pacemaker around large industrial magnets

Industrial magnets

by AgentX86 - 2020-01-02 23:43:23

This is one area that you won't find any difinitive answers because it's a complex problem and your situation may be different than the next person's.  It is an area that's of great concern but so is putting dinner on the table.  Do you happen to know if these are AC or DC magnets?   Tough one.  I know my EP would have a fit if I were working in that environment. It's probably better than an aluminum foundry but still not great.

industrial magnets

by steelman - 2020-01-03 00:03:00

230 volt dc  10 amp dc

Did some research

by donr - 2020-01-03 00:16:34

May not be as complex as 86 suggests.  A magnet used for liftimg - most common purpose in a steel mill - is wasting energy when its flux escapes the lifting magnet and the load.  SO - like a magnetically held name tag, they are well designed to keep & direct nearly al of the flux into the load.   If there is a gap between the load & lifting magnet, they lose efficiency & capability.  Most lifting magnets are DC.  AC magnets are npotoriously inefficient for lifting because the flux goes thrugh zero  every cycle.  Get the brands of each magnet in your plant & look them up on Google.  You will find out which are safe.

Donr

10ADC is nothing to worry about

by AgentX86 - 2020-01-03 01:44:31

As long as it's not picking you up, I don't think there's anything to worry about.

Flux leakage.  As long as a ferrous metal covers the entire magnet when it's energized, no, there won't be any magnetic flux leaking outside the magnet/metal set but if the magnet is energised with no metal or with metal only partially covering the magnet, there will. 

In this case, the magnetic feild will be rather weak at over a couple of feet. The magnetic field falls off very quiclky with distance (at two feet there is 1/8 the flux as there is at one foot). Since it's a DC feild, there won't be any current induced into the leads, either.

Consider having magnet response turned off

by crustyg - 2020-01-03 08:03:28

You could talk to your EP doc about having the magnet response disabled on your PM.

Advantage - no being switched to fixed pacing mode, whatever magnetic field you find yourself in.

Disadvantages: if you find yourself in the boonies where they don't have a suitable interrogation/programming machine, *AND* your PM is not working properly for some reason they will not be able to force your PM into a potentially life-saving fixed pacing mode.

Mine is disabled - I'm not pace-maker dependent.  100% paced, but it's not needed to keep me alive.  You may be in a different situation.

check your rate

by dwelch - 2020-01-03 22:07:17

If the magnet is putting your pacer in battery test mode, what the magnet we use for phone tests does back in the day.  then your rate will be fixed while in that mode, so if you feel your rate is fixed and doesnt change as you work, relax, etc then you may be in that mode.  I didnt know you could have that turned off that is an interesting deal.  But of course you have to somehow explain why you want it turned off...I would say to be able to pay your bill as the first answer and second to put food on the table so I dont die so I can come back and give you even more money...

May not be a problem.

by Graham M - 2020-01-04 17:06:04

I work with an electron microscope which has 6 large electromagnets that act as lenses, and have had no problems at all.  Many modern pacemakers will withstand an MRI scan, so it seems that magnetic fields are not the problem they used to be.  It would be worth contacting you PM manufacturer for any information they can give you.

Graham.