresden Institut fuer Biomedizinische Technik, Technische Universitaet Dresden Klinik und Poliklinik fuer Neurochirurgie
    Inventors: Gerald Panitz, Christoph Hauger, Marco Wilzbach, Roland Guckler, Tobias Meyer, Martin Oelschlaegel, Ute Morgenstern, Stephan B. Sobottka, Gabriele Schackert
  • Patent number: 9788756
    Abstract: Techniques facilitating locating an implantable medical device (IMD) within a body of a patient are provided. An estimate of the location is determined based on strength information representative of strengths of communicative couplings between a communications head device and the IMD at various positions of the communications head device. The strength information can be updated periodically or based on specific events, such as changes to the body and/or an amount of time elapsed since strength information was previously obtained. Media representative of the estimate of the location and an image of the body can be output and can facilitate a patient or caregiver locating the IMD. In some embodiments, the media and image output can guide future placement of the communications head device on the patient to efficiently establish communication. Further, in some embodiments, numerous IMDs implanted within a single body can be identified and communication can commence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 17, 2017
    Assignee: Medtronic, Inc.
    Inventor: Wade M. Demmer
  • Patent number: 9770285
    Abstract: An electrosurgical apparatus including an automatic applicator identifier used to communicate between an applicator and a generator unit, automatically presetting various values, is provided. These values may be stored in a one-wire serial memory storage device located in the applicator or connector coupled to the applicator. Communication from the applicator to the generator unit of these values is affected by a one-wire serial communication protocol. This information can be transferred over a direct electrical path through the connector that attaches that applicator to the generator unit, or instead by a wireless link.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2017
    Assignee: Bovie Medical Corporation
    Inventors: Arik Zoran, Gregory A. Konesky
  • Patent number: 9764152
    Abstract: The implantable cardiac treatment system of the present invention is capable of choosing the most appropriate electrode vector to sense within a particular patient. In certain embodiments, the implantable cardiac treatment system determines the most appropriate electrode vector for continuous sensing based on which electrode vector results in the greatest signal amplitude, or some other useful metric such as signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The electrode vector possessing the highest quality as measured using the metric is then set as the default electrode vector for sensing. Additionally, in certain embodiments of the present invention, a next alternative electrode vector is selected based on being generally orthogonal to the default electrode vector. In yet other embodiments of the present invention, the next alternative electrode vector is selected based on possessing the next highest quality metric after the default electrode vector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2017
    Assignee: Cameron Health, Inc.
    Inventors: Jay A. Warren, Gust H. Bardy
  • Patent number: 9757562
    Abstract: A method, including obtaining data indicative of an ability of a recipient of a hearing prosthesis to discriminate between tokens of respective token pairs of a plurality of token pairs in respective evoked hearing percepts induced by the hearing prosthesis and adjusting one or more but less than all frequency channels of a plurality of frequency channels of the hearing prosthesis based on the obtained data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: Cochlear Limited
    Inventor: Filiep J. Vanpoucke
  • Patent number: 9757563
    Abstract: The present invention is a method of improving the persistence of electrical neural stimulation, and specifically a method of improving the persistence of an image supplied to a retina, or visual cortex, through a visual prosthesis. A continuously stimulated retina, or other neural tissue, will desensitize after a time period in the range of 20 to 150 seconds. However, an interruption of the stimulation on the order of a few milliseconds will restore the retinal sensitivity without the user perceiving the interruption, or with the user barely perceiving the interruption.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: Second Sight Medical Products, Inc.
