Apple patents non-invasive device that constantly checks blood glucose levels through a sensor on its watch
- Apple filed a patent for a system that can measure substances without contact
- It describes a system where a ‘compact, portable device’ is attached with sensors, light emitters, filters and other objects to prevent inaccuracies
- The firm has been rumored for more than a year to be building a non-invasive glucose monitoring device, described as the ‘holy grail’ of life sciences
Apple may be developing a revolutionary device for people who suffer from diabetes.
The iPhone maker filed a patent Thursday titled ‘Reference switch architectures for noncontact sensing of substances,’ which many believe could be a prototype design for Apple’s rumored glucose monitoring technology.
It describes a system where a ‘compact, portable electronic device’ could be fitted with technology that’s capable of measuring the type or levels of a certain substance.
Apple has been rumored for several months to be developing non-invasive glucose monitoring technology for the Apple Watch.
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Apple may be developing a revolutionary device for people who suffer from diabetes. A new patent describes a system where a ‘compact, portable electronic device’ could be fitted with technology that’s capable of measuring the type or levels of a certain substance
IS APPLE DEVELOPING A GLUCOSE SENSOR?
Apple has reportedly hired a team of biomedical engineers to develop non-invasive sensors which could detect diabetes and monitor blood-sugar levels.
The engineers are expected to work at a nondescript office in Palo Alto, around 15 miles away from the new corporate headquarters in Cupertino, California.
If the non-invasive sensors come to fruition, it would be a breakthrough moment for medical science.
The late Apple CEO Steve Jobs envisaged the devices as another form of wearable technology, similar to a smartwatch or fitness monitor.
An optical imaging system is used to perform absorption spectroscopy, or ‘remote sensing,’ where measurements are able to be collected due to two objects being in close proximity to one another.
Apple notes that there’s a possibility for measurement inaccuracies, so it proposes an apparatus that includes a beamsplitter, or an ‘optical component that can split a beam of light into multiple beams of light.’
The apparatus would also include short-wavelength infrared detectors, light emitters, filters and other objects to prevent inaccuracies.
The patent doesn’t describe what types of substances the device would measure.
‘Examples of the disclosure can include measuring a concentration of a substance in a sample at a sampling interface,’ the filing states.
‘In some examples, the sample can include at a least a portion of a user, where additional information can be used to improve the delivery of measured information, analysis, or any other content that may be of interest to the users.’
Speculation began building in 2017 that Apple was building a non-invasive glucose monitor.
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Apple has been rumored for several months to be developing non-invasive glucose monitoring technology for the Apple Watch. A new patent could describe how that system would work
A report from CNBC stated that Apple has a ‘super secret’ team of engineers working on the project, which began over five years ago.
The team has been conducting feasibility trials as it works to gain regulatory approval and may test it at clinical sites around San Francisco, CNBC noted.
Additionally, last May Apple CEO Tim Cook was testing a glucose monitor that attaches to the Apple Watch.
The device has been described as the ‘holy grail’ of life sciences, because it’s difficult to monitor blood sugar without breaking the skin.
The project – envisioned by co-founder Steve Jobs before his death – could lead to ‘breakthrough’ wearable devices that detect the disease and monitor blood-sugar levels.
To avoid inaccuracies, Apple proposes an apparatus that includes a beamsplitter, or an ‘optical component that can split a beam of light into multiple beams of light’
Apple has hired a team of biomedical engineers as part of the secret initiative, according to reports in CNBC.
Up to 30 people are believed to be working on the project, which has be running for five years.
The researchers have been tasked with developing bio-sensors to monitor blood sugar levels.
Currently this involves taking regular blood samples, which can involve anything from a thumb-prick test to intravenous extraction.
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