Patents by Inventor Wolfgang Sprengers

Wolfgang Sprengers has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11867710
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure relate to a method and/or a device for carrying out chemical, biochemical and/or immunochemical analyses of liquid samples, which are present in a sample store of an automatic analyzer, with the aid of liquid reagents which are present in at least one reagent store of the analyzer, with cuvettes for receiving the liquid samples and reagents, wherein a plurality of cuvettes is arranged as at least one stationary, linear cuvette array in the analyzer. The analyzer has movable and stationary automated components, wherein at least two automated components are designed so as to be movable in the x-direction independently of one another along or parallel to the line of movement defined by the linear cuvette array and each have access to different cuvettes or groups of cuvettes in a freely selectable sequence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2024
    Assignee: Meon Medical Solutions GmbH & Co KG
    Inventors: Berthold Limbach, Arnold Bartel, Herfried Huemer, Reinhard Marik, Patrick Kraus-Füreder, Robert Scholz-Mareich, Wolfgang Sprengers
  • Patent number: 11635443
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure relate to a method and/or a device for carrying out chemical, biochemical and/or immunochemical analyses of liquid samples, which are present in a sample store of an automatic analyzer, with the aid of liquid reagents which are present in at least one reagent store of the analyzer. In one example embodiment, the automatic analyzer includes cuvettes, a first pipettor, a device with an optical measurement unit, a device for heterogenous immunoassays, a cuvette washing unit, a needle washing unit, a temperature control unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2023
    Assignee: MEON MEDICAL SOLUTIONS GMBH & CO KG
    Inventors: Berthold Limbach, Arnold Bartel, Herfried Huemer, Reinhard Marik, Patrick Kraus-Füreder, Robert Scholz-Mareich, Wolfgang Sprengers
  • Patent number: 11524287
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure relate to methods and devices for automatically transferring samples and/or reagents from sample vessels and/or reagent vessels into at least one receiving vessel In one example embodiment, a pipetting device is disclosed including a pipettor that is movable along a first direction and has at least one first pipetting needle that is movable along an arm of the pipettor along a second direction, substantially normal to the first direction. The pipetting needle is lowerable along a third direction into the individual vessels. In some specific embodiments, the arm of the movable pipettor has at least one second pipetting needle which, regardless of the current position of the first pipetting needle, is movable past the first pipetting needle and is lowerable into the individual vessels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 13, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 13, 2022
    Assignee: MEON MEDICAL SOLUTIONS GMBH & CO KG
    Inventors: Berthold Limbach, Wolfgang Sprengers
  • Publication number: 20220099694
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to an automatic pipetting system for transferring liquid from dispensing vessels into at least one receiving vessel. In one example embodiment, the system includes a movable pipettor moveable along an x-direction. The pipettor including an arm including two beams and a base structure, and at least one pipetting module. The base structure is movable in the x-direction, and is coupled to the two beams. The two beams oriented parallel to one another and project horizontally in the y-direction. The at least one pipetting module is moveable along each of the two beams in a y-direction and includes at least one hollow needle lowerable in to the dispensing vessels and the receiving vessels. Wherein the at least one pipetting modules move independently past one another on mutually facing longitudinal sides of said beams.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 3, 2020
    Publication date: March 31, 2022
    Inventors: Michael Bergbaur, Stefan Gulo, Marco Jean-Pierre Leiner, Wolfgang Sprengers
  • Publication number: 20210270819
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure are directed to a device for carrying out heterogeneous immunoassays by means of magnetic particles in cuvettes lined up next to one another, wherein each cuvette has a filling opening and at least one lateral measurement window which is transparent to the measurement radiation. In one embodiment, the device includes at least one stationary cuvette array in which the cuvettes are arranged for receiving liquid media, at least one support arm which is movable along the cuvette array and which is lowerable toward the filling opening of a selected cuvette. The support arm having at least one aspirating needle which is lowerable toward the bottom of the cuvette, and also having at least one dispenser which can be positioned above or in the respective filling opening for dispensing the liquid media into the cuvette.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 11, 2019
    Publication date: September 2, 2021
    Inventors: Wolfgang Sprengers, Arnold Bartel, Reinhard Marik
  • Publication number: 20210239604
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure are directed to, for example, an optical measurement unit for obtaining measurement signals from liquid media which are present in cuvettes lined up next to one another. In one embodiment, the optical measurement unit includes a light-supplying unit for emitting an inlet radiation into the cuvettes, and a detection unit for detecting a measurement radiation exiting from the cuvettes and for converting the measurement radiation into an electrical measurement signal. In such an embodiment, the light-supplying unit has a plurality of LED light sources which emit in a spectrally different manner in the UV/VIS/NIR wavelength range, and wherein the detection unit includes at least one photodiode fixedly assigned to each cuvette of a cuvette array.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 12, 2019
