DIGITAL FLUIDIC AMPLIFIER PARTICLE SORTER

• US 3,791,517 A
• Filed: 03/05/1973
• Issued: 02/12/1974
• Est. Priority Date: 03/05/1973
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Mitchell Friedman
• Original Assignee: Mitchell Friedman
• Inventors: Friedman, Mitchell
• Primary Examiner(s): Knowles, Allen N.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Church, Gene A.
• Application Number:
  US05/338,216
• Time in Patent Office: 344 Days
• Field of Search: 209/3,4,74,111.5,111.6,111.7,111.8 324/34,61,71CP 356/39 210/65 250/222CP
• US Class Current: 209/579
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/342 according to optical properties, e.g. colour according to radiation transmittivity B07C5/3416
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/36 Sorting apparatus characterised by the means used for distribution sorting according to destination B07C3/003, B07C3/02
• CPC Class Codes: F15C 1/008 Other applications, e.g. for air conditioning, medical applications, other than in respirators, derricks for underwater separation of materials by coanda effect, weapons
• CPC Class Codes: F15C 1/08 Boundary-layer devices, e.g. wall-attachment amplifiers coanda effect fluid oscillators of pulse generators F15B21/12
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/149 specially adapted for sorting particles, e.g. by their size or optical properties
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 209/906 Pneumatic or liquid stream feeding item

Abstract

Differences in small particles entrained in a stream of liquid are detected and the resultant difference signals are used to control a fluidic amplifier located downstream to switch the liquid particle carrying stream to different outlet ports determined by the detection of particle differences.

Claims

1. Apparatus for sorting small particles such as biological cells while the particles are suspended in a liquid comprising a housing defining an optical chamber and comprised of a material which transmits light, means for moving the particle suspending liquid through said housing in a thin narrow stream to convey the particles in sequence through the stream one by one, a light source for directing a beam of light into said housing to intersect with the stream of particles, at least one photoresponsive pick-up element positioned to detect at least one optical reaction of each particle to illumination from the beam, said photoresponsive pick-up element being operable to provide electrical signals which vary in accordance with said optical reaction of each particle to thereby provide electrical signals indicative of different particle characteristics, a digital fluidic amplifier having an inlet connected to the outlet of said chamber to receive the particle stream, said fluidic amplifier having a switching chamber communicating with said inlet and at least two different outlets communicating with said switching chamber, an electrical transducer coupled to receive electrical signals from said photoresponsive element and operable to provide control signals to said fluidic amplifier, said fluidic amplifier being operable in response to said control signals to switch the liquid particle-carrying stream entering the inlet thereof from one outlet to another selected outlet in response to a predetermined particle characteristic control signal from said transducer.

2. Apparatus for sorting small particles such as biological cells while the particles are suspended in a fluid comprising a housing defining a detection chamber, means for moving the particle suspending fluid through said housing in a stream to convey the particles through the stream, a detection means associated with said detection chamber for detecting differences in particle characteristics and operable to provide electrical signals which vary in accordance with said differences in particle characteristics, a digital fluidic amplifier having an inlet connected to the outlet of said chamber to receive the particle stream, said fluidic amplifier having a switching chamber communicating with said inlet and at least two different outLet ports communicating with said switching chamber, an electrical transducer coupled to receive electrical signals from said detection means and operable to provide control signals to said fluidic amplifier, said fluidic amplifier being operable in response to said control signals to switch the fluid particle-carrying stream entering the inlet thereof from a first outlet port to a second selected outlet port in response to a predetermined particle characteristic control signal from said tranducer.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein;

said housing defines said detection chamber and said fluidic amplifier in a unitary structure.

4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein;

said digital fluidic amplifier is a wall attachment effect device.

5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein;

said housing defining a detection chamber is operable to provide for a laminar flow of the particle-suspending fluid therethrough, said apparatus including means associated with said digital fluidic amplifier for converting the laminar flow to turbulent flow within said fluidic amplifier switching chamber.

6. Apparatus as claimed in claim 5 wherein;

said means for converting the laminar flow to turbulent flow comprises an electrically energized turbulence transducer communicating with said fluidic amplifier switching chamber.

7. Apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein;

said electrical transducer coupled to receive electrical signals from said detection means is combined in said electrically energized turbulence transducer.

8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein;

said combined transducer is comprised of a piezo-electric crystal.

