Rechargable battery & radiation compare to cellphone

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cammomile

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Hello,

I just curious, if we compare the cochlear implant rechargable battery with a cellphone battery, are they the same?

Cellphone battery has a radiation that can cause brain cancer. What about cochlear implant battery? I concern about this because we wear the cochlear implant device behind the ear for all day long. And it's near the brain. Is it safe? or is it safer with a disposable battery?

And, just want to add one more question, in this three brands : Cochlear, AB, and Medel, which one have bluetooth feature? thank you very much! :wave:
 
None of them have bluetooth.

Bluetooth is too power intensive and would drain batteries too quickly. It is also a bi-directional communication protocol and therefore requires a signal being sent out (hence more power consumption).

But never say never. It may be available in the future.

C1
 
cammomile said:
Hello,

I just curious, if we compare the cochlear implant rechargable battery with a cellphone battery, are they the same?

Cellphone battery has a radiation that can cause brain cancer. What about cochlear implant battery? I concern about this because we wear the cochlear implant device behind the ear for all day long. And it's near the brain. Is it safe? or is it safer with a disposable battery?

And, just want to add one more question, in this three brands : Cochlear, AB, and Medel, which one have bluetooth feature? thank you very much! :wave:
Click to expand...

The rechargable batteries are all now mostly all Lithium Ion batteries. However, there are different chemistries of Lithion ion batteries. You can assume they are very similar, but not the exact same.

The "radiation" you speak of is not from the battery. It is from the electromagnetic energy sent out by the cell phone. It broadcasts a signal to the cell phone tower. You CI will not broadcast and high power signals. In fact the maximum leakage current is 0.1 micro amp. All cochlear implants have been tested and comply with EMI requirements.

C1
 
The radiation is caused by wirless devices in the microwave range. I don't know that a CI would use anything wireless in this range.
 
They send signal to the magnetic piece...So is that radiation wave?

I certainly hope they don't go for bluetooth because of the security issue. makes me wonder if they can control what goes through your microphone.

Now If they put a bluetooth for waterproof processor (because the microphone can not get wet) as a spare processor designed specifically for swimming, I wouldn't mind.
 
A said:
What type of signal is it then?
Click to expand...
You will not emit radiation over a wire. If the processor is connected to the electrode array via a magnet and that magnet is connected to the processor over a wire then there is no radiation emitted. Do you have a source that states there is radiation emitted from a CI?
 
I don't, I just wonder about it because it does send signal.
 
A said:
I don't, I just wonder about it because it does send signal.
Click to expand...
Sure no problem. To my knowledge if the signal is sent wireless then yes there may be an issue with radiation. However, if it is over a wire then there is no radiation emissions.
 
BTW, if you take the magnets off your headpiece, it still work.. Unless you are talking about different type of magnet.
 
A said:
BTW, if you take the magnets off your headpiece, it still work.. Unless you are talking about different type of magnet.
Click to expand...
I'm sorry but I don't understand how that would be possible unless they have made a wireless version in which there should not be a magnet required. Please explain what you mean.
 
The magnet on the headpiece is meant to hold the headpiece.. You don't need it. You can take it off and wear a headband to hold it in place if you want to. So I'm trying to figure out if that the same magnet you are talking about. Everyone who wear a CI should tell you.
 
It is electro magnetic radiation operating at about 5 Mhz to transmit to the internal implant coil. The frequency is far lower than being used for cell phones which operate at about 3.2Ghz or radio broadcasts.
 
A said:
The magnet on the headpiece is meant to hold the headpiece.. You don't need it. You can take it off and wear a headband to hold it in place if you want to. So I'm trying to figure out if that the same magnet you are talking about. Everyone who wear a CI should tell you.
Click to expand...
I get what you are saying. You do have to have the headpeice in place regardles of what is holding it there. Understood.
 
john57 said:
It is electro magnetic radiation operating at about 5 Mhz to transmit to the internal implant coil. The frequency is far lower than being used for cell phones which operate at about 3.2Ghz or radio broadcasts.
Click to expand...

One of the two big names uses about a 5MHz signal and the other uses about a 50MHz signal.

There is one coil implanted with a magnet in the center and another coil in the external piece with a magnet in the center. The magnet is used to both center and hold the headpiece on. If the coils are not centered, the signal is not received well.

C1
 
Isn't the magnet used to transmit the pickup signal from the external microphone to the internal processor so that one can "hear"? There is a magnet inside your skull and that is why one doesn't need to "open" the skin. My understanding from Chorost's book "Rebuilt".

Advanced Bionics-Harmony Atria activated Aug/07
 
Um ...the magnet is what "connects" the signal to the outer hardware...the magnet DOES need to be in place externally to the internal component for the CI to work...
 
drphil said:
Isn't the magnet used to transmit the pickup signal from the external microphone to the internal processor so that one can "hear"? There is a magnet inside your skull and that is why one doesn't need to "open" the skin. My understanding from Chorost's book "Rebuilt".

Advanced Bionics-Harmony Atria activated Aug/07
Click to expand...

The magnet just holds the coil, the transmitter, in place near the receiver, which is in the implant itself, under the skin -- you can do without the magnet by using a headband or barrette to affix the coil in the right place.

Unrelated to that magnet holding the coil in place, the radio signal is transmitted via electromagnetic induction, roughly, generated by electrical voltage in a magnetic field and carried through air, skin, any matter or vacuum.
 
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