DEVICE AND METHOD FOR NON-INVASIVE GLUCOSE MONITORING
First Claim
1. A device for non-invasively measuring analytes in a biological being, such as, but not limited to blood glucose levels in a human, the device comprising:
- a) a miniaturized quantum cascade laser (QCL) adapted to emit a plurality of terahertz radiation pulses;
b) an emitter unit operative connected to the QCL, the emitter unit comprising a fiber optic array comprising an array of field emission points;
c) a sensor unit comprising a photoconductive array adapted to receive the plurality of terahertz radiation pulses generated by the QCL, wherein the photo-conductive array has a plurality of individual photo-conductive sensors each comprising a positive terminal, a negative terminal, and a region of semi-conductive material sensitive to terahertz radiation between the positive and negative terminal;
d) a display unit adapted to display at least one measurement of an analyte measured by the device; and
,e) a processing unit comprising or operatively connected to programmable memory, a random access memory, the QCL, the sensor unit, and display unit, wherein the processing unit is configured to determine the concentration of an analyte;
wherein the emitter unit and the sensor unit are operatively connected to each other and designed to align substantially parallel with each other;
wherein the emitter unit and the sensor unit are designed to be placed on external surfaces of a biological being.
0 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A device and method for non-invasively measuring analytes and physiological parameters by measuring terahertz radiation emitted though biological tissue. Terahertz pulses are emitted from a miniaturized quantum cascade laser to a fiber optic array into the wrist of the user. A corresponding sensor on the opposite side of the wrist receives the terahertz signals that have been modified by interacting with organic molecules. The data from the sensor is compiled and analyzed on a RAM chip and logic chip, where a program uses an algorithm to compare measurements to a library of existing measurements and topographic maps generated when the user first dons the device. Once the algorithm has parsed all the data points, a value, such as blood glucose level, appears on a display of the device. The device may be equipped with a gasket to reduce ambient light from contacting the sensor.
-
Citations
20 Claims
-
1. A device for non-invasively measuring analytes in a biological being, such as, but not limited to blood glucose levels in a human, the device comprising:
-
a) a miniaturized quantum cascade laser (QCL) adapted to emit a plurality of terahertz radiation pulses; b) an emitter unit operative connected to the QCL, the emitter unit comprising a fiber optic array comprising an array of field emission points; c) a sensor unit comprising a photoconductive array adapted to receive the plurality of terahertz radiation pulses generated by the QCL, wherein the photo-conductive array has a plurality of individual photo-conductive sensors each comprising a positive terminal, a negative terminal, and a region of semi-conductive material sensitive to terahertz radiation between the positive and negative terminal; d) a display unit adapted to display at least one measurement of an analyte measured by the device; and
,e) a processing unit comprising or operatively connected to programmable memory, a random access memory, the QCL, the sensor unit, and display unit, wherein the processing unit is configured to determine the concentration of an analyte; wherein the emitter unit and the sensor unit are operatively connected to each other and designed to align substantially parallel with each other; wherein the emitter unit and the sensor unit are designed to be placed on external surfaces of a biological being. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 20)
-
-
14. A method of measuring a concentration of an analyte in a biological being, such as, but not limited to blood glucose concentration in a person, the method comprising the steps of:
-
generating electromagnetic waves in a terahertz range using a device comprising a miniaturized quantum cascade laser (QCL); emitting electromagnetic waves in a terahertz range via a fiber optic array having plurality of field emission points arranged two-dimensionally; transmitting electromagnetic waves in the terahertz range through a biological tissue; measuring transmitted electromagnetic waves using a photo-conductive sensor array, wherein the photo-conductive sensor array comprises a plurality of individual photo-conductive sensors arranged two-dimensionally, and wherein the photo-conductive sensor array is positionally arranged parallel to the fiber optic array on opposite sides of the biological tissue; and
,calculating a value of an analyte from the transmitted waves by determining a frequency energy received by the photo-conductive sensor. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
-
Specification