Micro-fluidic chip test cabin

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of micro-fluidic chip testing, and provides a micro-fluidic chip testing cabin which comprises a cabin body and a cabin cover, the side wall of the cabin body is of a hollow interlayer structure, the hollow interlayer structure is filled with protective gas, and the protective gas in the hollow interlayer structure can enter the cabin body. According to the test cabin, the test environment of the to-be-tested micro-fluidic chip in the cabin body is an oxygen-free environment, test failure caused by air interference when the to-be-tested micro-fluidic chip is tested in the cabin body is avoided, meanwhile, the cabin cover is arranged at the top of the cabin body, the sealing performance of the test cabin is further guaranteed, the test passing rate is further increased, and the test efficiency is improved. The problem that an existing testing device fails in testing due to air interference is solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of microfluidic chip testing, and in particular to a microfluidic chip testing chamber. Background Art

[0002] Microfluidic chip technology integrates the basic operating units of sample preparation, reaction, separation, detection, etc. in the biological, chemical, and medical analysis processes onto a micron-scale chip to automatically complete the entire analysis process. Microfluidic chips play a significant role in multiple interdisciplinary fields such as electronics, mechanics, and biomedicine.

[0003] At present, the integrated microfluidic chip needs to undergo a complete test of the entire chip process to ensure the integration quality of the microfluidic chip.

[0004] However, existing testing devices all complete the test in the air, but many microfluidic chips are easily disturbed when tested in the air, resulting in errors in the test results and test failures. For example, when testing liquid metal microfluidic chips, the presence of oxygen can easily cause the liquid metal to oxidize, thus affecting the performance test of the entire chip. Summary of the invention

[0005] The invention provides a microfluidic chip test chamber to solve the problem of test failure caused by air interference in existing test devices.

[0006] The present invention provides a microfluidic chip test chamber, comprising:

[0007] A cabin, wherein a hollow sandwich structure is provided in the side wall of the cabin, and a protective gas is filled in the hollow sandwich structure. The hollow sandwich structure can be communicated with the interior of the cabin, so that the protective gas in the hollow sandwich structure can enter the interior of the cabin, and the microfluidic chip inside the cabin can be protected by gas;

[0008] A hatch cover is arranged on the top of the cabin body and is sealed and connected to the cabin body.

[0009] According to the microfluidic chip test cabin provided by the present invention, a perspective window is provided on the side wall of the cabin, and the perspective window is used to observe the microfluidic chip inside the cabin; a plurality of air inlet holes are provided on the inner wall surface of the side wall of the cabin, and the plurality of air inlet holes are arranged in an array, and the hollow sandwich structure is connected to the interior of the cabin through the plurality of air inlet holes.

[0010] According to the microfluidic chip test chamber provided by the present invention, a first mounting structure and a second mounting structure are provided on the outer wall surface of the side wall of the chamber body;

[0011] Wherein, the first mounting structure is used to connect an external air source with the hollow sandwich structure;

[0012] The second mounting structure can penetrate the side wall of the cabin to communicate with the interior of the cabin.

[0013] According to the microfluidic chip test chamber provided by the present invention, the first mounting structure includes a first circular hole, which is used to connect an external gas source with the hollow sandwich structure to fill the hollow sandwich structure with protective gas, and the second mounting structure includes a plurality of second circular holes for guiding the connecting wires and fluid pipelines of the microfluidic chip through the side wall.

[0014] According to the microfluidic chip test chamber provided by the present invention, a temperature control module is further provided at the bottom of the chamber body, and the temperature control module is used to heat the microfluidic chip and perform temperature control on the microfluidic chip.

[0015] According to the microfluidic chip test chamber provided by the present invention, the temperature control module includes:

[0016] A substrate, wherein a groove is provided on the substrate;

[0017] a heater, wherein the heater is disposed in the groove;

[0018] The thermocouple is arranged on the substrate.

[0019] According to the microfluidic chip test chamber provided by the present invention, a sealing groove is provided on the top of the chamber body, and the sealing groove is used for sealingly cooperating with the chamber cover.

[0020] According to the microfluidic chip test cabin provided by the present invention, a sealing groove is provided at the bottom of the cabin cover, a sealing structure is placed in the sealing groove, the sealing structure is adapted to the sealing groove provided at the bottom of the cabin cover, and the sealing structure is used to achieve sealing between the cabin body and the cabin cover.

[0021] According to the microfluidic chip test chamber provided by the present invention, the protective gas is one of an inert gas, nitrogen or carbon dioxide.

[0022] According to the microfluidic chip test chamber provided by the present invention, a plurality of buckles are provided on the outer side of the chamber body, and the plurality of buckles are used to open or lock the chamber body and the chamber cover.

