The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 26, 2001
Filed:
Jul. 06, 1998
David J. Howard, Oberlin, OH (US);
Kurukundi Ramesh Murthy, Fairview Park, OH (US);
Ying Cha, North Olmsted, OH (US);
Bayer Corporation, Tarrytown, NY (US);
Abstract
A pump system and method for controlling and monitoring the aspiration of a liquid and the subsequent dispense of the liquid. As a pump is operated to either aspirate or dispense a liquid, a processor circuit receives input from a liquid air detector to sample the detected conditions in relation to the operation of the pump. In one embodiment, the pump employs a stepper motor, and the processor records information regarding the detected contents of the pathway at intervals correlating to the motor activity. A profile of detector output versus motor intervals is thus created from the point an aspiration cycle is commenced at least until a fluid-to-air boundary is detected, or from the point a dispense cycle is commenced, through an air-to-fluid boundary. Each profile is then compared against a standardized profile to determine if the detected transition occurred at a desired point in the profile. The processor circuit is programmable to define acceptable margins of error relative to the reference profile, and to define a variety of error conditions.