Transcutaneous analyte sensor

Abstract

The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for measuring an analyte in a host. More particularly, the present invention relates to systems and methods for transcutaneous measurement of glucose in a host.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A sensor system for measuring an analyte concentration in a host, the sensor system comprising:
 a sensor comprising at least one electrode; and   sensor electronics configured to measure the analyte concentration in the host when the sensor is implanted therein, wherein the sensor electronics comprise a data sampling portion in data communication with the at least one electrode, wherein the data sampling portion comprises an analog portion configured to measure the current flowing at the at least one electrode and to convert the current measurement to digital values representative of the current, wherein the digital values are acquired at a predetermined time interval.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the predetermined time interval is programmed. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the predetermined time interval is programmable. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the predetermined time interval is programmable at an interval from about 6 seconds to about 3600 seconds. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor electronics comprise a transmitter portion for transmitting a signal indicating a level of the analyte in the host at a programmable transmission interval. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein the programmable transmission interval is a multiple of the predetermined time interval. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein the transmission interval is programmable from about 30 seconds to about 60 minutes. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor electronics are configured to measure the current flow in at least a picoAmp range. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor electronics comprise an integrated circuit. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the integrated circuit comprises the data sampling portion. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the data sampling portion comprises a current to frequency converter. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a digital filter configured to smooth the digital values. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor electronics further comprise a transmitter portion configured to build and transmit a data packet, wherein the data packet comprises a plurality of bits, wherein at least some of the plurality of bits include at least one digital value representative of the current. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein the at least one digital value comprises a filtered digital value. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein the at least some of the plurality of bits further include identification information. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 15  wherein the identification information includes sensor identification information. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein the at least some of the plurality of bits further include error detection. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein the at least some of the plurality of bits further include error correction. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a transmitter portion configured to build and transmit a data packet, wherein the data packet comprises a plurality of bits, wherein at least some of the plurality of bits include at least one digital value representative of the current, wherein the at least some of the plurality of bits further include identification information. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 19  wherein the identification information includes sensor identification information.