Method and apparatus for programmable fluidic processing

• US 8,834,810 B2
• Filed: 07/10/2012
• Issued: 09/16/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Board of Regents of the University of Texas System (University of Texas System)
• Original Assignee: Board of Regents of the University of Texas System (University of Texas System)
• Inventors: Becker, Frederick F., Gascoyne, Peter, Wang, Xiaobo, Vykoukal, Jody Valentine, De Gasperis, Giovanni
• Primary Examiner(s): Warden, Jill
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kingan, Timothy G
• Application Number:
  US13/545,775
• Publication Number:
  US 20130118903A1
• Time in Patent Office: 798 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 422/504
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 2215/0404 theories or general explanations of phenomena associated with mixing or generalizations of a concept by comparison of equivalent methods
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 33/3031 using electro-hydrodynamic [EHD] or electro-kinetic [EKI] phenomena to mix or move the fluids
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/143 Quality control, feedback systems
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/089 Virtual walls for guiding liquids
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0421 electrophoretic flow
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0424 Dielectrophoretic forces
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0454 radiation pressure, optical tweezers
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502715 characterised by interfacing components, e.g. fluidic, electrical, optical or mechanical interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502761 specially adapted for handling suspended solids or molecules independently from the bulk fluid flow, e.g. for trapping or sorting beads, for physically stretching molecules investigating characteristics of particles G01N15/00
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502792 for moving individual droplets on a plate, e.g. by locally altering surface tension
• CPC Class Codes: B03C 5/005 Dielectrophoresis, i.e. dielectric particles migrating towards the region of highest field strength B03C5/02 takes precedence; electrophoresis B01D57/02
• CPC Class Codes: B03C 5/024 using high-gradient differential dielectric separation, i.e. using a dielectric matrix polarised by an external field
• CPC Class Codes: B03C 5/026 using open-gradient differential dielectric separation, i.e. using electrodes of special shapes for non-uniform field creation, e.g. Fluid Integrated Circuit [FIC]
• CPC Class Codes: B03C 5/028 using travelling electric fields, i.e. travelling wave dielectrophoresis [TWD]
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/447 using electrophoresis
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/44773 Multi-stage electrophoresis, e.g. two-dimensional electrophoresis

Abstract

A method and apparatus for microfluidic processing by programmably manipulating a packet. A material is introduced onto a reaction surface and compartmentalized to form a packet. A position of the packet is sensed with a position sensor. A programmable manipulation force is applied to the packet at the position. The programmable manipulation force is adjustable according to packet position by a controller. The packet is programmably moved according to the programmable manipulation force along arbitrarily chosen paths.

Claims

1. An apparatus for programmably manipulating a packet, the apparatus comprising:

a fluidic device comprising a reaction surface and an array, the array comprising a plurality of elements that are individually addressable;

a signal generator configured to apply electrical signals to the elements to generate electrical field distributions and impart manipulation forces on a packet to programmably move the packet about the reaction surface; and

a controller coupled to the signal generator and configured to adjust the programmable manipulation forces, the controller further configured to be coupled to a screen to display a bitmap corresponding to the elements of the array and to adjust the programmable manipulation forces according to user modifications to the bitmap.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a switching network coupled to the signal generator and the controller.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, further comprising a plurality of resistors coupled to the switching network and the signal generator to vary a voltage amplitude of the electrical signals applied to the elements.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a memory coupled to and accessible by the controller, the memory storing a plurality of subroutines for programmably manipulating a packet about the reaction surface.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, further comprising:

a position sensor configured to detect a position of a packet on the reaction surface.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, where the position sensor comprises a conductor configured to measure an electrical impedance of the packet.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, where the position sensor comprises an optical system configured to monitor the position of the packet.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, where the fluidic device comprises an integrated circuit that includes the elements of the array.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a display;

where the controller and display are included in a personal computing device.