Kollmorgen and ReliantHeart Team Up to Produce Energy Efficient, Wireless LVAD
Houston, Texas (PRWEB) April 02, 2015 -- ReliantHeart, Inc., an innovative supplier of advanced mechanical circulatory assist technologies, and Kollmorgen, a leading provider of motion systems and components, announced a partnership to produce an energy efficient motor stator designed to cut the power consumption of the HeartAssist5® Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) by 50%.
Energy efficiency is the key to removing the driveline or external cable from an LVAD. Drivelines that exit the patient's body and attach to an external controller are the source of adverse events and infection. It is estimated that driveline infections are one of the most serious complications associated with LVADs.
This will also allow the LVAD to become a Transcutaneous Energy Transfer (TET) wireless device, with no wires exiting the body and an internal battery that can provide power to the patient for as much as four hours without recharging.
Just like electric vehicles which have evolved to go longer without a charge, the technology to produce power efficiency in the modern automobile can be applied in modern medicine.
“ReliantHeart is advancing LVAD technology by following the example established by Elon Musk of Tesla to improve power efficiency of its drive system and charging components. The change in the manufacturing process to reduce power consumption of the HeartAssist5® has no impact whatsoever on the blood path of the pump. It is startling how much the physics of motors has advanced in the last ten years and the output achieved by so little power,” said ReliantHeart CEO Rodger Ford.
Tom S. Wood, Custom Motor Product Specialist at Kollmorgen stated: “Through the use of advanced motor design tools and optimized material selection, Kollmorgen will continue to provide reliable, state-of-the-art implantable motor technology to ReliantHeart for their LVAD devices. This is a product of the many years of collaboration our two companies have shared.”
ReliantHeart, Inc. is an innovative supplier of advanced mechanical circulatory assist technologies that are changing the approach to the treatment of advanced heart failure. It develops and manufactures the HeartAssist5® Ventricular Assist Device. ReliantHeart’s roots are in Houston, Texas, where it has been generously influenced by the transplant centers of Texas Heart, Methodist DeBakey and Memorial Hermann, and its technology originally inspired by NASA, the Johnson Space Center and Baylor School of Medicine.
Kollmorgen is a leading provider of motion systems and components for original equipment manufacturers around the globe. With over sixty years of motion control design and development expertise, Kollmorgen delivers breakthrough solutions unmatched in performance, reliability and ease-of-use. Through world-class knowledge in motion, industry-leading quality, and deep expertise in linking and integrating standard and custom products, Kollmorgen provides OEMs with the competitive advantage they need to succeed.
Diana Dessy, ReliantHeart, Inc., http://www.reliantheart.com, +1 5203185259, [email protected]
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