Volume Conduction Invasive Medical Data Communication System

There has been considerable research on noninvasive devices to collect physiological data from the body of soldiers. However, the performances of these devices are often limited due to lack of direct access to organ systems. One powerful solution is to implant, using advanced minimally invasive techniques, a millimeter or sub-millimeter size, but highly intelligent device within the body. Resent development in sub-micron electronics, nanotechnology, and micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) have provided powerful tools for constructing devices of this type. However, one fundamental problem has not yet been solved: how do these devices communicate with computers and receive power for long-term operation? Running wires across the skin is clearly unacceptable in the battlefield, wireless radio frequency (RF) connection through the body has a number of drawbacks. The primary goal of this research is to develop a communication and power delivery channel capable of passing information between the inside and the outside of the human body. The Phase II project will focus on the design of this channel using the volume conduction property of the biological tissue, construct prototype implantable devices, and perform animal experiments to evaluate these devices.