Physiological control of intraaorta pump based on heart rate.

Because of the special structures of intraaorta pump, the pressure and blood flow sensors cannot be implanted in the blood pump. Moreover, the cardiovascular pump is a very complex system that has no accurate model but much uncertainty and disturbance. Hence, the conventional control algorithm cannot achieve good performance. To overcome this problem, on one hand, a cardiovascular pump model is established. The heart rate in this model is chosen as a controlled variable that is a nonlinear function of the mean arterial pressure. On the other hand, a fuzzy logic feedback control algorithm, which maintains the actual heart rate tracking the desired heart rate, is designed. Computer simulations are performed to verify the robustness and dynamic characters of the controller. The simulation results demonstrate that the controller can maintain the actual heart rate tracking the desired one without static error. When the desired heart rate changed from 100 to 80 bpm, the settling time is <10 seconds. When the peripheral resistance increases from 1.0 to 0.7 mm Hg/ml, the settling time is <10 seconds.