Medical device having capacitive coupling communication and energy harvesting

• US 20110022025A1
• Filed: 07/23/2009
• Published: 01/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Becton, Dickinson & Co
• Original Assignee: Becton, Dickinson & Co
• Inventors: Savoie, Richard, Searle, Gary
• Granted Patent: US 8,939,928 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 604/500
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2560/0214 of power generation or supply
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0031 Implanted circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14532 for measuring glucose, e.g. by tissue impedance measurement
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3538 using electrical conduction through the body of the patient
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3553 remote, e.g. between patient's home and doctor's office
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3561 local, e.g. within room or hospital
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3569 sublocal, e.g. between console and disposable
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3584 using modem, internet or bluetooth
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3592 using telemetric means, e.g. radio or optical transmission
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/50 with microprocessors or computers
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/52 with memories providing a history of measured variating parameters of apparatus or patient
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/8206 battery-operated
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/8212 with means or measures taken for minimising energy consumption
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/8237 Charging means
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/8243 by induction
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/825 using mechanical generation of electricity, e.g. hand cranked generators
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/8256 being integrated in the case or housing of the apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2209/01 Remote controllers for specific apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/201 Glucose concentration
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/63 Motion, e.g. physical activity
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/14248 : of the skin patch type
• 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: H04B 13/005 : Transmission systems in which the medium consists of the human body

Abstract

Provided is a wearable, self-contained drug infusion or medical device capable of communicating with a host controller or other external devices via a personal area network (PAN). The medical device utilizes a PAN transceiver for communication with other devices in contact with a user'"'"'s body, such as a physiological sensor or host controller, by propagating a current across the user'"'"'s body via capacitive coupling. The wearable nature of the medical device and the low power requirements of the PAN communication system enable the medical device to utilize alternative energy harvesting techniques for powering the device. The medical device preferably utilizes thermal, kinetic and other energy harvesting techniques for capturing energy from the user and the environment during normal use of the medical device. A system power distribution unit is provided for managing the harvested energy and selectively supplying power to the medical device during system operation.

Claims

1. A wearable medical device in contact with a user'"'"'s body for administering drug therapy to the user, the medical device comprising:

a microcontroller electrically coupled to a pump mechanism, a transceiver and a power supply system, wherein;

the microcontroller commands the pump mechanism to administer a drug to the user;

the transceiver communicates with a host device on or near the user'"'"'s body via a personal area network that transmits data across the user'"'"'s body, wherein said host device monitors or controls the medical device; and

the power supply system selectively provides power to the microcontroller, pump mechanism and transceiver supplied from an energy harvesting component that harvests energy from the user'"'"'s body.

2. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the personal area network transceiver communicates to the host device via an electric field generated on the user'"'"'s skin at a contact site of the medical device on the user'"'"'s body.

3. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the energy harvesting component stores energy realized by a thermal difference between the user'"'"'s body and an external environment when the medical device contacts the user'"'"'s body.

4. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the energy harvesting component stores energy generated by the user'"'"'s movement when the medical device is positioned on the user'"'"'s body.

5. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the medical device includes a patch pump for transdermally administering insulin to the user.

6. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the energy harvesting component provides at least a portion of the medical device'"'"'s energy requirement.

7. The medical device of claim 6, further comprising an additional power source for providing at least a portion of power to the pump mechanism when actively administering a drug to the user, wherein said energy harvesting component powers the medical device when in a lower power state.

8. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the transceiver further communicates with at least one sensor implantable in the user'"'"'s body, or in otherwise continuous contact with the user'"'"'s body, via the personal area network.

9. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the transceiver further communicates with a temporary or disposable single use sensor, via the personal area network.

10. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the transceiver further communicates with a plurality of sensors via the personal area network.

11. The medical device of claim 1, further comprising a sensor electrically coupled to the microcontroller.

12. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the microcontroller comprises an ultra-low power microcontroller.

13. The medical device of claim 12, wherein said ultra-low power microcontroller operates in a range up to 3.6 V.

14. The medical device of claim 13, wherein said ultra-low power microcontroller further consumes no more than 20 microamperes of current in a standby mode and 20 milliamperes of current in an active mode.

