Test strip measuring system

Details Test strip measuring system Test strip measuring system

1999-05-20

2001-11-13

Warden, Jill (Department: 1743)

Chemical apparatus and process disinfecting, deodorizing, preser

Analyzer, structured indicator, or manipulative laboratory...

Sample mechanical transport means in or for automated...

C422S051000, C422S068100, C422S082010, C422S082020, C422S082050, C422S082060, C422S083000, C422S098000, C436S149000, C436S150000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06315951

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention concerns a measuring system including a test strip having at least one test field and a measuring device for optically or by way of electric currents measuring the test field, with a code carrier being associated with the test strip or with a test strip package containing at least one test strip, which code carrier carries coded information about the manufacturing date of the test strip or about the measurement to be carried out.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Measuring systems of the above mentioned kind are used for example for monitoring the concentration of certain substances in body fluids, for example for blood sugar determination. Test strips of different manufacturing batches can have calibration data which deviates from one test strip to another. Therefore, this calibration data must be communicated to the measuring device before the carrying out of the measurement. It is also possible that one such measuring device is suited to the carrying out of different measurements. If so the measuring device must be informed before the insertion of the test strip, for which particular measurement the inserted test strip is intended. This data is generally stored in the code carrier. There exists non-authorized suppliers, who attempt to deliver test strips by themselves for systems of the previously mentioned kind. Since the calibration data of given test strips do not differ grossly from batch to batch, these suppliers may try to copy the code carrier, including the coded information, even if they can not read the coded information. In view of this the measuring accuracy of the measuring systems suffers with corresponding danger for patients who use such a measuring system.
The invention has as its object to hinder the copying of the code carriers with their own coded information, or to see to it that such duplicated code carriers are unuseful.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The above object is solved for a measuring system of the above mentioned kind in that the code carrier has an electronic memory for storing the coded information and a data processing device for reading and transmitting the stored data to the measuring device, whereby the data processing device is controllable from the measuring device by means of variable control information. By means of this variable control information the data processing device can be caused, for example, to select one of several programs for reading and/or changing the stored data. For instance by means of the control information the data processor can be informed in which sequence a data word or data sentence is to be read, whether the data is to be ignored, inverted, connected with one another according to a pregiven rule, displaced by a given bit position count, or the like. It is also imaginable, that by means of the control information the starting address of the data to be read is identified. Which control information is transmitted, that is which program is chosen in the data processing device, can be fixed in the measuring device, or determined by way of a contingency procedure has been selected.
According to a further feature of the invention, the above mentioned object is solved in a measuring system of the previously mentioned kind in that the test strip carries a physically detectable value, that the measuring device has a sensor for detecting this value, and that the coded information is given by the magnitude of the physically detectable value. For example an ohmic resistance can be applied to the test strip the magnitude of which is measurable by the measuring device, with a resistance magnitude also being coded on the code carrier. The measuring device compares the measured resistance magnitude with the coded magnitude. If the two magnitudes do not agree, within a given tolerance, the test strip is rejected by the measuring device. The resistance magnitude can be so applied to the code carrier that it is a difficult for a copier to determine where and in what form the resistance has been applied to the code carrier. In a preferred embodiment of the invention the code carrier can have a characteristic contour, which is formed complementary to the shape of a code carrier receiver of the measuring device. Then, by way of a key/lock principal only a given code carrier can be inserted into the measuring device.
This principal can also be further expanded in that contact elements are provided on the code carrier which are intended to contact with countercontact elements in a code carrier receiver of the measuring device, with the contact elements and the counter-contact elements being arranged relative to one another in a kind of key/lock complementary relationship.


REFERENCES:
patent: 5281395 (1994-01-01), Markart et al.
patent: 5504011 (1996-04-01), Gavin et al.
patent: 5786584 (1998-07-01), Button et al.
patent: 5945341 (1999-08-01), Howard, III
patent: 5989917 (1999-11-01), McAleer et al.
patent: 6036092 (2000-03-01), Lappe

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