People with diabetes are scouring the internet for a discontinued insulin pump that can be reprogrammed as an "artificial pancreas"

[Garymon]

@Neovison.vison

it’s like Juicero but for mission-critical enzymes.

That’s often how I think of my fellow humans.

[Michael_R_Smith]

@anotherone

So if my imaginary kit was designated “parts for creating an automated pump for various applications that should definitely not be used for medical purposes”, then I’m in the clear?

Only if you are fine with some kid’s life depending on how well the device was assembled. I am a maker myself. I count myself as fairly skilled in embedded systems. This whole idea gives me the horrors.

I could work on a system like this but only as part of an organization with subject matter experts, and large scale system level testing. And lawyers.

[RickMycroft]

It does sound like something you’d go to the Sprawl to make a deal with the Finn about.

[Garrett_Motzner]

@doctorow

By contrast, commercial artificial pancreases are fully locked down and force users to buy proprietary insulin at severe markups (insulin is already one of the most marked up medical products in common usage, with prices rising over 1000% in the past ten years).

This statement is slightly misleading: All Medtronic pumps are compatible with the same types of insulins (in my experience). So a Medtronic artificial pancreas would not require more expensive insulin. I recently got a Medtronic 670g, which is a type of artificial pancreas, and was not required to change insulin brands. In fact, I have used different brands at different times on this pump. There is a requirement for a more shelf-stable type of insulin, and cheaper insulins often degrade much faster (after days or hours out of the fridge, vs. weeks or months in reasonable outdoor climates) because insulin must be stored onboard (Which would be the case for all insulin pumps). Cheaper insulins also often have different absorption curves, but a feature of the 670g is that it can incidentally compensate for variances in the absorption curve, and the estimated time for absorption can be configured.

That paragraph intends to set up a distinction that colors Medtronic as malicious, when it isn’t apparent that such a distinction between the paradigm pump shown and the new 670g pump actually exists. (Not saying that Medtronic isn’t trying to prevent open modifications that would cause them to make less money, just that this paragraph doesn’t support this)

I myself would love to have the option to modify my insulin pump, although it would be life-threateningly dangerous and risky. Having such an option available would be nice. At the same time, I do appreciate that my pump is secure, and I am not open to known vulnerabilities, and that the software in the pump has been verified in many tests.