Abstract: The invention provides improved systems, devices, and methods for analyzing a large number of sample compounds contained in standard multi-well microtiter plates or other array structures. The multi-well plates travel along a conveyor system to a test station having a microfluidic device. At the test station, each plate is removed from the conveyor and the wells of the multi-well plate are sequentially aligned with an input port of the microfluidic device. After at least a portion of each sample has been input into the microfluidic channel system, the plate is returned to the conveyor system. Pre and/or post testing stations may be disposed along the conveyor system, and the use of an X-Y-Z robotic arm and novel plate support bracket allows each of the samples in the wells to be input into the microfluidic network through a probe affixed to a microfluidic chip.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
April 7, 2000
Date of Patent:
December 17, 2002
Assignee:
Caliper Technologies Corp.
Inventors:
Joseph E. Kercso, Steven A. Sundberg, Jeffrey A. Wolk, Andrew W. Toth, Calvin Y. H. Chow, J. Wallace Parce