    Publication date: August 5, 2021
    Inventors: Herfried Huemer, Arnold Bartel, Stefan Gulo, Patrick Kraus-Füreder, Robert Scholz-Mareich, Wolfgang Sprengers
  • Publication number: 20210197188
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure are directed to a method and a device for carrying out chemical, biochemical and/or immunochemical analyses of liquid samples, which are present in a sample store of an automatic analyzer, with the aid of liquid reagents, which are present in at least one reagent store of the analyzer. In one embodiment, a analyzer is disclosed including cuvettes for holding the liquid samples and reagents, the cuvettes are arranged in at least one stationary, linear cuvette array. The analyzer further has an optical measurement unit with a stationary light-supplying unit which has at least one light distributor device that feeds the light from a plurality of LED light sources emitting in a spectrally different manner in the UV/VIS/NIR wavelength range into the inlet windows of the individual cuvettes of the cuvette array. The optical measurement unit further includes a stationary detection unit assigned to outlet windows of the cuvettes and further includes a plurality of photodiodes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 12, 2019
    Publication date: July 1, 2021
    Inventors: Herfried Huemer, Arnold Bartel, Patrick Kraus-Füreder, Robert Scholz-Mareich, Wolfgang Sprengers, Michael Bergbaur, Reinhard Marik
  • Publication number: 20210156879
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure relate to a method and/or a device for carrying out chemical, biochemical and/or immunochemical analyses of liquid samples, which are present in a sample store of an automatic analyzer, with the aid of liquid reagents which are present in at least one reagent store of the analyzer, with cuvettes for receiving the liquid samples and reagents, wherein a plurality of cuvettes is arranged as at least one stationary, linear cuvette array in the analyzer. The analyzer has movable and stationary automated components, wherein at least two automated components are designed so as to be movable in the x-direction independently of one another along or parallel to the line of movement defined by the linear cuvette array and each have access to different cuvettes or groups of cuvettes in a freely selectable sequence.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 13, 2018
    Publication date: May 27, 2021
    Inventors: Berthold Limbach, Arnold Bartel, Herfried Huemer, Reinhard Marik, Patrick Kraus-Füreder, Robert Scholz-Mareich, Wolfgang Sprengers
  • Publication number: 20210041472
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure relate to a method and/or a device for carrying out chemical, biochemical and/or immunochemical analyses of liquid samples, which are present in a sample store of an automatic analyzer, with the aid of liquid reagents which are present in at least one reagent store of the analyzer. In one example embodiment, the automatic analyzer includes cuvettes, a first pipettor, a device with an optical measurement unit, a device for heterogenous immunoassays, a cuvette washing unit, a needle washing unit, a temperature control unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 18, 2020
    Publication date: February 11, 2021
    Inventors: Berthold Limbach, Arnold Bartel, Herfried Huemer, Reinhard Marik, Patrick Kraus-Füreder, Robert Scholz-Mareich, Wolfgang Sprengers
  • Publication number: 20200139360
    Abstract: Aspects of the present disclosure relate to methods and devices for automatically transferring samples and/or reagents from sample vessels and/or reagent vessels into at least one receiving vessel In one example embodiment, a pipetting device is disclosed including a pipettor that is movable along a first direction and has at least one first pipetting needle that is movable along an arm of the pipettor along a second direction, substantially normal to the first direction. The pipetting needle is lowerable along a third direction into the individual vessels. In some specific embodiments, the arm of the movable pipettor has at least one second pipetting needle which, regardless of the current position of the first pipetting needle, is movable past the first pipetting needle and is lowerable into the individual vessels.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 13, 2018
    Publication date: May 7, 2020
    Inventors: Berthold Limbach, Wolfgang Sprengers
  • Patent number: 8765058
    Abstract: The invention concerns an analyzer, typically for analyzing body fluids, which has one or several exchangeable cassettes (consumables) that contain operating liquids, operating materials and/or consumables and can be inserted into corresponding holders of the analyzer, wherein the analyzer has a system for exchanging ambient air which has a filter unit on the inlet side of the analyzer to filter the ambient air that needs to be exchanged. The filter unit is integrated into at least one of the exchangeable cassettes in order to minimize the amount of maintenance for the analyzer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2008
    Date of Patent: July 1, 2014
    Assignee: Roche Diagnostics Operations, Inc.
    Inventors: Wolfgang Sprengers, Berndt Ebner, Andreas Riegelnegg
  • Publication number: 20090169429
    Abstract: The invention concerns an analyzer, typically for analyzing body fluids, which has one or several exchangeable cassettes (consumables) that contain operating liquids, operating materials and/or consumables and can be inserted into corresponding holders of the analyzer, wherein the analyzer has a system for exchanging ambient air which has a filter unit on the inlet side of the analyzer to filter the ambient air that needs to be exchanged. The filter unit is integrated into at least one of the exchangeable cassettes in order to minimize the amount of maintenance for the analyzer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 12, 2008
    Publication date: July 2, 2009
    Inventors: Wolfgang Sprengers, Berndt Ebner, Andreas Riegelnegg