A digital microfluidic driving system and method

Abstract

The present application discloses a digital microfluidic drive system and method, which have the following beneficial effects compared with the existing technology: through the mutual cooperation of the main control unit, high-voltage output unit, detection unit, adapter and array, distributor, and hub, synchronous and asynchronous driving of various types of digital microfluidic chips can be achieved, which increases the complexity of the system's droplet motion planning; by synchronously updating the chip drive electrode array, the connection relationship between the chip drive electrode and the signal output channel, and the channel address grouping results, chip adaptation is completed, and complex droplet operations of different chips are coordinated through one system, saving costs and simplifying the process; by dual-constraining the droplets on the chip through the electrode adjacency relationship and the address of the signal channel, the globally optimal droplet motion path can be obtained, which ensures the droplet motion efficiency and can enhance the fault tolerance of droplet manipulation in high-throughput, multi-droplet path coupling scenarios.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the field of digital microfluidics technology, and in particular relates to a digital microfluidics driving system and method. Background Art

[0002] Digital microfluidics (DMF) technology is a new type of droplet manipulation technology that uses electrical signals as a driving force to independently manipulate discrete droplets. It can realize the distribution, movement, merging and splitting of droplets ranging from microliters to picoliters. Due to its significant advantages in processing liquid samples, digital microfluidics technology provides a new technical means for research such as chemical synthesis, biological analysis, and drug screening. It has been rapidly applied to fields such as instant testing, clinical diagnosis, and rapid food testing. In today's domestic and foreign markets, digital microfluidics technology is still in the transition stage from early exploration to rapid development, and there is still a big gap from large-scale market application. The reasons that limit the large-scale market application of digital microfluidics technology are complex, but from the perspective of versatility and efficiency, it can be summarized as some technical bottlenecks that have not yet been effectively solved, including:

[0003] (1) Chip compatibility is difficult

[0004] The existing DMF drive system has a single type of chip connector, which is directly physically connected to the drive circuit board and can only drive a specific type of DMF chip. It is not compatible with a variety of digital microfluidic chips with different chip interfaces and chip sizes, especially DMF chips from different manufacturers. In other words, when users use various detection methods based on digital microfluidics, they need to be equipped with multiple sets of drive systems compatible with DMF chips. This not only increases the usage costs of users and enterprises, but also restricts the development of digital microfluidic technology.

[0005] (2) Chip throughput limitation

[0006] There are significant differences in the detection throughput requirements of digital microfluidic systems in a wide range of application scenarios. For high-throughput droplet operations, improving the high-throughput chip of a single chip is a feasible solution, but this solution will cause the entire chip to be scrapped when the chip is partially damaged. At the same time, this method cannot take into account the relationship between flexible adjustment of droplet operation flux and efficient chip utilization; complementary splicing of the side of the electrode plate of the digital microfluidic chip (patent number: 202010062040.4) is an effective way to achieve flexible expansion of flux, but parallel complementary splicing has high requirements for the flatness of the two chips, the size of the splicing gap, and the cleanliness during the splicing process. Droplets and the filling liquid inside the chip are prone to leakage at the splicing gap.

[0007] Therefore, how to design a DMF driving system that is compatible with and expands various types of DMF chips for diverse digital microfluidic application scenarios is an urgent problem to be solved in the current digital microfluidics field. Summary of the Invention

[0008] Based on this, it is necessary to provide a digital microfluidic driving system and method to address the existing problems.

