A Novel Design of an Elastance-Controlled Linear Motor-Driven Left Ventricle Simulator

Mechanical models of the human cardiovascular system exist as test platforms to study the performance of mechanical circulatory systems (MCSs) and interventional cardiac devices in vitro, and they must recreate the physiological hemodynamics that would be present inside the human body. This work describes a left ventricle simulator (LVS) that implements a personalized elastance model to control ventricular contraction via a linear motor-driven piston, simulating variable physiological and pathological conditions. The system simulated ventricular and aortic hemodynamics, the Frank-Starling autoregulatory mechanism, atrial kick, and physiological pulsatile flow at varying heart rates for both healthy heart and heart failure conditions. Elastance control not only provides precise motor actuation, but also allows for the simulation of specific heart function, and this work ultimately introduces a novel test platform for heart device validation.