Battery antenna arrangement for on-body medical devices

Abstract

One or more button cells can be used in on-body medical devices, such as drug delivery devices, to act as an antenna for wireless communications. Since the one or more button cells already exist in the on-body medical device, the antenna does not require additional real estate on a printed circuit board. In some example embodiments, a single button cell is used as an antenna, while in other embodiments, multiple button cells are used as an antenna. For example, a single button cell can be used as part of a monopole antenna. Multiple button cells can be used as part of a dipole antenna.

Description

[0001] Related Applications

[0002] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 127,323, filed December 18, 2020, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Background Technology

[0003] Some common wearable medical devices have wireless communication capabilities. For example, some glucose monitors have... Communication capabilities. To provide this wireless communication capability, these on-body medical devices include antennas. A typical approach for such conventional on-body medical devices is to provide the antenna on a printed circuit board within the housing of the on-body medical device. For example, a strip antenna can be formed on the printed circuit board, or the antenna surface can be mounted on the printed circuit board.

[0004] These conventional methods of providing antennas on printed circuit boards (PCBs) have several drawbacks. First, the antenna can occupy a large area on the PCB. Considering that PCBs used in such medical devices are typically small and space on the PCB is a precious resource, using area on the PCB for antennas is a waste of valuable resources. In some cases, it may be necessary to increase the size of the PCB to accommodate the antenna. Second, it is well known that strip antennas and surface-mount antenna components on PCBs are inefficient when the PCB is attached very close to the user's body. This inefficiency can lead to intermittent loss of communication and an unsatisfactory user experience. Third, because the antenna is either formed directly on the PCB or surface-mounted on the PCB, other components on the PCB must be arranged so that they do not obstruct or hinder the transmission / reception of communication with the antenna. Summary of the Invention

[0005] According to an inventive aspect, the drug delivery device includes one or more button batteries for powering at least a portion of the device. Each of the one or more button batteries is cylindrical and has a longitudinal axis. The drug delivery device also includes a wireless communication transceiver for transmitting and receiving wireless communications. Furthermore, the drug delivery device includes an electrical connection between the wireless communication transceiver and the one or more button batteries, such that the one or more button batteries act as antennas for transmitting wireless communications from and receiving wireless communications destined for the wireless communication transceiver. The drug delivery device also includes a housing configured to be fixed to a user's body such that the longitudinal axis of at least one button battery is substantially perpendicular to the surface of the user's body where the housing is fixed.

[0006] In some embodiments, a single coin cell battery may be used, while in other embodiments, multiple coin cells may be used. The drug delivery device may be configured to emit surface waves from one or more coin cells to travel along the surface of a user's body. The drug delivery device may include a printed circuit board on which one or more coin cells are positioned and a ground plane is formed. The wireless communication transceiver may be, for example, a Bluetooth transceiver, a Bluetooth Low Energy transceiver, a Body Area Network (BAN) transceiver, or a WiFi transceiver. The drug delivery device may also include at least one battery holder for holding one or more coin cells. An electrical connection between the wireless communication transceiver and the one or more coin cells may be connected to at least one battery holder, which is in electrical contact with the one or more coin cells.

[0007] According to an inventive aspect, the drug pump includes one or more button batteries for powering at least a portion of the pump. The drug pump can be used to pump insulin, glucagon, or other types of medication into a user's body. Each of the one or more button batteries is cylindrical and has a longitudinal axis. The insulin pump also includes a wireless communication transceiver for transmitting and receiving wireless communications. The insulin pump additionally includes an electrical connection between the wireless communication transceiver and the one or more button batteries, such that the one or more button batteries act as antennas for transmitting wireless communications from and receiving wireless communications destined for the wireless communication transceiver. The drug pump also includes a housing configured to be secured to a user's body such that the longitudinal axis of the one or more button batteries is substantially perpendicular to the surface of the user's body to which the housing is secured.

