Advanced Bionics Ag

Uli Gommel

James George Elcoate Smith

Sung Jin Lee

Jeryle L Walter

Stephanie M Reed

Matthew Vadim Krywcun

Sarah Elizabeth Clabeaux

Nicholas Anthony Wise

Matt V Krywcun

Paul Vincent Hoffman

Martin Sandoval-Perez

Morgan Gegg

Mark B Downing

Enrique Gandaria

Martin Sandoval Perez

James Smith

A method including the steps of securing a plurality of contact subassemblies to a mold surface at longitudinally spaced locations within a mold with resilient material located between the contact subassemblies and the mold surface, the contact subassemblies including, prior to being placed into the mold, an electrically conductive contact having a flat portion defining lateral ends and side portions associated with the lateral ends of the flat portion and a lead wire secured to the electrically conductive contact, introducing resilient material into the mold to form an electrode array blank including a flexible body defining an exterior surface and the electrically conductive contacts below the exterior, and forming a plurality of windows in the electrode array blank that extend through the exterior surface of the flexible body to the electrically conductive contacts.

Apparatus and methods for making cochlear implant electrode arrays

A cochlear including a housing, an antenna, a stimulation processor operably connected to the antenna, and an electrode array, operably connected to the stimulation processor, including a flexible body defining a longitudinal axis, a proximal region and a distal region, a plurality of electrically conductive contacts on the flexible body, and at least one stiffener within the flexible body.

Electrode arrays and cochlear implants including the same

A method of forming a cochlear implant electrode array includes positioning a contact array assembly, which includes at least one carrier and a plurality of contacts on the at least one carrier, in a mold, removing at least a portion of the at least one carrier from the mold without removing the plurality of contacts from the mold, and introducing resilient material into the mold after the at least a portion of the at least one carrier has been removed to form a flexible body.

Cochlear implants including electrode arrays and methods of making the same

A cochlear implant including a cochlear lead, an antenna, a stimulation processor, and a magnet apparatus, associated with the antenna, including a case defining a central axis, a magnet frame within the case and rotatable about the central axis of the case, and a plurality of elongate diametrically magnetized magnets that are located in the magnet frame, the magnets defining a longitudinal axis and a N-S direction and being freely rotatable about the longitudinal axis relative to the magnet frame.

Cochlear implants having MRI-compatible magnet apparatus and associated methods

A method of forming an electrode array includes the steps of positioning a workpiece on a mold part defining an opening and a channel and having undercuts, compressing the workpiece into the mold part to form a contact, and introducing resilient material into the mold part to form a flexible body.

Methods of making cochlear implant electrode arrays

MRI-compatible magnet apparatus

A method of forming an electrode array from an electrode array blank that includes a flexible body and a plurality of electrically conductive contacts. The method includes the steps of forming a first window in the flexible body that extends through the exterior of the flexible body to a first one of the electrically conductive contacts, the first window defining a first window perimetric center, and forming a second window in the flexible body that extends through the exterior of the flexible body to a second one of the electrically conductive contacts, the second window defining a second window perimetric center that is perimetrically offset from the first window perimetric center when the flexible body is straight and not twisted around the longitudinal axis of the flexible body.

An antenna assembly for use with a medical implant includes an antenna and an electromagnetic shield. At least one of the antenna and the shield includes electrically conductive conductor that defines a conductor resistance and an electrically conductive sheath, over electrically conductive conductor, that defines a sheath resistance that is greater than the conductor resistance.

Antenna assemblies for use with transcutaneously powered medical implants

A particle alignment method in accordance with at least one of the present inventions includes the step of positioning a cochlear implant, which is implanted within a patient's head and which includes a magnet apparatus with a central axis and magnetic material particles, at a location outside of the scanning area of an MRI system, adjacent to the MRI system, and within the MRI magnetic field in such a manner that the central axis of the magnet apparatus is at least substantially parallel to the MRI magnetic field.

Methods and apparatus for use with cochlear implants having magnet apparatus with magnetic material particles

A method of forming a cochlear implant electrode array includes positioning contact array assembly, which includes at least one carrier and a plurality of contacts on the at least one carrier, in a mold, removing at least a portion of the at least one carrier from the mold without removing that plurality of contacts from the mold, and introducing resilient material into the mold after the at least a portion of the at least one carrier has been removed to form a flexible body.

A method of forming an electrode array includes the steps of positioning a workpiece on a mold part, compressing the workpiece into the mold part to form a contact, and introducing resilient material into the mold part to form a flexible body.

A cochlear implant including a cochlear lead, an antenna, a stimulation processor, and a magnet apparatus, associated with the antenna, including a case defining a central axis, a magnet frame within the case and rotatable about the central axis of the case, and a plurality of diametrically magnetized magnets that are located in the magnet frame, the magnets defining a longitudinal axis and a N-S direction and being rotatable about the longitudinal axis relative to the magnet frame and biased by the magnet frame to a predetermined N-S rotational orientation.

Growing community of inventors

Valencia, CA, United States of America

Uli Gommel