Patent ID: 7792564

Claim:
A device for determining the relative position with respect to one another of a first catheter and a second catheter in a human body, comprising: a first measuring electrode arranged on the first catheter; a second measuring electrode arranged on the second catheter; a power supply unit connected to the first and second measuring electrodes; a number of additional measuring electrodes arranged on at least one of the first and second catheters, said additional number of measuring electrodes connected to the power supply unit; a control unit configured to selectively and dynamically form at least two different pairs of measuring electrodes when said additional number of measuring electrodes is operatively combined at different times with the first measuring electrode, or with the second measuring electrode, or with at least some of said additional number of electrodes, wherein each of said at least two different pairs of electrodes consists of one measuring electrode positioned on the first catheter and another measuring electrode positioned on the second catheter; and a measuring unit for determining respective electrical resistances between each of said at least two different measuring pairs of measuring electrodes by measuring respective electrical currents flowing through said at least two different measuring pairs of measuring electrodes and for determining respective distances, the determined distances being sufficiently large to encompass a chamber of a human heart where the device is introduced to measure different spacing separations between each of said at least two different measuring pairs of measuring electrodes based on the determined electrical resistances, wherein the relative position of the first catheter with respect to the second catheter is determined using the determined distances.