An in vitro experiment for remote health monitoring of implanted cardiac pacemakers using Petri nets

Abstract

For heart disease patients with an implanted artificial pacemaker, monitoring the operational status of the pacemaker is a crucial and challenging issue. This study aims to design a transcutaneous optic telemetry (TOT) system that transmits light signals from a human body through the skin to a receiving circuit and carries pacemaker status information via the light signals to achieve transcutaneous telemetry. Petri net method is used to analyze the simulated pacemaker. Petri nets are constructed to illustrate the process of the pacemaker. Furthermore, the Petri nets for the process with four checkpoints (CPs) deployed on the pacemaker are also constructed. The TOT system uses near-infrared signals generated by a light-emitting diode as a transmission medium, and the pork skin animal model is used to validate the TOT system’s feasibility and efficiency. The correct sequence of CPs determines the normal state of the pacemaker, and the information from these CPs is transmitted in vitro for interpretation through the TOT system. This study designed and implemented the TOT system. Experiments showed that the TOT system’s design is effective in transmitting the CPs information through the pigskin layer without any significant interference. The results proved that the TOT system can transmit CPs information outside the body to achieve the transcutaneous telemetry diagnosis of the pacemaker. This study provides an alternative means to surgical operation for implanted pacemakers examination.