Opportunity
Electroacupuncture (EA), a modern enhancement of traditional acupuncture, applies electrical stimulation to acupuncture needles to treat various neurological conditions, chronic wounds, pain, hypertension, and depression. Despite its proven therapeutic benefits, current electroacupuncture systems face significant practical limitations. They typically rely on external power sources and bulky electrical stimulators, which restrict patient mobility, complicate clinical procedures, and limit the therapy's accessibility and convenience. Furthermore, existing devices often struggle with issues of low output current, reliability, and the need for miniaturization. The challenge, therefore, lies in developing a compact, reliable, and self-sufficient electroacupuncture device that eliminates dependency on external power equipment, thereby making the treatment more portable, user-friendly, and widely applicable in diverse clinical and potentially even personal care settings.
Technology
The core innovation of this patent is a self-powered electroacupuncture needle that integrates a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) directly onto a conductive acupuncture needle. The technology solves the external power dependency problem by harvesting mechanical energy from the acupuncture procedure itself. The needle comprises a conductive core (e.g., stainless steel, silver, or gold) and a TENG coating. The TENG includes a triboelectric layer (e.g., porous PDMS doped with conductive nanoparticles like multiwalled carbon nanotubes) designed to accept electrons, and an electron-providing layer (e.g., copper, silver, or gold) designed to donate electrons. When an external force—such as the pinching, rotating, or lifting-thrusting motions performed by a practitioner during needle manipulation—compresses these TENG layers, it induces contact electrification and electrostatic induction. This process generates a therapeutic alternating current (0.1–10 Hz) directly within the needle. The system can be extended into a comprehensive platform including a power management unit to regulate/store energy, a control unit to adjust stimulation parameters, sensors for monitoring, and data communication interfaces. This design transforms the mechanical action inherent in acupuncture into the precise electrical stimulation required for electroacupuncture, creating a fully self-contained therapeutic tool.
Advantages
- Eliminates the need for external power sources and bulky stimulators, enhancing portability and convenience.
- Harnesses the mechanical energy from standard acupuncture needle manipulation (e.g., lift-thrust, rotation), making the power generation intrinsic to the treatment procedure.
- Utilizes a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) with a porous, nanoparticle-doped triboelectric layer (e.g., MWCNTs@PDMS) for high surface area and efficient charge generation, resulting in stable and enhanced electrical output.
- Offers a biocompatible and durable design, with components like PDMS, polyimide, and noble metals ensuring safety and longevity for repeated use.
- Provides a system-level solution with integrated control, monitoring, and data logging capabilities for personalized and optimized treatment.
- Enables precise control over stimulation frequency (0.1–10 Hz), aligning with therapeutic needs for various conditions.
Applications
- Clinical electroacupuncture therapy for pain management (e.g., chronic pain, neuropathic pain).
- Treatment of neurological disorders such as stroke rehabilitation, spinal cord injury, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson's disease.
- Promotion of tissue repair and wound healing, particularly for chronic, non-healing wounds.
- Management of conditions like hypertension, depression, anxiety, and gastrointestinal disorders.
- Integration into wearable or portable medical devices for personalized, at-home complementary therapy.
- Use as a self-powered sensor platform within the needle to monitor local tissue response or treatment parameters in real-time.
- Deployment in remote or resource-limited settings where access to conventional electrical medical equipment is constrained.
