Forschungsschwerpunkt
Predevelopment of Medical Devices
Drug Delivery Devices
Drug delivery devices are medical devices for the administration of therapeutic agents. Very often, the active substances are administered in liquid form by injection or infusion. Typical representatives of these medical devices are insulin pens or insulin pumps for the application of insulin in the treatment of diabetes mellitus.
At IFTE, the insulin pen (injection device) and the insulin pump (infusion device) are a current object of research. The problem areas for the design of such dosing systems are being investigated specifically according to the pumping principle. With the suction principle, the medication is pumped out of the ampoule with a pumping device, whereby the ampoule loses its original dosing function. New technical concepts become possible, leading to higher dosing accuracy and smaller devices (e.g. patch pumps). IFTE can point to more than 30 patent applications and competences in the following fields:
- Development of micropumps with delivery rates in the µl - ml range,
- Development of sensor technology for volume and flow rate measurement to ensure dosing accuracy,
- Development of electrodynamic drive concepts,
- Investigation of the suction behaviour of glass ampoules (plug friction) and its influence on the technically possible pumping principle,
- Detection of air bubbles and their separation from the fluid flow,
- Dosing concepts for increased dosing accuracy with patch pumps.
Modular injection device with integrated display
Injection arrangement