[0009] The embodiment of the present application provides a digital microfluidic drive system, comprising a host computer, a main control unit, a high-voltage output unit, a detection unit, a first microfluidic module, a second microfluidic module, and a third microfluidic module;

[0010] The first input end of the main control unit is connected to the output end of the host computer, the second input end of the main control unit is connected to the output end of the detection unit, and the output end of the main control unit is connected to the input end of the high-voltage output unit;

[0011] The first output end of the high-voltage output unit is connected to the input end of the first digital microfluidic module, the second output end of the high-voltage output unit is connected to the input end of the second digital microfluidic module, and the third output end of the high-voltage output unit is connected to the input end of the third digital microfluidic module;

[0012] The output end of the first digital microfluidic module, the output end of the second digital microfluidic module, and the output end of the third digital microfluidic module are all connected to the input end of the detection unit;

[0013] A first digital microfluidic module includes a first adapter, a first digital microfluidic chip, a hub, a second adapter, and a second digital microfluidic chip;

[0014] a second digital microfluidic module, comprising a first adapter array and a first digital microfluidic chip array;

[0015] a third digital microfluidic module, comprising a distributor, a second adapter array, and a second digital microfluidic chip array;

[0016] The output signal of the high-voltage output unit is controlled by the main control unit so that the first microfluidic module, the second microfluidic module and / or the third microfluidic module work simultaneously or at different times.

[0017] Preferably, the first digital microfluidic chip array comprises n first-type digital microfluidic chips of the same type; the first adapter array comprises n first-type adapters corresponding to the n third digital microfluidic chips of the same type;

[0018] Each of the first-type adapters is connected in parallel with its corresponding third digital microfluidic chip.

[0019] Preferably, the second digital microfluidic chip array comprises n digital microfluidic chips of different types;

[0020] The second adapter array comprises n second-type adapters corresponding to the n different types of digital microfluidic chips;

[0021] Each of the second-type adapters is connected in parallel with its corresponding digital microfluidic chip.

[0022] Preferably, the high-voltage output unit includes a high-voltage output channel and a high-voltage control switch;

[0023] The high-voltage output channel is respectively connected to the first adapter, the first adapter array, and the second adapter array to provide driving voltage for the droplet movement on all working digital microfluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic chip, the second digital microfluidic chip, the first digital microfluidic chip array, and the second digital microfluidic chip array;

[0024] The high-voltage control switch is connected to the main control unit to receive a control signal from the main control unit.

[0025] Preferably, the main control unit controls the high-voltage output channels correspondingly connected to the first adapter, the first adapter array and / or the second adapter array to perform channel address configuration.

[0026] Another embodiment of the present application discloses a digital microfluidic driving method, comprising the following steps:

[0027] Perform chip adaptation on each digital microfluidic chip of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module, and / or the third digital microfluidic module, and update the electrode adjacency relationship in the chip drive electrode array of all working digital fluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module, and / or the third digital microfluidic module;

[0028] grouping the channel addresses of the output signal channels of the high-voltage output unit according to the electrode adjacency relationship;

[0029] According to the electrode adjacency relationship and channel address grouping results, motion planning is performed on the droplets on all working digital fluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module and / or the third digital microfluidic module.

[0030] Preferably, the electrode adjacency relationship is determined by current pulses, capacitance, visual signals or acoustic signals caused by the movement of the droplet on the corresponding driving electrode.

[0031] Preferably, the performing motion planning for droplets on all working digital fluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module, and / or the third digital microfluidic module according to the electrode adjacency relationship and the channel address grouping result includes:

[0032] Using the electrode adjacency relationship of all electrodes in the chip driving electrode array as a basic constraint condition for droplet motion planning of all working digital microfluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module and / or the third digital microfluidic module, and using the channel address grouping result as a motion planning condition for droplet motion planning;

[0033] Motion planning is performed synchronously on the droplets on all working digital microfluidic chips according to the basic constraint conditions and the motion planning conditions.

[0034] Preferably, the synchronously performing motion planning on the droplets on all working digital microfluidic chips according to the basic constraint conditions and the motion planning conditions includes:

[0035] The droplets on all working digital microfluidic chips are controlled based on the artificial potential field method;

[0036] When a motion conflict droplet appears in a microfluidic chip, the motion of the motion conflict droplet in the microfluidic chip is replanned by splitting the collision domain.

[0037] Preferably, the droplets on all working digital microfluidic chips are controlled based on the artificial potential field method, including:

[0038] The virtual suction field of each digital microfluidic chip electrode under the current signal controls the droplet to move to the target electrode with the shortest path.

