Energy Harvesting from the Cardiovascular System, or How to Get a Little Help from Yourself

Abstract

Human energy harvesting is envisioned as a remedy to the weight, the size, and the poor energy density of primary batteries in medical implants. The first implant to have necessarily raised the idea of a biological power supply was the pacemaker in the early 1960s. So far, review articles on human energy harvesting have been rather unspecific and no tribute has been given to the early role of the pacemaker and the cardiovascular system in triggering research in the field. The purpose of the present article is to provide an up-to-date review of research efforts targeting the cardiovascular system as an alternative energy source for active medical implants. To this end, a chronological survey of the last 14 most influential publications is proposed. They include experimental and/or theoretical studies based on electromagnetic, piezoelectric, or electrostatic transducers harnessing various forms of energy, such as heart motion, pressure gradients, and blood flow. Technical feasibility does not imply clinical applicability: although most of the reported devices were shown to harvest an interesting amount of energy from a physiological environment, none of them were tested in vivo for a longer period of time.

Conformal piezoelectric energy harvesting and storage from motions of the heart, lung, and diaphragm

“…Examples include use of glucose oxidation (3), electric potentials of the inner ear (4), mechanical movements of limbs, and natural vibrations of internal organs (5)(6)(7). Such phenomena provide promising opportunities for power supply to wearable and implantable devices (6)(7)(8). A recent example involves a hybrid kinetic device integrated with the heart for applications with pacemakers (7).…”

The Swiss approach for a heartbeat-driven lead- and batteryless pacemaker

“…Different approaches have been investigated to extract energy from various sites and sources of the body 8,9 as, for example, the knee, 10 the chemical reaction of glucose and oxygen in dedicated fuel cells, 11 the skin-penetrating sunlight by solar cells, 12 the body movements using nanowires, 13 or the body heat. 14 The human heart is another convenient energy source for medical implants, in particular for cardiac pacemakers: Regardless of a person's activity, the myocardium contracts in a repetitive manner and thereby reaches high accelerations of ≈2 m/s 2 , 15 an excellent endurance (42.5 billion cycles in a 70-year lifetime), and a large hydraulic power (≈1.4 W, with mean aortic pressure ≈ 100 mm Hg and cardiac output ≈ 6.3 L/min 16 ). Researchers have been exploring ways to take advantage of this energy source, for instance, by harvesting energy from blood pressure differences using a micro barrel 17 or a dual-chamber system.…”

What Does Big Data Mean for Wearable Sensor Systems?

“…Given that implantation requires surgery, a minimum battery life of perhaps ten or more years might be suggested. It may be possible to inductively charge the battery, or scavenge power from the body in order to prolong battery life, but these technologies are not yet mature enough for this particular application, although they are fast approaching maturity [31]. Using radio telemetry to retrieve sensor data also places limitations on the distance over which the data may be transmitted, as safe use of radio transmitters within the body will require low-power transmission in order to avoid tissue damage from heating.…”