Connectivity Insulin pump to/from iPhone

Projects
1

Hi guys,
I’m trying to get my head around building a device that will be able to connect to insuline pump that diabetics use and send data over bluetooth to iPhone. I’ve found very interesting schematics on github https://github.com/ps2/rileylink . I’ve bought pcb board and all electronic components.
I’ve googled a bit how to solder this components and seems that the way to do it would be with hot-air rework station. Is that available in the makerspace?
Also just notice that I will have to buy pcb stencil and solder paste. Anyone can recommend any site where I could buy it from?

Thanks,
Lukasz

2

I think you would need to breadboard your circuit first before you commit to soldering with surface mount parts etc, ensure that it works the way you imagine and iron out any bugs. You can change a breadboarded cct easily, not so a smt soldered one.

3

Not sure that you can do this sort of stuff with a iPhone .
To many interrupts and that sort of thing , medical electronics is difficult like that .

Sorry to be a bucket of cold water .

Will be happy to help with the pcb on Thursday nights if you want to come down.

4

There are various techniques to solder smd’s with an iron, just need some extra bits like a flux pen and wick. A stencil is only needed really if you are doing volume with a reflow oven. I personally have hot air too so could bring the unit in with some paste if needed.

The one concern I have just looking quickly at this is its setup for the US. 916mhz is not a UK open band, here we use 868mhz or 433mhz so it’s not strictly legal. That said it its v low power you should be fine.

Courty

5

Not for controlling a pump full of stuff that can kill you.
It’s going to require some pretty tricked up software

2 Likes
6

Agree, I would want to know how much the iPhone has to do with it before I connected it up :smile:
I would hope it’s just to monitor the pump not control it

Courty

1 Like
7

Both me and courty have worked on high reliability systems (never medical in my case ) and I will be happy to help, with the cavat that we don’t kill anyone.

It’s also has to work if the user takes a trip down the A169 (a road that kills electronics in Yorkshire ) I think that this is going to be a very hard problem to solve .

8

Hi guys, thanks a lot for all replies. I’ve ordered stencil from www.oshstencils.com. Initially we want to use this to only retrieve data from pump. We have similar setup at home using raspberry pi and usb dongle that connects to pump, but it is clanky and it doesn’t work without wifi.
I’ve bought antena 866Mhz so it should be fine. Actually if not the antena I could get it from US as the diabetics community there is assembling version with 916mhz.