Microfluidic pressure sensor
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
InventorsNing Ge, Alexander Govyadinov, Anita Rogacs, Viktor Shkolnikov
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Abstract
A microfluidic pressure sensor may include a reference chamber, a sensed volume, a microfluidic channel connecting an interior of the reference chamber to an interior of the sensed volume, a volume of liquid contained and movable within the microfluidic channel while occluding the microfluidic channel and a sensor to output signals indicating positioning of the volume of liquid along the microfluidic channel. Positioning of the volume of liquid along microfluidic channel indicates a pressure of the sensed volume.
Claims14
A microfluidic pressure sensor comprising:
- a reference chamber;
- a sensed volume;
- a microfluidic channel connecting an interior of the reference chamber to an interior of the sensed volume;
- a volume of liquid contained and movable within the microfluidic channel while occluding the microfluidic channel;
- and
- a sensor to output signals indicating positioning of the volume of liquid along the microfluidic channel, wherein positioning of the volume of liquid along microfluidic channel indicates a pressure of the sensed volume.
A method for sensing microfluidic pressure within a sensed microfluidic volume, the method comprising:
- sensing a position of a volume of liquid within a microfluidic channel connecting the sensed volume to a reference chamber;
- and
- determining a pressure of the sensed volume based upon the sensed positioning of the volume of liquid along the microfluidic channel.
A microfluidic chip comprising:
- a first microfluidic channel;
- a first sensor to sense a characteristic of fluid within the first microfluidic channel;
- and
- a microfluidic pressure sensor comprising:
- a reference chamber;
- a second microfluidic channel connecting an interior of the reference chamber to an interior of the first microfluidic channel;
- a volume of liquid contained and movable within the second microfluidic channel while occluding the second microfluidic channel;
- and
- a second sensor to output signals indicating positioning of the volume of liquid along the microfluidic channel, wherein positioning of the volume of liquid along the second microfluidic channel indicates a pressure of the first microfluidic channel.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.