Portable glucose testing systems started out as a science fair project, and you probably know how much I support science fairs. Our fair in Mercer County just finished up in March. That was just one reason why I was excited to hear about Home Diagnostics’ Sidekick (see Fig. 1)
.
The Sidekick, a disposable glucose testing system priced at under $35, is based on Texas Instrument’s MSP430 microcontroller (see Fig. 2)
. The MSP430’s ability to handle analog data and drive an LCD made it an ideal choice for Sidekick. Its low cost and low power consumption made it practical to build as a disposable product. The only other chip in the system is a custom ASIC (see Fig. 3)
that helps with the sensor data conversion.
Going disposable is not just for convenience. Conventional glucose testing systems require repeated calibration. With the Sidekick, calibration is done at the factory. It would still have to be calibrated if you could get another set of strips but instead you toss the unit once you have used up the strips provided. The whole system fits in the cap.
Testing consists of popping the cap to remove a strip, plugging in the strip, and getting a drop of blood on the strip. The meter does the rest with a test result displayed on the LCD.
To find out more about the Sidekick I spoke with Gary Neel, director of engineering for Home Diagnostics Inc. Here’s what he had to say:
Wong: Who came up with the idea of a disposable glucose testing system?
Neel: I came up with the idea of a disposable glucose testing while thinking about concepts for integrated test systems. All integrated systems on the market were too large, complex, and costly. My first thoughts were how to make a testing product that was small, convenient, simple and affordable. The idea to attach a meter to the cap of a test strip vial came to me one morning after our company Christmas party. The R&D group called the meter project CAP because it fit on the cap and looked like a baseball cap. The acronym CAP spawned a new catch phrase to describe this type of product as a "Convenient All-in-one Product." The formal marketing name chosen for this product is SideKick.