Patents by Inventor Derek Vallejo

Derek Vallejo 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: 12465911
    Abstract: Systems and method for sorting droplets includes a microfluidic chip or substrate having a droplet sorting channel coupled at an upstream location to a droplet inlet channel, the droplet sorting channel coupled at a downstream location to a waste channel and a collection channel. The device includes an optical interrogation device configured to illuminate the droplets passing through the sorting channel with excitation light from an excitation light source and capturing emitted fluorescent light and generating an output signal correlated to the fluorescence of the droplets. An actuator (electrode) is disposed in the microfluidic chip or substrate and coupled to a signal driver (e.g., a high voltage amplifier). The device or system uses a programmable controller configured to receive the output signals from the optical interrogation device and trigger the signal driver to actuate the actuator to direct the droplets into the collection channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 11, 2025
    Assignees: THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, THE SCRIPPS RESEARCH INSTITUTE
    Inventors: John Chaput, Derek Vallejo, Brian Paegel
  • Publication number: 20220212188
    Abstract: Systems and method for sorting droplets includes a microfluidic chip or substrate having a droplet sorting channel coupled at an upstream location to a droplet inlet channel, the droplet sorting channel coupled at a downstream location to a waste channel and a collection channel. The device includes an optical interrogation device configured to illuminate the droplets passing through the sorting channel with excitation light from an excitation light source and capturing emitted fluorescent light and generating an output signal correlated to the fluorescence of the droplets. An actuator (electrode) is disposed in the microfluidic chip or substrate and coupled to a signal driver (e.g., a high voltage amplifier). The device or system uses a programmable controller configured to receive the output signals from the optical interrogation device and trigger the signal driver to actuate the actuator to direct the droplets into the collection channel.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 1, 2020
    Publication date: July 7, 2022
    Applicants: THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, THE SCRIPPS RESEARCH INSTITUTE
    Inventors: John Chaput, Derek Vallejo, Brian Paegel