Non-invasive glucose sensor system

Claim 2

A non-invasive glucose sensor system for determining the sugar content in a user's blood, said system comprising radiation emitting means for emitting radiation of certain wavelengths, radiation detecting means for detecting the emitted radiation, said radiation detecting means spaced apart from but in line with said radiation emitting means, means for mounting said radiation emitting means and radiation detecting means so that said radiation is capable of being transmitted through the cornea of the user's eye, and enabling means for enabling said detecting means to determine the optical rotation of the radiation occurring in the cornea.

Claim 3

The non-invasive glucose sensor system of claim 1 wherein said enabling means comprises an optical polarizing system, said optical polarizing system including first polarizing means for polarizing said emitted radiation prior to the transmission thereof through the cornea, and second polarizing means mounted on the detector side of said cornea and rotated with respect to said first polarizing means.

Claim 4

The non-invasive glucose sensor system of claim 1 wherein said radiation emitting means comprises a pair of laser emitters operating at different wavelengths.

Claim 5

The non-invasive glucose sensor system of claim 1 wherein said means for mounting said radiation emitting means and said radiation detecting means comprises contact lens means.

Claim 6

The non-invasive glucose sensor system of claim 4 wherein said contact lens means are opaque to infrared radiation and wherein the radiation traveling from said radiation emitting means to said radiation detecting means does not pass through said contact lens means.

Claim 7

The non-invasive glucose sensor system of claim 5 wherein said contact lens means is a soft scleral contact lens.

Claim 8

The non-invasive glucose sensor system of claim 1 wherein means are provided for transmitting a signal that is a function of the detected radiation obtained from said radiation detector means and receiving means for receiving said transmitted signal to provide an indication of the glucose content of the user's blood.

Claim 9

The non-invasive glucose sensor system of claim 7 wherein said receiving means includes logic means for providing the solution to the following equation: ##EQU3## wherein: c = Concentration of glucose in % α 1 = Optical rotation in degrees at 0.98 micron α1 2 = Optical rotation in degrees at 0.78 micron k = Proportionality constant I 1 = amplitude of telemetry signal resulting from laser operating at a wavelength of 0.98 micron I 2 = amplitude of telemetry signal resulting from laser operating at a wavelength of 0.78 micron ______________________________________ STEP EQUATION DERIVATION ______________________________________ A cos.sup.2 α = I From Polarized Light W. A. Shurcliff and S. S. Ballard, Van Nostrand Co., p. 67, 1964. B ##STR6## Identity C ##STR7## ##STR8## From A and C ##STR9## D ##STR10## ______________________________________ but E kc = α and F k 1 c = α 1 G k 2 c = α 2 k.sub.1 c - k.sub.2 c = α.sub.1 - α.sub.2 . . . Subtracting G from F k.sub.1 = 0.90, k.sub.2 = 0.035. . . Experimentally determined ##EQU4##

Claim 12

The method of claim 9 wherein said pair of radiation rays comprises a first radiation ray having a wavelength of 0.98 micron and a second radiation ray having a wavelength of 0.78 micron.

Claim 13

The method of claim 9 including the step of blocking out extraneous infrared radiation.

Claim 14

The method of claim 9 wherein said radiation rays are transmitted for 50 nanoseconds every millisecond.

Claim 15

The method of claim 12 including the step of: mounting said radiation generating and transmitting means and optical rotation detecting means as well as transmitter means onto a contact lens and placing the contact lens in the patient's eye.

Claim 16

The method of claim 9 including the steps of: transmitting a signal that is a function of the detected radiation; receiving the signal that is a function of the detected signal; and translating the received signal into a digital readout indicative of the sugar content of the person's blood.

Claim 17

The method of claim 14 wherein said translating comprises solving the equation: ##EQU5## wherein: c = Concentration of glucose in % α 1 = Optical rotation in degrees at 0.98 micron α 2 = Optical rotation in degrees at 0.78 micron k = Proportionality constant I 1 = amplitude of telemetry signal resulting from laser operating at a wavelength of 0.98 micron I 2 = amplitude of telemetry signal resulting from laser operating at a wavelength of 0.78 micron __________________________________________________________________________ STEP EQUATION DERIVATION __________________________________________________________________________ A cos.sup.2 α = I From Polarized Light W. A. Shurcliff and S. S. Ballard, Von Nostrand Co., p. 67, B ##STR11## Identity C ##STR12## ##STR13## From A & C ##STR14## D ##STR15## but E kc = α and F k.sub.1 c = α.sub.1 G k.sub.2 c = α.sub.2 k.sub.1 c - k.sub.2 c = α.sub.1 - α.sub.2 Subtracting G from F k.sub.1 = 0.90, k.sub.2 = 0.035 Experimentally determined H ##STR16## ##STR17## Substituting for α from step __________________________________________________________________________ D.