Patent ID: 8658108

Claim:
A low-cost, limited-use blood glucose meter that is programmed or otherwise configured to only perform a predetermined number of blood glucose measurement tests that equals the number of blood glucose test strips associated with the limited-use blood glucose meter and originally contained in a package, comprising: a meter housing; a printed circuit board assembly, the printed circuit board assembly comprising: a power source comprising a non-removable battery mounted on a side of the printed circuit board assembly that is sealed within the meter housing and which is inaccessible to the user and cannot be removed from the limited-use blood glucose meter without causing damage to the meter housing or the printed circuit board; a strip port which accepts a blood glucose test strip having a blood glucose reagent; a strip reading device electrically coupled to the strip port which measures a reaction between a blood sample present on the blood glucose test strip and the blood glucose reagent, generates a blood glucose signal corresponding with the measured reaction, and which calculates a blood glucose level based at least in part on the blood glucose signal; a controller device communicatively coupled to the strip reading device, wherein the controller device receives the blood glucose level from the strip reading device; a bi-stable display comprising a plurality of bi-stable segments which transition between an on-state and an off-state with the application of drive voltages, wherein the bi-stable segments are arranged to display the blood glucose level, and wherein the bi-stable display persistently displays a most-recent blood glucose level without power provided by the power source; and a display controller communicatively coupled to the controller device and the bi-stable display, wherein the controller device provides display instructions to the display controller and the display controller provides drive voltages to the bi-stable segments based on the blood glucose level such that the bi-stable segments persistently display the most-recent blood glucose level; and wherein the strip reading device performs the predetermined number of blood glucose measurement tests and calculates the blood glucose level, and once the predetermined number of blood glucose measurement tests have been performed, the controller device of the limited-use blood glucose meter is programmed to cease all functions.