Medical Sensor Is Put On Blood Bags
January 27, 2010 by admin
Filed under Level, Liquid Level
Schweizer Electronic AG, situated in Schramberg, Germany, and SIEMENS AG Österreich, with registered offices in Vienna, Austria, have agreed to extensive cooperation for the manufacture and marketing of RFID transponders with the integrated sensor technology known as “SEAGSens”. Schweizer Electronic is responsible for the manufacture of the transponders developed in collaboration with the Hochschule Offenburg (Offenburg university) and SIEMENS. SIEMENS will assume the distribution and marketing. The SEAGSens will be used in seamless temperature monitoring, tracing and the clear identification of blood bags, medications or foodstuffs, among others. Schweizer Electronic is to operate the RFID business in the context of a “Schweizer Tracking and Tracing Solutions” business unit.
After having completed extensive tests and pilot projects, Schweizer Electronic has now finalised the qualification of the SEAGSens (see pictures). The first series production order has already been received.
In principle, the RFID-based measuring instrument monitors and verifies temperatures as required in this logistical application of blood products. Reliability is the all-important decisive factor here. The SEAGSens fulfils the highest requirements of clinics and blood banks. The temperature-based quality assessment of donor blood on their entire route from the donor to the patient markedly reduces the discard rate of blood products which leads to considerable cost savings.
In addition, the clear identification of the stored blood effectively prevents the serious consequences of incorrect blood transfusions caused by mistaking blood bags. The same technology can also be used to monitor the transport and logistical processes of other industries and applications for which temperature is of critical importance.
RFID sensor tag SEAGsens on blood bag
To achieve the required quality level of temperature-sensitive pharmaceutic products, monitoring of the complete cold chain has to be ensured. Therefore, Schweizer Electronic designed the requirements for a tracking and tracing system for blood products in close collaboration with Siemens AG Österreich and ‘Universitätsklinik für Blutgruppenserologie und Transfusionsmedizin’ located in Graz.
The complete temperature profile of blood bags has to be monitored from vein of donor to vein of recipient. Thus, the monitoring device must be able to withstand the centrifugation processes necessary for blood fraction (up to 5,000 G) without malfunction. The operation costs per run have to be low.
Together with Siemens AG Österreich and University of Offenburg Schweizer Electronic developed SEAGsens, a temperature data logger with RFID frontend.
How does it work?
A digital sensor is measuring the temperature very accurately at a freely selectable time cycle. The microcontroller is analysing the temperature/time data and stores up to 30,000 measurement readings in a memory chip. The memory can be read out contactlessly at any time via the RFID wireless interface (HF frontend). Schweizer Electronic developed a special housing and battery technology to ensure centrifugation ability. The qualification process and the clinical field test have been terminated successfully. The benefit: monitoring of long periods through high memory and battery capacity.
The SEAGsens RFID sensor tag provides highest level of functionality, safety and quality. Due to the long operation time, costs per run are comparatively low. The integrated battery allows a continuous useability of more than 3 years. The temperature focused quality control reduces the wastage rate of blood products considerably. By the unique identity of each single blood bag, incorrect transfusions with all their harmful consequences are efficiently eliminated.