15. A medical device in contact with a user'"'"'s body for administering drug therapy to the user, the medical device comprising:

a housing in contact with a user'"'"'s body, said housing containing;

a microcontroller controlling a pump mechanism to deliver a drug at a contact site on the user'"'"'s body; and

a power supply system comprising an energy harvesting component to harvest energy from the user'"'"'s body, a harvested energy storage unit to store the harvested energy, and a power distribution unit selectively providing the stored energy to the microcontroller and the pump mechanism.

16. The medical device of claim 15, wherein the power distribution unit provides a first power to the microcontroller when in an active mode, and supplies a second, lower power to the microcontroller in a standby mode of the medical device.

17. The medical device of claim 16, wherein the harvested energy storage unit provides at least a portion of the second power and the power supply system further comprises a battery to supply at least a portion of the first power.

18. The medical device of claim 16, wherein the power distribution unit provides a third power lower than the second power in an off mode of the medical device.

19. The medical device of claim 15, wherein the housing further contains a transceiver to communicate with a host monitoring device and at least one sensor in contact with the user'"'"'s body via a personal area network that transmits data across the user'"'"'s body.

20. The medical device of claim 19, wherein the transceiver communicates with a plurality of sensors via the personal area network.

21. The medical device of claim 15, wherein the housing is affixed to the user'"'"'s skin.

22. A wearable medical device system for providing drug therapy to a user, the system comprising:

a wearable medical device provided in contact with the user'"'"'s skin, said medical device comprising a pump mechanism for administering a prescribed volume of a liquid drug to the user; and

at least one bodily function sensor provided in continuous contact with the user'"'"'s body, and further in communication with the wearable medical device;

wherein the wearable medical device further comprises a microcontroller to control the prescribed volume of the drug according to physiological data received from the sensor, wherein the wearable patch pump and the sensor are at least partially powered by energy harvested from the user'"'"'s body.

23. The medical device system of claim 22, wherein the sensor is contained in the wearable patch pump.

24. The medical device system of claim 22, wherein the sensor is implanted in the user'"'"'s body and the sensor communicates with the wearable patch pump via a personal area network that uses the user'"'"'s body as a transmission medium to transmit the physiological data.

25. A method for administering drug therapy to a user through a wearable medical device in contact with a user'"'"'s body, the method comprising:

providing a microcontroller electrically coupled to a pump mechanism, a transceiver and a power supply system;

configuring the microcontroller to command the pump mechanism to administer a drug to the user;

harvesting energy from the user'"'"'s body;

configuring the power supply system to selectively provide the harvested energy to the microcontroller, pump mechanism and transceiver;

communicating with a host device on or near the user'"'"'s body via a personal area network that transmits data across the user'"'"'s body via the transceiver, wherein said host device monitors or controls the medical device and transmits data for at least controlling the administering of the drug to the user; and

receiving at the medical device said data transmitted via the personal area network from the host device and controlling the pump mechanism to administer the drug to the user.

26. A wearable medical device in contact with a user'"'"'s body for administering drug therapy to the user, the medical device comprising:

a microcontroller electrically coupled to a pump mechanism and a transceiver, wherein;

the microcontroller commands the pump mechanism to administer a drug to the user; and

the transceiver communicates with a host device on or near the user'"'"'s body via a personal area network that transmits data across the user'"'"'s body, wherein said host device monitors or controls the medical device.

27. The medical device of claim 26, wherein the personal area network transceiver communicates to the host device via an electric field generated on the user'"'"'s skin at a contact site of the medical device on the user'"'"'s body.

28. The medical device of claim 26, wherein the medical device includes a patch pump for transdermally administering insulin to the user.

29. The medical device of claim 26, wherein the transceiver further communicates with at least one sensor implantable in the user'"'"'s body, or in otherwise continuous contact with the user'"'"'s body, via the personal area network.

30. The medical device of claim 26, wherein the transceiver further communicates with a temporary or disposable single use sensor, via the personal area network.

31. The medical device of claim 26, further comprising at least one sensor electrically coupled to the microcontroller.

32. The medical device of claim 26, wherein the transceiver further communicates with a plurality of sensors via the personal area network.

33. The medical device of claim 26, wherein the microcontroller comprises an ultra-low power microcontroller.

34. The medical device of claim 33, wherein said ultra-low power microcontroller operates in a range up to 3.6 V.

35. The medical device of claim 34, wherein said ultra-low power microcontroller further consumes no more than 20 microamperes of current in a standby mode and 20 milliamperes of current in an active mode.