Patent ID: 8303535

Claim:
A drug delivery device for pumping medication into the body of a user, the device comprising: a housing having a start button and a status indicator; a cartridge holder having a sterile barrier at a first end thereof and arranged in the housing; a cartridge containing a volume of the medication to be dispensed; a drive unit having a plunger, the plunger being movable from a first position adjacent the sterile barrier to a second position in which the plunger has moved through the sterile barrier by piercing the sterile barrier and the plunger has dispensed the volume of the medication from the cartridge; a transfer unit providing a delivery conduit for the volume of medication from the cartridge to an included hollow needle, the transfer unit being connected to a second end of the cartridge holder and together providing an aseptic environment for the cartridge, the transfer unit being configured to extend the hollow needle beyond the housing and retract the hollow needle back into the housing after the hollow needle has been extended and the medication has been dispensed from the cartridge; and an electronic control unit which controls the drive unit, and interfaces with the start button and the status indicator, the electronic control unit being configured such that after the start button has been pressed longer than a requisite amount of time, the electronic control unit causes the transfer unit to extend the hollow needle and powers the drive unit such that the plunger moves from the first position to the second position.