Researchers at the University of California, Connecticut, have figured out how to get rid ofPermanent
Implantable Deep Stimulation Devicesof the brain can help many people with neurological and mental illnesses, such as Parkinson's disease, when traditional treatments fail, the scientists explain. However, traditional devices require periodic battery replacement, which requires operations every 2-3 years.
Instead of a battery, the new device will convertmovement of the user's chest when breathing into electricity. When a person inhales and exhales, the ribcage presses against a very small and thin electrical generator called a triboelectric nanogenerator. This device converts this movement into static electricity.
The idea of technology is reminiscent of rubbing airball on the shirt to stick it to the wall. The wall and the balloon have different static electric charges and stick to each other. Charges from the more negative material stick to the more positive one, and in the triboelectric nanogenerator, this creates a current that charges the supercapacitor. The latter stores electricity to power a medical device and stimulate the brain.
Scheme of the experiment and the principle of operation of the device. Image: Esraa Elsanadidy et al., Cell Reports Physical Science
The scientists tested the device by inserting theirnanogenerator into a pig model containing an animal lung connected to a pump. During inhalation and exhalation, the lung presses on the nanogenerator, causing the two layers inside the nanogenerator to rub and generate electricity.
Electricity travels through a thin wirecharging a supercapacitor that powers the deep brain stimulator electronics located outside the chest. Tests have shown that the electricity collected in this way is sufficient to generate pulses of 60 times per second, as in the devices with a replaceable battery currently in use.
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On the cover: an illustration of the operation of the device. Image: UConn