Ventana Medical Systems, Inc.

Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc.

Accelerate Giagnostics, Inc.

Matthew Ketterer

Kevin David Marshall

Benjamin James

Austin Micheil Ashby

Timothy Durrant

Phillip Charles Halbert

Solene Bourgeois

Josh Harrison

John Douglas Willems, Jr

Brian Howard Kram

Simon Jonathon Spence

Matthew Mette

Joshua David Kenneth Harrison

William L Richards

Wayne A Showalter

Steven W Metzger

Kurt Reinhardt

Andrew Ghusson

Paul Richards

Donald Michael Barnett

Jasmin Cote

Timothy Brett McDonald

Oleg Gusyatin

Alena Shamsheyeva

Elke Allers

Ben Turng

Dulini Gamage

Luke Dyson-Holland

Carlos Michel

Meghan Mensack

Ken Hance

Michael Schurig

Jorge Nicholas Quijada

Henning Groll

Kevin Talucci

Kenneth Robert Hance

Landon Prisbrey

Daniel C Malberg

Kyle A Koning

Joshua Harrison

Mirek Holubec

Jessica A Wifall

Sacha Dopheide

John Willems

Solène Bourgeois

Patrick Brown

Lizhen Pang

Bryan Barnes

Andrew Watkins

Benjamin Arthur James

Jorge Nicolas Quijada

Timothy James Durrant

Ben James

Devices and methods for providing and dispensing opposables onto slides are provided in which magazines loaded with opposables include retention arms to reduce movement of the opposables during shipment and processing and to reduce or eliminate contamination.

Assay reaction controller magazine

The disclosure presents systems and methods for processing a specimen slide using a specimen processing system. Specimen slides may sequentially be ejected from a slide carrier towards a label reader to determine an appropriate processing protocol for the slides. A cracking element may be engaged with the slide carrier prior to ejecting the slide, in order to break or 'crack' any residual adhesive bond between edges of a slide and walls of the carrier. The specimen slides may be horizontally aligned and resting on a corresponding plurality of flat shelves, enabling even spacing via gravitational forces. The slides are therefore evenly spaced, enabling damage-free ejection of slides, and proper positioning for additional operations including scanning, viewing, heating, washing, and other processing. The label reader may process scanned information from the label of the slide to determine one or more attributes of the slide, and to generate an order or sequence of operations to be thereafter performed on the slide.

Automated specimen processing systems and methods

At least some embodiments of the technology are directed to an automated slide processing apparatus configured to apply at least one reagent to a specimen carried by a microscope slide. The slide processing station can include a support element with a support surface, at least one vacuum port, and a sealing member having a non-round shape. In an uncompressed state, the scaling member can extend upwardly beyond the support surface. In a compressed state, the scaling member can be configured to maintain an airtight seal with a backside of the microscope slide as the microscope slide is pulled against the support surface by a vacuum drawn via the at least one vacuum port.

Specimen processing systems and methods for holding slides

At least some embodiments of the technology are directed to an automated slide processing apparatus configured to apply at least one reagent to a specimen carried by a microscope slide. The slide processing station can include a support element with a support surface, at least one vacuum port, and a sealing member having a non-round shape. In an uncompressed state, the sealing member can extend upwardly beyond the support surface. In a compressed state, the sealing member can be configured to maintain an airtight seal with a backside of the microscope slide as the microscope slide is pulled against the support surface by a vacuum drawn via the at least one vacuum port.

Systems and methods that enable automated processing of specimens carried on microscope slides are described herein. In some embodiments, the system can include, for example, a slide ejector assembly having a slide staging device configured to receive a slide and an over-travel inhibitor that includes a first vacuum port positioned to draw a first vacuum between the slide and a standby platform as the slide is moved across at least a portion of the standby platform. The over-travel inhibitor includes a first sensor for detecting a presence of the slide on the standby platform. The system can also include a transfer assembly to transport slides away from the slide ejector assembly. The transfer assembly can include a floating transfer head having a vacuum port for drawing a partial vacuum for holding the slide.

Automated specimen processing systems and methods of detecting specimen-bearing microscope slides

A system for automated microorganism identification and antibiotic susceptibility testing comprising a reagent cartridge, a reagent stage, a cassette, a cassette, stage, a pipettor assembly, an optical detection system, and a controller is disclosed. The system is designed to dynamically adjust motor idle torque to control heat load and employs a fast focus process for determining the true focus position of an individual microorganism. The system also may quantify the relative abundance of viable microorganisms in a sample using dynamic dilution, and facilitate growth of microorganisms in customized media for rapid, accurate antimicrobial susceptibility testing.

Instrument and system for rapid microorganism identification and antimicrobial agent susceptibility testing

A specimen processing system is capable of processing specimens carried on slides. The specimen processing system can sequentially deliver slides and opposables to specimen processing stations. The specimen processing stations can use the opposables to apply a series of liquids to the specimens. The applied liquid can be moved along the slide using capillary action while the specimen processing stations control the processing temperatures.

Specimen processing systems and methods for aligning slides

A system for automated microorganism identification and antibiotic susceptibility testing comprising a reagent cartridge, a reagent stage, a cassette, a cassette, stage, a pipettor assembly, an optical detection system, and a controller is disclosed. The system is designed to dynamically adjust motor idle torque to control heat load and employs a fast focus process for determining the true focus position of an individual microorganism. The system also may quantify the relative abundance of viable microorganisms in a sample using dynamic dilution, and facilitate growth of microorganisms in customized media for rapid, accurate antimicrobial susceptibility testing. Automated quality control test components and methods of their use are also disclosed.

Instrument and system for rapid microogranism identification and antimicrobial agent susceptibility testing

Cartridge

Cassette

Growing community of inventors

Oro Valley, AZ, United States of America

Matthew Ketterer