[0039] Compared with the prior art, the technical solution disclosed in the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0040] (1) The technical solution of the present invention can realize synchronous and asynchronous driving of various types of digital microfluidic chips through the mutual cooperation of the main control unit, high-voltage output unit, detection unit, adapter and array, distributor, and hub, thereby increasing the complexity of droplet motion planning of the digital microfluidic system;

[0041] (2) The present invention achieves system chip adaptation by synchronously updating the chip drive electrode array, the connection relationship between the chip drive electrodes and the signal output channels, and the channel address grouping results fed back by the adapter. Complex droplet operations on multiple digital microfluidic chips can be coordinated and operated through a single system drive, greatly saving costs and simplifying the control process.

[0042] (3) By imposing dual constraints on the droplets on the microfluidic chip through reasonable electrode adjacency relationships and the channel addresses of the output signal channels, the globally optimal droplet motion path can be obtained, which not only ensures the droplet motion efficiency but also enhances the fault tolerance of the chip in controlling droplets in high-throughput, multi-droplet path coupling scenarios. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0043] A more complete understanding of the exemplary embodiments of the present invention can be obtained by referring to the following drawings. The drawings are intended to provide a further understanding of the embodiments of the present application and constitute a part of the specification. Together with the embodiments of the present application, they are used to explain the present invention and do not constitute a limitation of the present invention. In the drawings, the same reference numerals generally represent the same components or steps.

[0044] Figure 1 A schematic structural diagram of a digital microfluidic drive system provided according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

[0045] Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the structure of a second digital microfluidic module of a digital microfluidic drive system provided according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

[0046] Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the structure of a third digital microfluidic module of a digital microfluidic drive system provided according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

[0047] Figure 4 A flowchart of a digital microfluidic driving method provided according to another exemplary embodiment of the present application;

[0048] Figure 5 This is a conflict point type of a digital microfluidic driving method provided according to another exemplary embodiment of the present application.

[0049] Figure 6 A conflict point constraint position of a digital microfluidic driving method provided according to another exemplary embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0050] Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Although exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that the present disclosure can be implemented in various forms and should not be limited by the embodiments described herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided to enable a more thorough understanding of the present disclosure and to fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.

[0051] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that the terms "center," "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicating orientations or positional relationships, are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings and are intended solely to facilitate and simplify the description of the present invention. They are not intended to indicate or imply that the devices or components referred to must have, be constructed, or operate in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as limitations on the present invention. Furthermore, the terms "first," "second," and "third" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0052] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise expressly specified or limited, the terms "mounted," "connected," and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, they may refer to fixed, detachable, or integral connections; mechanical or electrical connections; direct or indirect connections through an intermediate medium; and internal communication between two components. Those skilled in the art will understand the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0053] In addition, the technical features involved in the different embodiments of the present invention described below can be combined with each other as long as they do not conflict with each other.

[0054] Example 1

[0055] The embodiment of the present application provides a digital microfluidic driving system, which is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0056] Reference Figure 1 , which shows a digital microfluidic drive system provided by some embodiments of the present application, including a host computer 1, a main control unit 2, a high-voltage output unit 3, a first digital microfluidic module 4, a second digital microfluidic module 5, a third digital microfluidic module 6 and a detection unit 7.

[0057] In the present invention, the chip of the system needs to be adapted. The process of loading different chip adaptation files is as follows: the driving electrode on the chip is connected to the contact electrode, and the contact electrode is connected to the host driving channel; each electrode of the chip driving electrode array corresponds to a host driving channel; the file with the chip driving electrode array pattern and the electrode and host driving channel numbering information is loaded into the host computer; the system is driven to adapt to the new chip (that is, the host computer clicks on the driving electrode on the interface, and the driving electrode at the corresponding position of the chip is powered on and driven). Among them, the type of digital microfluidic chip can be selected according to system needs.

