Patent ID: 8262995

Claim:
An analytical system comprising: an analytical instrument having a first slot defining therein an electrical interface and a second slot configured to receive a test element, the analytical instrument measuring a physical characteristic of a bodily fluid deposited on the test element when the test element is inserted into the second slot, a calibration module separate from the analytical instrument and including a chip having coding stored therein that is specific to a set of the test elements, the calibration module compatible with the first slot of the analytical instrument and contacting the electrical interface in the first slot when the calibration module is inserted into the first slot, the analytical instrument reading the coding stored in the chip and correcting measurements made by the analytical instrument of the physical characteristic of the bodily fluid deposited on any of the set of the test elements based on the coding, and a data transfer module separate from the analytical instrument and separate from the calibration module, the data transfer module also compatible with the first slot of the analytical instrument and contacting the electrical interface in the first slot when the data transfer module is inserted into the first slot in place of the calibration module, the data transfer module receiving electrical signals from the analytical instrument, converting the electrical signals to electromagnetic or acoustic signals and transferring the electromagnetic or acoustic signals to a data processing unit when the data transfer module is in the first slot and contacting the electrical interface.