Specimen test unit
First Claim
1. A specimen test unit for use in collection and analysis of a biological specimen, said test unit comprising:
- a housing defining a specimen chamber and having at least one test fluid therein, said housing including first and second separable and interfitting housing members which cooperatively define said specimen chamber;
specimen collecting means for collecting the specimen;
said first and second housing members and said collecting means being arranged so that said specimen collecting means and the specimen collected thereby can be placed into said specimen chamber and the collected specimen can be selectively contacted with said at least one test fluid within said specimen chamber; and
said first housing member having an outlet port formed therein, means for preventing fluid passage through said outlet port during contacting of the collected specimen with said at least one test fluid within said specimen chamber, and said housing further including delivering means for delivering at least a portion of the collected specimen and test fluid contacted therewith from said specimen chamber through said outlet port to the exterior of said housing for analysis, said delivering means comprising a deformable portion of said housing to permit said housing to be deformed to increase the relative pressure within said specimen chamber to deliver at least a portion of the collected specimen and test fluid through said outlet port.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An improved test unit is provided for use in the collection and analysis of biological specimens and the like. The specimen test unit includes a swab member adapted for collection of a specimen to be tested. The test unit incorporates one or more reagents or other test fluids for delivery into contact with the specimen on the swab member. In accordance with various embodiments, the contacted specimen and fluid are then delivered through one or more porous filter members for analysis and/or to contact an additional reagent or reagents in the course of performing a selected test. In some forms, one or more of the porous filter members is preimpregnated with a selected reagent or constituent thereof. Moreover, in some forms, one or more of the porous filter members is formed from a hydrophobic material to serve as a fluid seal until fluid is forced therethrough, for example, by squeezing a reagent-containing housing member of the test unit. In all embodiments, the test unit is substantially self-contained to perform the desired test, with minimal risk of exposing testing personnel to the collected specimen and/or to the various reagents.
190 Citations
36 Claims
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1. A specimen test unit for use in collection and analysis of a biological specimen, said test unit comprising:
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a housing defining a specimen chamber and having at least one test fluid therein, said housing including first and second separable and interfitting housing members which cooperatively define said specimen chamber; specimen collecting means for collecting the specimen; said first and second housing members and said collecting means being arranged so that said specimen collecting means and the specimen collected thereby can be placed into said specimen chamber and the collected specimen can be selectively contacted with said at least one test fluid within said specimen chamber; and said first housing member having an outlet port formed therein, means for preventing fluid passage through said outlet port during contacting of the collected specimen with said at least one test fluid within said specimen chamber, and said housing further including delivering means for delivering at least a portion of the collected specimen and test fluid contacted therewith from said specimen chamber through said outlet port to the exterior of said housing for analysis, said delivering means comprising a deformable portion of said housing to permit said housing to be deformed to increase the relative pressure within said specimen chamber to deliver at least a portion of the collected specimen and test fluid through said outlet port. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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30. A specimen test unit for use in collection and analysis of a biological specimen, said test unit comprising:
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a housing defined by first and second separable and intefitting housing members, said second housing member including means defining a test fluid chamber having at least one test fluid therein, and said first and second housing members including cooperative means which interfit so as to define a specimen chamber; means for collecting a specimen and for placement with the collected specimen into the specimen chamber; said housing further including means for delivering said test fluid from said test fluid chamber to said specimen chamber for contacting the collected specimen placed into said specimen chamber, said delivering means including passage means communicating between said test fluid chamber and said specimen chamber, and a deformable wall portion on said housing for manual deformation to deliver said test fluid from said test fluid chamber through sid passage means to said specimen chamber; and said housing further defining an outlet port leading from said specimen chamber to the exterior of said housing, and means for closing said outlet port during contact of the specimen with sid test fluid within said specimen chamber, said deformable wall portion being manually deformable for transferring at least a portion of the collected specimen and the test fluid contacted therewith from said specimen chamber through said outlet port to the exterior of said housing. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32, 33, 34, 35)
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36. A specimen test unit for use in collection and analysis of a biological specimen, said test unit comprising:
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a housing defining a specimen chamber with at least one test fluid therein; specimen collecting means for collecting the specimen and for delivering the collected specimen into the specimen chamber for contacting the collected specimen with the test fluid; said housing defining an outlet port leading from said specimen chamber to the exterior of said housing; means for occluding said outlet port to fluid flow during contact of the specimen with said at least one test fluid, said occluding means having passage means formed therein for communicating said specimen chamber with the exterior of said housing, said passage means having a sufficiently small size to prevent unforced flow of said specimen and test fluid therethrough; and means for delivering the specimen and a portion of said test fluid through said passage means to the exterior of said housing for further analysis, said delivering means comprising means for pressure forced flow of the specimen and said test fluid through said passage means wherein said means for pressure forced flow of the specimen and said test fluid through said passage means comprises a deformable wall portion of said housing for manual deformation to increase the relative pressure within said specimen chamber and thereby pressure force the specimen and said test fluid to flow through said passage means.
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Specification