Just thinking about data storage implants

I dont like the idea of having a battery inside me. They have limited charge cycles and can degrade. It’s a more secure system if its only powered on while in use during read/write cycles.

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Ok, I would still argue a glove or armband would be the most efficient way to line up the larger power coils. Perhaps it could also contain the hardware required to read the device as well.

Ha, and if you are worried about bioglass breaking just think what can happen when you dent a battery.

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This is why we’re not making battery powered stuff, but we are keeping our eyes on the new emerging battery chemistry industry. The other issue we have is keeping things consumer priced means keeping things consumer grade, and that also goes for the stuff attached to the battery… so you might have a great battery but a crap $0.02 resister on the PCB that goes out of spec and tosses the battery into meltdown inside you… not good.

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Rename to ShinyThings

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Thats why the pegleg only is powered on when it has a qi powerbank held to it

Stored battery is a no no, armband/glove would have to be worn while you want the device to be on

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Even better
I actually want one of those for my collection

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Most pacemakers are powered with a (non-rechargeable) lithium-iodide battery and you don’t hear about these things catching on fire inside the wearer’ chest. I guess it just depends on how well made the device is. Hell, the first pacemakers were even used plutonium: what self-respecting grinder wouldn’t want one of those eh? It’s not like some member of this board didn’t have radioactive things implanted in them already :slight_smile:

Anyway, for less extreme solutions, LiFePo4 or NiCd batteries are also options for a rechargeable device, as they are safer chemistries.

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You don’t hear about pacemaker batteries catching fire in someone’s chest because the primary failure state of a most batteries is a short caused by either: cell penetration by a conductive object, or across the unprotected contacts. If something gets into your chest cavity far enough to short or damage a battery, you have more serious concerns.

These battery chemistries still suffer from the same failure state. If they get penetrated, damaged, bent, or the PCB is compromised, they release large amounts of hydrogen and other gases, often accompanied by flames. Even some kind of rigid epoxy resin encapsulation is not going to withstand the outgassing.

To each their own, but I’m not down.
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Fro my 2 cents, it’s the gasses which present the most risk. That’s because an implant, by it’s very nature, must be sealed completely. If you mistreat basically any battery in any way, like putting a little too much power into it during charging, then you get gas production. That gas production, even in modest amounts, will crack open a sealed implant like nobody’s business… and once you let bodily fluids in, you will likely have only a very short amount of time to live before things go catastrophic.

For these reasons, we don’t make consumer grade implants that contain power cells of any kind. As I said above, we keep our eyes on new battery chemistries being worked on.

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Like solid state batteries? That looks exciting. But no that’s why I want to attempt this with qi charging or something as an active power source( haven’t done the research if this is even possible).

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How viable would it be to use a transdermal like @Leeborg 's project ? Plug a charger on to the transdermal to power the storage? I thought about some kind of medical-type port (but much smaller) but then there’s the whole risk of infection thing to worry about. Perhaps I’m thinking too far into the future :joy:

I feel like I’d be more worried about snapping the storage chip in some kind of fall / blunt force trauma.

That’s why I want to do it on a flexible pcb so it has the ability to flex and move with trips and spills. And I kind of want to design like a dermal piercing that is a USB plug maybe one day(I’m not a biologist or electrical engineer). Like people get trans dermal piercings all the time if you do the same, but with leads to a chip it might work and you could put a waterproof plug protector to keep the plug itself from eroding, but it’s still a super scetchy idea.

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We have played with this in some retro spec. We’ve looked at attaching dermal posts to a AtTiny85 and coating it. The USB wires would run through the hollow dermal post.

Personally I prefer implant microboards that are externally powered only. As many have stated putting batteries in you is not feasible currently.

Yes pacemakers and what not have them but they also have “Short” lifeapans. Not meant to last 50 and 60 years.

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How did that go?

Like most dermal and open surface structures it’s all about the personal body, 1 person had a successful heal 2nd person had a rejection after about 6 months 3rd had rejection a couple months after implantation. Having “open” wounds is finky.

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Did the connectivity work? Or did you just test hollow dermal posts?

Yes the connection worked. It’s would nice to see a screwable jack developed for a dermal post.

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