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.

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.

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.

The END of painful finger-prick tests for diabetics? Scientists create a new sticky patch that can read blood sugar levels through your skin (and it could link up to your smartphone one day!)

The pioneering new device has been developed by Bath University scientists
It sticks onto the skin to test glucose levels - and doesn't require a drop of blood
Experts hope hoped the skin patch could one day be linked to a smartphone app
They found it was accurate after testing it on pigs and two human volunteers

Painful finger-prick blood tests taken several times a day by millions of diabetics could become a thing of the past.

A pioneering new patch that sticks onto the skin to test glucose levels has been created by scientists.

The device, developed by Bath University researchers, works by assessing sugar levels in the skin through hair follicles - not blood.

It is hoped the skin patch could one day be linked to a smartphone app to warn diabetics when to take action.

The patch, if proven in larger trials, could replace the current method, considered unpopular, to test sugar levels.

A pioneering new patch that sticks onto the skin to test glucose levels has been created

The device, developed by Bath University researchers, works by assessing sugar levels in the skin through hair follicles - not blood

Professor Richard Guy and colleagues found the patch was accurate after testing it on pigs and two human volunteers.

He said: 'A non-invasive - that is, needleless - method to monitor blood sugar has proven a difficult goal to attain.

'The closest that has been achieved has required either at least a single-point calibration with a classic "finger-stick", or the implantation of a pre-calibrated sensor via a single needle insertion.'

Professor Guy added the new monitor 'promises a truly calibration-free approach'.

Painful finger-prick blood tests taken several times a day by millions of diabetics could become a thing of the past

WHAT ARE THE FIVE NEW TYPES OF DIABETES?

For decades the disease has been considered to be two different forms - type one, an autoimmune disease in which people stop producing insulin, and type two, in which the body becomes resistant to insulin.

But now a major project in Sweden and Finland has found type two diabetes should actually be categorised as four different diseases.

The researchers, led by experts at Lund University, said the findings should prompt a ‘paradigm shift’ in the way people treat diabetes.

Cluster 1. Severe Autoimmune Diabetes- which until now has been known as ‘type one’ diabetes - is an autoimmune disease in which people stop producing insulin. Usually strikes in childhood but can emerge in adults. Requires insulin injections for life.

Cluster 2. Severe Insulin-Deficient Diabetes - young people often misdiagnosed as having type one, but whose immune systems are fine. Actually a variant of type two diabetes, but often of a healthy weight. High blood sugar, low insulin production and moderate insulin resistance.

Cluster 3. Severe Insulin-Resistant Diabetes - is predominantly linked to obesity and severe insulin resistance.

Cluster 4. Mild Obesity-Related Diabetes- includes obese patients, but is less serious and includes people who fall ill at a relatively young age.

Cluster 5. Mild Age-Related Diabetes is the largest group, with 40 per cent of all patients, and consists mostly of elderly patients.He continued: '[It is] an essential contribution in the fight to combat the ever-increasing global incidence of diabetes.'

The electrical patch, which sits on the wrist, taps into glucose in the skin through an array of miniature sensors.

It measures blood sugar without piercing the skin by drawing glucose from fluid between cells across hair follicles.

Glucose collects in tiny reservoirs where it is measured, with the ability to take readings every ten to 15 minutes over several hours.

The adhesive skin patch is more accurate than that of other experimental patches because it can operate on a much smaller area.

The team initially tested the patch on pig skin, which showed it could accurately track glucose levels across the range seen in diabetic human patients.

Further tests on two human volunteers, published in Nature Nanotechnology, again showed it could track blood sugar variations throughout the day.

Professor Guy and colleagues hope to improve the design of the patch to allow for full functionality across a 24-hour period and carry out clinical trials.

Diabetes is rapidly becoming Britain’s fastest growing health crisis, with the number of patients doubling in 20 years to 3.7 million.

The majority of cases are type 2, which is considered a hidden killer that can lead to heart failure, blindness, kidney disease and amputations.

Dr Adelina Ilie, study co-author, said: 'The specific architecture of our array permits calibration-free operation and it has the further benefit of allowing realisation with a variety of materials in combination.

'We utilised graphene as one of the components as it brings important advantages.

'Specifically, it is strong, conductive, flexible, and potentially low-cost and environmentally friendly.

'In addition, our design can be implemented using high-throughput fabrication techniques like screen printing, which we hope will ultimately support a disposable, widely affordable device.'

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