GLUCOband - Bianca Lennarz - DESMA9 Fall 2013 Midterm

1. DESMA 9: ART, SCIENCE, &
TECHNOLOGY
Professor Victoria Vesna
Section 1C – Fall 2013
GLUCOband
By Bianca Lennarz

2. ABSTRACT
As learned from class, all areas of the sciences are integrated with
the arts, as well as vice versa. Specifically, I believe that the use of
biotechnology and medicine is especially useful and beneficial to
improve the health, lifestyles, and overall life spans of people.!
!
The use of a fashionable and modernized bracelet, disguised as a
glucose level sensor band, will improve the lives of people suffering
from diabetes. This method of measuring blood glucose levels in the
body will eliminate the need to use invasive, consistent blood
samples in order to observe whether the levels are too high, too low,
or normal. Maintaining a schedule to check an individualʼs levels will
also be eliminated, since the device notifies the person of any danger
on its own, which will also eliminate the need to purchase costly
lancets, gluco strips, and the gluco reader, making it economically
friendly.!

3. CONCEPT/TOPIC
• Diabetes is a metabolic disease, either hereditary or from diet,
in which the person has high blood glucose (blood sugar),
either because insulin production is inadequate, or because
the body's cells do not respond properly to insulin, or both.
There are three types of diabetes: Type I Diabetes, Type II
Diabetes, and Gestational Diabetes (“All About Diabetes”).!
• Diabetes is a worldwide disease, where the only way to live a
healthy and long lifestyle is to control the condition in the body
through increased knowledge and access to immediate real
time data. It is important for diabetics to be informed about the
effects of raised glucose levels in the blood and how to monitor
it.!

4. CONTEXT & PRECEDENTS
u Normal blood glucose level ranges for most people (Shiel):!
o
Upon waking up (before breakfast): 80 mg/dL to 120 mg/dL!
o
Before meals: 80 mg/dL to 120 mg/dL!
o
Two hours after meals: 160 mg/dL or less!
o
Bedtime: 100 mg/dL to 140 mg/dL!
u A type of watch currently exists which reads blood glucose levels of
the individual through electrochemical signals taken from secretions
from the skin, although the diabetics still have to perform the invasive
procedures of pricking themselves throughout the day by their pre-set
schedule in order to get an actual accurate reading (“Medical
Devices”).!
u GLUCOband is more discreet, more fashionably appealing, more
painless, more economically friendly, and more convenient for all age
groups, versus the watch that already exists for diabetics.!

5. PROJECT PROPOSAL
A tiny printed circuit board (PCB chip) will be implanted directly
under the dermis, which is rich in blood supply, at the general
location where the individual will wear the GLUCOband. This
PCB will be able to read the blood glucose levels through the
blood in the dermis. The bracelet will be engineered to detect the
blood glucose levels by reading a signal sent from the PCB to a
sensor located directly underneath the bottom face of the bandʼs
bezel – a signal that is continually updated as any changes occur
in the blood stream. !
PCB synced to sensors
located on the bottom
surface of the bracelet!
PCB chip that will be
implanted under
dermis by blood
vessel!

6. PROJECT PROPOSAL
Although the initial setup is a slightly invasive procedure, the continuous use of the
bracelet and constant check of blood glucose levels is completely non-invasive,
eliminating the need to prick the fingers for blood samples multiple times per day.
This band will be able to accurately read the blood glucose value of the blood via the
PCB, which will result in data being displayed on a small and discrete screen that
resembles a watch on the face of the bracelet.!
!
Not only will the band consistently notify the individual of the blood glucose value, but
it will also automatically notify the wearer if the blood glucose level is over or under
the normal individual pre-set range. If out of range, the bracelet will display a colored
light shaped as a arrow, one for each extremity, along with a short beeping sound.
Since the device detects the blood glucose levels on its own throughout the entire
day, the individual does not need to constantly check their level on a manual basis,
which will eliminate the need for a remembered schedule. Before meals, the
individual is able to solely look at the bracelet to see an already updated notification
of the current blood glucose level, and from there, the diabetic can adjust his or her
diet, or consume any required medication. !