[0058] Among them, the first input end of the main control unit 2 is connected to the output end of the host computer 1, the second input end of the main control unit 2 is connected to the output end of the detection unit 7, and the output end of the main control unit 2 is connected to the input end of the high-voltage output unit 3; the first output end of the high-voltage output unit 3 is connected to the input end of the first digital microfluidic module 4, the second output end of the high-voltage output unit is connected to the input end of the second digital microfluidic module 5, and the third output end of the high-voltage output unit 3 is connected to the input end of the third digital microfluidic module 6; the output end of the first digital microfluidic module 4, the output end of the second digital microfluidic module 5 and the output end of the third digital microfluidic module 6 are all connected to the input end of the detection unit 7.

[0059] Specifically, the first digital microfluidic module 4 includes a first adapter 41, a first digital microfluidic chip 44, a hub 42, a second adapter 43, and a second digital microfluidic chip 45. The first digital microfluidic chip 44 and the second digital microfluidic chip 45 can be of the same type or different types.

[0060] Specifically, the second digital microfluidic module 5 includes a first adapter array 51 and a first digital microfluidic chip array 52 .

[0061] See also Figure 2 In this embodiment, the first digital microfluidic chip array 52 includes n first-type digital microfluidic chips 521 of the same type; the first adapter array 51 includes n first-type adapters 511 corresponding to the n first-type digital microfluidic chips 521 of the same type; each first-type adapter 511 is connected in parallel with its corresponding third digital microfluidic chip 521.

[0062] Specifically, see Figure 3 The third digital microfluidic module 6 includes a distributor 61 , a second adapter array 62 and a second digital microfluidic chip array 63 .

[0063] See also Figure 3 In this embodiment, the second digital microfluidic chip array 63 includes n digital microfluidic chips of different types, namely the third digital microfluidic chip 631, the fourth digital microfluidic chip 632...the (n+2)th digital microfluidic chip 63n; the second adapter array 62 includes n adapters corresponding to the n different types of digital microfluidic chips, namely the third adapter 621, the fourth adapter 622...the (n+2)th adapter 62n; each second-type adapter is connected in parallel with its corresponding digital microfluidic chip.

[0064] In this embodiment, the main control unit 2 controls the output signal of the high-voltage output unit 3 so that the first microfluidic module 4 , the second microfluidic module 5 and / or the third microfluidic module 6 work simultaneously or at different times.

[0065] Specifically, the various types of digital microfluidic chips differ in their chip electrode arrays, structures, and shapes and sizes; optionally, the chip electrode arrays of the various types of digital microfluidic chips include a chip contact electrode array, a chip driving electrode array, and a chip ground electrode array, and the chip driving electrodes and the chip ground electrodes are respectively connected to the chip contact electrodes. The differences between the various types of digital microfluidic chip electrode arrays lie in the different electrode shapes and sizes, the number and arrangement of the arrays.

[0066] The structures of various types of digital microfluidic chips in this embodiment include a single-plate structure, a double-plate structure, and a single-double hybrid plate structure; the digital microfluidic chip with a single-plate structure has only one bottom plate for carrying the chip electrode array, and the droplets on it are directly exposed to the external environment. The digital microfluidic chip with a double-plate structure includes two upper and lower plates for carrying the electrode array and a support gasket separating the upper and lower plates. A material that is not miscible with the droplets, such as air or filler oil, is used as a medium between the two plates to drive the droplets to be wrapped between the two plates, forming a "sandwich" structure, and the chip driving electrode array is located between the upper and lower plates; the single-double hybrid plate digital microfluidic chip also includes two upper and lower plates and a support gasket separating the upper and lower plates. The difference from the double-plate digital microfluidic chip is that only a part of the chip driving electrode array of the single-double hybrid plate digital microfluidic chip is located between the upper and lower plates, and the other part of the chip driving electrode array is exposed to the external environment, which is the same as the single-plate digital microfluidic chip.

[0067] Specifically, the adapter of this embodiment includes an adapter contact array and an adapter input terminal; the adapter contact array is consistent with the chip contact electrode array of the digital microfluidic chip it is adapted to, and the chip contact electrodes of the digital microfluidic chip are connected one-to-one with the wiring pins in the adapter input terminal through the adapter contacts. For example, the input terminal of the first adapter 41 is connected to the high-voltage output unit 3.

