Methods for heating microscope slides carrying specimens
AssigneeVentana Medical Systems, Inc.
InventorJonathan Peter Beer
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A slide processing apparatus controls the temperature and orientation of a microscope slide carrying one or more specimens. The apparatus heats the specimen-bearing microscope slide while the slide is oriented to both facilitate adhesion between the specimens and the slide and control movement of the specimens relative to the microscope slide. A slide dryer of the apparatus conductively heats the specimens using a conductive slide heater that physically engages the microscope slide.
Claims24
A method for processing microscope slides carrying specimens, the method comprising:
- robotically delivering the microscope slides to a drying station;
- moving the microscope slides within the drying station such that the microscopic slides are positioned at an angle of inclination to promote draining of liquid from the microscope slides;
- heating the microscope slides held at the angle of inclination such that a temperature along each of the microscope slides is higher than about 50 degrees Celsius to at least partially dry specimens carried by the microscope slides;
- after at least partially drying the specimens,
- robotically delivering the microscope slides from the drying station to a staining station;
- delivering stains onto the microscope slides, carrying the at least partially dried specimens, using the staining station;
- robotically transporting the microscope slides from the staining station to a cover-slipping station;
- and
- robotically placing coverslips on the microscope slides using the cover-slipping station.
A method for processing a microscope slide carrying a specimen, the method comprising:
- robotically delivering the microscope slide to a drying station with a slide heater configured to heat the specimen to a temperature higher than 50 degrees Celsius;
- heating the specimen while the microscope slide is within the drying station and held at a substantially vertical orientation;
- robotically delivering the microscope slide to a processing station after the drying station has dried at least a portion of the specimen;
- and
- dispensing one or more fluids using the processing station such that the one or more fluids contact the specimen carried by the microscope slide.
A method for processing specimen-bearing microscope slides, the method comprising:
- robotically delivering microscope slides to a drying station;
- moving the microscope slides using the drying station to position the microscope slides at an inclined position;
- heating the microscope slides held at the inclined position such that a temperature along the microscope slides is higher than about 50 degrees Celsius;
- after at least partially drying specimens carried by the microscope slides, robotically delivering the microscope slides to a staining station;
- and
- robotically delivering stains onto the microscope slides using the staining station to stain the at least partially dried specimens.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.