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US 2018/0370739 A1Published application
Apparatus and method for dispensing microorganism culture plates
Assignee3M Innovative Properties Company
InventorPHILLIP A. BOLEA
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus for dispensing microorganism culture plates, culture plate loader and culture plate reader comprising the same, as well as method dispensing microorganism culture plates, method of loading such culture plates into a culture plate reader, and method of counting microorganism colonies on such culture plates.
Claims16
A culture plate dispensing apparatus comprising
- a base having a first major surface, a front edge, and a back edge;
- a pusher on or above the first major surface of the base, the pusher being capable of moving from a retracted position to an engaged position, the retracted position being closer to the back edge than the engaged position;
- the pusher and base being configured such that when the pusher is in the retracted position the base is capable of supporting one or more culture plates on top of the first major surface of the base, the one or more culture plates having a back edge positionable near the pusher and a slip cover positionable over the pusher when the pusher is in a retracted position;
- an upright member positioned at least in part above a portion of the base near the front edge of the base to form a space between the upright member and the base, the space between the upright member and the base defining a precision gap large enough for a culture plate to pass through;
- wherein the precision gap is at least the height of the one or more culture plates and less than twice the height of the one or more culture plates;
- and
- wherein the pusher is adapted to push one and only one culture plate at least partially through the precision gap when it is moved from the retracted position to the engaged position.
4 more elements
A method of dispensing a culture plate, the method comprising:
- placing one or more culture plates having cover slips with an overhanging portion that overhangs at least one edge of the one or more culture plates on a base having a first major surface, a front edge, and a back edge between a pusher in a retracted position located towards the back of the base and on or above from the base towards the one or more culture plates and an upright member that is positioned in part above the base and towards the front edge of the base, the space between the upright member and the base defining a precision gap, such that the overhanging portion of at least one of the cover slips is above the pusher;
- engaging the pusher to move from the retracted position to an engaged position that is closer to the front edge of the base than the retracted position, thereby pushing one and only one culture plate through the precision gap.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.