Google files patent for needle-free blood draw device

Google Life Sciences has filed a patent for a needle-free blood draw device with US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Google files patent for needle-free blood draw deviceGoogle Life Sciences has filed a patent for a needle-free blood draw device with US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The patent is being seen as the latest addition to its growing list of projects in the fields of medtech and healthcare.

The patent filed with USPTO describes needle-free blood draw as, "A system for needle-free drawing of blood is disclosed. A device can include an evacuated negative-pressure barrel with a membrane sealing an aperture at a distal end, and a housing affixed to a proximal end. An accelerator barrel can be positioned within the negative-pressure barrel and fixed to the housing, with an open proximal end in a chamber in the housing, and an open distal end aligned with the aperture. The chamber can be filled with pressurized gas, and a trigger valve can hydrostatically separate the chamber from the open proximal end of the accelerator barrel. A micro-particle positioned within the accelerator barrel can be accelerated to high speed by an abrupt surge of gas by releasing the trigger valve. The micro-particle can attain enough momentum to pierce the aperture membrane and penetrate adjacent dermal tissue. A resulting micro-emergence of blood can be drawn into the negative pressure barrel. "

The life sciences unit, which was previously a part of the tech company's Google X research and development unit, has recently picked Verily as its new name as it seeks more visibility in the fast-growing medical technology sector.

The name change follows Google's transition to the parent name Alphabet, which in October became the publicly traded company that houses Google's core search and web advertising business, as well as maps, YouTube and its "moon shot" ventures such as driverless cars.

According to Verily's new website (, the company's mission is "to bring together technology and life sciences to uncover new truths about health and disease."

Verily already has several projects in the works, including the development of a smart contact lens in partnership with the Swiss drugmaker Novartis that has an embedded glucose sensor.

The company's research team is also undertaking a multi-year project, known as the Baseline study, that aims to identify traits associated with a healthy human and the changes that take place as individuals transition from health to disease.

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