[0068] Specifically, the hub 42 of this embodiment includes a hub contact array and a hub output terminal; the input terminal of the second adapter 43 is connected to the contact electrode array of the hub 42 via the output terminal of the hub 42, and the contact array of the hub 42 is connected one-to-one with the contact array of the first adapter 41; and then the adapters are connected in series to complete the adaptation of different types of chips, and at the same time, the digital microfluidic chip is extended to the outside of the host to complete the micro-droplet operation, which facilitates the combination of the digital microfluidic system with standard instruments such as mass spectrometry, Raman, microscope, and spectrometer.

[0069] Specifically, the distributor 61 of this embodiment includes a channel expansion unit, a channel address encoding unit, a distributor output channel, and a connection detection unit; wherein the output channel expansion unit is connected to the driving circuit to expand the control channel array of the high-voltage output unit 3, so that the channel address encoding unit configures an independent channel address for each expanded channel; the output channel array of the distributor 61 connected to the output detection unit is connected to each adapter input terminal of the second adapter array 62; the distributor 61 groups the output channel addresses of the connected distributor 61 based on the connection signal between the output channel of the distributor 61 and the adapter terminal detected by the connection detection unit within a preset threshold time, and the grouped channel addresses are fed back to the main control unit 2 and the host computer 1 for motion planning of asynchronous paths of droplets on different digital microfluidic chips.

[0070] Specifically, the high-voltage output unit 3 includes a high-voltage output channel and a high-voltage control switch; wherein the high-voltage output channel is respectively connected to the first adapter 41, the first adapter array 51 and the second adapter array 62 to provide a driving voltage for the droplet movement on all working digital microfluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic chip 44, the second digital microfluidic chip 45, the first digital microfluidic chip array 52 and the second digital microfluidic chip array 63, and its specific operation is achieved by modulating the amplitude and frequency of the driving voltage.

[0071] Specifically, in the driving system, the host computer 1 performs operations such as droplet path planning, signal processing, and system settings for all working chips; for the digital microfluidic chip with a newly adapted physical connection, the host computer needs to synchronously update the chip driving electrode array, the connection relationship between the chip driving electrode and the high-voltage output channel, and the channel address grouping results fed back by the distributor to complete the system chip adaptation.

[0072] The drive system of this embodiment can realize the coordinated operation of droplet operations on multiple digital microfluidic chips under the drive of the same host, increasing the complexity of droplet motion planning of the digital microfluidic system, and can enhance the fault tolerance of the chip's droplet manipulation and perform autonomous droplet path planning.

[0073] Specifically, the detection unit 7 is connected to the host computer 1 and the main control unit 2; the droplet position is detected through current pulses, capacitance, visual signals or sound wave signals, and the detection signal is fed back to the host computer 1 or the main control unit 2.

[0074] Compared with the prior art, the technical solution disclosed in the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0075] (1) The technical solution of the present invention can realize synchronous and asynchronous driving of various types of digital microfluidic chips through the mutual cooperation of the main control unit, high-voltage output unit, detection unit, adapter and array, distributor, and hub, thereby increasing the complexity of droplet motion planning of the digital microfluidic system;

[0076] (2) The present invention achieves system chip adaptation by synchronously updating the chip drive electrode array, the connection relationship between the chip drive electrodes and the signal output channels, and the channel address grouping results fed back by the adapter. Complex droplet operations on multiple digital microfluidic chips can be coordinated and operated through a single system drive, greatly saving costs and simplifying the control process.

[0077] (3) By imposing dual constraints on the droplets on the microfluidic chip through reasonable electrode adjacency relationships and the channel addresses of the output signal channels, the globally optimal droplet motion path can be obtained, which not only ensures the droplet motion efficiency but also enhances the fault tolerance of the chip in controlling droplets in high-throughput, multi-droplet path coupling scenarios.

