Patent ID: 8366602

Claim:
A system for facilitating obesity control comprising: a gastric banding device including an inflatable portion; a fluid reservoir couplable to the inflatable portion; an implantable fluid handling device couplable to the fluid reservoir and the inflatable portion, and including a valve device comprising a housing having a flow path for passing of a fluid, a seal element positioned within the housing and disposed along the flow path and positioned and structured to be moved between a closed flow position with respect to the flow path that prevents the fluid from passing through the flow path and an open flow position with respect to the flow path that allows the fluid to pass through the flow path, a piezoelectric element positioned within the housing and sealed apart from the flow path and positioned and structured to cause the seal element to be moved from the closed flow position to the open flow position upon application of an electrical potential to the piezoelectric element that bends the piezoelectric element away from the seal element, and a spring positioned within the housing and having a first end coupled to the housing and a second end coupled to the piezoelectric element such that the piezoelectric element is positioned between the seal element and the second end, the spring being biased such that the second end applies a force to the piezoelectric element that maintains the seal element in the closed flow position when no electrical potential is applied to the piezoelectric element; and a controller or microprocessor system in communication with the implantable fluid handling device.