Development of a new arbitrary waveform defibrillator for cardiac electrophysiology research

The innovative arbitrary waveform defibrillator for animal research presented in this paper is based on two power linear amplifiers in bridge configuration. It is capable of delivering 10 J shocks of arbitrary shape and duration. The system can be used to test new waveforms by comparing them to traditional ones, in in-vitro experiments. The system is battery operated, has an isolated output, and is PC controlled. Loads with impedance ranging from 10 to 25 ohms can be connected. A maximum of +/-130 V, 10A can be delivered to the loads. Effective voltage and current are measured and collected in the PC. Examples of waveforms as well as preliminary results from experiments of isolated rabbit hearts are presented.