Junkosha’s Multi-Filar active catheter solution is a major step toward smaller, more flexible and higher data capacity catheters. The new cables have a capacity of up to 60 power lines depending on AWG size or pitch, and are designed to provide not only increased functionality, but also more signals into formerly inaccessible areas of the body.
Using Junkosha’s precision engineered PTFE lamination technology, this fine wire and cable solution provides multiple signals through an ultra-small shaft, enabling a new generation of small, flexible, and intelligent catheters. Single strand configurations are joined into a multi-filar assembly that can be used in electrophysiology catheters for applying pacing and recording protocols from inside the heart, ablation and balloon ablation catheters for atrial fibrillation, as well as cardiac mapping. In addition, the multi-filar technique allows for easier assembly of the signal or power wires into the final medical device, making the manufacturing process simpler and more cost-effective.
The process of manufacturing multi-filar wires is a complicated one, which Junkosha has perfected by being able to accommodate the specific requirements for the final product design. For example, each individual strand can be color-coded in the material, in accordance with specific industry standards or to make connection operations more simplified in downstream operations. The bond strength between the individual strands can be adjusted to maximize strength for challenging assembly conditions or optimized for difficult separation processes. Multi-Filar configurations allow for joining dissimilar single strand alloys together in one package. This flexibility in alloy selection is perfectly suited for applications like thermocouples, micro cables that need a high strength member for load bearing or assembly operations and electrochemical process cells.