Koninklijke Philips Corporation N.v.

Signify Holding B.v.

Daan Anton Van Den Ende

Rifat Ata Mustafa Hikmet

Mark Thomas Johnson

Cornelis Petrus Hendriks

Achim Hilgers

Valentina Lavezzo

Sander Theodoor Pastoor

Herbert Lifka

Warner Rudolph Theophile Ten Kate

Gerhardus Wilhelmus Lucassen

Roland Alexander Van De Molengraaf

Franciscus Johannes Gerardus Hakkens

Arjen Van Der Horst

Frederick Maria Boekhorst

Kars-Michiel Hubert Lenssen

Benjamin Irwin Shelly

Kumar Arulandu

Willem Auke Westerhof

Neil Francis Joye

Eduard Gerard Marie Pelssers

Milica Kovacevic Milivojevic

Rene Leonardus Jacobus Marie Ubachs

Harm Jan Willem Belt

Lutz Christian Gerhardt

Anja Van De Stolpe

Paul Philip Thursfield

Howard David Alpert

Denny Mathew

Joyce Van Zanten

Elise Claude Valentine Talgorn

Reinder Haakma

Peter Coops

Manfred Mueller

Steven Ernest Franklin

Stefan Pfundtner

Hans Kroes

Egbertus Reinier Jacobs

Karel Johannes Adrianus Van Den Aker

Tsvetomira Kirova Tsoneva

Timon Rutger Grob

Marjolein Irene Van Lieshout

Kunigunde Hadelinde Cherenack

Rufus Eugen Deodatus Driessen

Werner Daniel Petrus Kauwenberg

Petrus Cornelis Hendriks

Alex Ivanov

Yanchun Zhang

Manfred Müller

Ronald Antonie Hovenkamp

Rens Berkhof

Pedro Miguel Ferreira Dos Santos Da Fonseca

Manfred MÜLLER

Dave Beaumont

Sébastien Paul René Libon

Howard Alpert

A method of acclimating a patient to a therapy and a system for carrying out such method. The method includes providing the patient with an initial step of a therapy set up program for the patient to perform and determining at least one step metric. The at least one step metric determined is: a stress level of the patient while performing the initial step, successful completion of the initial step, the time needed to complete the initial step, and/or the quantity of errors made while carrying out the initial step. The method further includes determining a subsequent step for the patient to perform immediately after the initial step based on the at least one step metric and providing the patient with the subsequent step.

System and method for acclimation to therapy

An electroencephalography (EEG) system includes a support configured to be positioned at least partially around the head of a user, an EEG electrode configured to be supported by the support and to be positioned for contacting skin of the user, an actuator operatively coupled to the EEG electrode and configured to move the electrode in at least two dimensions, including an axial dimension and a lateral dimension to enable the EEG electrode to contact the skin at different locations, and one or more physical processors operatively connected with the EEG electrode and the actuator. The one or more physical processors being programmed with computer program instructions which, when executed cause the one or more physical processors to: obtain an impedance signal from the EEG electrode; and actuate the actuator to move the EEG electrode based on a comparison of the obtained impedance signal with an impedance threshold.

Method and system for obtaining signals from dry EEG electrodes

Based in the field of breastfeeding, a breast pump apparatus () for expressing breast milk is disclosed. The breast pump apparatus () comprises a container unit () for receiving expressed breast milk, and a pump unit () including a pump body () and a pumping device () for applying negative pressure to a pump volume defined by the pump body (). The pump body () comprises an inlet portion () adapted to be received on a female breast and an outlet portion () adapted to channel expressed milk to the container unit (). The pump body () comprises an actuator element () comprising an active material capable of deforming upon application of a control signal to it, wherein deformation of the actuator element modifies at least one of a shape and size of the pump volume.

Breast pump apparatus

An actuator device has a temperature sensing means and a controller adapted to apply a high frequency AC signal to stimulate internal self-heating to thereby maintain a temperature of an actuator member of the device at a certain fixed temperature, this temperature being elevated with respect to an initial temperature of the actuator member. This ensures that thermal drift may be mitigated or eliminated by compensating for any changes in environmental temperature through raising or lowering the level of the heating signal.

Actuator device and method for limiting thermal drift

A monitoring system includes an implantable intra-vascular support device for positioning against a vessel wall and an implantable sensor-actuator mounted to the support device. The sensor-actuator is drivable between a non-deployed position in which it is against the support device and a deployed position in which it is displaced away from the support device. Sensor signals are generated when in the deployed position. This system is able to monitor flow away from the edge of a vessel by deploying the sensor-actuator towards the center of the vessel. When flow monitoring does not need to take place, it can be non-deployed so that it does not present an occlusion to the flow.

