Liquid handling tool having porous plunger

• US 7,438,857 B2
• Filed: 07/18/2003
• Issued: 10/21/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Protedyne Corporation (Laboratory Corporation Of America Holdings)
• Original Assignee: Protedyne Corporation (Laboratory Corporation Of America Holdings)
• Inventors: Massaro, Peter
• Primary Examiner(s): Warden; Jill
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nagpaul; Jyoti
• Application Number:
  US10/622,414
• Publication Number:
  US 20040018119A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,922 Days
• Field of Search: 422 62- 65, 422 99-101, 436/180, 738/641.3, 222/309
• US Class Current: 422/509
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00364 Pipettes
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/049 Valves integrated in closure
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0829 Multi-well plates; Microtitration plates
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/123 Flexible; Elastomeric
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0418 electro-osmotic flow [EOF]
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0481 squeezing of channels or chambers
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0655 pinch valves
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0694 vents used to stop and induce flow, backpressure valves
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/0217 of the plunger pump type medical syringes A61M
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/022 Capillary pipettes, i.e. having very small bore B01L3/0224 - B01L3/0237 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C40B 60/14 for creating libraries
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/1072 with provision for selective pipetting of individual channels
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/1074 arranged in a two-dimensional array
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/109 with two horizontal degrees of freedom
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 436/2575 Volumetric liquid transfer

Abstract

A robotically manipulable sample handling tool, such as a colony picking head or robotic pipetting tool, includes needles arranged on the tool. Actuators are associated with each needle to control flow for the needle. A plurality of plungers are each associated with a needle, and movement of the plungers can actuate a corresponding needle. Each of the plungers has a passageway that may be opened or closed, e.g., to move the corresponding needle and/or draw fluid into/expel fluid from the needle when the plunger is moved in the tool body. The actuators are arranged so that plunger passageways may be individually controlled by a controller.

Claims

1. A material handling tool, comprising:

a tool body;

a plurality of needles mounted to the tool body, each of the plurality of needles constructed and arranged to remove material from a work area and deposit material on a work area;

a plurality of plungers moveable in the tool body, each of the plurality of plungers associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of needles, wherein each of the plungers has a passageway that allows fluid flow through the plunger; and

a controller constructed and arranged to individually address each of the passageways so that flow in each of the passageways is individually controlled, wherein the controller comprises a plurality of actuators, each of the actuators including a membrane valve that controls fluid flow with respect to a corresponding passageway and is capable of opening and closing a corresponding passageway, and a plurality of drive switches that controls flow through a passageway opened by an actuator.

2. The tool of claim 1, wherein the controller comprises a plurality of control switches that provides signals to the plurality of actuators to open and close a corresponding passageway.

3. The tool of claim 2, wherein each of the plurality of control switches comprises a valve that provides a fluid signal to a corresponding actuator.

4. The tool of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of drive switches includes a valve that provides a fluid flow for a corresponding passageway.

5. The tool of claim 1, wherein closing of a passageway of a plunger results in one of drawing fluid into or expelling fluid from a corresponding needle when the plunger is moved in the tool body.

6. The tool of claim 1, wherein one portion of each plunger is secured to a first portion of the tool body and a second portion of each plunger is slidably engaged with a channel in a second portion of the tool body such that movement of the first portion of the tool body relative to the second portion of the tool body causes a pressure change in each channel for plungers that have their passageway closed.

7. A material handling tool, comprising:

a tool body;

a plurality of needles mounted to the tool body, each of the plurality of needles constructed and arranged to remove material from a work area and deposit material on a work area;

a plurality of plungers moveable in the tool body, each of the plurality of plungers associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of needles, wherein each of the plungers has a passageway that allows fluid flow through the plunger; and

a first number of membrane valves, each membrane valve associated with a corresponding plunger and controlling flow for the passageway in the plunger; and

a valve controller constructed and arranged to control each of the membrane valves by providing signals to the membrane valves;

wherein the valve controller is adapted to control the membrane valves to individually control flow for each passageway.

8. The tool of claim 7, wherein the valve controller includes a plurality of first valves that each provide an air pressure signal to a corresponding group of membrane valves to control the membrane valves between open and closed states to open and close a corresponding passageway.

9. The tool of claim 8, wherein the valve controller includes a plurality of second valves that each provide a fluid flow to corresponding membrane valves.

10. The tool of claim 7, wherein the plurality of needles and corresponding membrane valves are arranged in an M×

N array.

11. The tool of claim 10, wherein the valve controller includes M valves that each provide an air pressure signal to membrane valves in a corresponding row.

12. The tool of claim 10, wherein the valve controller includes N valves that each provide a fluid flow to membrane valves in a corresponding column.

13. The tool of claim 10, wherein closing of a passageway of a plunger results in one of drawing fluid into and expelling fluid from a corresponding needle when the plunger is moved in the tool body.

14. The tool of claim 10, wherein the valve controller is mounted to the tool body.

15. The tool of claim 7, wherein the valve controller is adapted to control the membrane valves to simultaneously control flow for a plurality of passageways.