JP2015106430A - Feedthrough - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To suppress a conductor pin of a feedthrough from falling down even when the conductor pin is made of soft metal material and a diameter of the conductor pin is formed relatively small.SOLUTION: A feedthrough comprises: a ceramic body having one principal surface and another principal surface and provided with penetration holes having openings on both surfaces; conductor pins each of which is inserted into the penetration hole and parts thereof are projected out from both holes; and bonding bodies each of which is arranged in a gap between the inner surface of the penetration hole and the conductor pin for bonding the ceramic body and the conductor pin together. The ceramic body has a protrusion part on at least one of the one principal surface and the other principal surface, and when the projected part of the conductor pin from the principal surface provided with the protrusion part is bent from the base and tilted toward the protrusion part, the projected part abuts to the protrusion part. Further, at least a part of the side surface of the projected part is free from being opposed to the side surface of the protrusion part over the entire length direction of the projected part.

Description

  The present invention relates to feedthrough.

  2. Description of the Related Art Feedthroughs that are arranged in a casing or the like in which an electronic component such as an electronic circuit is incorporated and exchange electric signals and current between the inside and the outside of such a casing or the like are widely used. With the miniaturization of electronic devices and electronic components, the miniaturization of feedthroughs is also progressing. As an example of a relatively small feed-through, it is used for implantable pacemakers that are actually implanted in the human body, such as implantable pacemakers that correct abnormalities in the heart movement of the human body and implantable cardiac defibrillators. There is a feedthrough.

  In an implantable pacemaker, a feed-through is provided in a casing containing a battery, circuit board, etc., and the electrode of this feed-through (conductor pin) is connected to a lead wire surgically connected to an appropriate location in the heart. Is done. The performance required for such feedthrough is that body fluid penetrates into the casing and adheres to the circuit board and battery, and does not cause malfunction of the pacemaker, and is made of a safe material that is highly compatible with the living body. And so on.

Patent Document 1 below discloses an example of a feedthrough that can be applied to such an implantable pacemaker. FIG. 5A is a schematic cross-sectional view of the feedthrough 100 described in Patent Document 1. FIG. The feedthrough 100 includes a ceramic body 120 mainly composed of alumina (Al ₂ O ₃ ), a conductor pin 140 made of platinum (Pt), and a housing 180 made of a metal having biocompatibility such as gold (Au). It is comprised. The ceramic body 120 is made of a ceramic sintered body containing alumina as a main component, and a plurality of through holes 120a penetrating from the upper surface to the lower surface are provided, and a conductor pin 140 is disposed in each of the through holes 120a. Among metals, so-called noble metals such as platinum (Pt) have high biocompatibility and can be suitably used for feedthroughs for implantable pacemakers. Further, the feedthrough 100 embedded in the human body is required to be as small as possible, and the diameter of the conductor pin 140 is as thin as 0.4 mm, for example.

JP 2010-150076 A

  In an implantable pacemaker, the conductor pin 140 is used by being joined to a lead wire 520 that is electrically connected to a predetermined position of the human heart. The conductor pin 140 is made of relatively soft platinum (Pt) and has a thin diameter of 0.4 mm and is very soft. Therefore, in order to join the lead wire 520 to the conductor pin 140, the lead wire 520 is brought into contact with the conductor pin 140. As shown in FIG. 5B, the lead wire 520 is easily bent and easily deformed. For this reason, it is difficult to keep the lead wire 520 and the conductor pin 140 in contact with each other at a predetermined angle or direction. For example, the work efficiency of the joining work using a laser welding machine or the like is deteriorated. There was a problem. In addition, there is a problem that the possibility of contact with other adjacent conductor pins 140 is relatively high. As described above, the conventional feedthrough has a problem that the conductor pin is too soft and deforms more than necessary, such as when a soft metal material is used for the conductor pin or when the diameter of the conductor pin is relatively small. It was. The present invention has been made in view of such problems.

  In order to solve this problem, in the present invention, a ceramic body provided with a through hole having one main surface and the other main surface and having openings in both the one main surface and the other main surface, and the through hole The ceramic body disposed in a gap between a conductor pin made of metal and partially protruding from both the one main surface and the other main surface, and at least a part of the inner surface of the through hole and the conductor pin And a joined body that joins the conductor pin, wherein the ceramic body has a convex portion on at least one of the one main surface and the other main surface, When the protruding portion from the main surface on the side where the convex portion is provided is bent from the base and tilted toward the convex portion, the protruding portion contacts the convex portion, and at least the side surface of the protruding portion one It is throughout the length direction of the protruding portion, to provide a feedthrough which is characterized in that it is opened without facing a side surface of the convex portion.

