System and method for using tissue contact information in an automated mapping of cardiac chambers employing magnetically shaped fields

A method for automatically mapping the interior surface of a coronary chamber comprising:

• inserting a catheter with an array of electrodes disposed on its surface into the coronary chamber;
• generating a shaped magnetic field around the catheter and coronary chamber to selectively move the catheter under closed loop control;
• receiving a plurality of signals from the electrode array disposed on the catheter;
• calculating an actual position of the catheter within the coronary chamber from the plurality of received signals;
• determining a presence of continuous or partial contact between the catheter and the surface of the coronary chamber from the plurality of received signals;
• generating an automated mapping pattern for the catheter using closed loop control for movement of the catheter to optimize the closed loop automated mapping pattern of the catheter, wherein generating the automated mapping pattern for the catheter further comprises:
• obtaining a plurality of measurements from the surface of the coronary chamber when continuous contact has been established according to the generated closed loop automated mapping pattern;
• and
• obtaining a plurality of measurements from the surface of the coronary chamber when partial contact has been established according to the generated closed loop automated mapping pattern;
• automatically generating a map of the continuous contact manifold of the coronary chamber based on the obtained continuous contact measurements;
• and
• automatically generating a map of the partial contact zone of the coronary chamber based on the obtained partial contact measurements;
• and
• automatically moving a distal end of the catheter between the generated map of the continuous contact manifold and the generated map of the partial contact zone during generation of the closed loop automated mapping pattern of the catheter, so that travel time and distance through the distal end of the catheter is moved during generation of the closed loop automated mapping pattern is reduced.