Swing lance with integrated sensor

• US 20050033341A1
• Filed: 07/27/2004
• Published: 02/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/28/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ascensia Diabetes Care Holdings AG (PHC Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Bayer Healthcare LLC (Bayer AG)
• Inventors: Charlton, Steven C., Vreeke, Mark S., Johnson, Larry D., Hoover, Scott L.
• Granted Patent: US 7,670,300 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 606/181
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14532 for measuring glucose, e.g. by tissue impedance measurement
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150022 for capillary blood or interstitial fluid
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150213 Venting means
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150442 Blade-like piercing elements, e.g. blades, cutters, knives, for cutting the skin
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15113 Manually triggered, i.e. the triggering requires a deliberate action by the user such as pressing a drive button
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15117 comprising biased elements, resilient elements or a spring, e.g. a helical spring, leaf spring, or elastic strap
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15151 Each piercing element being stocked in a separate isolated compartment
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15174 Piercing elements stocked in the form of a stack or pile
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/157 Devices characterised by integrated means for measuring characteristics of blood

Abstract

An apparatus for lancing skin and collecting a liquid sample. The apparatus having a housing with an outer periphery and a rotatable arm having a lance to puncture the skin. A sample collection area is attached to the arm. The arm of the apparatus rotates from a first position to a second position. As the arm rotates, the lance extends beyond the housing allowing the lance to contact the user'"'"'s skin and create a lance site. As the arm continues to move to the second position, the lance is brought out of contact with the user'"'"'s skin and back within the housing while the collection area is brought into position. When the arm is located in the second position, the collection area is in substantially the same location as the lance site on the user'"'"'s skin.

Claims

1. An apparatus for lancing skin and collecting a liquid sample comprising:

a housing sized to be handheld and having an outer periphery;

a rotatable arm rotatably positioned in the housing and having an end movable from a from a first predefined position to a second predefined position;

a lance for lancing skin, the lance being movable with the end of the rotatable arm, wherein the lance is fully within the outer periphery of the housing when the end of the rotatable arm is in the first position and the lance extends beyond the outer periphery of the housing as the arm is rotating from the first position to the second position to create a lance site in skin of a user; and

a sample collection area movable with the end of and in general fixed relation to the lance as the arm moves from the first position to the second position, wherein the sample collection area is positioned within an effective range of the lance site to collect liquid from the lance site when the arm is at the second predefined position.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sample collection area overlaps at least a portion of the lance site when the arm is at the second predefined position.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the end of the arm moves in an arc from the first position to the second position.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the end of the arm moves in a continuous motion from the first position to the second position after being released.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sample collection area comprises a biosensor.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the biosensor is an electrochemical biosensor.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the biosensor is an optical biosensor.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sample collection area includes a capillary channel for collecting the sample and moving the sample to a reaction area within the collection area, the reaction area having a reagent for producing a reaction with an analyte in the sample indicative of the concentration of the analyte in the sample.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the lance comprises a generally flat blade end.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the lance lies along the arm and the generally flat blade end extends beyond the end of the arm.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the arm comprises a nest at the end of the arm in fixed relation to the lance and a disposable sensor comprising the collection area is positioned in the nest.

12. An apparatus for lancing skin and collecting a liquid sample from a lance site created by the apparatus, wherein the apparatus comprises:

a housing sized to be handheld;

rotatable structure connected to the housing and rotatable from a first stationary position to a second stationary position, wherein the structure comprises;

a lance positioned to be within the housing when the rotatable structure is at the first and second stationary positions and to extend beyond the housing and lance skin as the rotatable structure rotates between the first stationary position and the second stationary position and thereby produce the liquid sample at the lance site, and

collection structure positioned to collect the liquid sample from the lance site when the rotatable structure is positioned at the second stationary position.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the collection structure comprises a collection area fixed relative to the lance.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the lance comprises a generally flat penetration end extending beyond the rotatable structure, wherein the penetration end extends beyond the housing only as the rotatable structure rotates between the first position and the second position.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the collection structure comprises a nest for sensor, the nest being fixed relative to the lance.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, comprising a cartridge in the housing containing a plurality of disposable sensors, wherein the rotatable structure is rotatable to a third stationary position that positions the nest to receive one of the plurality of disposable sensors when the one disposable sensor is ejected from the cartridge.

17. An apparatus for lancing skin and collecting a liquid sample from a lance site, the apparatus comprising:

a housing sized to be handheld;

a lance supported on a rotatable member and comprising penetration end movable to extend beyond the housing to create the lance site and to withdraw into the housing to avoid inadvertent punctures; and

a collection area supported on the rotatable member to be positioned to collect liquid from the lance site after the lances the skin without moving the housing relative to the lance site.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the lance penetration end and the collection area move in an arc that positions the penetration end in the housing when the collection area is positioned to collect liquid from the lance site.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the penetration end and the collection area are both within the housing when the lance is cocked.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the lance comprises a flat surface in the plane comprising the arc in which the penetration end moves.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the rotatable member is adapted to rotate 360°

in the plane comprising the arc.

22. A method of collecting a liquid sample with a hand held apparatus, the method comprising:

positioning the handheld apparatus at a site to be lanced;

releasing a lance in the handheld apparatus;

allowing the lance to rotate through an arc that extends the lance from the housing and moves the lance into the housing;

maintaining the handheld apparatus in a generally fixed position relative to the site as a collection area is rotated into a position sufficient close to the site to collect liquid from the site.

23. A method of collecting a blood sample, the method comprising:

rotating a lance through a predefined path relative to a housing supporting the lance;

extending the lance beyond the housing to create a lance site withdrawing the lance into the housing as the lance is rotated through the predefined path;

stopping rotation of the lance at a predetermined point along the predefined path;

positioning the lance within the housing when the lance is stopped at the predetermined point along the path;

coupling movement of a collection area to movement of the lance;

rotating the collection area relative to the housing; and

positioning the collection area sufficiently close to collect blood from the lance site when the lance is positioned at the predetermined along the predefined path, wherein the collection area is rotated to the sufficiently close position to collect blood from the lance site.