  According to the present invention, even when a soft metal material is used for the feedthrough conductor pin or when the diameter of the conductor pin is relatively small, the collapse of the conductor pin can be suppressed.

(A) is a schematic sectional drawing of one Embodiment of the feedthrough of this invention, (b) is a schematic top view. It is a schematic sectional drawing of the heart pacer comprised with the feedthrough shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the state which has joined the lead wire to the conductor pin of the feedthrough shown in FIG. It is a figure explaining other embodiment of the feedthrough of this invention, (a) is a schematic sectional drawing, (b) is a schematic top view. It is a figure of an example of the conventional feedthrough, (a) is a schematic sectional drawing of an example of the conventional feedthrough, (b) is the state which contact | abutted the lead wire to the conductor pin of the feedthrough shown to (a) FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail. FIG. 1A is a schematic cross-sectional view of a feedthrough 10 that is an embodiment of the feedthrough of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a schematic top view of the feedthrough 10.

  The feedthrough 10 of the present embodiment includes a ceramic body 12 that includes a first main surface 12A and the other main surface 12B, and includes a through hole 12a that has openings in both the first main surface 12A and the other main surface 12B. A conductor pin 14 made of metal that is inserted through the hole 12a and partially protrudes from both the one main surface 12A and the other main surface 12B, and is disposed in a gap between at least a part of the inner surface of the through hole 12a and the conductor pin 14 And a joined body 22 that joins the ceramic body 12 and the conductor pin 14.

The ceramic body 12 has a convex portion 30 on at least one of the one main surface 12A and the other main surface 12B (one main surface 12A in this embodiment), and is provided on the side where the convex portion 30 of the conductor pin 14 is provided. When the projecting portion 14α from the main surface (one main surface 12A) is bent from the base and tilted toward the convex portion 30, the projecting portion 14α abuts on the convex portion 30, and at least the side surface 15 of the projecting portion 14α. A part of the protruding portion 14α is opened without facing the side surface 32 of the convex portion 30 over the entire length direction of the protruding portion 14α. The ceramic body 12 is mainly composed of alumina (Al ₂ O ₃ ), for example, and the content ratio of alumina is, for example, 90% by mass or more.

  The feedthrough 10 is used in preparation for the heart pacer 1 described later, for example. The conductor pin 14 is mainly composed of platinum (Pt), for example, and has a diameter of about 0.5 mm. The material of the conductor pin of the present invention is not particularly limited. However, when the feedthrough is used for a heart pacer, the conductor pin may be made of a metal whose main component is Ti, Nb, Ta, Mo, Ir, or P. preferable. These metals are known to have high biocompatibility. Note that high biocompatibility means that the body's immune reaction, particularly thrombus formation and the encapsulation of the electrode by fibrotic cell tissue, is small even when it is in contact with the body's cellular tissue and blood.

  The conductor pin 14 having platinum (Pt) having a high biocompatibility as a main component and a diameter as small as 0.5 mm is relatively soft and easily deforms when other members come into contact therewith. The convex portion 30 has a convex side surface 32 that faces the protruding portion 14α and is perpendicular to the main surface (one main surface 12A) on which the convex portion 30 is provided. In such a feedthrough 10, the protruding height H (see FIG. 1A) of the protruding portion from the main surface (one main surface 12A) on the side where the convex portion 30 is provided is from the opening of the through hole 12a. It is larger than the distance D (see FIGS. 1A and 1B) along the one main surface 12A to the convex side surface 32. For this reason, in the feedthrough 10, when the protruding portion 14α from the one main surface 12A is bent from the root and tilted toward the convex portion 30, the protruding portion 14α contacts the convex portion 30. That is, even when the protruding portion 14α is deformed and bent so as to fall from the root, the degree of the falling is reduced by being supported by the convex portion 30. A plurality of openings of the through holes 12a are arranged along one direction (direction indicated by an arrow X in the drawing), and the convex side surface 32 has a long rectangular shape along this one direction.

