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:
Mar. 04, 2003
Filed:
Nov. 22, 2000
James Russell Webster, Hsinchu, TW;
Industrial Technology Research, Hsinchu, TW;
Abstract
A simple micro valve actuator is disclosed. The micro valve actuator of this invention comprises a sealed vacuum chamber. The micro valve is actuated by providing a current to a thin film heater, which in turn weakens and, under the atmospheric pressure differential, breaks a diaphragm sealing said vacuum chamber whereby the vacuum inside the chamber is released. By applying the micro valve actuator of this invention to a microfluidic channel with a micro valve, the resulting pressure differential deforms the section of the microchannel at the micro valve area and adjacent to the vacuum chamber so to change the flow inside the microchannel. In the preferred embodiments of this invention, the chamber may be prepared in a silicon, glass, or plastic substrate and a diaphragm is vacuum bonded to seal the chamber. The diaphragm may comprise a metallic gas-impermeable film. A releasing member comprising a thin-film metallic heater is then microfabricated on the diaphragm. The assembly so prepared may be bonded to a glass or plastic substrate that contains a microchannel in which a micro valve is prepared. The invented micro valve actuator is suited for a microfluidic platform in changing the flow in a microchannel.