Method of operation utilizing electric energy for processing of blood to neutralize pathogen cells therein

A method for the processing of blood which has cells therein, including pathogen cells, comprising the steps of:

• filling a plurality of parallel channels in each of a plurality of chambers with said blood and then holding said blood in a static state, each said chamber having opposed transparent walls,
• after said channels have been filled with said blood, directing collimated light through said chamber walls and the blood in said channels to a corresponding image sensor for each chamber,
• producing a sensor image by each of said image sensors detecting said light which has passed through the corresponding said chamber, each of said sensor images including one or more shadow images of cells in said blood that is in the corresponding chamber,
• comparing a plurality of said shadow images in each of said sensor images with one or more reference images which correspond to said pathogen cells, to identify ones of said shadow images which have a substantial match to one or more of said reference images for said pathogen cells to thereby produce identified pathogen cell shadow images,
• determining the locations of said pathogen cells in said channels which pathogen cells correspond to said identified pathogen cell shadow images,
• selecting a predetermined travel time for each of said determined locations of said pathogen cells,
• after said locations of said located pathogen cells has been determined, resume moving said blood further along in each of said channels, and
• after each one of said located pathogen cells has resumed moving through the one pathogen cell corresponding channel for a duration of the travel time for the determined location of the one pathogen cell, applying electrical energy to said one of said located pathogen cells, wherein electrical energy is applied to each of said located pathogen cells.

A method for the processing of blood which has cells therein, including pathogen cells, comprising the steps of:

• transferring blood from a blood source into a plurality of parallel channels in each of a plurality of chambers, each chamber having opposed, parallel transparent walls,
• stopping said transferring so that said blood is not moving in said channels,
• directing collimated light concurrently through said walls of said chambers,
• receiving said collimated light, after it has passed through said walls of said chambers, at a plurality of light sensors, each light sensor corresponding to one of said chambers,
• each said light sensor producing a sensor image after said light has been directed through said chambers, each said sensor image including shadow images of said cells in said blood present in the corresponding chamber,
• comparing said shadow images in each said sensor image to reference pathogen cell images to identify shadow images which substantially compare to one or more of said reference pathogen images, wherein each of said identified shadow images corresponds to an identified one of said pathogen cells,
• producing a list of locations in each of said channels for said identified pathogen cells,
• selecting a predetermined travel time for each of said locations in each of said channels,
• subsequent to producing said sensor images, moving said blood further along in said channels,
• upon expiration of each said travel time, applying electrical energy to a volume of said blood in the channel corresponding to the expired travel time, said volume of blood having a one of said identified pathogen cells therein, and
• after said electrical energy has been applied, driving said blood through said channels to a chamber output port of each said chamber.