  Further, in the feedthrough 10, at least a part of the side surface 15 of the protruding portion 14α is open without facing the side surface 32 of the convex portion 30 over the entire length direction of the protruding portion 14α. In the feedthrough 10, other members such as a lead wire 52 to be described later can be brought into contact with the side surface 15 of the protruding portion 14α from this open portion. In the feedthrough 10, even when the projecting portion 14α falls from the base by the abutted lead wire 52, the projecting portion 14α comes into contact with the projecting side surface 32 and is supported by the projecting side surface 32. Suppresses falling more than necessary.

The feedthrough 10 can be produced by the following method, for example. First, for example, a ceramic body 12 mainly composed of alumina is prepared. The ceramic body 12 is provided with a plurality of through holes 12a and convex portions 30 that penetrate from the upper surface toward the lower surface. The ceramic body 12 can be produced by a known method in which alumina powder is press-molded and then fired. The material of the ceramic body is not limited to alumina, but in view of biocompatibility, alumina, barium titanate, zirconia, ticker silicon, and the like are preferable.

  Next, a metallized layer containing, for example, Au as a main component and containing Pt and Ti is formed on the inner surface of the through hole 12a. The metallized layer on the inner surface of the through hole 12a may be formed using a known method such as sputtering or a paste method. Next, the conductor pin 14 is inserted into the through-hole 12a with the metallized layer attached to the inner surface, and a ring-shaped structure containing Au as a main component so as to close the opening of the gap between the through-hole 12a and the conductor pin 14. An Au brazing member is placed and the whole is placed in a rapid heating furnace. In this state, the whole is placed in a rapid heating furnace, the whole is heated in a short time and then cooled, and the ceramic body 2 and the conductor pin 14 are joined via a joined body 22 containing Au as a main component. As the rapid heating furnace, for example, an infrared heating apparatus in which an infrared heating body and a reflecting mirror that locally collects thermal energy (infrared rays) radiated from the infrared heating body or an induction heating furnace is used. There are heating devices. In this embodiment, for example, using an infrared rapid heating apparatus, the temperature is raised to 1100 ° C. in 1 minute to 5 minutes, then maintained at 1100 ° C. for 10 seconds, up to 882 ° C. for about 10 seconds to 1 minute, and up to 200 ° C. After naturally cooling for about 15 minutes, the whole is taken out from the infrared rapid heating apparatus. The melting point of the Au brazing member constituting the ring-shaped member is about 1060 ° C., and is melted by this heat treatment, wets and spreads over the entire gap between the conductor pin 14 and the through hole 12a, and then solidifies as the temperature lowers. 22 is formed. The feedthrough 10 can be produced in this way, for example.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the heart pacer 1 configured with the feedthrough 10 shown in FIG. The heart pacer 1 includes a battery 42, a circuit board 44, an EMI filter 46, and the like inside, a lower case 40 in which the feedthrough 10 is fixed to the upper wall surface, and lead wires connected to the conductor pins 14 of the feedthrough 10. 52 is configured to be combined with an upper case 50 in which an antenna 54 connected to another conductor pin 14 of the feedthrough 10 is disposed.

  The lower case 40 is made of, for example, Ti, and the housing 18 joined to the feedthrough 10 and the lower case 40 are joined, and the feedthrough 10 is fixed to the lower case 40. In the lower case 40, a battery 42 made of, for example, a Li-ion battery, a circuit board 44 that is connected to the battery 42 and generates a predetermined electric signal, and electromagnetic waves from, for example, a television transmitter, a mobile phone, a radio tower, etc. An EMI filter 46 and the like for removing EMI caused by the above are incorporated. The battery 42, the circuit board 44, and the EMI filter 46 are separated from body fluids such as blood by the lower case 40 and the feedthrough 10.

  In the feedthrough 10, the conductor pin 14 is inserted into the through hole 12 a of the ceramic body 12, and the circuit board 44 inside the lower case 40 and the lead wire 52 passing through the upper case 50 are physically connected via the conductor pin 14. Connected electrically and electrically. The lead wire 52 is electrically connected to a predetermined position of the human heart, and guides an electric signal emitted from the circuit board 44 and supplied via the conductor pin 14 to the predetermined position of the human heart. An antenna 54 is also disposed in the upper case 50, and this antenna 54 is also connected to the circuit board 44 in the lower case 40 via the conductor pins 14 of the feedthrough 10.

