Accurate continuous monitoring is not just about placing microneedles in the skin—it is about how the signal is interpreted once chemistry meets electronics. ZP’s granted IP protects a key ZP innovation that dramatically improves the precision and robustness of analyte measurements, particularly glucose, by rethinking how electrochemical signals are generated and analysed over time.
Traditional electrochemical sensors apply a voltage and read a single steady-state current. ZP’s approach goes further. The system intentionally alternates between a rest phase, where the sensor remains in contact with interstitial fluid without power, and a measurement phase, where voltage is applied and the resulting current curve is analysed in detail. During the rest phase, reaction products naturally accumulate at the microneedle electrode. When power is reapplied, this stored chemical information is released as a characteristic current peak.
Rather than relying on a single value, ZP extracts multiple features from the current curve—an initial peak, a transition point, and a stabilised signal—each representing a different aspect of the analyte’s behaviour. This creates a built-in signal amplification and self-validation effect, allowing the system to measure very low, normal, and very high analyte levels with higher confidence and less noise. In effect, the sensor uses the chemistry itself as a temporary memory that improves sensitivity and accuracy.
Crucially, the system adapts in real time. Measurement timing and power application are dynamically adjusted based on how the signal evolves, optimising both accuracy and energy use. This makes the approach particularly well suited to wearable microneedle devices, where power efficiency, signal stability, and continuous operation are essential.
Within ZP’s broader wearable microneedle IP portfolio, this patent anchors the measurement intelligence layer of the IP moat. It complements patents covering microneedle fabrication, skin insertion, comfort and moisture control, electrical connectivity, power management, and manufacturability. Together, these layers protect not just how ZP accesses interstitial fluid, but how that raw biochemical information is converted into clinically meaningful data.
For partners and collaborators, this capability translates into a decisive advantage: microneedle platforms that deliver more reliable readings across the full physiological range, backed by a deep, system-level IP moat that is difficult to replicate and highly valuable in real-world wearable applications.
