Patents Assigned to Rainin Instrument, LLC
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Publication number: 20090000350Abstract: A hybrid manual-electronic pipette combines a manually driven piston with real-time electronic measurement of liquid volume and piston displacement while compensating for both pipette-specific and pipette model-specific variations. The hybrid nature of the pipette facilitates increased accuracy and improved ease of use, and enables additional functionalities not practicable with traditional manual pipettes.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 27, 2007Publication date: January 1, 2009Applicant: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: Haakon T. Magnussen, James S. Petrek, William D. Homberg, Andrew Vainshtein, Christian K. Apple
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Patent number: 7175813Abstract: A volume adjustable pipette, comprising a plunger mounted for movement in a housing to and from a stop to aspirate a fluid into and dispense the fluid from a tip extending from the housing. An axially moveable volume setting member in the housing defines the stop and a volume setting for the pipette and is axially moveable by a user turnable volume setting member. Turning of the volume adjusting member also controls a coarse volume setting means and a fine volume setting means, the course volume setting means being responsive to a relatively small turning of the volume adjusting member for moving the volume setting member a relatively large axial distance and the fine volume setting means being responsive to a relatively large turning of the volume adjusting member for moving the volume setting member a relatively small axial distance.Type: GrantFiled: December 31, 2003Date of Patent: February 13, 2007Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: James S. Petrek, Phillip Yee, Kenneth Rainin
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Patent number: 6967004Abstract: A pipette tip and mounting shaft combination in an air displacement pipette, the combination comprising a pipette tip mounting shaft having a radially stepped exterior comprising adjacent substantially cylindrical portions of different diameter and an annular sealing zone including an annular edge seal at an outermost edge of a radially extending shaft transition, a pipette tip including an annular sealing region having an inner sealing surface on a sidewall of the tip which in the sealing region is sufficiently thin as to expand slightly and form an interference fit and air tight seal between the sealing surface and the sealing zone when the sealing zone penetrates the sealing region, and axial penetration limiting means for limiting penetration of the shaft into the tip to limit axial contact between the sealing region and the sealing zone to a narrow annular band comprising the annular edge seal.Type: GrantFiled: October 30, 2001Date of Patent: November 22, 2005Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: Kenneth Rainin, James S. Petrek, Steven T. Nielsen
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Patent number: 6871557Abstract: A pipette for use with a pipette tip to aspirate and dispense a quantity of liquid, comprising a housing, a pipette tip mounting shaft extending from the housing to receive a pipette tip, a pipette tip ejector mechanism for ejecting the pipette tip from the mounting shaft, energy storage means, means for storing energy in the energy storage means and means for releasing energy from the energy storage means to assist the tip ejector mechanism in the ejecting of the pipette tip from the mounting shaft.Type: GrantFiled: November 26, 2002Date of Patent: March 29, 2005Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: Haakon T. Magnussen, Jr., Phillip Yee, Albert Wang
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Patent number: 6745636Abstract: An air displacement pipette having axially spaced annular sealing and lateral support zones and regions on the pipette's mounting shaft and tip, respectively, the annular sealing zone comprising an annular sealing surface outward of an outer surface of the mounting shaft at a lower end thereof and a sidewall of the pipette tip in the sealing region being sufficiently thin as to expand slightly and form an interference fit and air tight seal between the sealing surface and the sealing region when the sealing zone penetrates the sealing region and an outer diameter of the mounting shaft in the lateral support zone being equal to or slightly greater than an inner diameter of the pipette tip in the lateral support region to produce an secondary interference fit or air tight seal between the mounting shaft and pipette tip.Type: GrantFiled: March 31, 2003Date of Patent: June 8, 2004Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: Kenneth Rainin, James S. Petrek
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Patent number: 6737023Abstract: An air displacement pipette having axially spaced annular sealing and substantially cylindrical lateral support zones on the outer surface of the pipette's mounting shaft for mating with axially spaced annular sealing and substantially cylindrical lateral support regions on the inner surface of a pipette tip, whereby the pipette tip is easily and firmly mountable on and easily ejectable from the pipette tip mounting shaft by the application of minimal axial mounting and ejection forces.Type: GrantFiled: October 6, 2000Date of Patent: May 18, 2004Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: Christopher Kelly, James S. Petrek, Kenneth Rainin, Steven T. Nielsen
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Patent number: 6645433Abstract: An ergonomic, manually precisely controllable return springless air displacement pipette relying upon the friction of a piston seal to maintain a plunger unit of the pipette in any axial location established by a user of the pipette.Type: GrantFiled: March 4, 2002Date of Patent: November 11, 2003Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: William D. Homberg, James S. Petrek, Kenneth Rainin
