Tecan Trading Ag

Dionex Corporation

Dionex Softron Gmbh

Daniel Hoffmeyer

Tiffany Lay

Manjeet Dhindsa

Thomas D Perroud

Anne R Kopf-Sill

Travis Lee

Dan Tran

Patrick D Kinney

Marc Nathan Feiglin

Adrian Sager

Sujata Iyer

Daniel Tran

Christoph Hollnagel

Werner Hälg

Tin Ngo

Tiffany Ding (Lay)

Tobias Metz

Licheng Tseng

Til Richardsen

Torleif Ove Björnson

Werner HÄLG

Tiffany Ding

Marc N Feiglin

A cartridge for use in an electrowetting sample processing system, the cartridge having at least one inlet port for introducing an input liquid in an internal gap of the cartridge, wherein the gap has at least one hydrophobic surface and is configured to provide an electrowetting induced movement of a microfluidic droplet of input liquid, wherein the input liquid has a carrier liquid and a processing liquid and the gap has a capture zone that is configured to capture at least a part of the processing liquid as a microfluidic droplet by use of electrowetting force and the gap further has a transfer zone that is configured to provide a passage for the carrier liquid next to the microfluidic droplet, while processing liquid is captured in the capture zone.

Cartridge, electrowetting sample processing system and droplet formation

A digital microfluidics system with electrodes attached to a substrate and covered by a hydrophobic surface and a control unit for manipulating liquid droplets by electrowetting, providing in close proximity to electrodes a magnetic conduit for directing a magnetic field of a backing magnet to the first hydrophobic surface, providing on the hydrophobic surface a liquid droplet that has magnetically responsive beads moving by electrowetting the liquid droplet with the magnetically responsive beads until a part of which is placed atop of the magnetic conduit, actuating the backing magnet of the magnetic conduit and attracting/concentrating magnetically responsive beads while actuating the backing magnet, moving by electrowetting the liquid droplet with decreased number of magnetically responsive beads away from the specific magnetic conduit. Also disclosed are a method for suspending magnetically responsive beads in liquid portions or droplets in digital microfluidics and a disposable cartridge to carry out the methods.

Magnetic conduits in microfluidics

A sampling needle is provided for piercing a septum of a vial containing a sample and aspirating the sample from the vial. The needle may include: a tubular core having a lumen extending therethrough and a piercing end, wherein the tubular core is formed of a bioinert material; a hollow support encircling the tubular core with the piercing end extending outwardly from the support, wherein the support is formed of a rigid material; and a bioinert coating covering a portion of the support adjacent the piercing end, wherein the tubular core and the covering isolates the support from the sample.

Bioinert sampling needle

A digital microfluidics system with electrodes attached to a substrate and covered by a hydrophobic surface, and a control unit for manipulating liquid droplets by electrowetting; providing in close proximity to electrodes a magnetic conduit for directing a magnetic field of a backing magnet to the first hydrophobic surface; providing on the hydrophobic surface a liquid droplet that has magnetically responsive beads; moving by electrowetting the liquid droplet with the magnetically responsive beads until a part of which is placed atop of the magnetic conduit; actuating the backing magnet of the magnetic conduit and attracting/concentrating magnetically responsive beads; and while actuating the backing magnet, moving by electrowetting the liquid droplet with decreased number of magnetically responsive beads away from the specific magnetic conduit. Also disclosed are a method for suspending magnetically responsive beads in liquid portions or droplets in digital microfluidics and a disposable cartridge to carry out the methods.

Digital microfluidics system with electrodes attached to a PCB has control unit for manipulating liquid droplets by electrowetting, cartridge accommodation site for taking up a disposable cartridge having a working gap in-between two hydrophobic surfaces, and magnetic conduit/backing combination. A barrier element on an individual electrode of the PCB for narrowing the working gap. A disposable cartridge is positioned at the cartridge accommodation site, its flexible working film touching there and of the barrier element an uppermost surface. In the working gap and above a path of selected electrodes a liquid portion or liquid droplet with magnetically responsive beads moves by electrowetting on the electrode path until a magnetic field of the magnetic conduit is reached. The backing magnet is activated before and during the moving to thereby attract and remove magnetically responsive beads therefrom.

Bead separation in microfluidics

A disposable cartridge configured as a digital microfluidics system for manipulating samples in liquid portions having a cartridge accommodation site and a central control unit for controlling selection of individual electrodes of an electrode array located at the site and for providing plural electrodes with individual voltage pulses for manipulating liquid portions by electrowetting. The cartridge has a hydrophobic working surface and a rigid cover with a second hydrophobic surface, the hydrophobic surfaces facing each other and being separated in parallel planes by a gap. The cartridge has plural pipetting guides for safe entering/withdrawing liquids into/from the gap with a pipette tip. At least one of the pipetting guides provides an abutting surface sealingly admittable by a counter surface of a pipette tip, located at a pipetting orifice that reaches through the rigid cover, and configured to prevent a pipette tip from touching the hydrophobic working surface.

Microfluidics cartridge with pipetting guide

A digital microfluidics system for manipulating samples in liquid droplets within a gap between a first hydrophobic surface of a bottom layer and a second hydrophobic surface of at least one disposable cartridge. Disposable cartridges comprise a body and/or a rigid cover plate. The bottom layer of each disposable cartridge is a flexible film that is sealingly attached to the body or plate. The cartridge has no spacer between the first and second hydrophobic surfaces. When using these cartridges, the bottom layers configured as a working film for manipulating samples in liquid droplets thereon, is placed on an electrode array of a digital microfluidics system. The array has individual electrodes. The digital microfluidics system also comprises a central control unit for controlling the selection of the individual electrodes of the electrode array and for providing these electrodes with individual voltage pulses for manipulating liquid droplets by electrowetting.

Disposable cartridge for microfluidics system

A disposable cartridge used in a digital microfluidics system has a bottom layer with first hydrophobic surface, a rigid cover plate with second hydrophobic surface, and a gap there-between. The bottom layer is a flexible film on an uppermost surface of a cartridge accommodation site of a system, attracted to and spread over the uppermost surface by an underpressure. A lower surface of the plate and the flexible bottom layer are sealed to each other. The assembled cartridge is removed from the cartridge accommodation site in one piece and potentially includes samples and processing fluids. The system has a base unit and a cartridge accommodation site with an electrode array of individual electrodes and a central control unit for controlling selection of individual electrodes and for providing these electrodes with individual voltage pulses for manipulating liquid droplets within the gap by electrowetting.

Disposable cartridge for microfluidics systems

Growing community of inventors

San Jose, CA, United States of America

Daniel Hoffmeyer