System for automatically locating and manipulating positions on an object

• US 7,639,139 B2
• Filed: 03/29/2007
• Issued: 12/29/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/17/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ikonisys, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Ikonisys, Inc.
• Inventors: Kim, Youngmin, Tafas, Triantafyllos P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mehmood; Jennifer
• Application Number:
  US11/693,551
• Publication Number:
  US 20080238674A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,006 Days
• Field of Search: 340/539.1, 34053911-53919, 340/571, 340/505, 340 101- 1052, 3405721-5729, 3405681-5688, 700/362, 700/302, 700 56- 66, 427 211- 213, 359368-398, 356/2, 356/3, 356/3.01, 356/3.09, 356/3.1, 356/3.11, 356/3.16, 356614-624, 356391-393, 342126-147, 378/43, 378/177, 378/181, 378/205, 399/8, 399/26, 2502011-2018, 250/559.29, 250/559.3, 25055931-55938, 250/206.2, 382286-292, 382321-325, 382128-134
• US Class Current: 340/572.1
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/022 Transponder chips
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0822 Slides
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/545 for laboratory containers
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2001/282 with mapping; Identification of areas; Spatial correlated pattern
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00782 reprogrammmable code
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00851 process control parameters
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/00732 Identification of carriers, materials or components in automatic analysers
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/34 Microscope slides, e.g. mounting specimens on microscope slides
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/365 Control or image processing arrangements for digital or video microscopes G02B21/361, G02B21/362 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/40 for data related to laboratory analysis, e.g. patient specimen analysis

Abstract

A system for automatically locating positions on an object and uniquely identifying the object employing an electronic tag positioned in or on the object. The system utilizes a plurality of sensors to locate the electronic tag and identify the object, and triangulation techniques to locate positions on the object where the object may be manipulated according to instructions coded with respect to the positions. Advantageously, the present invention may be used for automatically locating specimens on a microscope slide without regards to their positions on the slide, and for uniquely labeling a microscope slide.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a substrate having a first region for receiving a sample of specimens and a second region containing a tag;

a plurality of remote devices located at known positions that emit first signals that remotely activate said tag on said substrate, said tag transmits, when activated, second signals;

a viewer device positioned over said substrate, said viewer device having a microprocessor communicating with said plurality of remote devices;

said microprocessor operatively configured to determine, record and store a position of said tag based on said second signals wherein said position of said tag is a positional reference point.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein said substrate is a microscope slide.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein said viewer device is a microscope.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein said sample of specimens further comprise biological cells.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein said tag comprises a radio frequency identifier device (RFID).

6. The system according to claim 5, wherein said tag comprises a passive RFID.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein said tag comprises a transponder device formed as an integrated circuit chip.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein said tag contains data.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of remote devices comprise electronic sensors that emit electromagnetic radiation.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of remote devices comprise electronic interrogators.

11. The system according to claim 1, wherein said microprocessor communicates with said plurality of remote devices electromagnetically.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein said microprocessor uses triangulation techniques to compute a position of said tag relative to a position of a microscope said substrate.