Apparatus for obtaining increased particle concentration for optical examination
AssigneeBecton, Dickinson and Company
InventorsBrian G. Scrivens, Dwight Livingston, Robert S. Frank, Klaus W. Berndt
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Abstract
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for analyzing a blood or other biological fluid sample in a quiescent state, whereby particulate constituents of biological samples that contain sparse populations of interesting cellular species can be enumerated and inspected using an optical scanning instrument. Specifically, this invention relates to a method and apparatus for obtaining increased cellular or particulate concentrations within the use of said optical scanning method.
Claims12
An apparatus for obtaining a liquid sample having an increased cellular or particulate concentration for optical examination, comprising:
- a separation chamber;
- a wall surrounding said separation chamber;
- a separation wall in said separation chamber dividing said chamber into first and second compartments, said separation wall having separation channels of at least two different sizes traversing said separation wall;
- a sample entrance into said first compartment for receiving sample fluid;
- air-venting channels on top of said wall surrounding said separation chamber;
- and
- a flow path in said separation chamber, wherein said flow path is in flow communication with the sample entrance and said flow path flows from said sample entrance through the first compartment and flows through the separation channels in the separation wall into the second compartment.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.