[0008] In some embodiments, a single coin cell battery may be present, while in other embodiments, multiple coin cells may be present. The medication pump may be configured to emit surface waves from one or more coin cells to travel along the surface of a user's body. The medication pump may include a printed circuit board on which one or more coin cells are positioned, and a ground plane is formed within the printed circuit board. The transceiver may be a Bluetooth transceiver, a Bluetooth Low Energy transceiver, a Body Area Network (BAN) transceiver, or a WiFi transceiver. The insulin pump may include at least one battery holder for holding one or more coin cells. An electrical connection between the wireless communication transceiver and the one or more coin cells may be connected to at least one battery holder, which is in electrical contact with the one or more coin cells.

[0009] According to another inventive aspect, a method is practiced in which at least one button battery is positioned on a printed circuit board in a drug delivery device. The at least one button battery is electrically connected to the printed circuit board to provide power to the drug delivery device. A wireless communication transceiver is electrically and mechanically connected to the printed circuit board. A power supply device is connected between the at least one button battery and the wireless communication transceiver to create an antenna for transmitting wireless communication from and receiving wireless communication directed to the wireless communication transceiver.

[0010] The method may further include electrically and mechanically connecting at least one battery holder for at least one coin cell battery to a printed circuit board. At least one coin cell battery may be held by at least one battery holder for electrical connection to at least one battery holder, and a power supply device may be connected to at least one battery holder for electrical connection to at least one coin cell battery. A wireless communication transceiver may be... transceiver Low-power (BLE) transceivers, body area network (BAN) transceivers, or WiFi transceivers. Attached Figure Description

[0011] Figure 1A A block diagram depicts a drug delivery device for an exemplary embodiment and a drug delivery device for a user.

[0012] Figure 1B Depicting Figure 1A A more detailed block diagram of the printed circuit board.

[0013] Figure 1C A partially exploded side view of a drug delivery device according to an exemplary embodiment is depicted.

[0014] Figure 2 A side view depicting the layers of a printed circuit board for a drug delivery device used in an exemplary embodiment is shown.

[0015] Figure 3 An arrangement in which a single button battery is used as an antenna for a drug delivery device is depicted in an exemplary embodiment.

[0016] Figure 4 An illustrative gain diagram of a monopole antenna using a single coin cell battery in a drug delivery device of an exemplary embodiment is depicted.

[0017] Figure 5 A flowchart depicts illustrative steps that can be performed in an exemplary embodiment to form an antenna.

[0018] Figure 6 A block diagram of an illustrative drug delivery system for an exemplary embodiment is depicted, the system including an insulin pump as a drug delivery device.

[0019] Figure 7An exemplary drug delivery system for an exemplary embodiment is depicted. Detailed Implementation

[0020] Exemplary embodiments may use one or more batteries in an on-body medical device to act as antennas for wireless communication. Since one or more batteries are already present on the printed circuit board of the on-body medical device to provide power, no additional space on the printed circuit board is required for the antenna. Using batteries to form the antenna also allows for a smaller printed circuit board for the on-body medical device, thus making the device smaller. In some exemplary embodiments, a single coin cell battery is used as the antenna, while in other embodiments, multiple coin cells are used as the antenna. For example, a single coin cell battery can be used as part of a monopole antenna. Multiple coin cells can be used as part of a dipole antenna. In the case where a single coin cell battery is used as part of a monopole antenna, a single coin cell battery or multiple coin cells can be used to power the on-body medical device, with one of them concurrently acting as a monopole antenna. In alternative embodiments, the battery only needs to be a coin cell battery, but other types of batteries can be used. More generally, a flat battery with a thin structure (such as a disc or coin) may be suitable.

[0021] Furthermore, the antenna of the exemplary embodiment can be configured to be unaffected by the inefficiencies of conventional surface-mount antennas mounted on a printed circuit board or trace antennas formed on a printed circuit board. Some of the inefficiencies may be due to the fact that conventional trace antennas or surface-mount antennas are oriented parallel to the user's body, and therefore a large amount of energy emitted from such conventional antennas is absorbed by the user's body. The human body is a lossy medium for electromagnetic waves, and the loss due to absorption by the human body can significantly affect antenna performance. The antenna of the exemplary embodiment can be configured to be oriented substantially perpendicular to the user's body surface, such that less energy of the emitted signal is absorbed by the human body. Antennas placed perpendicular to the human body suffer less absorption by the human body. Some of the inefficiencies of conventional surface-mount antennas and trace antennas formed on a printed circuit board are also related to the minimum distance between the antenna and the user's body surface. This can be addressed, for example, by designing the housing of the on-body medical device to place a larger distance between the coin cell of the antenna of the exemplary embodiment and the user's body surface.

