Automated blood sampling device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9730625-B2
Application number	US-201514635643-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 2, 2015
Priority date	Mar 2, 2015
Publication date	Aug 15, 2017
Grant date	Aug 15, 2017

Abstract

Devices are provided to automatically access blood from beneath or within skin. These devices include an injector configured to drive a needle into the skin and subsequently to retract the needle from the skin. These devices additionally include a seal to which suction is applied. To drive the needle into the skin, the needle is first driven through the seal, creating at least one hole in the seal. The suction applied to the seal acts to draw blood from the puncture formed in the skin by the needle, through the at least one hole in the seal, and to a sensor, blood storage element, or other payload. These devices can be wearable and configured to automatically access blood from skin, for example, to access blood from the skin at one or more points in time while a wearer of a device is sleeping.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system comprising:
a needle;
an injector, wherein the injector is coupled to the needle, and wherein the injector is configured to drive the needle into the skin to form a puncture in skin and subsequently to retract the needle from the skin;
a suction source, wherein the suction source comprises an evacuated volume; and
a seal, wherein the seal is coupled to the suction source such that the seal receives suction provided by the suction source, wherein the injector is configured to drive the needle through the seal to form at least one hole in the seal when the seal is receiving suction provided by the suction source, and wherein the suction provided by the suction source is sufficient to draw blood from the formed puncture in the skin through the formed at least one hole in the seal.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the injector comprises:
a chamber, wherein the needle is disposed at least partially within the chamber;
a piston disposed in the chamber, wherein the needle is coupled to the piston, and wherein the piston is configured to slidably move within the chamber; and
a propellant, wherein the propellant is configured to slidably move the piston within the chamber to drive the needle to pierce the seal and to further drive the needle into skin.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the propellant comprises nitrocellulose, and wherein the injector driving the needle into skin comprises the injector igniting the nitrocellulose.

4. The system of claim 2 , wherein the injector driving the needle into skin comprises the injector igniting the propellant using a resistive heating element.

5. The system of claim 2 , wherein the injector includes at least one vent, wherein the vent is configured to allow the propellant to vent out of the injector such that the piston and needle can retract from the skin subsequent to the needle being driven into the skin.

6. The system of claim 1 , further comprising at least one further needle, wherein the injector is coupled to the at least one further needle, and wherein the injector is configured to drive the at least one further needle into the skin to form at least one further puncture in the skin and subsequently to retract the at least one further needle from the skin, and wherein the injector is configured to drive the at least one further needle through the seal to form at least one further hole in the seal.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the seal comprises a concave depression, wherein the injector is configured to drive the needle through the concave depression of the seal to form at least one hole in the seal, and wherein the suction provided by the suction source is sufficient to suction the skin into the concave depression.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the suction source comprises an evacuated volume having a pressure less than approximately 50 kilopascal.

9. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a blood storage element, wherein the suction provided by the suction source is sufficient to draw blood through the formed at least one hole in the seal to the blood storage element, and wherein the blood storage element is configured to store blood drawn by the suction to the blood storage element.

10. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a sensor, wherein the sensor is configured to detect a property of blood to which the sensor is exposed, wherein the suction provided by the suction source is sufficient to draw blood through the formed at least one hole in the seal to the sensor.

11. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a conformal layer, wherein the conformal layer is configured to conform to the skin such that the suction provided by the suction source through the formed at least one hole in the seal applies suction to the skin proximate the at least one hole in the seal.

12. The system of claim 1 , wherein the system comprises a body-mountable device, wherein the body-mountable device is configured to be mounted to a surface of the skin, and wherein the system further comprises a controller configured to operate the injector to drive the needle into the skin.

13. The system of claim 12 , wherein the needle, injector, and suction source are disposed in a first sampling section of the body-mountable device, and wherein the body-mountable device further comprises one or more additional sampling sections, each additional sampling section including a respective needle, injector, and suction source.

14. A method comprising:
mounting a system to skin, wherein the system comprises:
a needle,
a suction source, wherein the suction source comprises an evacuated volume, and
a seal, wherein the seal is coupled to the suction source such that the seal receives suction provided by the suction source; and

operating the injector to drive the needle into skin to form a puncture in the skin and subsequently to retract the needle from the skin, wherein operating the injector to drive the needle into the skin further comprises driving the needle through the seal to form at least one hole in the seal when the seal is receiving suction provided by the suction source, and wherein the suction provided by the suction source is sufficient to draw blood from the formed puncture in the skin through the formed at least one hole in the seal.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the injector comprises:
(a) a chamber, wherein the needle is disposed at least partially within the chamber,
(b) a piston disposed in the chamber, wherein the needle is coupled to the piston, and wherein the piston is configured to slidably move within the chamber, and
(c) a propellant, wherein the propellant is configured to slidably move the piston within the chamber to drive the needle to pierce the seal and further to drive the needle into skin,
wherein operating the injector to drive the needle into the skin comprises igniting the propellant.

16. The method of claim 14 , wherein the system further comprises a sensor, wherein the suction provided by the suction source is sufficient to draw blood through the formed at least one hole in the seal to the sensor, and further comprising:
operating the sensor to detect a property of blood to which the sensor is exposed.

17. The method of claim 14 , wherein the body-mountable device further comprises a blood storage element, wherein the suction provided by the suction source is sufficient to draw blood through the formed at least one hole in the seal to the blood storage element, wherein the blood storage element is configured to store blood drawn by the suction to the blood storage element, and further comprising:
providing the blood stored by the blood storage element to a sensing device; and
operating the sensing device to detect a property of the blood provided to the sensing device.

18. A system comprising:
a needle, wherein the needle is hollow;
an injector, wherein the injector is coupled to the needle, and wherein the injector is configured to drive the needle into skin to form a puncture in the skin;
a collection chamber;
a suction source, wherein the suction source comprises an evacuated volume, and wherein the suction source is coupled to the needle such that, subsequent to the injector driving the needle into the skin, the suction source provides suction, through the hollow needle, sufficient to draw blood from the formed puncture in the skin, through the hollow needle, into the collection chamber; and
a seal, wherein the seal is coupled to the suction source such that the seal receives suction provided by the suction source, and wherein t

Assignees

• Verily Life Sciences Llc

Inventors

• Krasnow Benjamin David
• Peeters Eric
• Smith Peter Howard

Classifications

• A61B5/150969

  Low-profile devices which resemble patches or plasters, e.g. also allowing collection of blood samples for testing · CPC title

• A61B5/15163

  Characterized by propelling the piercing element in an axial direction relative to the disc · CPC title

• A61B5/150412

  Pointed piercing elements, e.g. needles, lancets for piercing the skin (blade-like piercing elements A61B5/150442) · CPC title

• A61B5/150213

  Venting means · CPC title

• A61B5/15176

  Stocking means comprising cap, cover, sheath or protection for aseptic stocking · CPC title