Wearable Optical Glucose Sensing With Synchronized Diode Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current glucose monitoring methods for diabetes require invasive blood draws, which are painful and inconvenient, and existing non-invasive methods face challenges in sensitivity, selectivity, and repeatability, especially for detecting glucose levels without interfering artifacts from the skin.
Innovation Solution
The use of fiber-based supercontinuum lasers and near-infrared spectroscopy to increase light intensity and reduce spectral artifacts by shining light through teeth, combined with pattern matching and software techniques to identify glucose signatures, and wireless communication of data for processing and storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If non-invasive glucose monitoring through skin is used, then user comfort is improved, but measurement precision deteriorates due to spectral artifacts from skin
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses teeth as an intermediary medium to access blood constituents. By shining light through teeth rather than skin, the system obtains a clearer optical path to blood vessels with minimal interference from overlying tissue, thus maintaining non-invasive comfort while improving measurement precision
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical approach of blood draws with an optical system that uses light transmission through teeth. This substitution eliminates the need for invasive procedures while achieving accurate glucose monitoring through optical detection of blood constituents
2Measurement precision
If light intensity is increased to improve signal-to-noise ratio, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the wavelength parameter of the light source to use near-infrared wavelengths that naturally transmit better through tissue and blood. This parameter change improves signal-to-noise ratio without requiring excessive light intensity, thereby avoiding increased device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses pulsed or modulated light delivery instead of continuous illumination. This periodic action allows for time-gated detection that improves signal-to-noise ratio by separating the signal from background noise, achieving better precision without proportionally increasing light intensity requirements
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables non-invasive, sensitive, and repeatable glucose monitoring, reducing pain and inconvenience for users while improving accuracy by minimizing skin interference and enhancing signal-to-noise ratio.
Implementation Method 1
a light source comprising a plurality of light emitting diodes that are configured to generate an output optical light having one or more optical wavelengths
Implementation Method 2
one or more lenses are configured to receive at least a portion of the output optical light and to deliver a lens output light to tissue comprising skin
Implementation Method 3
a detection system configured to receive at least a portion of the lens output light reflected from the tissue and to generate an output signal
Data Source
AI summary
An optical system comprises a wearable device for measuring one or more physiological parameters. The physiological parameters may change in response to stretching of the hand or movement of fingers or thumb of the user, or the parameters may be related to blood constituents or blood flow. The wearable device comprises a light source with a plurality of semiconductor diodes and a detection system that measures reflected light from tissue comprising skin. The semiconductor diodes may be light emitting diodes or laser diodes. The signal to noise ratio for the output signal may be improved by synchronizing the detection system to the light source, increasing light intensity of at least one of the plurality of semiconductor diodes from an initial light intensity, and using change detection that compares light on versus light off for the detection system output. The wearable device is also configured to identify an object.