Feasibility Testing of the Bionet Sonar Ultrasound Transcutaneous Energy Transmission (UTET) System for Wireless Power and Communication of a LVAD.

Purpose: To address the clinical need for totally implantable mechanical circulatory support devices, Bionet Sonar is developing a novel Ultrasonic Transcutaneous Energy Transmission (UTET) system that is designed to eliminate external power and/or data communication drivelines.

Methods: UTET systems were designed, fabricated, and pre-clinically tested using a non-clinical HeartWare HVAD in static and dynamic mock flow loop and acute animal models over a range of pump speeds (1800, 2400, 3000 RPM) and tissue analogue thicknesses (5, 10, 15 mm).

Results: The prototypes demonstrated feasibility as evidenced by meeting/exceeding function, operation, and performance metrics with no system failures, including achieving receiver (harvested) power exceeding HVAD power requirements and data communication rates of 10kB/s and pump speed control (> 95% sensitivity and specificity) for all experimental test conditions, and within healthy tissue temperature range with no acute tissue damage.

Conclusion: During early-stage development and testing, engineering challenges for UTET size reduction and stable and safe operation were identified, with solutions and plans to address the limitations in future design iterations also presented.