[0022] Exemplary embodiments may provide antennas well-suited for wireless communication between multiple body devices and between one or more body devices and one or more detached devices. The antenna of an exemplary embodiment may emit surface waves that travel along the user's external body surface, which is well-suited for high-quality communication with other body devices. Furthermore, the antenna of an exemplary embodiment may emit electromagnetic waves with sufficient energy in the detached direction to facilitate high-quality communication with detached devices.

[0023] Figure 1AA block diagram illustrating an exemplary drug delivery device 100 is shown. In one exemplary embodiment, the drug delivery device 100 delivers insulin to a user 102. The drug delivery device 100 is worn by the user 102. The drug delivery device 100 can be secured to the user 102 using a fastening mechanism such as a strap, adhesive, or body-fitting housing. A pump 104 can be provided for pumping medication stored in a drug reservoir 106 to the user 102. The pump 104 can be, for example, a reciprocating pump or a positive pressure pump. A cannula / needle and a delivery interface 108 can be provided. The cannula / needle can pierce the skin of the user 102 and provide access along with a fluid conduit (such as tubing) for delivering medication to the user 102. The drug delivery device 100 delivers medication to the user 102 under programmed control. The drug delivery device 100 includes at least one printed circuit board (PCB) 110 on which various electronic components can be positioned.

[0024] Figure 1B A block diagram depicting more details of PCB 110 is shown. PCB 110 has a processor 112 positioned thereon. Processor 112 controls the operation of the drug delivery device. For example, processor 112 can control how much and when the drug is delivered to user 102. Processor 112 can take many different forms, including as a central processing unit (CPU), graphics processing unit (GPU), application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), field-programmable gate array (FPGA), dedicated controller chip, or system-on-a-chip (SoC). Processor 112 can execute programming instructions stored in storage device 114. Storage device 114 can include one or more types of storage devices, including but not limited to random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), computer-readable storage devices, etc. Storage device 114 can also hold data and other useful information for the operation of drug delivery device 100.

[0025] PCB 110 may include a battery pack 116 containing one or more batteries. The one or more batteries 116 may include coin cell batteries. The batteries in battery pack 116 may be silver oxide batteries, alkaline batteries, zinc-air batteries, lithium batteries, etc. The batteries in battery pack 116 may be cylindrical, as is typical of coin cell batteries. The batteries in battery pack 116 may have any of a number of diameters, such as commercially available coin cell batteries. The batteries in battery pack 116 may be held by one or more battery holders 122. The battery holders 122 may have electrical contact with the anode and cathode of the batteries in battery pack 116. Furthermore, the battery holders may be mechanically connected to PCB 110 and may also be electrically connected to PCB 110.

[0026] In an exemplary embodiment, battery pack 116 provides power to the components of drug delivery device 100. Furthermore, battery pack 116 is used as a wireless antenna for transmitting and receiving wireless communications from other devices located on and off the body, as will be described in more detail below. A wireless communication transceiver 118 is provided for transmitting and receiving wireless communications. The wireless communication transceiver 118 can transmit and receive communications in wireless formats, such as... Low-power (BLE), WiFi, or IEEE 802.15.6 Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN) are used. The power supply device 124 electrically connects the wireless communication transceiver 118 to the battery pack 116, where the battery pack 116 acts as a wireless antenna, transmitting and receiving wireless communications forwarded to the wireless communication transceiver 118. In some embodiments, the power supply device 124 may be electrically connected to one or more battery holders 122 and, in other embodiments, to the battery pack 116. An electrical circuit system 120, such as capacitors, may be provided to tune impedance, provide filtering, etc. The electrical circuit system 120 may also include other electrical components.