9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein;

said fluidic amplifier is operable when the fluid entering the inlet thereof continues in the laminar flow mode to deliver the fluid through said switching chamber to said first one of said fluidic amplifier outlet ports, said electrical transducer coupled to receive electrical signals from said detection means being combined in said turbulence transducer and the control signals provided to said fluidic amplifier comprising turbulence induction signals for selectively inducing turbulence in the stream of fluid, said fluidic amplifier being operable in response to the conversion of the stream of fluid from laminar flow to turbulent flow to switch the stream in said switching chamber from said first outlet port to said second outlet port.

10. Apparatus as claimed in claim 9 wherein;

said first outlet port is in axial alignment with the inlet of said switching chamber and said second outlet port is displaced from a position of axial alignment with said inlet, said switching chamber being partially defined by two sidewalls, one of said sidewalls being more closely spaced than the other to the extended axis of the inlet to said switching chamber, said closely spaced sidewall being arranged on the same side of said switching chamber as said second outlet port to lead the stream of fluid to said second port by the wall attachment effect when said fluid is turbulent.

11. Apparatus as claimed in claim 10 wherein;

said fluidic amplifier includes at least one control port communicating with one side of said switching chamber near the inlet thereof, means for changing the fluid pressure at said control port to be different from the pressure within said switching chamber to cause a transfer of fluid between said control port and said switching chamber to thereby interrupt the wall attachment effect by means of which the stream of fluid is attached to said closely spaced wall.

12. Apparatus as claimed in claim 11 wherein;

said fluidic amplifier includes a third outlet port communicating with the said switching chamber and arranged adjacent to the sidewall which is not spaced closely to the extended axis of the inlet to said switching chamber, said fluidic amplifier being operable to direct the stream Of fluid to said third outlet port by the wall attachment effect on said last-mentioned sidewall in response to a fluid pressure change switching signal from said control port and in the presence of turbulent fluid flow.

13. Apparatus as claimed in claim 5 wherein;

said digital fluidic amplifier includes two control ports communicating with said switching chamber, separate valve control means associated with each of said control ports, a source of control fluid at a pressure different from the pressure within said switching chamber connected to each of said valve means, each of said control ports being associated with one diverging side wall of said switching chamber, each of said control ports being operable in conjunction with the associated valve means to control the wall attachment effect of the stream of fluid within said switching chamber with respect to the associated side wall, said two outlet ports being respectively associated with said divergent side walls, at least one of said valve means being combined in said electrical transducer.

14. Apparatus as claimed in claim 13 wherein;

said means for converting the laminar flow to turbulent flow comprises an electrically energized turbulence transducer communicating with said fluidic amplifier switching chamber.

15. Apparatus as claimed in claim 14 wherein;

said turbulence transducer is operable in conjunction with said valve means.

16. Apparatus as claimed in claim 14 wherein there is provided, a third outlet port in axial alignment with said inlet of said switching chamber, said third outlet port being operable to receive the stream of fluid when the fluid flow remains laminar.

17. Apparatus as claimed in claim 16 wherein;

said digital fluidic amplifier is capable of selectively directing said particle bearing stream to any one of said outlet ports, said electrically energized turbulence transducer and said separate valve control means each being connected to receive signals from said detection means, one of said valve means being operable upon reception of a signal in conjunction with reception of a signal by said turbulence transducer to switch the stream to said first outlet port, the other one of said valve means being operable upon reception of a signal in conjunction with reception of a signal by said turbulence transducer to switch the stream to said second outlet port.

18. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein;

said stream of particle carrying fluid is a liquid.

19. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein there is provided, at least one additional digital fluidic amplifier having an inlet connected to one of said outlet ports of said first-mentioned digital fluidic amplifier, said additional digital fluidic amplifier having a second electrical transducer coupled to receive electrical signals from said detection means and being operable to provide control signals to said additional fluidic amplifier, said additional fluidic amplifier being operable in response to said control signals to switch the fluid particle carrying stream entering the inlet thereof from a first outlet port to a second selected outlet port in response to a predetermined particle characteristic control signal from said second transducer.

20. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein there is provided, a second housing defining a second detection chamber connected to receive the particle suspending fluid from one of said outlet ports of said fluidic amplifier, a detection means associated with said second detection chamber for detecting differences in particle characteristics and operable to provide electrical signals which vary in accordance with said differences in particle characteristics, a second digital fluidic amplifier having an inlet connected to the outlet of said second chamber to receive the particle stream, said second fluidic amplifier having a switching chamber communicating with said inlet and at least two different outlet ports communicating with said switching chamber, a second electrical transducer coupled to receive electrical signals from said second detection means and operable to provide control signals to said second fluidic amplifier, said second fluidic amplifier being operable in response to said control signals from said second detection means to switch the fluid particle carrying stream entering the inlet thereof from a first outlet port to a second selected outlet port in response to a predetermined particle characteristic control signal from said second transducer.