Examination of the Dynamic Behaviour of Ventricular Assist Devices

Challenge

Ventricular assist devices (VADs) are available for late-stage heart failure. These are usually implanted to bridge the gap until heart transplantation is performed.

Conditions

  • A VAD is a mechanical pump which takes over the function of the left or right ventricle or both ventricles
  • Most commonly, a Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) is used to assist the left ventricle
  • The device is implanted in the apex of the heart. It sucks the oxygen-rich blood - which the heart can no longer pump into the body - out of the left ventricle and then pumps it into the aorta via an artificial duct called graft
  • The control unit and battery are located outside the body - the cardiac pump is connected to them by a connecting cable

Scope

Development of reliable, patient-adapted VAD systems

Task

Simulation of a VAD system to investigate the dynamic behaviour as a function of the control and geometry parameters at specified maximum pressures

Solution

  • Development of a hydraulic-pneumatic ventricular model
  • Setup of simulation models for the pneumatic actuation and the hydraulic representation of the body
  • Verification of the sub-models and combining them into an integrated simulation model
  • Simulation of the VAD system with different control settings

Customer Project

Medos.pngSimulation of a VAD system to investigate its dynamic behaviour (PDF)

Detailed Information

Detailed questions regarding the above-mentioned projects or possible solutions to specific problems will be answered directly by our engineering team.

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