For years, scientists had searched for the secret to making tiny implantable devices that could travel through the bloodstream. Engineers at Stanford have demonstrated a wirelessly powered device that can be implanted or injected into the human body and powered using electromagnetic radio waves.
The devices consist of a radio transmitter outside the body sending signals to an independent device inside the body. The independent device picks up the signal with an antenna of coiled wire. The transmitter and the antenna are magnetically coupled such that any change in current flow in the transmitter induces a voltage in the coiled wire. The power is transferred wirelessly. The electricity runs electronics on the device and propels it through the bloodstream, if so desired.
Also: Read about other bio-medical innovations in Medical Design Briefs .
