Wearable Medical Device Controller With Capacitor Framing

Abstract

A serviceable wearable cardiac treatment device for continuous extended use by an ambulatory patient includes a garment, a device controller, and an ingress-protective housing. The garment is configured to dispose therein a plurality of ECG sensing and therapy electrodes to monitor for and treat a cardiac arrhythmia in the patient. The device controller is configured to be in separable electrical communication with the plurality of ECG sensing and therapy electrodes and includes an impact-resistant energy core, and first and second circuit boards affixed to opposing sides of the impact-resistant energy core. The impact-resistant energy core includes a frame and at least one capacitor permanently bonded to the frame to form a unitary mass. The ingress-protective housing is configured to enable removal of the impact-resistant energy core and the first and second circuit boards during servicing.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A device controller for a wearable cardiac treatment device for continuous extended use by an ambulatory patient, the device controller comprising:
 a housing defining an interior volume;   a frame positioned within the interior volume of the housing, the frame comprising at least one pocket;   at least one capacitor configured to be received within the at least one pocket;   an insulating compound disposed within the pocket to at least partially encapsulate the at least one capacitor thereby immovably binding the at least one capacitor to the frame;   a first circuit board positioned within the interior volume of the housing and affixed to a first side of the frame; and   a second circuit board positioned within the interior volume of the housing and affixed to an opposing second side of the frame in a manner to allow for separation of the first and second circuit boards from the frame during service,   wherein the first and second circuit boards comprise cardiac arrhythmia monitoring circuitry for analyzing an ECG signal received from the patient for an arrhythmia condition and comprising therapy circuitry in electrical communication with the at least one capacitor configured to cause delivery of energy from the at least one capacitor to a thoracic region of the patient.   
     
     
         2 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one capacitor and the frame form a unitary mass. 
     
     
         3 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the insulating compound comprises an epoxy resin that when set after initial application has a hardness rating in a range of about 80-85 Shore D. 
     
     
         4 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the insulating compound is an adhesive compound. 
     
     
         5 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the insulating compound has a tensile strength in a range of about 8,000-12,000 PSI, a compressive strength in a range of about 20,000-24,000 PSI, and a flexural strength in a range of about 14,000-20,000 PSI. 
     
     
         6 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the insulating compound has a dielectric strength less than or equal to 6.0 at both 1 kHz and 1 MHz. 
     
     
         7 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the insulating compound has a dissipation factor of less than or equal to 0.03 at 1 kHz and less than or equal to 0.05 at 1 MHz. 
     
     
         8 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one capacitor comprises a single capacitor. 
     
     
         9 . The device controller of  claim 8 , wherein the single capacitor is configured to occupy at least 50 to 95 percent of a volume defined within the pocket of the frame. 
     
     
         10 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the first circuit board comprises at least one processor and high voltage circuitry in communication with the at least one processor. 
     
     
         11 . The device controller of  claim 10 , wherein the at least one processor comprises an arrhythmia detection processor. 
     
     
         12 . The device controller of  claim 10 , wherein the at least one processor comprises an arrhythmia detection processor and a therapy control processor. 
     
     
         13 . The device controller of  claim 10 , wherein the high voltage circuitry comprises a therapy delivery circuit. 
     
     
         14 . The device controller of  claim 1 , further comprising a flex connector extending from the first circuit board to the second circuit board. 
     
     
         15 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the second circuit board comprises low voltage circuitry. 
     
     
         16 . The device controller of  claim 15 , wherein the low voltage circuitry comprises communication circuitry. 
     
     
         17 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the frame, the at least one capacitor, and the first and second circuit boards occupy between about 25 to 90 percent of the interior volume of the housing. 
     
     
         18 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the housing comprises a rear shell configured to be disposed adjacent the second circuit board and a front shell configured to be disposed adjacent the first circuit board, the front shell mating with the rear shell in a sealed configuration. 
     
     
         19 . The device controller of  claim 18 , wherein a mating edge of the front shell and a mating edge of the rear shell are configured to engage in a fitted interlock when the front and rear shells are mated to form the housing. 
     
     
         20 . The device controller of  claim 1 , wherein the housing comprises an IP67 rating as set forth in IEC 60529 Standard for Ingress Protection.