[0078] Example 2

[0079] This embodiment of the present application provides a digital microfluidic driving method applied to Example 1, comprising the following steps:

[0080] S401: performing chip adaptation on each digital microfluidic chip of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module, and / or the third digital microfluidic module, and updating the electrode adjacency relationship in the chip drive electrode array of all working digital fluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module, and / or the third digital microfluidic module;

[0081] Specifically, before the detection is driven, the system chip needs to be adapted. Taking the first microfluidic module 4 as an example, the adapter 61 is first connected to the hub 42 to collect the control channel array of the high-voltage output unit 3 to the hub 42 and the output terminal; then, the output terminal of the hub 42 is connected to the replaceable adapter, and the control channel of the high-voltage output unit 3 is re-arrayed to adapt to the type of digital microfluidic chip. The type of digital microfluidic chip can be selected according to the needs of the system. The adaptation process of the second digital microfluidic module 5 and the third digital microfluidic module is similar to that of the first microfluidic module 4.

[0082] Specifically, according to the design of the driving system, the present invention is not only applicable to the synchronous parallel driving of the same digital microfluidic chip, but is also more applicable to the parallel asynchronous driving of different types of digital microfluidic chips.

[0083] Specifically, the electrode adjacency relationship is determined by the current pulse, capacitance, visual signal, or acoustic signal caused by the droplet moving on the corresponding driving electrode. Specifically, the above parameters of the droplet are different between different electrodes. When the droplet moves from its current position to the next position, it can only move to the four adjacent electrodes, but cannot move to the diagonal position or cross the electrodes. For example, for the coordinates of two different electrodes (x0, y0) and (x1, y1), the specific constraints are as shown in formula (1):

[0084]

[0085] S402: Grouping channel addresses of output signal channels of the high-voltage output unit according to electrode adjacency relationships;

[0086] S403: Performing motion planning for droplets on all working digital fluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module, and / or the third digital microfluidic module according to the electrode adjacency relationship and the channel address grouping result.

[0087] Specifically, the electrode adjacency relationship of all electrodes in the chip driving electrode array is used as the basic constraint condition for the droplet motion planning of all working digital microfluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module 4, the second digital microfluidic module 5 and / or the third digital microfluidic module 6, and the channel address grouping result is used as the motion planning condition for the droplet motion planning;

[0088] Motion planning is performed synchronously on the droplets on all working digital microfluidic chips according to basic constraint conditions and the motion planning conditions.

[0089] Preferably, the motion planning is performed synchronously on the droplets on all working digital microfluidic chips according to the basic constraint conditions and the motion planning conditions, including:

[0090] The droplets on all digital microfluidic chips used in the work were controlled based on the artificial potential field method;

[0091] When a motion conflict droplet appears in a microfluidic chip, the motion of the motion conflict droplet in the microfluidic chip is replanned by splitting the collision domain.

[0092] Preferably, controlling the droplets on each digital microfluidic chip of the digital microfluidic chip array based on the artificial potential field method includes:

[0093] The virtual suction field of each digital microfluidic chip electrode under the current signal controls the droplet to move to the target electrode with the shortest path.

[0094] When a motion conflict droplet appears in a microfluidic chip, the motion of the motion conflict droplet in the microfluidic chip is replanned by splitting the collision domain.

[0095] See also Figure 5 , the types of motion conflict droplets are given. When the motion conflict droplets belong to the conflict point type, different motion delays are added to the motion conflict droplets before the droplets reach the conflict point, so that the motion conflict droplets arrive at the conflict electrodes corresponding to the motion conflict droplets at different peaks; when the motion conflict droplets belong to the reverse edge conflict and fault electrode types, repulsion and taboo constraints are added to the motion conflict droplets, so that the positions of the motion conflict droplets are not adjacent.

