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AssigneeNational Research Council of Canada
InventorsPun Pang SHIU, Kebin LI, Keith MORTON, Teodor VERES
Estimating the term…
A gravitationally checked microvalve for use in a microfluidic chip/device has a receptacle with a floor and at least one sidewall; a supply channel for non-capillary transport of liquid with an outlet into the receptacle; and an enclosure that permits pressurization-driven flow of tiny volumes of liquid with great control. The microvalve has an accretion surface surrounding the outlet on at least 3 sides thereof, that guides growth and formation of a bolus of the liquid from the supply channel to accrete volume at the outlet, by preventing spread of the liquid beyond the accretion surface, to draw a center of gravity of the bolus away from the sidewall. Once sufficient volume accretes, weight overbears adhesion, and the bolus falls. Preferably a slide is provided to guide the bolus's fall. As the fluid has fallen, gravity checks the valve after the fall. A vertical separation between the outlet and the floor is at least 5.5 mm to ensure checking.
In a microfluidic device having a receptacle with a floor and at least one sidewall, a gravitationally checked microvalve (GCM), the GCM comprising:
A method for operating a gravitationally checked microvalve in a microfluidic device, the method comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.