Patent ID: 8475733

Claim:
A hand-held test meter and analytical test strip cartridge assembly combination comprising: a hand-held test meter including: a test meter housing; and an extractor with at least one test strip engagement feature; and an analytical test strip cartridge assembly including: a desiccant vial; and an analytical test strip cartridge including: a cartridge housing; a test strip presentation mechanism disposed within the cartridge housing, the test strip presentation mechanism comprising at least one test strip retainer; and a plurality of discrete analytical test strips disposed in the cartridge housing, each of the discrete analytical test strips having at least one extractor engagement feature and having a top layer and a bottom layer; wherein the test meter housing is configured for operative engagement with the cartridge housing; and wherein the test strip presentation mechanism is configured to present a single discrete analytical test strip from the plurality of discrete analytical test strips, and serves to splay part top and bottom layers of the single discrete analytical test strip, for engagement with the extractor; and wherein the analytical test strip cartridge is configured for operative disposition in the desiccant vial.