Arab Hassani F, Jin H, Yokota T, Someya T, Thakor N V
Department of Biomedical Engineering, National University of Singapore, 28 Medical Drive, #05-COR, Singapore 117456, Singapore.
Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Systems, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan.
Sci Adv. 2020 May 1;6(18):eaba0412. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.aba0412. eCollection 2020 May.
Sensing-actuation systems can assist a bladder with lost sensation and weak muscle control. Here, we advance the relevant technology by integrating a soft and thin capacitive sensor with a shape memory alloy-based actuator to achieve a high-performance closed-loop configuration. In our design, sensors capable of continuous bladder volume detection and actuators with strong emptying force have been used. This integration has previously hindered performance due to large bladder volume changes. Our solution integrates sensing-actuation elements that are bladder compatible but do not interfere with one another, achieving real-time bladder management. The system attains a highly desirable voiding target of 71 to 100% of a rat's bladder with a volume sensitivity of 0.7 μF/liter. Our system represents an efficient voiding solution that avoids overfilling and represents a technological solution to bladder impairment treatment, serving as a model for similar soft sensor-actuator integration with other organs.
传感-驱动系统可以辅助感觉丧失和肌肉控制薄弱的膀胱。在此，我们通过将柔软轻薄的电容式传感器与形状记忆合金基驱动器集成，推进了相关技术，以实现高性能的闭环配置。在我们的设计中，使用了能够连续检测膀胱容积的传感器和具有强大排空力的驱动器。由于膀胱容积变化较大，这种集成以前一直阻碍着性能提升。我们的解决方案集成了与膀胱兼容且互不干扰的传感-驱动元件，实现了膀胱的实时管理。该系统以0.7 μF/升的容积灵敏度实现了71%至100%大鼠膀胱的高度理想排尿目标。我们的系统代表了一种有效的排尿解决方案，可避免膀胱过度充盈，是膀胱功能障碍治疗的技术解决方案，为与其他器官进行类似的软传感器-驱动器集成提供了模型。
