# US 2026/0295255 A1 · Smart medical device insertion

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- Number: US 2026/0295255 A1
- Document ID: US20260295255A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 19/477,942
- Filed: 2024-04-23
- Published: 2026-10-01
- Earliest claimed: 2023-04-24
- Assignees: Cochlear Limited
- Applicants: Cochlear Limited
- Inventors: Peter GIBSON
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20260295255A1

## CPC

- A61N 1/36039: {fitting procedures}
- A61B 34/32: operating autonomously
- A61N 1/0541: {Cochlear electrodes}
- G16H 40/63: for local operation
- A61B 2034/107: {Visualisation of planned trajectories or target regions}
- A61B 2034/302: {specifically adapted for manipulations within body cavities, e.g. within abdominal or thoracic cavities}
- A61N 1/0543: {Retinal electrodes}
- A61N 1/36046: {of the eye}
- 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)
- A61B: DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION (usefulness limited to only animals A61D)
- 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 advancing, as part of an implantation procedure into a human, at least a first portion of an electrode array into a cochlea of the human during a first temporal period, providing information to a computer system, the provided information including spatial based data relating to the electrode array during the implantation procedure of the electrode array into the human, receiving information based on an evaluation by the computer system of the provided information, the evaluation having taken into account a history of the spatial based data provided in the provided information, the received information being a recommendation as to how to move the electrode array during second temporal period following the first temporal period and moving the electrode array according to the received information.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method, comprising:
advancing, as part of an implantation procedure into a human, at least a first portion of an electrode array into a cochlea of the human during a first temporal period;
providing information to a computer system, the provided information including spatial based data relating to the electrode array during the implantation procedure of the electrode array into the human;
receiving information based on an evaluation by the computer system of the provided information, the evaluation having taken into account a history of the spatial based data provided in the provided information, the received information being a recommendation as to how to move the electrode array during second temporal period following the first temporal period; and
moving the electrode array according to the received information.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the history includes the most recent movement being the insertion of the array further into the cochlea and the electrode array is almost fully inserted;
the history includes that the array was stationary, and a pose of the array was that the electrode array is clinically against a modiolus wall of the cochlea; and
the received information is to move the electrode array further into the cochlea.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the history includes the most recent movement being the insertion of the array further into the cochlea and the electrode array is at least almost fully inserted;
the evaluation has taken into account current spatial based data of the array;
a current pose is that a mid-section of the electrode array is clinically away from a modiolus wall of the cochlea; and
the received information is to move the electrode array backwards.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The method of claim 3, further comprising:
receiving a second information after the received information, the second information being to advance the electrode array into the cochlea and then to move the electrode array backwards;
advancing the array and then moving the electrode array backwards based on the second information;
receiving a third information to leave the electrode array at the location where it was moved backwards; and
leaving the electrode array at the location where it was moved backwards based on the second information.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein:
the history includes the most recent movement being to insert the array further into the cochlea and the electrode array is less than ⅔rds of the way fully inserted;
the current pose is that an apical section of the electrode array is clinically away from a modiolus wall of the cochlea; and
the received information is to move the electrode array backwards by a relatively significant amount, and then move the electrode array forward by more than an amount corresponding to the relatively significant amount.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The method of claim 5, further comprising:
receiving a second information after the received information, the second information being to advance the electrode array into the cochlea further,
advancing the array further based on the second information;
receiving a third information after the received second information, the third information being to advance the electrode array into the cochlea further.

### Claim at position 7

7-8. (canceled)

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising:
providing demographic and/or physiological information about the human to the computer system, wherein the evaluation has also taken into account the provided demographic and/or physiological information.

### Claim at position 9

10-11. (canceled)

### Claim 12

A non-transitory computer readable medium having recorded thereon, a computer program for executing at least a portion of a method, the computer program including:
code for receiving input based on at least one of past movement, past pose, past status, current movement, current pose or current status of an electrode array at least partially in a human during an implantation procedure of the electrode array in the human; and
code for automatically analyzing data based on at least a portion of the input to develop a recommend action to be taken in the implantation procedure, wherein the analyzed data includes:
a current position of the electrode array; and
at least one of:
at least one movement of the array during a first temporal period prior to a current temporal period;
at least one past pose of the array during the first temporal period; or
at least one past status of the electrode array during the first temporal period.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The medium of claim 12, wherein:
the first temporal period extends a period of at least 10 seconds;
the analyzed data includes at least two discretized movements of the electrode array.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The medium of claim 13, wherein:
the input is based on at least one of past movement or current movement, and at least one of the movements of the at least one of the past movement or current movement is continuous for at least 5 seconds; and
the medium further includes discretizing the continuous movement into the two discretized movements.

### Claim 15 (depends on 12)

The medium of claim 12, wherein:
the analyzed data includes at least one past pose of the array during the first temporal period; and
the current position is based on at least a current pose of the array.

### Claim 16 (depends on 12)

The medium of claim 12, wherein:
the analyzed data includes the at least one movement of the array during the first temporal period; and
the analyzed data includes a current movement of the electrode array.

### Claim 17 (depends on 12)

The medium of claim 12, wherein:
the analyzed data includes the at least one past status of the electrode array during the first temporal period; and
the analyzed data includes a current status of the electrode array.

### Claim 18 (depends on 12)

The medium of claim 12, wherein:
the analyzed data includes at least three discretized movements based on movement(s) during the first temporal period;
the analyzed data includes at least two past poses of the array during the first temporal period; and
the analyzed data includes at least two past statuses of the array during the first temporal period.

### Claim at position 17

19-44. (canceled)

### Claim 45

A method, comprising:
obtaining (i) medical device positional data and (ii) medical device movement data for a statistically significant number of medical device implantation processes on a human for the medical device; and
analyzing the obtained data to develop a predictive algorithm for a current medical device movement behavior based on the results of the analysis, wherein the predictive algorithm predicts future movement of the current medical device based on input specific to the current medical device, the current medical device not being one of the medical devices of the medical device implantation processes.

### Claim 46 (depends on 45)

The method of claim 45, wherein:
the action of analyzing the obtained data is executed using machine learning.

### Claim 47 (depends on 46)

The method of claim 46, wherein:
the use of machine learning includes calculating coefficients, parameters, thresholds and/or weights of models by minimizing a cost function.

### Claim 48 (depends on 45)

The method of claim 45, wherein:
the action of analyzing the obtained data machine-trains a system that results in the developed predictive algorithm.

### Claim 49 (depends on 45)

The method of claim 45, further comprising:
developing a cohort model based on the obtained data, wherein
the action of analyzing the obtained data results in the development of a cohort model based on the obtained data, and
the predictive algorithm uses the cohort model in a brute force manner to predict future movement of the current medical device based on input specific to the current medical device.

### Claim at position 23

50-51. (canceled)

### Claim 52 (depends on 45)

The method of claim 45, further comprising:
curation of the obtained data to remove data having records that are sparely populated and/or are low quality.

### Claim at position 25

53-55. (canceled)