# US 11,439,811 B2 · Advanced electrode array insertion with conditioning

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 11,439,811 B2
- Document ID: US11439811B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 15/707,197
- Filed: 2017-09-18
- Published: 2018-05-24
- Granted: 2022-09-13
- Earliest claimed: 2016-04-21
- Assignees: Cochlear Limited
- Applicants: Ángel Ramos de Miguel, Sr.; Ángel Manuel Ramos Macías; D. Juan Carlos Falcon Gonzalez; Riaan Rottier; Christopher Bennett
- Inventors: Ángel Ramos de Miguel, Sr.; Ángel Manuel Ramos Macías; D. Juan Carlos Falcon Gonzalez; Riaan Rottier; Christopher Bennett
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11439811B2

## CPC

- A61N 1/0541: {Cochlear electrodes}
- A61N 1/08: Arrangements or circuits for monitoring, protecting, controlling or indicating {(for external stimulators A61N1/3603; for implantable neurostimulators A61N1/36128; for heart stimulators A61N1/37; for defibrillators A61N1/3925)}
- A61N 1/36038: {Cochlear stimulation}
- A61N 1/37252: {Details of algorithms or data aspects of communication system, e.g. handshaking, transmitting specific data or segmenting data}
- G16H 20/30: relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising
- G16H 40/63: for local operation
- G16H 50/20: for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems
- A61N: ELECTROTHERAPY; MAGNETOTHERAPY; RADIATION THERAPY; ULTRASOUND THERAPY (measurement of bioelectric currents A61B; surgical instruments, devices or methods for transferring non-mechanical forms of energy to or from the body A61B18/00; anaesthetic apparatus in general A61M; incandescent lamps H01K; infrared radiators for heating H05B)
- G16H: HEALTHCARE INFORMATICS, i.e. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE HANDLING OR PROCESSING OF MEDICAL OR HEALTHCARE DATA

## Abstract

A method, including obtaining information indicative of a phenomenon sensed at a read electrode of a cochlear implant electrode array relative to a reference and/or at a read electrode remote from the electrode array relative to a reference, where one of the electrodes of the cochlear implant electrode array was energized executing a first analysis of the information to identify one or more first meanings from among a first group of meanings of the sensed phenomenon, conditioning the obtained information based on the identified one or more first meanings, and executing a second analysis of the conditioned information to identify one or more second meanings from among a second group of meanings of the sensed phenomenon.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method, comprising:
obtaining information indicative of a phenomenon sensed at, at least one read electrode relative to at least one reference of a cochlear implant electrode array and/or at a read electrode remote from the electrode array relative to a reference where at least one of the electrodes of the cochlear implant electrode array was energized;
executing a first analysis of the information to identify one or more first meanings from among a first group of meanings of the sensed phenomenon;
conditioning the obtained information based on the identified one or more first meanings;
executing a second analysis of the conditioned information to identify one or more second meanings from among a second group of meanings of the sensed phenomenon; and
analyzing the information to determine whether or not portions of the information are acceptable for use in identifying the one or more second meanings, wherein
the action of conditioning includes modifying the information to at least one of eliminate or replace the portions of the information that are deemed not acceptable for use in identifying the one or more second meanings and using the modified information to identify the one or more second meanings, and
the first group of meanings includes at least one of an open circuit, a short circuit, a shunt circuit, a bubble proximate the electrode array, an electrode not in the cochlea, an electrode conditioning phenomenon or a phenomenon associated with a geometric property of a cochlea.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the one or more second meanings relates to a feature that impacts the conduction of electricity globally relative to the electrode array.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising:
providing a virtual indication to a healthcare professional that a dislocation or a fold over of the electrode array has occurred and the location thereof based on the second analysis.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the one or more second meanings relates to a feature that is identifiable only if a specific electrode is known of a plurality of potential intracochlear sources of current corresponding to respective electrodes of the cochlear array supplies current to the one or more read electrodes.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the one or more second meanings corresponds to an electrical phenomenon that will only change with further movement of the electrode array in the cochlea, all other things being equal.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the second group of meanings includes at least one of fold over, dislocation, bowing or electrode array misplacement.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the phenomenon sensed at the one or more read electrodes was sensed at least one of while the electrode array was being inserted into the cochlea or before the electrode array was inserted into the cochlea.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the actions of obtaining information, executing the first analysis, conditioning and executing the second analysis are executed after the electrode array is fully inserted into a cochlea such that at least sixteen (16) stimulating electrodes, used to evoke a hearing percept in operation, of the electrode array, are located in the cochlea.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the one or more first meanings corresponds to an electrical phenomenon that at least one of will not change or will change with time without further movement of the electrode array in the cochlea, all other things being equal.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the actions of obtaining information, executing the first analysis, conditioning and executing the second analysis are executed when at least sixteen (16) stimulating electrodes, used to evoke a hearing percept in operation, of the electrode array, are located in the cochlea.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the action of obtaining information is executed via wired communication between the electrode array and a computing device outside a recipient of the electrode array.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the first group of meanings includes at least an electrode conditioning phenomenon; and
second group of meanings includes at least one of fold over, dislocation, bowing or electrode array misplacement.

### Claim 13 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the actions of obtaining information, executing the first analysis, conditioning and executing the second analysis are executed as part of a method where an imaging technique has not been used within 120 minutes after the electrode array is fully inserted into the cochlea.

### Claim 14 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the identified one or more second meanings is an array fold over of the cochlear electrode array;
wherein the method further comprises repeating the actions of obtaining, executing the first analysis, conditioning, executing the second analysis, wherein the identified one or more second meanings identified in the second analysis, is an array fold over of the cochlear electrode array, at least 5 times, and the action of identifying the array fold over of the cochlear electrode array is executed at a rate that is statistically more reliable than a single X-ray of the cochlear of the recipient with the electrode array therein.

### Claim 15 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the identified one or more second meanings is that a physical characteristic associated with the electrode array that is strictly local to the electrode array existed and/or exists.

### Claim 16 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the identified one or more second meanings is that a physical characteristic associated with the electrode array that is strictly local to the electrode array existed and/or exists, wherein the physical characteristic is a temporally static characteristic related to the physical condition of the electrode array.

### Claim 17 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the identified one or more second meanings is that a physical characteristic associated with the electrode array that is strictly local to the electrode array existed and/or exists; and
the method further comprises, subsequent to the execution of the second analysis:
obtaining second information indicative of a phenomenon sensed at at least one read electrode relative to at least one reference of the cochlear implant electrode array and/or at a read electrode remote from the electrode array relative to a reference where at least one of the electrodes of the cochlear implant electrode array was energized; and
determining, based on the second information, that the physical characteristic associated with the electrode array that is strictly local to the electrode array no longer exists.

### Claim 18 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the one or more second meanings is that a deleterious cochlear electrode array position exists inside the cochlea of a recipient, wherein
the actions used to make the identification that a deleterious cochlear electrode array position exists correspond to a statistical based accuracy rating of at least 90 out of 100 vis-à-vis determinations that a deleterious cochlear electrode array position exists.

### Claim 19 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
after conditioning the obtained information or prior to conditioning the information, and prior to executing the second analysis, normalizing the information and then executing the second analysis with the normalized conditioned information or the conditioned normalized information.

### Claim 20 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising:
in addition to conditioning the obtained information, placing the obtained information into a matrix.