System for forming an array of emulsions
AssigneeBio-Rad Laboratories, Inc.
InventorsKevin D. Ness, Benjamin J. Hindson, Billy W. Colston, Jr., Donald A. Masquelier
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system, including method and apparatus, for forming an array of emulsions. The system may include a plate providing an array of emulsion production units each configured to produce a separate emulsion and each including a set of wells interconnected by channels that intersect to form a site of droplet generation. Each set of wells, in turn, may include (1) at least one first input well to receive a continuous phase, (2) a second input well to receive a dispersed phase, and (3) an output well configured to receive from the site of droplet generation an emulsion of droplets of the dispersed phase disposed in the continuous phase.
Claims21
A system for forming an array of emulsions in parallel, comprising:
- a plate providing an array of emulsion production units each configured to produce a separate emulsion and each including a set of wells interconnected by a set of channels forming a channel junction, each channel being bounded circumferentially, each set of wells including
- at least one first input well to receive a continuous phase,
- a second input well to receive a dispersed phase, and
- an output well;
- wherein the set of channels includes at least two input channels extending separately from the input wells to the channel junction, at which droplets of the dispersed phase are generated in the continuous phase, and an output channel extending from the channel junction to the output well, in which an emulsion is collected.
A system for forming an array of emulsions in parallel, comprising:
- a plate having an upper member attached to a lower member to form an array of emulsion production units each configured to produce a separate emulsion, each unit including a set of wells interconnected by a set of channels forming a channel junction, each channel being bounded circumferentially, each set of wells including
- at least one first input well to receive a continuous phase,
- a second input well to receive a dispersed phase, and
- an output well;
- wherein the set of channels includes at least two input channels extending separately from the input wells to the channel junction, at which droplets of the dispersed phase are generated in the continuous phase, and an output channel extending from the channel junction to the output well, in which an emulsion is collected, and
- wherein the lower member has an upper surface that is flat and that abuts a lower surface of the upper member to form a bottom wall of openings formed in the lower surface and corresponding to the wells and the channels of each unit.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.