Beckman Instruments, Inc.

Beckman Coulter, Inc.

Charles A Keenan

Stephen L Pentoney, Jr

Brian D Peterson

Jack D McNeal

Peter J Coassin

Carl N Cederstrand

David B Helphrey

James C Osborne

Dale F Warnke

Jiunn-Jye Dih

Roger Winer

A holder (10) is provided for securing a capillary (30) having a window section (28) including first and second edges (46) (48) to a mount (80). The holder (10) comprises a retaining surface (14) for securing the capillary (30) to the holder (10) and a mounting surface (18) for detachably securing the holder (10) to the mount (80). The retaining surface (14) is attached to the capillary (30) proximate to the opposed first and second edges (46), (48), with a portion of the window section (28) exposed. Since the capillary (30) is secured proximate the opposed first and second edges (46), (48), the fragile capillary window section (28) is protected during manufacturing or installation into an electrophoretic system (32). The retaining surface (14) preferably is sized and shaped to retain a plurality of capillaries (30) to allow for the substantially simultaneous testing of multiple capillaries (30). Optimally, the mounting surface (18) secures the holder (10) to the mount (80) with the capillaries (30) in fluid communication with a support medium supply (106) so that the support medium inside each capillary (30) can be replaced without removing each capillary (30) from the mount (80).

Capillary holder

A gel pump operated by a stepper motor may be used to deliver fresh gel to one or more capillaries through one or more manifolds and valves. By controlling the valves, fresh gel delivered by the pump will replace the old gel in the capillaries for an automated gel replacement system. In a different setting of the valves, the manifolds may be purged of the old gel prior to delivery of fresh gel to the capillaries. The gel delivery system may also be combined with an electrophoresis system so that sealing connection capable of withstanding high pressure adequate for gel injection need not be frequently broken when the gel is to be replaced. Manifold/reflector assembly is advantageously used in the system that facilitates electrical circuit for electrophoresis and for gel replacement.

Electrophoretic system including means for replacing separation medium

The present invention makes use of a single detector to monitor several process functions, e.g. reaction efficiency, reagent flow rates, the presence of empty reagent reservoirs, the absence of a chemical reactor column in the system, blockage of flow system, etc., at a single location in the flow system. In accordance with the detection scheme of the present invention, only one detector is required to accomplish the same, if not more, functions as many detectors in the prior art instruments. In the described embodiment, an optical detector is positioned downstream of a chemical reaction chamber. This detector monitors the effluent from the reaction chamber to monitor the reaction efficiency. It also monitors the system functions upstream of the reaction chamber. System flow rate is monitored by detecting the presence of a gas bubble which has been introduced into the system at a known instance. Depletion of reagents in the reservoirs can be detected by monitoring the absence of the reagents at the detector at times when the reagents are expected. The flow system may be periodically diagnosed to check for flow blockage or missing flow component, by monitoring the flow past the detector which corresponds to a predetermined succession of reagents introduced into the system. Any deviation from a predictable succession of changes in the flow monitored by the detector indicates possible blockage of the flow delivery system or missing flow components.

On-line process flow and reaction monitor

A method and apparatus is disclosed for selectively determining by non-dispersive infrared techniques the concentration of a gaseous constituent in a sample gas mixture while determining and discounting deleterious effects of spectrally interfering gases in the sample gas mixture.

Method and apparatus for negating measurement effects of interferent

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Irvine, CA, United States of America

Charles A Keenan