Implant device for in-body monitoring

A field-driven electroactive polymer actuator is provided with a current sensor for sensing a current flowing to the actuator. A control circuit is used for driving the actuator which includes a voltage source. The driving of the actuator is controlled in dependence on the sensed current, thereby to provide a predetermined charge delivery for particular changes in actuation level of the actuator. This provides a combined voltage-based and current-based drive scheme for a voltage-driven EAP actuator, and it enables mechanical movements of the actuator to be more reliably repeated.

Actuator device incorporating an electroactive polymer actuator and a driving method

An actuator device has an electroactive polymer actuator () and an integrated piezoelectric transformer () whose primary side () and secondary side () are formed from different electroactive polymer materials. At least the secondary side () of the transformer shares a piezoelectric electroactive polymer layer () with the electroactive polymer actuator, so that lower external voltages can be applied to the device.

Electroactive polymer actuator device and driving method

An ultrasound interface element () is for establishing interface with an incident tissue surface () for the purpose of transfer of ultrasound waves. An ultrasound-transmissive active layer () is provided comprising one or more responsive material elements () deformable in response to an electromagnetic stimulus. The one or more elements are controlled to deform in a manner such as to progressively establish with the tissue surface () an outwardly expanding interface, starting from an initial point or line of contact and spreading outwards to a wider area.

Ultrasound interface element and method

A flow control device comprises a laminate structure of an electroactive material layer and a non-actuatable layer. An array of orifices is formed in one of the layers wherein the orifices are open in one of the rest state and actuated state and the orifices are closed in the other of the rest state and actuated state. Actuation of the electroactive material layer causes orifices to open and close so that flow control function may be implemented.

Flow control device

An electroactive polymer actuator includes an electroactive polymer structure and a driver for providing an actuation drive signal. In one aspect, a first drive level is used to charge the electroactive polymer structure from a non-actuated state to an actuated state. When or after the electroactive polymer structure reaches the actuated state, a lower second drive level is used to hold the electroactive polymer structure at the actuated state. This temporary overdrive scheme improves the speed response without damaging the electroactive polymer structure. In another aspect, a driving method makes use of several different level segments over time, which compensates for the delayed actuation response of the EAP actuator.

EAP actuator and drive method

The invention involves providing a reset signal before and or after one or more actuation signals to an electroactive polymer structure of an actuator. The reset signal can cause relaxation of defects such as e.g. trapped charge, dipoles and/or others in the EAP or EAP structure so that upon a subsequent activation using a drive signal, the initial actuation state is defined to be more constant than without use of the reset signal. Hence the actuationoutput of a device employing the invention is more reproducible. The invention is applicable to actuator devices that have an electroactive polymer structure including an EAP material, where the structure is capable of providing a mechanical actuation upon subjection of at least part of the EAP material to an electrical drive signal.

Actuator device based on an electroactive polymer

A field driven electroactive polymer actuator which is actuated using an actuation drive having a profiled portion having a start voltage and an end voltage and a duration of at least 25 ms followed by a steady state drive portion based on a steady state voltage. The profiled portion comprises a voltage curve or a set of voltage points which define a first voltage slope at the beginning of the profiled portion which is steeper than a linear ramp between the start voltage and the end voltage, and a second voltage slope at the end of the profiled portion which is shallower than a linear ramp between the start voltage and the end voltage.

The invention relates generally to electroactive material actuators (and combined sensor-actuators) having embedded magnetic particles () for facilitating enhanced actuation and/or sensing effects.

Actuator device and method

An electroactive material actuator and sensor is actuated with an actuation signal having an activation period for charging the actuator and a de-activation period for discharging the actuator. A parallel resistance of the actuator is determined by sensing a steady state current during the activation period and a series capacitance of the actuator is determined based on a charge flow during charging of the actuator at the beginning of the activation period. A series resistance is obtained by controlling a current through the actuator with an oscillating profile so that a phase relationship of the actuator between current and voltage can be measured. An oscillating current sink is used to enable circuit component measurements, which implement sensing functionality.

Actuator and sensor device based on electroactive polymer

An actuator device comprises an electroactive polymer actuator () and a control circuit for driving the electroactive polymer actuator. The control circuit comprises a voltage boosting circuit including at least a capacitor (; C, C, C). An electroactive polymer layer () forms the electroactive polymer actuator in an active region () as well as a dielectric layer of the capacitor in a passive region (). This provides integration of components to enable cost reductions and miniaturization.

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Breda, Netherlands

Daan Anton Van Den Ende