Pen-type injector having an electronic control unit

• US 6,942,646 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2001
• Issued: 09/13/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sanofi-Aventis Deutschland GmbH (Sanofi )
• Original Assignee: Dca Design International Ltd.
• Inventors: Veasey, Robert Frederick, Langley, Christopher Nigel, Woolston, Robert, Day, Shane Alistair
• Primary Examiner(s): Lucchesi, Nicholas D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thompson, Michael M.
• Application Number:
  US10/433,649
• Publication Number:
  US 20040030296A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,362 Days
• Field of Search: 604 30- 34, 604/48, 604/500, 604/503, 604505-509, 604 65- 68, 604118-119, 604/131, 604/290, 604151-155, 604245-254, 604207-211, 128/DIG.12, 128/13, 417 18- 25
• US Class Current: 604/207
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2005/31588 electrically driven
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/215 Tilt detection, e.g. for warning or shut-off
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/50 with microprocessors or computers
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/6018 providing set-up signals for the apparatus configuration
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/8206 battery-operated
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/14244 adapted to be carried by the patient, e.g. portable on the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/14566 with a replaceable reservoir for receiving a piston rod of the pump
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/20 Automatic syringes, e.g. with automatically actuated piston rod, with automatic needle injection, filling automatically A61M5/142 , A61M5/46 take precedence; hypodermic projectiles F42B12/54
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/31525 Dosing burettes, pipettes B01L3/02
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/31546 Electrically operated dose setting, e.g. input via touch screen or plus/minus buttons
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/17 delivered via infusion or injection
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/01 Motorized syringe

Abstract

An injection device for injection of a medicament from a first medicament cartridge (40) is disclosed. The injection device comprises a drive mechanism (42) for selectively dispensing the medicament from the first medicament cartridge (40), a dial dose mechanism (12, 14) by which a user may determine a required dose of medicament to be dispensed, an electronic control unit for controlling the operation of the drive mechanism (42) in response to the dial dose mechanism (12, 14) and a display panel (10). When an insufficient amount of medicament remains in the first medicament cartridge (40) to enable the required dosage to be dispensed, the insufficient amount of medicament may be dispensed at the discretion of the user, the electronic control unit storing a value corresponding to a difference between the required dose and the insufficient amount of medicament, the value being presented to the user on the display panel (10) as a first amount of medicament to be dispensed from a replacement medicament cartridge following replacement of the first medicament cartridge (40) with the replacement medicament cartridge.

Claims

1. An injection device for injection of a medicament from a first medicament cartridge, the injection device comprising a drive mechanism for selectively dispensing the medicament from the first medicament cartridge, a dial dose mechanism by which a user may determine a required dose of medicament to be dispensed, an electronic control unit for controlling the operation of the drive mechanism in response to the dial dose mechanism and a display panel, in which, when an insufficient amount of medicament remains in the first medicament cartridge to enable the required dosage to be dispensed, the insufficient amount of medicament may be dispensed at the discretion of the user, the electronic control unit storing a value corresponding to a difference between the required dose and the insufficient amount of medicament, the value being presented to the user on the display panel as a first amount of medicament to be dispensed from a replacement medicament cartridge following replacement of the first medicament cartridge with the replacement medicament cartridge.

2. An injection device according to claim 1, wherein, when the first amount of medicament is not dispensed within a predetermined time period following replacement of the first medicament cartridge with the replacement medicament cartridge the electronic control unit resets to allow the user subsequently to operate the dial dose mechanism to dial a new required dose.

3. An injection device according to claim 2, wherein, within the predetermined time period the user may reset the electronic control unit to allow the user to operate the dial dose mechanism to dial the new required dose.

4. An injection device according to claim 1, in which the electronic control unit records a history of the dispensing of doses of medicament, wherein, when the first amount of medicament is dispensed within a predetermined time period of dispensing the insufficient amount of medicament, the electronic control unit records the dispensing of the insufficient amount and the first amount as a single dose.