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US 2026/0264086 A1Published application
Pipette tip support card bundles with alignment guide
AssigneeXcaliber Sciences, Inc.
InventorArta Motadel
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Systems and methods for assembling pipette tip support card bundles use an alignment guide with dome-shaped projections and voids to direct tip distal ends into receiver slots, preventing misalignment and static. The guide may be removable for interleaved bundles or integrated for non-interleaved ones, maintaining tip plumbness. Preferred embodiments include plastic construction, standard array compatibility, and features for reduced tip contact and improved orthogonality.
Claims27
An alignment guide for assembling pipette tip support cards, comprising:
- a base configured for nested insertion into a pipette tip support card;
- a plurality of dome-shaped or sloped projections protruding from the base, each projection having a sloped surface configured to contact and to direct a distal end of a pipette tip;
- and
- a plurality of voids interspersed among the plurality of dome-shaped or sloped projections in the base, each void comprising a through-opening in the base sized and configured to receive a distal end of a pipette tip and aligned with a receiver slot on the support card receiver the base is nested therein;
- wherein the sloped surfaces are configured to cam a distal end of a pipette tip into a corresponding void during an insertion process so that the voids and projections cooperate to guide pipette tip distal ends into the receiver slots by laterally redirecting contacted distal ends toward aligned voids and into the receiver slots without contact between adjacent tips.
2 more elements
A pipette tip support card system, comprising:
- a first support card having a plurality of pipette tip support holes and receiver slots;
- a second support card having a plurality of pipette tip support holes and receiver slots;
- and
- the alignment guide comprising:
- a base configured for nested insertion into the second pipette tip support card;
- a plurality of dome-shaped or sloped projections protruding from the base, each projection having a sloped surface configured to contact and to direct a distal end of a pipette tip;
- and
- a plurality of voids interspersed among the plurality of dome-shaped or sloped projections in the base, each void comprising a through-opening in the base sized and configured to receive a distal end of a pipette tip and aligned with a receiver slot on the second support card when the base is nested therein;
- wherein the sloped surfaces are configured to cam a distal end of a pipette tip into a corresponding void during an insertion process so that the voids and projections cooperate to guide pipette tip distal ends into the receiver slots by laterally redirecting contacted distal ends toward aligned voids and into the receiver slots without contact between adjacent tips.
6 more elements
A pipette tip rack comprising:
- a support card having an array of tip support holes and receiver slots;
- and
- an integrated alignment structure disposed below the support card and comprising a two-dimensional array of projections narrowing towards an apex to form intervening voids aligned with receiver slots on the support card, the projections including sloped camming surfaces positioned to laterally redirect distal ends toward the intervening voids and into the receiver slots during insertion;
- wherein the integrated alignment structure supports and constrains distal ends of tips seated in the receiver slots to maintain a true plumb orientation.
1 more element
A method of assembling a pipette tip support card bundle, comprising:
- providing a first support card and a second support card, each having pipette tip support holes and receiver slots;
- inserting an alignment guide into the second support card, the guide having dome-shaped or sloped projections and voids aligned with the receiver slots;
- inserting a first plurality of pipette tips into the support holes of the first support card, wherein distal ends of the first plurality are guided by the dome-shaped projections into the receiver slots of the second support card;
- removing the alignment guide;
- and
- inserting a second plurality of pipette tips into the support holes of the second support card, wherein distal ends of the second plurality are guided by the first plurality into the receiver slots of the first support card.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.