Operating A Portable Medical Device

• US 20100228186A1
• Filed: 05/17/2010
• Published: 09/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Insulet Corporation, M2 Medical Group Holdings, Inc.
• Original Assignee: M2 Group Holdings Inc (Bigfoot Biomedical, Inc.)
• Inventors: Wenger, Mitchell, Estes, Mark C.
• Granted Patent: US 8,109,921 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 604/66
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2005/14268 with a reusable and a disposable component
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2005/31518 designed to reduce the overall size of an injection device, e.g. using flexible or pivotally connected chain-like rod members
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/14244 adapted to be carried by the patient, e.g. portable on the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/14526 the piston being actuated by fluid pressure
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/16804 Flow controllers
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/1723 using feedback of body parameters, e.g. blood-sugar, pressure measurement of body parameters A61B5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/17 delivered via infusion or injection
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/40 for the management of medical equipment or devices, e.g. scheduling maintenance or upgrades
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

Some embodiments of a portable medical device, such as an infusion pump, can receive an external reference signal (e.g., a radio, cellular and/or satellite signal) to provide an automatic time-setting and maintenance operation. In these circumstances, the medical device can maintain accurate time and date information even in the event of a power interruption, a time-zone change and/or an internal clock error, for example. In this manner, the portable medical device provides safe operation and added convenience to the user.

Claims

1. A method of operating a portable medical device for treatment of diabetes, comprising:

receiving at an external reference system housed in a portable controller device a remotely broadcast external reference signal indicative of a standard time and date which is transmitted from a remote time and date reference source;

wirelessly receiving at the portable controller device sensor data from a body-worn glucose sensor device that is indicative of a sensed glucose level, the body-worn glucose sensor device including a sensor shaft that penetrates into a subcutaneous layer while a sensor housing is adhered to a skin surface, wherein the portable controller device includes a display to show the sensed glucose level and one or more buttons for user interaction;

updating an internal time setting of the portable controller device in response to receiving the remotely broadcast external reference signal; and

in response to wirelessly receiving the sensor data indicative of the sensed glucose level, storing in one or more memory devices of the portable controller device a value of the sensed glucose level and a corresponding time and date at which the sensed glucose level was detected based upon the updated internal time setting of the portable controller device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein external reference system includes a receiver external reference circuitry, and wherein the step of updating the internal time setting of the portable controller device sending a time-and-date update signal from external reference circuitry to internal control circuitry of the portable controller device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein in response to receiving the remotely broadcast external reference signal, the receiver of the external reference system housed in the portable controller device sends a corresponding signal to the external reference circuitry, and the external reference circuitry processes the signal and sends the time-and-date update signal to internal control circuitry of the portable controller device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of updating the internal time setting of the portable controller device occurs automatically in response to replacement of a battery of the portable controller device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of updating the internal time setting of the portable controller device occurs repeatedly at predetermined intervals of time.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the portable controller device and the body-worn glucose sensor device are components of a continuous glucose monitoring system that is configured to receive the remotely broadcast external reference signal from the remote time and date reference source to provide automatic time-setting capabilities.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the body-worn glucose sensor comprises the sensor housing which contains a power source and a communication device that wirelessly transmits the sensor data to the portable controller device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of storing in the one or more memory devices of the portable controller device comprises storing a log of glucose levels detected over a period of time and the corresponding time and date at which each sensed glucose level was detected.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the remotely broadcast external reference signal is broadcast from the remote time and date reference source that comprises at least one of a transmitter tower, a satellite, and a transmitter base station.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the remotely broadcast external reference signal comprises at least one of a cellular telephone time signal and a GPS clock signal.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the display of the portable controller device shows the sensed glucose level in a position adjacent to an arrow indicator, and shows a time value indicative of the updated internal reference time.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising indicating a time-zone change on the display of the portable controller device in response to receiving the remotely broadcast external reference signal.