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US 5,393,494 AGranted
Apparatus for drawing fluid sample, components thereof, and slide assembly for use therewith
AssigneeDiaSys Corporation
InventorsWalter Greenfield, Edward G. Kearns, James E. Kemble
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus for drawing a specimen of a body fluid, such as urine from a sample tube. The specimen is drawn through a reusable slide assembly for examination. The slide assembly includes a glass enclosure shaped to provide a viewing chamber for use with a microscope. A sample tube with a special plug and ball valve provides a solids collection chamber with which a uniform amount of body liquid is provided for the specimen.
Claims24
An apparatus for drawing a sample of test fluid inside a container through a slide assembly for analysis with a microscope comprising:
- a flushing fluid supply;
- pump means for pumping fluid between the container and said flushing fluid supply;
- reusable slide means having a viewing chamber for holding a fluid sample for direct viewing of the fluid sample by the microscope;
- said reusable slide means being removably mountable to the microscope;
- said reusable slide means including an elongate optical glass enclosure having upper and lower substantially flat walls spaced-apart from each other to form an elongate viewing chamber with the spacing between the substantially flat walls being commensurate with that required for said test fluid to move into the viewing chamber for effective viewing with the microscope for test fluid analysis;
- said elongate optical glass enclosure having integral end-located glass ports which are generally in longitudinal alignment with the elongate viewing chamber so as to present smooth passage to the flow of fluid;
- flexible tubing means for establishing fluid flow communication between the container and said reusable slide means and between the reusable slide means and said pump means;
- means for activating the pump means in one operative direction for a sufficient time so as to draw a sample of test fluid from the container through the viewing chamber of the glass enclosure without passing into the flushing fluid supply;
- means for activating the pump means in another operative direction for pumping flushing fluid from the flushing fluid supply through the viewing chamber to flush the test fluid sample therefrom into said container.
6 more elements
A reusable slide assembly for use in urinalysis with a microscope, comprising:
- an elongate transparent extruded glass seamless enclosure having elongate upper and lower transparent planar walls which are spaced from each other to form an elongate viewing chamber for use with a microscope, said elongate upper and lower transparent planar walls being spaced by a distance commensurate with a spacing as encountered between a cover slip and a glass slide used in conventional microscope urinalysis;
- said elongate transparent extruded glass seamless enclosure terminating at opposite ends at first and second glass ports which are in longitudinal alignment with the elongate viewing chamber to provide a smooth entry and exit of fluid to and from the elongate viewing chamber and are an integral part of the glass enclosure;
- an elongate holder having a midsection on which the elongate transparent extruded glass seamless enclosure is mounted with a said wall facing the midsection, said holder midsection further having a light passing opening located in viewing alignment with the elongate viewing chamber of the elongate transparent extruded glass seamless enclosure;
- said elongate holder further having first and second tubes mounted to opposite ends of the holder in general longitudinal alignment with the first and second glass ports of the elongate transparent extruded glass seamless enclosure and being in fluid flow communication with said first and second glass ports of the elongate transparent extruded glass seamless enclosure.
1 more element
A fluid collection tube, comprising:
- a tube having a wall, a closed end, and an open end, said tube being shaped for a centrifuge operation during which solids inside a fluid held within the tube tend to collect adjacent the closed end;
- a plug inside the tube and seated in fixed spaced relationship from the closed end to define a solids collection chamber having a constant volume between the plug and the closed end, said plug having a bore extending therethrough and terminating with a valve seat facing the solids collection chamber, the cross-section of the bore being sized so that solids in the fluid pass through the bore from a region above the plug to the solids collection chamber and pass a sample removing probe;
- and
- a loose valve element formed of a material having a specific gravity selected so as not to float in the fluid and located within the solids collection chamber, said loose valve element being sized to fit on the valve seat to seal the bore of the plug when the tube is inverted to decant excess fluid so as to preserve a substantially known amount of sample fluid within the solids collection chamber, said valve element having sufficient mass to break-up aggregated solids as these were consolidated from a centrifuge operation.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.