Needle module for a drive-controlled apparatus for repeatedly piercing human or animal skin, and handheld unit

A needle module for a drive-controlled handheld unit for repeatedly piercing human or animal skin, comprising:

• a housing;
• a needle holder, which is arranged in the housing such that it can be moved back and forth in a longitudinal direction of the housing;
• a piercing device, which is arranged on the needle holder in such a way that the piercing device can be moved, on account of the movement of the needle holder, between a proximal and a distal position, in which a piercing tip of the piercing device is arranged outside the housing;
• a coupling component, which is coupled to the needle holder in such a way that a driving movement provided with a repetition frequency by a drive device that can be coupled to the coupling component can be introduced onto the needle holder;
• and
• a damping component, which is arranged between the needle holder and the coupling component and is configured to damp a transfer of force therebetween, wherein the damping provided by the damping component can be adjusted by means of an adjustment device.

A handheld unit for repeatedly piercing human or animal skin, comprising

• a drive module, which has a drive device, by means of which a driving movement with a repetition frequency is provided;
• and
• a needle module, the needle module comprising:
• a housing;
• a needle holder, which is arranged in the housing such that it can be moved back and forth in a longitudinal direction of the housing;
• a piercing device, which is arranged on the needle holder in such a way that the piercing device can be moved, on account of the movement of the needle holder, between a proximal and a distal position, in which a piercing tip of the piercing device is arranged outside the housing;
• a coupling component, which is coupled to the needle holder in such a way that the driving movement provided with the repetition frequency by the drive device that can be coupled to the coupling component can be introduced onto the needle holder;
• and
• a damping component, which is arranged between the needle holder and the coupling component and is configured to damp a transfer of force therebetween, the damping component is secured on the coupling component against shifting transversely to the longitudinal direction of the housing, wherein the needle module is connected to the drive module in such a way that the driving movement is coupled onto the needle holder with the piercing device, wherein the damping provided by the damping component can be adjusted by means of an adjustment device.