MULTI-CHANNEL PIPETTOR WITH REPOSITIONABLE TIPS

• US 20090274587A1
• Filed: 05/05/2008
• Published: 11/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Integra Biosciences AG
• Original Assignee: Viaflo Corporation
• Inventors: Butz, David Earl, Cote, Richard, Mathus, Gregory, Kalmakis, George P.
• Granted Patent: US 8,029,742 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 422/100
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/022 Variable spacings
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/0217 of the plunger pump type medical syringes A61M
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/0227 Details of motor drive means B01L3/0231, B01L3/0234 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/0237 Details of electronic control, e.g. relating to user interface

Abstract

A hand-held, multi-channel pipettor has an electronically controlled motor to reposition pipette tips for different center to center spacing. Each repositionable tip fitting assembly has a cam following pin that is driven by cam tracks in a motor driven roller drum. Stationary ports for the multiple aspiration cylinders are strategically placed to simplify management of flexible tubes leading to the repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies. The pipettor has a user interface that can be operated conveniently by one hand to reposition pipette tips. It has a pipette tip ejection mechanism with a sinusoidal stripper bar.

Claims

1. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor comprising:

multiple aspiration cylinders and a plurality of repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies, wherein each tip fitting assembly has a pipette tip mounting shaft;

a first motor for controlling the movement of pistons within the multiple aspiration cylinders; and

a second motor for moving the repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies to adjust the center line spacing between the mounting shafts.

2. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 1 comprising:

a handle portion;

a lower portion;

wherein the second motor resides in the lower portion.

3. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 1 wherein the first motor is in the handle portion.

4. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 1 wherein each repositionable pipette tip fitting assembly has a cam following pin, and is slidably mounted on at least one rod spanning across the lower portion;

and the lower portion further comprises a roller drum that extends parallel to the rod and has individual cam tracks for each cam following pin, wherein the pitch of each cam track is selected so that the center line distance between adjacent pipette tip mounting shafts changes evenly as the roller drum is rotated by the second motor.

5. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 4 wherein the lower portion further comprises gears to transmit power from the second motor to the roller drum.

6. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 1 further comprising an encoder that provides a signal regarding the position of the repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies to a microprocessor within the pipettor.

7. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor comprising:

a plurality of repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies comprising pipette tip mounting shafts, each having a lower port being aligned along a line and having a range of motion along the line, the line being substantially horizontal when the pipettor is being used to aspirate or dispense;

multiple aspiration cylinders and associated stationary ports through which air is aspirated into and out of the respective aspiration cylinders, wherein each outermost port is located near a center point for the range of motion for the respective pipette tip mounting shaft; and

a plurality of flexible tubes, each flexible tube extending essentially from a stationary port for one of the aspiration cylinders to a port on one of the repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies.

8. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 7 wherein each repositionable pipette tip fitting assembly is slidably mounted on a rod spanning across the lower portion and has a cam following pin, and the lower portion further comprises a roller drum that extends parallel to the rod and has individual cam tracks for each cam following pin.

9. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 8 wherein each stationary port is located in the vicinity of the drum and is facing a direction that is substantially tangent to the outer surface of the drum, and further wherein the associated flexible tube wraps from the stationary port around the drum to the port on the repositionable tip fitting assembly for less than 180 degrees.

10. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 7 wherein the stationary ports are ports into and out of the aspiration cylinders in a cylinder block, and are rigid tubes connected to the cylinder block, each rigid tube having an outlet facing the same side of the pipettor.

11. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor comprising:

an upper handle portion adapted to be held in the hand of the user;

a user interface display located on the front side of the pipettor;

a lower portion having multiple aspiration cylinders and a plurality of repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies, each comprising a pipette tip mounting shaft;

a motor for moving the repositionable tip fitting assemblies to adjust the center line spacing between the tip mounting shafts;

a microprocessor that controls the motor; and

menu driven software that programs the microprocessor to operate the motor to position and reposition the repositionable tip fitting assemblies.

12. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 11 wherein the menu driven software includes a tip spacing programming screen that allows the user to select tip spacings for at least two desired settings.

13. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 12 wherein the tip spacing programming screen in the menu driven software allows the user to select tip spacings in sets of only two or three positions.

14. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 12 wherein the pipettor further comprises at least one navigation button as part of the user interface, and the menu driven software includes a run screen including an indication of the appropriate navigation button or buttons that the user must actuate to adjust the pipette tip spacing to each of the at least two selected tip spacings.

15. A hand-held, electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 12 wherein the current tip spacing setting is highlighted on the user interface display.

16. A hand-held electronic multi-channel pipettor comprising:

a plurality of repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies each comprising a pipette mounting shaft, a cam following pin and an air flow passageway, each tip fitting assembly being slidably mounted along at least one rod and having a range of motion along a portion of the rod;

a roller drum extending parallel to the rod and having cam tracks for the respective cam following pins, wherein the pitch of each cam track is selected so that the center line distance between adjacent pipette tip mounting shafts changes evenly as the roller drum is rotated;

multiple aspiration cylinders and associated stationary ports through which air is aspirated into and out of the respective aspiration cylinders,

a plurality of flexible tubes extending essentially from a stationary port for one of the aspiration cylinders to a port for the air flow passageway on one of the repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies.

17. A hand-held electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 16 wherein the roller drum has individual cam tracks for each repositionable tip fitting assembly and the total wrap path for each cam track is less than one full revolution of the roller drum.

18. A hand-held electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 16 wherein the body of each repositionable tip fitting assembly is molded from lubricious material.

19. A hand-held electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 18 wherein a corrosion resistant metal tube to form the air passageway is insert molded into the body of each repositionable pipette tip fitting assembly.

20. A hand-held electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 16 wherein the lower portion comprises two parallel rods to which the repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies are slidably mounted, wherein a first rod is located forward of and lower than the second rod when the pipettor is in a vertical orientation with the parallel rods being substantially horizontal, and

further wherein each repositionable tip fitting assembly is configured such that the pipette mounting shaft extends straight downward from a body of the fitting assembly when the pipettor is in the vertical orientation, such that the port for the air passageway for each tip fitting assembly extends angularly upward in the forward direction, and such that the air passageway through the body of the tip fitting assembly bends and passes between the two rods.

21. A hand-held electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 16 wherein each stationary port is located in the vicinity of the drum and are facing a direction that is substantially tangent to an outer surface of the drum, and further wherein the associated flexible tube wraps from the stationary port around the drum to the port on the repositionable tip fitting assembly for less than 180 degrees.

22. A hand-held electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 16 wherein the cam following pin for each repositionable tip fitting assembly extends straight upward from the fitting assembly when the pipettor is in the vertical orientation.

23. A hand-held electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 16 wherein at least one of the repositionable tip fitting assemblies is stationery with respect to the pipettor.

24. A hand-held electronic multi-channel pipettor comprising:

a plurality of repositionable pipette tip fitting assemblies comprising pipette mounting shafts, each being aligned along a line and having a range of motion along the line, the line being substantially horizontal when the pipettor is being used to aspirate and dispense;

multiple aspiration cylinders and associated stationary ports through which air is aspirated into and out of the respective aspiration cylinders; and

a plurality of flexible tubes, each tube extending essentially from a stationary port for one of the aspiration cylinders to a port on one of the repositionable tip fitting assemblies, and

means for moving the repositionable tip fitting assemblies to adjust the center line spacing between adjacent pipette tip mounting shafts, wherein the distance between adjacent pipette tip mounting shafts changes evenly and fitting assemblies farther from the center of the pipettor have a progressively larger range of motion.

25. A hand-held electronic multi-channel pipettor as recited in claim 24 further comprising an ejector mechanism that has a stripper bar with a continuously varied stripping height.