[0027] Figure 1C A partially exploded side view of a drug delivery device 100 is shown. The drug delivery device 100 may have a protective housing formed by a top housing 130 and a bottom housing 132. The top housing 130 and the bottom housing 132 may be secured together via snap-fit ​​features, by adhesive, or by fasteners such as screws. When the two housing assemblies 130 and 132 are secured together, a PCB 134 is positioned within the internal space formed between the top housing 130 and the bottom housing 132. Features may be provided inside the top housing 130 and the bottom housing 132 to support the PCB 134 and hold it in a fixed orientation. Preferably, the PCB 134 is oriented parallel to the user's skin surface, and the longitudinal axis of the battery in the battery pack 116 is perpendicular to the PCB 134 and the user's skin surface. The top housing 130 and the bottom housing 134 may be formed of materials such as polycarbonate or plastic. An adhesive pad 136 may be secured to the outer surface of the bottom housing 132. The adhesive pad 136 has a substrate to which adhesive is applied. An adhesive is used to secure the drug delivery device 100 to the skin surface of the user 102. The adhesive pad 136 may also have an adhesive applied to the side facing the outer surface of the bottom housing 132 to secure the adhesive pad 136 to the bottom housing 132. Alternatively, the substrate may be thermally welded to the outer surface of the bottom housing 132 or integrally formed as part of the bottom housing 132.

[0028] like Figure 2 As shown, the ground plane for the antenna can be formed in PCB 200. PCB 200 can be formed from multiple layers. Figure 2In the example shown, the top layer of PCB 200 is signal layer 202, on which signal tracks are formed on top of the dielectric. The next layer is ground plane 204. Ground plane 204 may include a large grounded metallized surface (such as a copper surface). Other layers 206 may also exist in PCB 200. It is desirable for the antenna to have a large ground plane to improve the antenna's signal integrity. Figure 2 The examples depicted are intended to illustrate rather than limit. Other PCB constructions with different layers and hierarchical orders can be used.

[0029] Figure 3 A button cell 300 is shown connected to a ground plane 302 in an antenna arrangement. The flat surface of the button cell is positioned parallel to the PCB surface (i.e., the XY plane), and its longitudinal axis (along the Z-axis) is orthogonal to the skin surface of the PCB and the user's skin surface. The ground plane 302 can be connected to the center of the bottom surface of the button cell 300, which is parallel to the ground plane 302. The antenna has a battery with a dielectric material on one side of the PCB acting as a radiating patch and the other side acting as a ground plane. With this arrangement, the antenna functions as a monopole antenna. Figure 3 Three axes, X, Y, and Z, are also depicted. When the antenna is positioned on the user's skin surface, the Z-axis extends away from the user's skin surface. The Y-axis extends along the user's longitudinal direction along the user's skin surface from head to toe, and the X-axis extends horizontally from one side or the other, such as from the user's right side across the user's skin surface to their left side.

[0030] The antenna seeks to provide sufficient energy in transmission along the Z-axis to facilitate off-body communication and also seeks to provide sufficient energy in transmission along the Y-axis to facilitate transmission along the user's skin surface for on-body communication. Transmission along the Y-axis is configured as a surface wave. Surface waves tend to be entrained along surfaces where boundary conditions exist, formed between two media with different dielectric constants (i.e., different degrees of electrical permeability). The dielectric constant of air is much higher than that of the human body. Therefore, electrical signals propagate faster in air than in the human body. The net effect is that the base of the propagating waveform tends to bend towards the user's skin surface at the boundary between the air and skin surfaces. This bending causes the waveform to be entrained along the user's skin surface. This is desirable because surface waves reach on-body devices better than wireless signals projected through air or through the user's body.

[0031] As discussed above, conventional trace antennas formed on a PCB lack sufficient spacing relative to the user's skin surface. Furthermore, conventional trace antennas tend to direct a significant amount of emitted energy into the user's body. In contrast, the antennas described herein have a much larger spacing relative to the user's skin surface (e.g., from 2 mm to 60 mm) because the battery pack is positioned further away from the top surface of the PCB. Additionally, because the antenna is oriented perpendicular to the user's skin surface (see... Figure 3 Furthermore, it has a single-pole distribution mode, so the antenna's directivity results in less energy being emitted toward the user's skin surface.

