Method and apparatus for producing compact microarrays
First Claim
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1. A method of producing a compact microarray using a printhead having a plurality of pins, comprising:
- loading said pins with material to be deposited on a substrate;
selectively depositing material in a predetermined active area of said substrate using a subset of two or more of said pins in said printhead;
selectively depositing material in said predetermined active area of said substrate using another subset of two or more of said pins in said printhead;
wherein said printhead has a footprint, defined by the periphery of the pins in the printhead, that is larger than said predetermined active area of said substrate.
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Abstract
The disclosed pin-lifter can selectively lift pins partially out of a printhead of a spotting instrument and thereby prevent the lifted pins from contacting the substrate during any printing. Methods of using pin-lifters to increase the rate of production of compact microarrays are disclosed.
49 Citations
21 Claims
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1. A method of producing a compact microarray using a printhead having a plurality of pins, comprising:
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loading said pins with material to be deposited on a substrate;
selectively depositing material in a predetermined active area of said substrate using a subset of two or more of said pins in said printhead;
selectively depositing material in said predetermined active area of said substrate using another subset of two or more of said pins in said printhead;
wherein said printhead has a footprint, defined by the periphery of the pins in the printhead, that is larger than said predetermined active area of said substrate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. An apparatus for producing a compact microarray, comprising:
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a printhead having a plurality of pins movably mounted therein, said pins being arranged in subsets of two or more pins; and
a plurality of pin lifting mechanisms, each associated with a different one of said subsets for lifting the pins of the subset together relative to the printhead. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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Specification