[0096] Considering the possibility of chip failure, the chip needs to be tested online. If two droplets merge due to being directly adjacent or diagonally adjacent, it will interfere with normal experiments. To avoid collisions between two droplets, it is necessary to consider the fluid constraints between different droplets. The specific constraint process is as follows:

[0097] set up is the row and column where droplet 1 is located at time t, let is the row and column where droplet 2 is located at time t, then the two droplets need to satisfy two constraints at the same time and different times:

[0098] (1) Constraints at the same time

[0099] or That is, at the same moment, the positions of the two droplets on the chip electrodes are at least two rows or two columns apart, which ensures that the droplets will not merge due to being adjacent or diagonal. Figure 6 As stated, Figure 6 The x position in (a) is the taboo constraint position around droplet A.

[0100] (2) Constraints at different times

[0101] or Even if the droplets are in motion, they will not merge due to being adjacent to each other, ensuring that the position of droplet A at that moment is not adjacent to the position of droplet B at the previous moment or the next moment. Figure 6 The droplet B in (b) will move downward, and the x position is the taboo constraint position that the other droplets cannot reach because of the next moving position of the droplet B.

[0102] At the same time, when a droplet deviates from the predetermined trajectory, the step-loss drive command is repeatedly sent to the droplet. If it still fails to pass, the front drive electrode is marked as a faulty electrode, and the motion planning of the droplet is re-performed. The specific process of determining whether a droplet deviates from the predetermined trajectory is as follows:

[0103] At time t1, the droplet is located at electrode (X1, Y1); at time t2, it is located at electrode (X2, Y2); and at time t3, it is located at electrode (X3, Y3). (X1, Y1), (X2, Y2), (X3, Y3)…(Xt, Yt) are the droplet's movement paths obtained during motion planning. The capacitance values ​​at (X1, Y1), (X2, Y2), (X3, Y3)…(Xt, Yt) are detected in real time. When the droplet's passage causes a change in capacitance C(Xt, Yt) at the corresponding electrode (Xt, Yt), this change is used to determine the droplet's position. For example, at time t2, according to the motion plan, the droplet should be located at electrode (X2, Y2). If C(X2, Y2) changes at this time, the droplet moves along the planned trajectory. If C(X2, Y2) does not change, the droplet deviates from the planned trajectory.

[0104] In this embodiment, the channel address grouping result is used as one of the motion planning conditions because the same droplet cannot move across chips. The droplet motion planning method for each chip is consistent with the above global motion planning method.

[0105] It should be noted that the flowcharts and block diagrams in the accompanying drawings show the possible architectures, functions and operations of the systems, methods and computer program products according to multiple embodiments of the present application. In this regard, each box in the flowchart or block diagram can represent a module, a program segment or a part of a code, and the module, program segment or a part of the code contains one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical function. It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions marked in the box can also occur in an order different from that marked in the accompanying drawings. For example, two consecutive boxes can actually be executed substantially in parallel, and they can sometimes be executed in the opposite order, depending on the functions involved. It should also be noted that each box in the block diagram and / or flowchart, and the combination of boxes in the block diagram and / or flowchart, can be implemented with a dedicated hardware-based system that performs the specified function or action, or can be implemented with a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0106] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can refer to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0107] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. The device embodiments described above are merely schematic. For example, the division of the units is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. For example, multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some communication interface, the indirect coupling or communication connection of the device or unit can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0108] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of these units may be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0109] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0110] If the functions are implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application, or the part that contributes to the prior art or the part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for enabling a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media that can store program codes, such as a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk.

[0111] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, rather than to limit them. Although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions described in the aforementioned embodiments, or make equivalent replacements for some or all of the technical features therein. These modifications or replacements do not deviate the essence of the corresponding technical solutions from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and they should all be included in the scope of the claims and description of the present application.

