The invention relates to a passive transponder system comprising a first or second conductor loop structure and a first and a second capacitive pressure sensor, wherein each conductor loop structure is coupled to one of said capacitive pressure sensors to form a resonant circuit, and the first conductor loop structure is positioned at a non-vanishing angle in relation to the second conductor loop structure. The resonant frequencies of the resonant circuits are selected such that they do not overlap to result in beating. The invention also relates to a pressure wave measuring device comprising such a passive transponder system, and a readout unit.

Disclosed is a system for measuring electrical charges propagating through a biological object. The system includes an implantable medical device inserted into the biological object, an electronic implant attached to the implantable medical device for measuring, processing and communicating electrical charges, at least one transponder configured on the implantable medical device to convert mechanical waves into electrical charges, wherein the electrical charges propagate through the biological object to be received by the electronic implant; and an external electronic hub device for providing electrical charges to influence the biological object. The external electronic hub device includes a controller, a frequency generator, a resonator, a filter unit, and an electrode. The electronic implant includes an arrangement of sub-circuits, an energy convertor, an amplifier, an analog/digital converting logic circuit, and a modulator. The amplifier receives the amplified bio-electrical charges while suppressing electrical influence, further the amplifier creates an amplified analog value representing the bio-electrical charges.

A monitoring system comprises an intra-vascular support device and a sensor mounted to the support device and projecting into the vessel. The sensor generates a signal which is dependent on the level of deformation of a free end. The sensor signal is interpreted to enable detection of changes in the length of a deformable part of the sensor thereby to determine a level of bio-layer formation and also determine a level of flow. The sensor remains able to detect flow even when a bio-layer is formed and it can also detect the presence (and thickness) of the bio-layer, because part of the sensor becomes rigid when constrained by the bio-layer.

An assembly includes a prosthetic heart valve and a delivery apparatus. The prosthetic heart valve has a plurality of pivotably connected struts and one or more adjustable elements rotatably coupled to the struts. Rotating the adjustable elements in a first direction relative to the struts radially expands the prosthetic heart valve. Rotating the adjustable elements in a second direction relative to the struts radially contracts the prosthetic heart valve. The delivery apparatus includes one or more motors, one or more drive wires coupled to the motors, and a memory. The drive wires are coupled to the adjustable elements of the prosthetic heart valve. The motors are configured to rotate the drive wires and the adjustable elements to expand and contract the prosthetic heart valve. The memory is configured for storing one or more characteristics of the motors, the drive wires, or the prosthetic heart valve.

An anchoring device for anchoring an implantable medical device to tissue of a patient, wherein the anchoring device comprises: an annular member, a plurality of elongated tines connected to the annular member and protruding from the annular member, wherein the annular member comprises at least one stretchable first section that is stretchable along a peripheral direction of the annular member. Further, the invention relates to an implantable medical device (e.g., an implantable cardiac pacemaker) comprising such an anchoring device.

The invention relates to a passive pressure sensor (501) for being introduced into the circulatory system of a human being and for being wirelessly read out by an outside reading system. The pressure sensor comprises a casing (502) with a diffusion blocking layer for maintaining a predetermined pressure within the casing and a magneto-mechanical oscillator with a magnetic object (508) providing a permanent magnetic moment. The magneto-mechanical oscillator transduces an external magnetic or electromagnetic excitation field into a mechanical oscillation of the magnetic object, wherein at least a part of the casing is flexible for allowing to transduce external pressure changes into changes of the mechanical oscillation of the magnetic object. The pressure sensor can be very small and nevertheless provide high quality pressure sensing.

A tracking system for tracking a marker device for being attached to a medical device is provided, whereby the marker device includes a sensing unit comprising a magnetic object which may be excited by an external magnetic or electromagnetic excitation field into a mechanical oscillation of the magnetic object, and the tracking system comprises a field generator for generating a predetermined magnetic or electromagnetic excitation field for inducing mechanical oscillations of the magnetic object, a transducer for transducing a magnetic or electromagnetic field generated by the induced mechanical oscillations of the magnetic object into one or more electrical response signals, and a position determination unit for determining the position of the marker device on the basis of the one or more electrical response signals.

The invention relates to a marker device and a tracking system for tracking the marker device, wherein the marker device comprises a rotationally oscillatable magnetic object and wherein the rotational oscillation is excitable by an external magnetic field, i.e. a magnetic field which is generated by a magnetic field providing unit 20, 31 that is located outside of the marker device. The rotational oscillation of the magnetic object induces a current in coils, wherein based on these induced currents the position and optionally also the orientation of the marker device is determined. This wireless kind of tracking can be carried out with relatively small marker devices, which can be placed, for instance, in a guidewire, the marker devices can be read out over a relatively large distance and it is possible to use a single marker device for six degrees of freedom localization.

The invention relates to a measurement device 1 comprising a rotatable magnetic object 4 which can oscillate with a resonant frequency if excited by an external magnetic torque. The measurement device 1 is adapted such that the resonant frequency depends on the temperature or on another physical or chemical quantity like pressure, in order to allow for a wireless temperature measurement or measurement of the other physical or chemical quantity via an external magnetic field providing the external magnetic torque. This measurement device can be relatively small, can be read-out over a relatively larger distance and allows for a very accurate measurement.

A vascular graft includes deformable sleeves that include an electrical component. The electrical component can be variable-resistance or piezoelectric, in embodiments, such that deformation of the sleeves due to pressure changes create or modify an electrical signal. A transponder can then transmit information relating to the pressure inside and outside of the vascular graft.