    Inventors: Arup Roy, Robert Greenberg, Mark Humayan, Kelly McClure
  • Patent number: 9750946
    Abstract: A method of evaluating an implantation of a lead is disclosed. Via a graphical user interface of an electronic device, a visual representation of a sacrum of the patient and a lead that is implanted in the sacrum is displayed. The lead includes a plurality of electrode contacts. An evaluation is made as to how well the lead has been implanted in the sacrum based on the visual representation of the sacrum and the lead. The evaluating comprises: determining whether the lead is inserted in a predetermined region of the sacrum, determining how far a predetermined one of the electrode contacts is located from an edge of the sacrum, and determining a degree of curvature of the lead.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: NUVECTRA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Norbert Kaula, Yohannes Iyassu, Steven Siegel
  • Patent number: 9750415
    Abstract: A system uses continuous tracking of sleep activity and heart rate activity to evaluate heart rate variability immediately before transitioning to an awake state, e.g., at the end of the last phase of deep sleep. In particular, a wearable, continuous physiological monitoring system as described herein includes one or more sensors to detect sleep states, the transitions between sleep states, and the transitions from a sleep state to an awake state for a user. This information can be used in conjunction with continuously monitored heart rate data to calculate heart rate variability of the user at the end of the last phase of sleep preceding the user waking up. By using the history of heart rate data in conjunction with sleep activity in this manner, an accurate and consistent recovery score can be calculated based on heart rate variability.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: Whoop, Inc.
    Inventors: Emily Rachel Breslow, John Capodilupo, William Ahmed
  • Patent number: 9750939
    Abstract: An example of a system for delivering neurostimulation may include a programming control circuit and a user interface. The programming control circuit may be configured to generate stimulation parameters controlling delivery of neurostimulation pulses according to one or more stimulation waveforms associated with areas of stimulation each defined by a set of electrodes. The neurostimulation pulses are each delivered to an area of stimulation. The user interface may include a display screen and an interface control circuit. The interface control circuit may be configured to define the one or more stimulation waveforms and the areas of stimulation, and may include a stimulation frequency module configured to display a stimulation rate table on the display screen. The stimulation rate table may present stimulation frequencies associated with each of the areas of stimulation for selection by a user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: Boston Scientific Neuromodulation Corporation
    Inventors: Stephen Carcieri, Michael A. Moffitt, Peter J. Yoo, Dennis Allen Vansickle, Sridhar Kothandaraman, Michael Andrew Caruso, Dean Chen
  • Patent number: 9750860
    Abstract: The invention relates to a motor with a stator (2, 2?) and a rotor (1, 1?), which can be driven about an axial direction (4). The invention is characterized in that at least one of the stator and the rotor, in particular the stator, which has a winding arrangement that can be supplied with a current, can be radially compressed and expanded.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 9, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: ECP ENTWICKLUNGSGESELLSCHAFT MBH
    Inventor: Joerg Schumacher
  • Patent number: 9750424
    Abstract: A method for quantifying, during pacemapping, a comparison of a BSPM of interest to a pace site BSPM. The method may include receiving at a computing device a plurality of ECG signals from an acquisition system. The pace site BSPM may be calculated using the plurality of ECG signals. The BSPM of interest may be compared to the pace site BSPM, by: retrieving the BSPM of interest from memory accessible by the computing device; and, calculating one or more comparison metrics for the BSPM of interest as compared to the pace site BSPM. An indication of similarity between the BSPM of interest and the pace site BSPM based on the comparison metric calculated may be displayed on a user interface in communication with the computing device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2017
    Assignee: DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: John Lewis Sapp, Jr., Bohumil Milan Horacek
  • Patent number: 9743848
    Abstract: A system uses continuous tracking of sleep activity and heart rate activity to evaluate heart rate variability immediately before transitioning to an awake state, e.g., at the end of the last phase of deep sleep. In particular, a wearable, continuous physiological monitoring system as described herein includes one or more sensors to detect sleep states, the transitions between sleep states, and the transitions from a sleep state to an awake state for a user. This information can be used in conjunction with continuously monitored heart rate data to calculate heart rate variability of the user at the end of the last phase of sleep preceding the user waking up. By using the history of heart rate data in conjunction with sleep activity in this manner, an accurate and consistent recovery score can be calculated based on heart rate variability.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2015
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2017
    Assignee: Whoop, Inc.
    Inventors: Emily Rachel Breslow, John Capodilupo, William Ahmed