[0032] Figure 3 The operation of a single button cell arrangement is similar to that of a monopole circular patch antenna. Figure 4 A two-dimensional diagram of the antenna's radiation pattern 400 is depicted. Figure 400 shows the two-dimensional distribution of transmitted energy in decibels (dbi) relative to the radiation angle of the antenna, expressed in polar coordinates. Specifically, curve 402 is the total antenna gain pattern expressed in dBi, curve 404 is the antenna gain pattern perpendicular to the body and orthogonal to the planar surface of the PCB and the user's skin surface, and curve 406 is the antenna gain pattern parallel to the planar surface of the PCB and the user's skin surface. These figures show that the energy is greater and more uniformly distributed in the direction parallel to the user's skin, while the energy is less and less uniformly distributed in the direction orthogonal to the user's skin. This distribution is the desired distribution discussed above.

[0033] Figure 5 A flowchart 500 depicts steps that can be performed during antenna creation for an exemplary embodiment. A battery pack 116 is positioned on a PCB (502). The battery pack 116 may be secured by one or more battery holders 122 electrically and mechanically connected to the PCB 110. The battery pack 116 is electrically connected to the PCB 110 and provides power to the drug delivery device (504). A wireless communication transceiver 118 is electrically and mechanically connected to the PCB 110 (506). The wireless communication transceiver 118 may be an integrated circuit connected to the PCB 110 via pins or other connections. A power supply 124 electrically connects the wireless communication transceiver 118 to the battery pack 116 (508). As mentioned above, the power supply 124 may be directly connected to the battery pack 116 or alternatively connected to the battery holder 122.

[0034] In an exemplary embodiment, the drug delivery device is an insulin pump. Figure 6An example of a drug delivery system 600 having such an insulin pump 602 is shown. The drug delivery system 600 includes various devices with which the insulin pump 602 can communicate wirelessly. These devices include analyte monitors, such as a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) 604 that continuously provides blood glucose level readings. These readings can be wirelessly transmitted to the insulin pump 602 and used by the control algorithm of the insulin pump 602 to determine when and how much insulin is delivered to the user 102. The insulin pump 602 can also communicate with remote devices, such as smartphones or personal diabetes managers (PDMs) 606. The PDM 606 can be implemented as a dedicated wireless device or as an application or other software running on a portable computing device (such as a smartphone or tablet). The PDM 606 can serve as an interface with the user 102. The PDM 606 can provide the user 102 with information such as current analyte or blood glucose levels and analyte (e.g., blood glucose) and drug (e.g., insulin) delivery history and / or other information content. The PDM 606 can also enable the user to control the insulin pump 602. User 102 can modify certain settings via wireless communication between PDM 606 and insulin pump 602. Insulin pump 602 can also communicate wirelessly with wearable device 608 (such as a smartwatch). Wearable device 608 can, for example, receive and display information from the insulin pump. Furthermore, wearable device can wirelessly issue commands to insulin pump 602 for certain functionalities. Insulin pump 602 can also communicate with detached device 610 (such as an external device that understands wireless protocols (such as those listed above)). All such wireless communication can be achieved via an antenna formed using a battery pack.

[0035] Figure 6 Only the communication paths between components are shown. It would be helpful to review more detailed information about the key components and discuss their functionality more comprehensively to understand why wireless communication antennas are useful. For this purpose, Figure 7 Additional details of some key components of the illustrative drug delivery system 700 in an exemplary embodiment are depicted. The drug delivery system 700 includes an insulin pump 702. As mentioned above, the insulin pump 702 may be a wearable device worn on the body of a user 708. The insulin pump 702 may be directly coupled to the user (e.g., directly attached to a body part and / or skin of the user 708 via an adhesive or the like). In the example, the surface of the insulin pump 702 may include an adhesive to facilitate attachment to the user 708.

[0036] The insulin pump 702 may include a controller 710. The controller 710 may be configured in a manner such as... Figure 1BThe controller 710 may be implemented using hardware such as processor 112, software, or any combination thereof. The controller 710 may be, for example, a microprocessor, logic circuit, field-programmable gate array (FPGA), application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or microcontroller coupled to memory. The controller 710 may maintain date and time, as well as other functions (e.g., calculations). The controller 710 may be operable to perform operations stored in storage device 714 (see [link to storage device]). Figure 1B The control application 716 in (114) enables the controller 710 to guide the operation of the insulin pump 702. The storage device 714 can maintain a history 713 for the user, such as the history of automatic insulin delivery, the history of bolus insulin delivery, the history of meal events, the history of exercise events, etc. Furthermore, the controller 710 can be operable to receive data or information. The storage device 714 may include main memory and secondary memory. The storage device may include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, removable storage media, solid-state storage devices, etc.

