Magnetically suspended rotary blood pump with radial type combined motor-bearing

A magnetically suspended centrifugal blood pump is being developed with a combined motor-bearing for long-term ventricular assist systems. The combined motor-bearing actively suspends a rotor in a radial direction to deal with radial force unbalance in the pump and rotates the rotor by using the electric magnetic field. Therefore, the pump has no mechanical parts such as bearings of the motor and has a long lifetime. The developed pump consists of a thin rotor with a semi open-type 6 vane impeller and a stator to suspend and rotate the rotor. The rotor has 4-pole permanent magnets on the circumferential surface. The outer diameter and the thickness of the rotor are 60 mm and 8 mm, respectively. Axial movement and tilt of the rotor are restricted by passive stability based on the thin rotor structure. Radial movements of the rotor, such as levitation in radial direction and rotation, are controlled actively by using electric magnets of the stator. The electric magnet coils to produce levitation and rotation forces are constructed on the periphery stator. The p +/- 2-pole algorithm and the synchronous motor mechanism are adopted to levitate and rotate the rotor. The radial gap between the rotor and the stator is 1 mm. A closed-loop circuit filled with water was connected to the developed pump to examine the basic performance of the pump and the magnetic suspension system. Maximum rotational speed, flow rate, and head were 2,800 rpm, 11 L/min, and 270 mm Hg, respectively. The rotor with the impeller could be suspended completely during the entire pumping process. We conclude the pump with the combined motor-bearing has sufficient performance for the blood pump.