Bayer Corporation

Miles Inc.

Bayer Healthcare LLC

Joseph P Desimone

D Glenn Purcell

Russell J Micinski

Jerry T Pugh

Joseph L Moulton

Robert J Heiland

Lydia M Bonner

A sensor dispensing instrument includes a sensor magazine that contains a plurality of blood glucose sensors disposed in sensor slots. Each of the sensor slots is in fluid communication with a desiccant cavity in which desiccant material is disposed. The front and rear walls of the sensor magazine are sealed with burst foils so as to seal the sensor slots and the desiccant cavities. The sensor instrument has an outer housing with a laterally extending magazine opening adapted to receive the sensor magazine. A pivot rod is moved through the magazine and an indexing wheel into an operating position with a detent arm on the instrument housing engaging a detent groove on the magazine to position the magazine in a sensor feeding position. Once so positioned, a sensor push rod is pushed forward resulting in the push rod piercing the rear burst foil and engaging a sensor in one of the sensor slots to thereby push the sensor out through the front burst foil and into a testing position. Once a test is completed, the push rod is advanced forward further to thereby eject the used sensor from the sensor handling instrument. The push rod then is retracted to a standby position. As the push rod is being retracted, a pin associated with the push rod causes the indexing wheel to rotate so that the pivot rod is rotated until the detent arm engages another detent groove so that another sensor slot is in alignment with the push rod.

Method and apparatus of handling multiple sensors in a glucose

A quantitative measuring instrument includes a casing with a cavity for a reagent strip handling mechanism. The mechanism includes a slide with a resiliently biased toggle member for providing snap action of the slide between an open, reagent strip loading position and a closed, quantitative measuring position. A light seal is mounted on the toggle member that engages each reagent strip in the closed position of the slide. In a first, alternative embodiment of the instrument, the slide mechanism includes a cam arm that engages cam surfaces on the instrument raising the cam arm to an open, reagent strip loading position from a closed, reagent strip holding position. In this embodiment the slide can be removed from the instrument and cleaned. In a second alternative embodiment the slide includes a first detent corresponding to a closed position of the slide and a second detent corresponding to an open position. A pair of spring fingers are mounted in the cavity of the instrument casing. One of the spring fingers engages the first detent in the closed position and the second spring finger engages the second detent in the open position providing resistance that defines the two positions. The slide in this embodiment can also be removed and cleaned.

Reagent strip handling mechanism

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Mishawaka, IN, United States of America

Joseph P Desimone