Liquid handling tool having porous plunger
AssigneeProtedyne Corporation
InventorPeter Massaro
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A robotically manipulable sample handling tool, such as a colony picking head or robotic pipetting tool, includes needles arranged on the tool. Actuators are associated with each needle to control flow for the needle. A plurality of plungers are each associated with a needle, and movement of the plungers can actuate a corresponding needle. Each of the plungers has a passageway that may be opened or closed, e.g., to move the corresponding needle and/or draw fluid into/expel fluid from the needle when the plunger is moved in the tool body. The actuators are arranged so that plunger passageways may be individually controlled by a controller.
Claims15
A material handling tool, comprising:
- a tool body;
- a plurality of needles mounted to the tool body, each of the plurality of needles constructed and arranged to remove material from a work area and deposit material on a work area;
- a plurality of plungers moveable in the tool body, each of the plurality of plungers associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of needles, wherein each of the plungers has a passageway that allows fluid flow through the plunger;
- and
- a controller constructed and arranged to individually address each of the passageways so that flow in each of the passageways is individually controlled, wherein the controller comprises a plurality of actuators, each of the actuators including a membrane valve that controls fluid flow with respect to a corresponding passageway and is capable of opening and closing a corresponding passageway, and a plurality of drive switches that controls flow through a passageway opened by an actuator.
A material handling tool, comprising:
- a tool body;
- a plurality of needles mounted to the tool body, each of the plurality of needles constructed and arranged to remove material from a work area and deposit material on a work area;
- a plurality of plungers moveable in the tool body, each of the plurality of plungers associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of needles, wherein each of the plungers has a passageway that allows fluid flow through the plunger;
- and
- a first number of membrane valves, each membrane valve associated with a corresponding plunger and controlling flow for the passageway in the plunger;
- and
- a valve controller constructed and arranged to control each of the membrane valves by providing signals to the membrane valves;
- wherein the valve controller is adapted to control the membrane valves to individually control flow for each passageway.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.