Apparatus comprising electromechanical device and motion detector and method for operating apparatus

• US 10,444,711 B2
• Filed: 04/24/2013
• Issued: 10/15/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sanofi-Aventis Deutschland GmbH (Sanofi )
• Original Assignee: Sanofi-Aventis Deutschland GmbH (Sanofi )
• Inventors: Nessel, Christian, Moore, David
• Primary Examiner(s): Wathen, Brian W
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lopez Alvarez, Olvin
• Application Number:
  US14/394,459
• Publication Number:
  US 20150268642A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,365 Days
• Field of Search: 700282
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 11/32 with inputs from more than one sensing element; with outputs to more than one correcting element
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 7/0676 by action on flow sources G05D7/0688, G05D7/0694 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 11/22 Optical devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 7/116 with gears
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 8/16 Reducing energy dissipated or supplied
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 8/38 the fault being step-out

Abstract

The invention relates to an apparatus comprising an electromechanical device, a control unit and a motion detector, wherein said electromechanical device is controllable by said control unit via a control signal, wherein said motion detector is configured such that said mechanical movement of said electromechanical device is determined and wherein said motion detector provides a motion detector signal. The invention also relates to a method for operating an electromechanical device. The technical problem of providing an apparatus with an electromechanical device, the reliability as well as the power consumption of which is improved, is solved in that the control unit is configured such that it can be influenced by the phase difference between the control signal and the motion detector signal. The technical problem is also solved by a method for operating an apparatus, in particular an apparatus according to the invention, comprising the steps of running an electromechanical device with a control signal, producing a motion detector signal from a mechanical movement of said electromechanical device and influencing said control signal in dependence of said phase difference between said control signal and said motion detector signal.

Claims

1. A hand-held portable drug delivery device comprising:

a drive train configured to exert a pressure on a fluid comprising a medicament in a reservoir coupled to or disposed in the hand-held portable drug delivery device for delivery of the medicament;

an electromechanical device configured to exert a torque to drive the drive train to exert the pressure on the fluid for delivery of the medicament;

a control unit configured to control the electromechanical device by a control signal; and

a motion detector configured to provide a motion detector signal indicative of a mechanical movement produced by the torque exerted by the electromechanical device to drive the drive train to exert the pressure on the fluid for delivery of the medicament, wherein the motion detector comprises an interrupter, an emission source, and at least one detector,

wherein the control unit is configured to;

(i) provide a sequence of control signal pulses to the electromechanical device,

(ii) receive a corresponding sequence of motion detector signal pulses,

(iii) determine a respective phase difference between each control signal pulse and a corresponding motion detector signal pulse based on a comparison of an edge of each control signal pulse and a corresponding edge of the corresponding motion detector signal pulse,

(iv) determine an average phase difference based on the determined respective phase differences, and

(v) modify the control signal based on the average phase difference to reduce power provided to the electromechanical device when the average phase difference is less than a first threshold value thereby reducing a resulting torque exerted by the electromechanical device to drive the drive train, and to increase the power provided to the electromechanical device when the average phase difference is greater than a second threshold value thereby increasing the resulting torque exerted by the electromechanical device to drive the drive train; and

wherein the modified control signal of the electromechanical device modifies the torque exerted by the electromechanical device to drive the drive train to address a change in a resistive torque on the electromechanical device to be overcome for accurate delivery of a selected dose of the medicament from the reservoir using the hand-held portable drug delivery device.

2. The hand-held portable drug delivery device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured such that a current of the control signal is altered depending on the average phase difference.

3. The hand-held portable drug delivery device according to claim 1, wherein the electromechanical device is a stepper motor or a brushless DC-motor.

4. The hand-held portable drug delivery device according to claim 1, wherein the control signal is adjusted such that the exerted torque of the electromechanical device always exceeds the resistive torque on the electromechanical device when an active torque is being applied by the electromechanical device.

5. The hand-held portable drug delivery device according to claim 1, further comprising:

the reservoir containing the fluid; and

a fluidic channel connected-to the reservoir,

wherein the electromechanical device is configured such that it drives the drive train to exert the pressure-on the fluid in the reservoir such that the fluid is guided through the fluidic channel.

10. The hand-held portable drug delivery device according to claim 1, wherein the second threshold value is greater than the first threshold value.

11. The hand-held portable drug delivery device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one detector comprises two detectors configured and arranged to receive illumination from the emission source, and wherein the interrupter is disposed between the emission source and the two detectors.

12. The hand-held portable drug delivery device according to claim 11, wherein the two detectors and the emission source are disposed in fixed positions relative to each other, wherein the interrupter is configured to move relative to the emission source and the two detectors such that at least two blocking elements of the interrupter are configured to detect four detectable states while moving relative to the emission source and the two detectors.

13. The hand-held portable drug delivery device according to claim 12, wherein the four detectable states are:

both detectors receive an optical signal;

only a first detector of the two detectors receives an optical signal;

only a second detector of the two detectors receives an optical signal; and

neither detector receives an optical signal.

6. A method for operating a hand-held portable drug delivery device including a drive train, an electromechanical device configured to drive the drive train, a control unit, and a motion detector, the method comprising the steps of:

running the electromechanical device based on a sequence of control signal pulses from the control unit to exert a torque to drive the drive train to exert a pressure on a fluid comprising a medicament in a reservoir coupled to or disposed in the hand-held portable drug delivery device;

using a motion detector comprising an interrupter, an emission source, and at least one detector to produce a corresponding sequence of motion detector signal pulses indicative of a mechanical movement produced by the torque exerted by the electromechanical device to drive the drive train to exert the pressure on the fluid for delivery of the medicament;

determining a respective phase difference between each control signal pulse and a corresponding motion detector signal pulse based on a comparison of an edge of each control signal pulse and a corresponding edge of the corresponding motion detector signal pulse;

determining an average phase difference based on the determined respective phase differences; and

modifying a control signal to the electromechanical device in dependence on the average phase difference to reduce power provided to the electromechanical device when the average phase difference is less than a first threshold value thereby reducing a torque exerted by the electromechanical device to drive the drive train, and to increase power provided to the electromechanical device when the average phase difference is greater than a second threshold value thereby increasing the torque exerted by the electromechanical device to drive the drive train,

wherein modification of the torque exerted by the electromechanical device to drive the drive train addresses a change in a resistive torque on the electromechanical device to be overcome for accurate delivery of a selected dose of the medicament from the reservoir using the hand-held portable drug delivery device.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein a current of the control signal is altered depending on the average phase difference.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein the electromechanical device is prevented from stalling by adjusting the control signal such that the exerted torque always exceeds the resistive torque on the electromechanical device when an active torque is being applied by the electromechanical device.

9. The method according to claim 6, wherein a current of the control signal is increased if the average phase difference exceeds a threshold.