  The antenna 54 receives various data such as data representing the operating state of the heart pacer 1, data for adjusting the operating condition of the heart pacer 1, and data representing the current health state of the human body wearing the heart pacer 30. Interact with external communication devices. The antenna 54 is also connected to the circuit board 44 in the lower case 40 via the conductor pin 14 of the feedthrough 10, and transmits a signal from the circuit board 44 and also transmits a signal sent from an external communication device. Receive and send to circuit board 44. The antenna 54 is configured, for example, by arranging a conductor pattern 64 on the surface of a ceramic substrate 62. The feedthrough 10 is composed only of a metal material having high biocompatibility, and safety to the human body is relatively high even when the feedthrough 10 is disposed on the human body.

  The feedthrough 10 is used with the conductor pins 14 joined to another conductive member such as a lead wire 52, for example. Laser welding or brazing technology can be used for joining the conductor pin 14 and the lead wire 52. However, any member such as the lead wire 52 is connected to the conductor pin 14 by any joining method. It is necessary to make it contact directly.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the lead wire 52 is joined to the conductor pin 14 of the feedthrough 10. The conductor pin 14 is composed of relatively soft platinum (Pt) as a main component, and has a diameter as thin as 0.5 mm and is very soft. Therefore, the lead wire 52 is connected to the conductor pin 14 in order to join the lead wire 52 to the conductor pin 14. The lead wire 52 is easily bent and deformed only by the contact. In the feedthrough 10, when the protruding portion 14α from the one main surface 12A is bent from the root and tilted toward the convex portion 30, the protruding portion 14α contacts the convex portion 30. That is, even when the protruding portion 14α is deformed and bent so as to fall from the root, the degree of the falling is reduced by being supported by the convex portion 30. For example, it is difficult to join the protruding portion 14α and another member (such as the lead wire 52) by laser welding or brazing, for example, when the protruding portion 14α is greatly collapsed from the base without the convex portion 30 being present. In the feedthrough 10 having the convex portion 30, the degree of the collapse of the protruding portion 14 α is suppressed by the convex portion 30, so that the protruding portion 14 α and other members (lead wire 52, etc.) are formed by laser welding or brazing. ) Can be easily joined.

  Further, in the feedthrough 10, at least a part of the side surface 15 of the protruding portion 14α is opened without facing the side surface 32 of the convex portion 30 over the entire length direction of the protruding portion 14α. In the feedthrough 10, another member such as a lead wire 52 to be described later is brought into contact with the side surface 15 of the protruding portion 14 α from the open portion, or for example, a laser irradiation head of a laser welding machine used for laser welding. 60 (see FIG. 3) can be brought close to the protruding portion 14α, or laser light L emitted from the laser irradiation head 60 for laser welding can be irradiated to the protruding portion 14α and the lead wire 52. In the feedthrough 10, the protruding portion 14α and other members (such as the lead wire 52) can be more easily joined by laser welding or brazing. The feedthrough 10 of the present embodiment can improve the workability when other members such as the lead wire 52 are joined to the conductor pin 14, so that the manufacturing efficiency of the heart pacer 1 using the feedthrough 10 is improved. The manufacturing cost of the heart pacer 1 can be suppressed. In addition, even when the lead wire 52 is joined to the conductor pin 14, deformation of the relatively soft conductor pin 14 is suppressed, so that contact between adjacent conductor pins 14 is more reliably suppressed, and the heart pacer 1 can be made more reliable. It can be operated stably.

  In the feedthrough 10, when the protruding portion 14α of the conductor pin 14 is bent from the base and tilted toward the convex portion 30 to bring the protruding portion 14α into contact with the convex portion 30, the central axis C of the through hole 12 (see FIG. 3). ) Is an inclination angle θ of less than 30 °. The inclination angle θ is a point P1 of the protruding portion 14α that is farthest from the central axis C along a direction parallel to the one main surface 12A, and an intersection P2 between the virtual plane including the one main surface 12A and the central axis C. Is an angle formed by a virtual straight line I passing through and the central axis C. The smaller the inclination angle θ, the higher the workability at the time of joining the protruding portion 14α and another member such as the lead wire 52. The inclination angle θ is preferably less than 45 °, and more preferably less than 30 °.