[0037] Insulin pump 702 may include insulin reservoir 712 (see...) Figure 1A The insulin reservoir 712 (106) stores insulin for delivery to the user 708 as guaranteed. A fluid path to the user 708 may be provided, and the insulin pump 702 may dispense insulin from the insulin reservoir 712 to deliver insulin to the user 708 via the fluid path. The fluid path may, for example, include a cannula / needle and delivery interface 733 (see [link to relevant documentation]). Figure 1A 108 in the middle) and the conduit that couples the drug pump 702 to the user 708 (e.g., the conduit that couples the cannula to the insulin reservoir 712).

[0038] One or more communication links may exist with one or more devices physically separate from the insulin pump 702, including, for example, the user and / or the user's caregiver's PDM 704 and / or glucose monitor 706. The communication links may include those based on any known communication protocol or standard (such as...). Any wired or wireless communication link operating (Wi-Fi, near-field communication standards, cellular standards, or any other wireless protocol). The insulin pump 702 may also include a user interface 717, such as an integrated display device for displaying information to and receiving information from the user 708 in some embodiments. The user interface 717 may include a touchscreen and / or one or more input devices, such as buttons, knobs, or a keyboard.

[0039] Insulin pump 702 includes the above-mentioned... Figure 1B The battery pack / antenna arrangement 730 is discussed. The insulin pump 702 also includes a wireless transceiver 732 as mentioned above.

[0040] Insulin pump 702 can interface with network 722. Network 722 may include a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), or a combination thereof. Computing device 726 can interface with the network and can communicate with insulin pump 702.

[0041] The drug delivery system 700 may include a glucose monitor 706 for sensing blood glucose levels of a user 708. The glucose monitor 706 may provide periodic blood glucose concentration measurements and may be a continuous glucose monitor (CGM), or another type of device or sensor that provides blood glucose or other analyte measurements. The glucose monitor 706 may be physically separate from the insulin pump 702 or may be an integrated component thereof. The glucose monitor 706 may provide data to the controller 710 indicating the measured or detected blood glucose level of the user 708. The glucose monitor 706 may be coupled to the user 708 by means of, for example, an adhesive, and may provide information or data about one or more medical conditions and / or physical attributes of the user 708. The information or data provided by the glucose monitor 706 may be used to adjust the drug delivery operation of the insulin pump 702.

[0042] The drug delivery system 700 may also include a PDM 704. The PDM 704 may be a dedicated device, such as a dedicated personal diabetes manager (PDM) device. The PDM 704 may be a programmable general-purpose device, such as any portable electronic device including, for example, a dedicated controller, such as a processor, smartphone, or tablet. The PDM 704 may be used to program or adjust the operation of the drug pump 702 and / or glucose monitor 706. The PDM 704 may be any portable electronic device, including, for example, a dedicated controller, smartphone, or tablet. In the depicted example, the PDM 704 may include a processor 719 and a storage device 718. The processor 719 may perform processes for managing the user's blood glucose levels and for controlling the delivery of medications or therapeutic agents to the user 708. The processor 719 may also be operable to execute program code stored in the storage device 718. For example, the storage device may be operable to store one or more control applications 720 for execution by the processor 719. The storage device 718 may store control applications 720, history 721 as described above for insulin pump 702, and other data and / or programs.

[0043] PDM 704 may include a user interface 723 for communicating with user 708. The user interface may include a display, such as a touchscreen, for displaying information. The touchscreen may also be used to receive input. User interface 723 may also include input elements, such as a keyboard, buttons, knobs, etc.

[0044] PDM 704 can interface with network 724 (such as LAN or WAN, or a combination of these networks). PDM 704 can communicate with one or more servers or cloud services 728 via network 724. The roles that one or more servers or cloud services 728 can play in exemplary embodiments will be described below.

