Cetus Corporation

Timothy J Wennberg

Arthur E Frankel

Joseph T Widunas

Larry J Johnson

Richard A Leath

Kari Salomaa

Roy Merrill

Gary E Hewett

Brian G Atwood

An automatic liquid transfer system includes a horizontally translatable table and a pipette that is translatable both vertically and horizontally in a direction transverse to the axis of translation of the table. The table accommodates one or more titer trays having a multiplicity of receptacles to be filled, or holding liquid samples to be diluted, transferred, or aspirated, and a rack housing plural rows of disposable tips. Between each cycle in a liquid transfer process, a fresh tip is picked up by the pipette and used to transfer liquid in a sterile manner from a sample or diluent source to a well in the titer tray, or from one well to a different well anywhere on the one tray or to a receptacle in a different tray, where it is mixed with diluent. Thereafter, the tip is discharged back into the rack to maintain sterile conditions during the process and a new tip is installed.

Bi-directional liquid sample handling system

Apparatus for accurately transferring liquids for filling or diluting microliter quantities of regents, analytes or cells for bioassays and the like include a vessel having a plurality of troughs for supplying an array of pipettes to effect the transfer. The vessel is automatically indexable on a horizontal table to bring a selected trough into register with vertical movement of the pipette tips. The table is then indexed to bring the tips into alignment with a plurality of microtiter tray wells. In a preferred form the troughs are of different widths to supply differing quantities of liquid to the pipettes for transfer.

Multiple trough vessel for automated liquid handling apparatus

An automatic liquid transfer system includes a horizontally translatable table and a vertically translatable set of pipettes. The table accommodates a titer tray having a multiplicity of receptacles to be filled, or holding liquid samples to be diluted, and a rack housing plural rows of disposable tips. During each cycle in a serial dilution process, a fresh set of tips are picked up by the pipettes and used to transfer liquid in a sterile manner from a sample or diluent source to a row of wells in the titer tray, or from one row to a succeeding row of wells where it is mixed with diluent. Thereafter, the tips are discharged back into the rack to maintain sterile conditions during the process. A sensor is provided on the machine to detect whether all of the tips in each set are disengaged and another set successfully picked up.

Liquid sample handling system

Growing community of inventors

San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Timothy J Wennberg