  4A and 4B are diagrams for explaining a feedthrough 70 according to another embodiment (second embodiment) of the present invention, wherein FIG. 4A is a schematic sectional view of the feedthrough 70 and FIG. 4B is a feed. 3 is a schematic top view of a through 70. FIG. In the feedthrough 70, a part of the side surface 15 of the projecting portion 14α faces the projecting side surface 32 over the entire length of the projecting portion 14α, and the remaining portion of the side surface 15 of the projecting portion 14α is the length of the projecting portion 14. It is open over the entire length. More specifically, in the feedthrough 70, the convex side surface 32 facing the protruding portion 14 α of one conductor pin 14 is bent in a top view shown in FIG. 4B, and one end of the convex side surface 32 is bent. 32a and the other end 32b continue to the peripheral line 12X of the one main surface 12A. That is, the convex side surface 32 is bent so as to surround one protruding portion 14α, and a part of the side surface 15 of the protruding portion 14α is open. In the second embodiment, a plurality of conductor pins 14 are arranged, but convex side surfaces 32 that are bent so as to surround each of the protruding portions 14α of all the conductor pins 14 are arranged. Has been. In the second embodiment, each of the protruding portions 14α of the plurality of conductor pins 14 is less likely to fall down in the direction of the other conductor pins 14, and the contact between adjacent conductor pins 14 is more reliable. The heart pacer 1 can be operated more stably. Also in the second embodiment, workability at the time of joining other members such as the lead wire 52 to the conductor pin 14 can be improved, and the manufacturing efficiency of, for example, the heart pacer 1 using the feedthrough 10 is high. The manufacturing cost of the heart pacer 1 can also be suppressed.

  Although the feedthrough of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and it is needless to say that various improvements and modifications may be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Heart pacer 10, 70, 100 Feed through 12 Ceramic body 12a Through-hole 14 Conductor pin 14 (alpha) Protruding part 15 Side surface 18 Housing 22 Metallized layer 24 Metal brazing 30 Convex part 32 Convex side surface 40 Lower case 42 Battery 44 Circuit board 46 EMI filter 52 Lead wire 54 Antenna

Claims (10)

A ceramic body provided with one main surface and the other main surface, and provided with a through hole having an opening in both the one main surface and the other main surface;
A conductor pin made of metal that is inserted through the through-hole and partially protrudes from both the one main surface and the other main surface;
A feedthrough including a joined body that is disposed in a gap between at least a part of the inner surface of the through hole and the conductor pin and joins the ceramic body and the conductor pin;
The ceramic body has a convex portion on at least one of the one main surface and the other main surface,
When the protruding part from the main surface on the side where the convex part of the conductor pin is provided is bent from the base and tilted toward the convex part, the protruding part abuts on the convex part,
At least a part of the side surface of the projecting portion is open without facing the side surface of the projecting portion over the entire length of the projecting portion.   2. The feedthrough according to claim 1, wherein the convex portion has a convex portion side surface that faces the protruding portion and is perpendicular to the main surface on which the convex portion is provided.   The protruding height of the protruding portion from the main surface on the side where the convex portion is provided is greater than the distance along the main surface from the opening of the through hole to the side surface of the convex portion. The feedthrough according to claim 2.   When the protruding portion of the conductor pin is bent from the base and tilted toward the convex portion to bring the protruding portion into contact with the convex portion, the inclination angle of the protruding portion with respect to the central axis of the through hole is 45 °. The feedthrough according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the feedthrough is less than.   The feedthrough according to claim 4, wherein the inclination angle of the protruding portion is less than 30 °. A plurality of the openings are arranged along one direction,
The feedthrough according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the side surface of the convex portion has a long rectangular shape along the one direction.   A part of the side surface of the protruding portion is opposed to the side surface of the protruding portion over the entire length of the protruding portion, and the remaining portion of the side surface of the protruding portion is opened over the entire length of the protruding portion. The feedthrough according to claim 2, wherein the feedthrough is provided.   The feedthrough according to claim 7, wherein the side surface of the convex portion facing the protruding portion of one of the conductor pins is bent, and one end and the other end are continuous to a peripheral line of the main surface. .   The feedthrough according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the conductor pin is made of a metal mainly containing any one of Ti, Nb, Ta, Mo, Ir, and Pt.   The feedthrough according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein a diameter of the conductor pin is 0.5 mm or less.

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