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Patent number: 6568288Abstract: An air displacement pipette having axially spaced annular sealing and substantially cylindrical lateral support zones and regions on the pipette's mounting shaft and tip, respectively, in combination with means for insuring uniform depth of mounting shaft penetration into the pipette tip to maintain uniform tip interference with the mounting shaft as successive tips are mounted on and ejected from the mounting shaft whereby the pipette tip is easily and firmly mountable on and easily ejectable from the pipette tip mounting shaft by the application of axial mounting and ejection forces of about two pounds and one pound, respectively.Type: GrantFiled: June 29, 2001Date of Patent: May 27, 2003Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: Kenneth Rainin, James S. Petrek
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Publication number: 20030082078Abstract: A pipette tip and mounting shaft combination in an air displacement pipette, the combination comprising a pipette tip mounting shaft having a radially stepped exterior comprising adjacent substantially cylindrical portions of different diameter and an annular sealing zone including an annular edge seal at an outermost edge of a radially extending shaft transition, a pipette tip including an annular sealing region having an inner sealing surface on a sidewall of the tip which in the sealing region is sufficiently thin as to expand slightly and form an interference fit and air tight seal between the sealing surface and the sealing zone when the sealing zone penetrates the sealing region, and axial penetration limiting means for limiting penetration of the shaft into the tip to limit axial contact between the sealing region and the sealing zone to a narrow annular band comprising the annular edge seal.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 30, 2001Publication date: May 1, 2003Applicant: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: Kenneth Rainin, James S. Petrek, Steven T. Nielsen
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Publication number: 20030074989Abstract: A pipette for use with a pipette tip to aspirate and dispense a quantity of liquid, comprising a housing, a pipette tip mounting shaft extending from the housing to receive a pipette tip, a pipette tip ejector mechanism for ejecting the pipette tip from the mounting shaft, energy storage means, means for storing energy in the energy storage means and means for releasing energy from the energy storage means to assist the tip ejector mechanism in the ejecting of the pipette tip from the mounting shaft.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 26, 2002Publication date: April 24, 2003Applicant: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: Haakon T. Magnussen, Phillip Yee, Albert Wang
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Patent number: 6532837Abstract: A pipette for repeatedly aspirating and dispensing a predetermined quantity of liquid. The pipette includes a hollow body having first and second extremities. The second extremity is adapted to removably receive the pipette tip. An ejector is carried by the body and has a first extremity disposed within the first extremity of the housing and a second extremity movable vertically about the second extremity of the housing. The ejector is movable from a first position for permitting the pipette tip to be securely mounted on the second extremity of the housing and a second position for pushing the pipette tip off of the second extremity of the housing. A spring is carried by the housing and is compressed so as to store energy in the spring. A locking mechanism is additionally carried by the housing for retaining the spring in the compressed position.Type: GrantFiled: February 3, 2000Date of Patent: March 18, 2003Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: Haakon T. Magussen, Jr., Phillip Yee, Albert Y. Wang
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Patent number: 6428750Abstract: A volume adjustable manual pipette having a hand-holdable housing supporting (i) an electronic digital display and associated position sensing and control circuitry, (ii) a plunger unit and (iii) a quick set volume adjustment mechanism for simultaneously controlling the volume setting of the pipette and the electronic display, the quick set volume adjustment mechanism comprising a pipette volume setting member for limiting upward movement of the plunger unit within the housing to define the volume setting for the pipette and the volume setting member being supported for axial movement on the plunger unit and releasably secured relative to the housing by a pipette user operable locking mechanism. When released from the housing, the volume setting member is axially moveable on and with the plunger unit to quickly set the volume for the pipette.Type: GrantFiled: April 13, 2000Date of Patent: August 6, 2002Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventors: Kenneth Rainin, Haakon T. Magnussen, Jr., Phillip Yee, William D. Homberg, James S. Petrek
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Publication number: 20020081234Abstract: An ergonomic, manually precisely controllable return springless air displacement pipette relying upon the friction of a piston seal to maintain a plunger unit of the pipette in any axial location established by a user of the pipette.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 4, 2002Publication date: June 27, 2002Applicant: Rainin Instrument LLC.Inventors: William D. Homberg, James S. Petrek, Kenneth Rainin
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Patent number: D461904Type: GrantFiled: November 9, 2001Date of Patent: August 20, 2002Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventor: James S. Petrek
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Patent number: D468024Type: GrantFiled: December 22, 2001Date of Patent: December 31, 2002Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventor: James S. Petrek
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Patent number: D468440Type: GrantFiled: December 22, 2001Date of Patent: January 7, 2003Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventor: James S. Petrek
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Patent number: D468832Type: GrantFiled: December 22, 2001Date of Patent: January 14, 2003Assignee: Rainin Instrument, LLCInventor: James S. Petrek