Dose measurement system and method

• US 9,255,830 B2
• Filed: 11/20/2014
• Issued: 02/09/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bigfoot Biomedical, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Common Sensing, Inc.
• Inventors: Whalley, Richard, White, James
• Primary Examiner(s): STAFIRA, MICHAEL PATRICK
• Application Number:
  US14/548,679
• Publication Number:
  US 20150144793A1
• Time in Patent Office: 446 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2005/3126 Specific display means related to dosing
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3306 Optical measuring means
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3379 Masses, volumes, levels of fluids in reservoirs, flow rates
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/70 with testing or calibration facilities
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/16804 Flow controllers
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/16886 for measuring fluid flow rate, i.e. flowmeters
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/1689 Drip counters
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 11/021 of the piston type G01F11/04 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 13/00 Apparatus for measuring by volume and delivering fluids or fluent solid materials, not provided for in the preceding groups
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 17/00 Methods or apparatus for determining the capacity of containers or cavities, or the volume of solid bodies measuring linear dimensions to determine volume G01B
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 22/00 Methods or apparatus for measuring volume of fluids or fluent solid material, not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 23/284 Electromagnetic waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/1702 with opto-acoustic detection, e.g. for gases or analysing solids

Abstract

Embodiments described herein generally relate to devices, systems and methods for measuring the dose remaining in a drug delivery device that is used for delivering a dose to a patient. In some embodiments, a dose measurement system for measuring the liquid volume in a container includes a plurality of light sources which are disposed and configured to emit electromagnetic radiation toward the container. A plurality of sensors are located in the apparatus that are optically coupleable to the plurality of light sources and are disposed and configured to detect the electromagnetic radiation emitted by at least a portion of the light sources. The apparatus also includes a processing unit configured to receive data representing the portion of the detected electromagnetic radiation from each of the plurality of sensors. The processing unit is further operable to convert the received data into a signature representative of the electromagnetic radiation detected by the plurality of sensors.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a plurality of light sources disposed and configured to emit electromagnetic radiation toward a container;

a plurality of sensors optically coupleable to the plurality of light sources, each sensor of the plurality of sensors disposed and configured to detect the electromagnetic radiation emitted by at least two of the plurality of light sources; and

at least one processor configured to receive data representative of the detected electromagnetic radiation from each of the plurality of sensors, the at least one processor operable to combine the received data into a signal signature representative of the electromagnetic radiation detected by the plurality of sensors, the at least one processor further configured to associate the signal signature with at least one reference signature, the at least one reference signature being representative of a property of the container.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a memory configured to store a plurality of reference signatures.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the property of the container indicates a container type.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the property of the container includes at least one of a refractive index, a color, a marking, and a label associated with the container.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to determine the property of the container based at least in part on the associated reference signature.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein:

the container is fluidically coupled to a drug delivery device; and

the at least one processor is further configured to determine, based at least in part on the associated reference signature, at least one of;

a coupling or a decoupling of the apparatus to the drug delivery device;

an attachment or a detachment of an injector to the drug delivery device; and

a property of the drug delivery device.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, further comprising a communications module configured to communicate information associated with a status of the apparatus to a user, wherein the status indicates at least one of:

the coupling or the decoupling of the apparatus to the drug delivery device;

the attachment or the detachment of the injector to the drug delivery device; and

the property of the drug delivery device.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, further comprising one or more additional sensors disposed and configured to detect at least one of:

the coupling or the decoupling of the apparatus to the drug delivery device; and

the attachment or the detachment of the injector to the drug delivery device.

9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein:

the drug delivery device is an injection pen; and

the at least one processor is further configured to determine, based at least in part on the associated reference signature, at least one of;

an attachment or a detachment of a needle to the injection pen; and

a property of the injection pen.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the injection pen comprises a plurality of markings, each marking of the plurality of markings being disposed and configured to further differentiate the associated reference signature from at least one other reference signature representative of at least one other injection pen type.

11. A method comprising:

receiving data representative of electromagnetic radiation emitted by at least two of a plurality of light sources, the plurality of light sources being disposed and configured to emit electromagnetic radiation toward a container, and detected by each of a plurality of sensors, the plurality of sensors being disposed and configured to detect the electromagnetic radiation emitted by the at least two of the plurality of light sources;

combining the data representative of the detected electromagnetic radiation from each of the plurality of sensors into a signal signature representative of the electromagnetic radiation detected through the container by the plurality of sensors; and

comparing the signal signature to a plurality of reference signatures to determine a property of the container.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

causing the at least two of the plurality of light sources to emit the electromagnetic radiation toward the container; and

detecting the electromagnetic radiation emitted by the at least two of the plurality of light sources with each of the plurality of sensors.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

generating the plurality of reference signatures by recording a signal signature for each of a plurality of container types.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the property of the container indicates a container type.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the property of the container includes at least one of a refractive index, a color, a marking, and a label.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the container is at least part of a drug delivery device, the method further comprising:

determining, based at least in part on the associated reference signature, at least one of;

a coupling or a decoupling of the plurality of light sources to the drug delivery device;

a coupling or a decoupling of the plurality of sensors to the drug delivery device;

an attachment or a detachment of an injector to the drug delivery device; and

a property of the drug delivery device.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

communicating information associated with a status of the drug delivery device to a user, wherein the status indicates at least one of;

the coupling or the decoupling of the plurality of light sources to the drug delivery device;

the coupling or the decoupling of the plurality of sensors to the drug delivery device;

the attachment or the detachment of the injector to the drug delivery device; and

the property of the drug delivery device.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the drug delivery device is an injection pen, the method further comprising:

determining, based at least in part on the associated reference signature, at least one of;

an attachment or a detachment of a needle to the injection pen; and

a property of the injection pen.

19. An apparatus comprising:

a plurality of light sources disposed and configured to emit electromagnetic radiation toward a container;

a plurality of sensors optically coupleable to the plurality of light sources, each sensor of the plurality of sensors disposed and configured to detect the electromagnetic radiation emitted by at least two of the plurality of light sources; and

at least one processor configured to receive data representative of the detected electromagnetic radiation from each of the plurality of sensors, the at least one processor operable to combine the received data into a signal signature representative of the electromagnetic radiation detected by the plurality of sensors, the at least one processor further configured to associate the signal signature with at least one reference signature, the at least one reference signature being representative of a property of a fluid disposed in the container.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the property of the fluid disposed in the container differentiates the associated reference signature from at least one other reference signature representative of at least one other fluid type, wherein the property of the fluid disposed in the container includes at least one of a refractive index and a color.