Jiang Dai, Liu Fangqi, Lancashire Henry T, Perkins Timothy A, Schormans Matthew, Vanhoestenberghe Anne, Donaldson Nicholas De N, Demosthenous Andreas
Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
Department of Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
Front Neurosci. 2021 Jul 22;15:681021. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2021.681021. eCollection 2021.
This article presents a versatile neurostimulation platform featuring a fully implantable multi-channel neural stimulator for chronic experimental studies with freely moving large animal models involving peripheral nerves. The implant is hermetically sealed in a ceramic enclosure and encapsulated in medical grade silicone rubber, and then underwent active tests at accelerated aging conditions at 100°C for 15 consecutive days. The stimulator microelectronics are implemented in a 0.6-μm CMOS technology, with a crosstalk reduction scheme to minimize cross-channel interference, and high-speed power and data telemetry for battery-less operation. A wearable transmitter equipped with a Bluetooth Low Energy radio link, and a custom graphical user interface provide real-time, remotely controlled stimulation. Three parallel stimulators provide independent stimulation on three channels, where each stimulator supports six stimulating sites and two return sites through multiplexing, hence the implant can facilitate stimulation at up to 36 different electrode pairs. The design of the electronics, method of hermetic packaging and electrical performance as well as testing with electrodes in saline are presented.
本文介绍了一种通用的神经刺激平台，该平台具有一个完全可植入的多通道神经刺激器，用于对涉及周围神经的自由活动大型动物模型进行慢性实验研究。该植入物被气密密封在一个陶瓷外壳中，并封装在医用级硅橡胶中，然后在100°C的加速老化条件下连续进行了15天的有源测试。刺激器微电子采用0.6-μm CMOS技术实现，具有减少串扰的方案，以最小化跨通道干扰，并采用高速电源和数据遥测技术实现无电池操作。一个配备蓝牙低功耗无线电链路的可穿戴发射器和一个定制的图形用户界面提供实时、远程控制的刺激。三个并行刺激器在三个通道上提供独立刺激，每个刺激器通过复用支持六个刺激位点和两个返回位点，因此该植入物最多可促进对36个不同电极对的刺激。本文介绍了电子设备的设计、气密封装方法、电气性能以及在盐水中使用电极进行的测试。