Claims

1. A digital microfluidic drive system, characterized in that: It includes a host computer, a main control unit, a high-voltage output unit, a detection unit, a first microfluidic module, a second microfluidic module and a third microfluidic module; The first input end of the main control unit is connected to the output end of the host computer, the second input end of the main control unit is connected to the output end of the detection unit, and the output end of the main control unit is connected to the input end of the high-voltage output unit; The first output end of the high-voltage output unit is connected to the input end of the first digital microfluidic module, the second output end of the high-voltage output unit is connected to the input end of the second digital microfluidic module, and the third output end of the high-voltage output unit is connected to the input end of the third digital microfluidic module; The output end of the first digital microfluidic module, the output end of the second digital microfluidic module, and the output end of the third digital microfluidic module are all connected to the input end of the detection unit; A first digital microfluidic module includes a first adapter, a first digital microfluidic chip, a hub, a second adapter, and a second digital microfluidic chip; a second digital microfluidic module, comprising a first adapter array and a first digital microfluidic chip array; a third digital microfluidic module, comprising a distributor, a second adapter array, and a second digital microfluidic chip array; The output signal of the high-voltage output unit is controlled by the main control unit so that the first microfluidic module, the second microfluidic module and / or the third microfluidic module work simultaneously or at different times; The high-voltage output unit includes a high-voltage output channel and a high-voltage control switch; the high-voltage output channel is respectively connected to the first adapter, the first adapter array, and the second adapter array to provide a driving voltage for the droplet operation on all working digital microfluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic chip, the second digital microfluidic chip, the first digital microfluidic chip array, and the second digital microfluidic chip array; the high-voltage control switch is connected to the main control unit to receive a control signal from the main control unit; The main control unit controls the high-voltage output channels correspondingly connected to the first adapter, the first adapter array and / or the second adapter array to perform channel address configuration.

2. A digital microfluidic drive system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first digital microfluidic chip array comprises n first-type digital microfluidic chips of the same type; the first adapter array comprises n first-type adapters corresponding to the n first-type digital microfluidic chips of the same type; Each of the first-type adapters is connected in parallel with its corresponding first-type digital microfluidic chip.

3. A digital microfluidic drive system according to claim 2, characterized in that: The second digital microfluidic chip array comprises n digital microfluidic chips of different types; The second adapter array comprises n second-type adapters corresponding to the n different types of digital microfluidic chips; Each of the second-type adapters is connected in parallel with its corresponding digital microfluidic chip.

4. A digital microfluidic driving method applied to the digital microfluidic driving system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The steps include: Perform chip adaptation on each digital microfluidic chip of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module, and / or the third digital microfluidic module, and update the electrode adjacency relationship in the chip drive electrode array of all working digital fluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module, and / or the third digital microfluidic module; grouping the channel addresses of the high-voltage output channels of the high-voltage output unit according to the electrode adjacency relationship; According to the electrode adjacency relationship and the channel address grouping result, motion planning is performed on the droplets on all working digital fluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module and / or the third digital microfluidic module.

5. A digital microfluidic driving method according to claim 4, characterized in that: The electrode adjacency relationship is determined by current pulses, capacitance, visual signals or acoustic signals caused by the movement of the droplet on the corresponding driving electrode.

6. A digital microfluidic driving method according to claim 5, characterized in that: The performing motion planning for droplets on all working digital fluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module and / or the third digital microfluidic module according to the electrode adjacency relationship and the channel address grouping result includes: Using the electrode adjacency relationship of all electrodes in the chip driving electrode array as a basic constraint condition for droplet motion planning of all working digital microfluidic chips of the first digital microfluidic module, the second digital microfluidic module and / or the third digital microfluidic module, and using the channel address grouping result as a motion planning condition for droplet motion planning; Motion planning is performed synchronously on the droplets on all working digital microfluidic chips according to the basic constraint conditions and the motion planning conditions.

7. A digital microfluidic driving method according to claim 6, characterized in that: The step of synchronously performing motion planning on the droplets on all working digital microfluidic chips according to the basic constraint conditions and the motion planning conditions includes: The droplets on all working digital microfluidic chips are controlled based on the artificial potential field method; When a motion conflict droplet appears in a microfluidic chip, the motion of the motion conflict droplet in the microfluidic chip is replanned by splitting the collision domain.

8. A digital microfluidic driving method according to claim 7, characterized in that: Control droplets on all digital microfluidic chips based on artificial potential field method, including: The virtual suction field of each digital microfluidic chip electrode under the current signal controls the droplet to move to the target electrode with the shortest path.

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