Patent ID: 6763268
Filing Date: 2004-07-13
Classification: A61N,G01R

Abstract:
A cardiac assist device, comprising:a primary device housing; said primary device housing having a control circuit therein; a shielding formed around said primary device housing to shield said primary device housing and any circuits therein from electromagnetic interference; a lead system to transmit and receive signals between a selected cardiac tissue region and said primary device housing; a switch to place the control circuitry into a fixed-rate mode of operation; an acoustic sensor to sense a predetermined acoustic signal; said switch placing the control circuitry into a fixed-rate mode of operation when said acoustic sensor senses the predetermined acoustic signal; said lead system being a photonic lead system to transmit between said primary device housing and the selected cardiac tissue region, both power and control signals in the form of light; a photoresponsive device to convert the light transmitted by said photonic lead system into electrical energy and to sense variations in the light energy to produce control signals; a charge accumulating device to receive and store the electrical energy produced by said photoresponsive device; and a discharge control device, responsive to the control signals, to direct the stored electrical energy from said charge accumulating device to the selected cardiac tissue region.