7. PROJECT PROPOSAL
The GLUCOband will also serve as
a stylish watch and calendar in
order to help in disguising the
diabeticʼs purpose for wearing it. It
will be available in a variety of
colors and designs to best fit the
diabeticsʼ interest. A GLUCOband
application will also be created for
the app store to either download
via computer or cell phone, which
will record and compile the
individualʼs blood glucose level
values and data sent from the
synced signal of the PCB over a
specified period of time.!
Face of the bracelet that displays the blood
glucose level reading, the arrows that light up
for extremity readings, and the date and time!

8. CONCLUSION
Not only will painful, pricked fingers will no
longer be an issue, but GLUCObands will
also make the lives of diabetics easier,
healthier, and much more relaxed, knowing
that their blood glucose levels are
constantly being monitored automatically,
and without discomfort. There will be no
more health risks by allowing blood glucose
levels to drop or exceed too much for too
long of a time period. Since the individuals
will be alerted to any imbalances in realtime, as the change in glucose is
happening, they will be able to prevent any
negative factors from occurring in the body
by being allowed the opportunity to take
care of themselves immediately.!

9. REFERENCES
• "All About Diabetes." Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, n.d.
Web. 01 Nov. 2013. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/info/diabetes/>.
• "Medical Devices - GlucoWatch G2 Biographer - P990026/S0008." FDA U.S.
Food and Drug Administration. N.p., 05 Sept. 2013. Web. 01 Nov. 2013. <http://
www.fda.gov/medicaldevices/productsandmedicalprocedures/
deviceapprovalsandclearances/recently-approveddevices/ucm083294.htm>.
• Shiel, William C., Jr. "Diabetes - What Should My Blood Sugar Levels Be?"
MedicineNet. N.p., 29 Mar. 2002. Web. 01 Nov. 2013. <http://
www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=17384>.
(All images created through the use of Pro/Engineer design software)

10. BIBLIOGRAPHY
• "All About Diabetes." Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, n.d. Web. 01 Nov. 2013. <http://
www.medicalnewstoday.com/info/diabetes/>.
• Brain, Marshall. "How Digital Clocks Work." HowStuffWorks. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Nov. 2013. <http://
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• Davidson, Nancy K., and Peggy Moreland. "Diabetes: Tips for Developing Healthy Habits." Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for
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www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/diabetes-statistics/>.
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11. BIBLIOGRAPHY
• "How Circuits Work." HowStuffWorks. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Nov. 2013. <http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/
energy/circuit5.htm>.
• Jensen, B. M., P. Bjerring, J. S. Christiansen, and H. Orskov. "Glucose Content in Human Skin: Relationship with Blood
Glucose Levels." Scandinavian Journal of Clinical and Laboratory Investigation (1995): 427-32. NCBI PubMed. Web. 1 Nov. 2013.
<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8545601>.
• "Medical Devices - GlucoWatch G2 Biographer - P990026/S0008." FDA U.S. Food and Drug Administration. N.p., 05 Sept. 2013.
Web. 01 Nov. 2013. <http://www.fda.gov/medicaldevices/productsandmedicalprocedures/deviceapprovalsandclearances/
recently-approveddevices/ucm083294.htm>.
• "MLA Handbook: Bibliographic Format for References." University of Georgia Libraries. 2007-10-24 <http://
www.libs.uga.edu/ref/mlastyle.html>.
• "Printed Circuit Board." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 31 Oct. 2013. Web. 02 Nov. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Printed_circuit_board>.
• Ryan, V. "Printed Circuit Boards - Introduction." Technology Student. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Nov. 2013. <http://
www.technologystudent.com/pcb/pcb1a.htm>.
• Shiel, William C., Jr. "Diabetes - What Should My Blood Sugar Levels Be?" MedicineNet. N.p., 29 Mar. 2002. Web. 01 Nov. 2013.
<http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=17384>.
• "What Is Insulin?" Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, n.d. Web. 02 Nov. 2013. <http://
www.medicalnewstoday.com/info/diabetes/whatisinsulin>.
• "When Your Blood Glucose Is Too High or Too Low." National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse (NDIC). N.p., 08 Aug. 2013.
Web. 02 Nov. 2013. <http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/type1and2/lowglucose.aspx>.
• Witt, Sam. "Is Human Chip Implant Wave of the Future?" CNN. N.p., 14 Jan. 1999. Web. 1 Nov. 2013. <http://
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