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US 5,963,318 AGranted
Method of and apparatus for performing fixed pathlength vertical photometry
AssigneeBio-Tek Holdings, Inc.
InventorPaul G. Held
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AssigneeBio-Tek Holdings, Inc.
InventorPaul G. Held
Estimating the term…
A system for performing vertical spectrophotometric determinations uses a vessel which has an upper transparent surface and a lower transparent surface which are spaced apart to define a known fixed pathlength through which a light beam is transmitted. The vessel also includes a portion disposed above the upper surface which may be a spout having an opening for allowing the introduction of substances into the containment portion.
A vessel for use in performing optical density measurements of a substance using vertical spectrophotometry to determine the presence of an analyte in the substance, comprising:
An apparatus for performing optical density measurements of a substance using a microplate reader for conducting vertical spectrophotometry to determine the presence of an analyte in the substance, comprising:
A vessel for use in performing optical density measurements of a substance using vertical spectrophotometry to determine the presence of an analyte in the substance, comprising:
A vessel for use in performing optical density measurements of a substance using vertical spectrophotometry to determine the presence of an analyte in the substance, comprising:
A vessel for use in performing optical density measurements of a substance using vertical spectrophotometry to determine the presence of an analyte in the substance, comprising:
An apparatus for performing optical density measurements of a substance using a microplate reader for conducting vertical spectrophotometry to determine the presence of an analyte in the substance, comprising:
A method of performing optical density measurements using vertical spectrophotometry to determine the presence of an analyte in a substance contained within a vessel, comprising the steps of:
A method of performing optical density measurements using vertical spectrophotometry to determine the presence of an analyte in a substance contained within a vessel, comprising the steps of:
A method of performing optical density of a substance using a microplate reader for conducting vertical spectrophotometry to determine to determine the presence of an analyte in a substance contained within a vessel, comprising the steps of:
A method of performing optical density measurements using vertical spectrophotometry to determine the presence of an analyte in a substance contained within a vessel, comprising the steps of:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.
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Cuvette constructions: optical path conditioning in cuvettes, e.g. windows; adapted optical elements or systems; path modifying or adjustment
Investigating or analysing materials by determining their chemical or physical properties
Term ended 7 Aug 2018 (estimated)
USPTO file history isn’t available for this patent, so only indexed dates are shown.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a method of and device for performing vertical spectrophotometric determinations, and, more particularly, a method of and device for performing vertical spectrophotometric determinations of a substance based on a fixed beam pathlength. The invention further relates to a method of and device for performing spectrophotometric determinations of substances using vertical beam spectrophotometric based instrumentation such as a microplate reader.
2. Description of the Background
The above and other objects of the present invention can be better understood with reference to the following detailed description of the specific embodiments when considered in combination with the drawings that form part of the specification, wherein:
FIG. 1 is a representative cross sectional view of an apparatus for performing vertical spectrophotometry of a solution in accordance with the conventional methodology.
FIG. 2 is a representative cross sectional view of an apparatus for performing horizontal spectrophotometry of a solution in accordance with the conventional methodology.
FIG. 3 illustrates a setup for performing vertical spectrophotometric analysis on a light absorbing substance/solution 4 in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The vessel 10 has a containment portion 11 defined in part by a transparent upper surface 12 and a transparent lower surface 13 which are spaced apart at a predetermined distance corresponding to a fixed light beam pathlength D. A spout (or an overfill portion) 14 in communication with the containment portion 11 is disposed on the vessel so that its opening is positioned above the upper surface 12. Accordingly, the spout 14 can be used to introduce the light-absorbing substance into the containment portion.
As shown in FIG. 3, the light source 1 is positioned above the vessel 10 so that the vertical beam of light 2 emitted from the light source 1 is directed to be transmitted through the transparent upper surface 12 of the containment portion 11, through the solution 4 within the containment portion 11, and through the transparent lower surface 13 of the containment portion 11 without interference from the spout 14. Accordingly, the portion of the light beam 2a which is not absorbed by the substance 4 is detected by the detector 5. In the preferred embodiment of the apparatus, the upper surface 12 and the lower surface 13 are parallel to one another. The light beam 2a which passes through the lower surface 13 is measured by the detector 5 disposed below the lower surface 13 and opposite the light source 1.
In the configuration of FIG. 3, the light path is directed vertically, however, the physical dimensions of the containment portion define the fixed light beam pathlength D of the substance 4. Moreover, the liquid-air interface 15 is located in the spout 14 which is offset from the path of the vertical light beam so as not to factor into the light absorbance measurement.