[0045] As relative to Figure 6 As mentioned, the insulin pump 702 can wirelessly communicate with additional components via a battery pack antenna. These additional components may include an off-body device 734. Additional components may also include a wearable device 736.

[0046] exist Figure 7 Using a battery antenna in the system offers the benefits discussed above. One advantage is that it does not occupy additional surface area on the PCB like conventional trace or surface mount antennas. Therefore, the PCB can be smaller than when using trace or surface mount antennas, and consequently, the drug delivery device can be smaller. The antenna of the exemplary embodiment can be configured to be oriented substantially perpendicular to the user's body surface, such that less energy of the transmitted signal is absorbed by the body. As with the antenna of the exemplary embodiment, an antenna placed perpendicular to the user's skin surface experiences less absorption by the body than a conventional trace or surface mount antenna not placed perpendicular to the user's skin surface. Some inefficiencies of conventional surface mount and trace antennas formed on a PCB are related to the minimum spacing between the antenna and the user's skin surface. This can be addressed, for example, by designing the housing of the on-body medical device to increase the spacing between the coin cell battery of the antenna of the exemplary embodiment and the user's skin surface.

[0047] While exemplary embodiments are disclosed herein, it should be recognized that various changes in form and detail may be made without departing from the intended scope defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A drug delivery device, comprising: One or more button batteries for powering at least a portion of a drug delivery device, wherein each of the one or more button batteries is cylindrical and has a longitudinal axis; A wireless communication transceiver for transmitting and receiving wireless communications, including on-body wireless communication and off-body wireless communication; The electrical connection between the wireless communication transceiver and the one or more button batteries enables the one or more button batteries to act as antennas, which transmit on-body wireless communication from the wireless communication transceiver as a surface wave along a first axis of the one or more button batteries, and are used to transmit off-body wireless communication to an off-body device along the longitudinal axis of the one or more button batteries, and to receive wireless communication destined for the wireless communication transceiver. as well as The housing is configured to be fixed to the user's body such that the longitudinal axis of the one or more button batteries is substantially perpendicular to the surface of the user's body where the housing is fixed, and the first axis of the one or more button batteries extends from head to toe along the surface of the user's body.

2. The drug delivery device of claim 1, wherein the one or more button batteries are single button batteries.

3. The drug delivery device of claim 1, wherein the one or more button batteries are a plurality of button batteries.

4. The drug delivery device of claim 1 further includes a printed circuit board, wherein the one or more button batteries are positioned on the printed circuit board and a ground plane is formed in the printed circuit board.

5. The drug delivery device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the wireless communication transceiver is a Bluetooth transceiver, a Bluetooth Low Energy transceiver, a Body Area Network (BAN) transceiver, or a WiFi transceiver.

6. The drug delivery device of claim 1, further comprising at least one battery holder for holding the one or more button batteries.

7. The drug delivery device of claim 6, wherein the electrical connection between the wireless communication transceiver and the one or more button batteries is connected to the at least one battery holder, and the at least one battery holder is in electrical contact with the one or more button batteries.

8. A method comprising: Position at least one button cell on a printed circuit board in the drug delivery device; The at least one button battery is electrically connected to the printed circuit board to provide power to the drug delivery device; Connect the wireless communication transceiver electrically and mechanically to the printed circuit board; A power supply device is connected between the at least one button battery and the wireless communication transceiver to create an antenna for transmitting wireless communication from the wireless communication transceiver and receiving wireless communication for the wireless communication transceiver. as well as On-body wireless communication from the antenna is transmitted as a surface wave traveling along the user's body surface along a first axis of the at least one button cell, and off-body wireless communication is transmitted to an off-body device along a second axis of the at least one button cell, wherein the first axis extends from head to toe along the user's body surface and the second axis is substantially perpendicular to the user's body surface.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising electrically and mechanically connecting at least one battery holder for the at least one button battery to a printed circuit board.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the at least one button cell battery is held by the at least one battery holder for electrical connection to the at least one battery holder, and wherein a power supply device is connected to the at least one battery holder for electrical connection to the at least one button cell battery.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the wireless communication transceiver is a Bluetooth transceiver, a Bluetooth Low Energy transceiver, a Body Area Network (BAN) transceiver, or a WiFi transceiver.

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