[0023] Beneficial effect: The microfluidic chip test chamber provided by the present invention comprises a chamber body and a chamber cover. The side wall of the chamber body is a hollow sandwich structure filled with protective gas. The protective gas in the hollow sandwich structure can enter the interior of the chamber body, so that the test environment of the microfluidic chip to be tested in the chamber body is an oxygen-free environment, thereby avoiding the test failure caused by air interference when the microfluidic chip to be tested is tested in the chamber. At the same time, a chamber cover is arranged on the top of the chamber body, which further ensures the sealing of the test chamber and further improves the test pass rate. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the present invention or the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative work.

[0025] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the overall structure of the microfluidic chip test chamber in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 2 is an internal structure diagram of a microfluidic chip test chamber in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 3 1 is a structural diagram of a heating platform in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0028] Reference numerals:

[0029] 1. Cabin body; 11. Hollow sandwich structure; 12. Air inlet; 13. First circular hole; 14. Second circular hole; 15. Sealing groove; 16. Sealing structure; 2. Perspective window; 3. Hatch cover; 4. Temperature control module; 41. Base plate; 42. Heater; 43. Thermocouple; 5. Buckle. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present invention clearer, the technical solution of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0031] In the description of the present invention, it is necessary to understand that the terms "upper", "lower", "horizontal", "inside", "outside", etc. indicate orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present invention.

[0032] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of the present invention, the meaning of "plurality" is two or more, unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0033] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention more clearly understood, the present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0034] Microfluidic chip technology integrates the basic operating units of sample preparation, reaction, separation, detection, etc. in the biological, chemical, and medical analysis processes onto a micron-scale chip to automatically complete the entire analysis process. Microfluidic chips play a significant role in multiple interdisciplinary fields such as electronics, mechanics, and biomedicine.

[0035] At present, the integrated microfluidic chip needs to undergo a complete test of the entire chip process to ensure the integration quality of the microfluidic chip.

[0036] However, existing testing devices all complete the test in the air, but microfluidic chips are easily disturbed when tested in the air, which may lead to errors in the test results and test failures. For example, when testing liquid metal microfluidic chips, the presence of oxygen can easily cause the liquid metal to oxidize, thereby affecting the performance test of the entire chip.

[0037] In the embodiment of the present invention, the side wall of the cabin is provided with a hollow interlayer structure, the hollow interlayer is filled with protective gas, and the protective gas is utilized to make the working environment in the cabin an oxygen-free environment, thereby avoiding the failure of the test caused by air interference when the microfluidic chip to be tested is tested in the cabin. At the same time, a cabin cover is provided on the top of the cabin, which further ensures the sealing of the test cabin and further improves the test pass rate.

[0038] Combine the following Figures 1 to 3 The microfluidic chip test chamber of the present invention is described.

[0039] like Figure 1As shown, the microfluidic chip test chamber provided by the embodiment of the present invention includes a chamber body 1 and a chamber cover 3. The size of the chamber body 1 can be adjusted according to the size of the microfluidic chip to be tested. The chamber body 1 can be manufactured by 3D printing. The chamber body 1 can be preferably designed to be a rectangular shape with four side walls and a bottom, and the top of the chamber body 1 is open. The interior of the cabin 1 is used to place the microfluidic chip to be tested. The interior of the side wall of the cabin 1 is a hollow sandwich structure 11, and the hollow sandwich structure 11 is filled with a protective gas. The protective gas can be an inert gas, nitrogen or carbon dioxide and other chemically inactive gases. The hollow sandwich structure 11 can be connected to the interior of the cabin 1 so that the protective gas in the hollow sandwich structure 11 can enter the interior of the cabin 1, so that the microfluidic chip to be tested does not contain air in the test environment in the cabin 1, and the microfluidic chip is protected by the protective gas. The hatch 3 is arranged on the top of the cabin 1, and the hatch 3 is sealed and connected to the cabin 1 to ensure the sealing of the cabin 1. In order to further improve the practicality of the test cabin, the hatch 3 can also be made by 3D printing.

[0040] In this embodiment, the side wall of the cabin 1 is configured to have a hollow interlayer structure, the hollow interlayer is filled with protective gas, and the protective gas is utilized to make the working environment in the cabin 1 an oxygen-free environment, thereby preventing the microfluidic chip to be tested from being disturbed by air and causing test failure when being tested in the cabin 1. At the same time, a cabin cover 3 is provided on the top of the cabin 1, which further ensures the sealing of the test cabin and further improves the test success rate.

[0041] During the test, in order to facilitate observation of the condition of the microfluidic chip to be tested in the chamber 1, a perspective window 2 is provided on one of the side walls of the chamber 1. The size of the perspective window 2 satisfies the condition that the complete microfluidic chip can be observed. The perspective window 2 can be made of a glass sheet to form a perspective condition. The connection between the glass sheet and the side wall of the chamber 1 can be glue-sealed or fixed by a card slot, which is not limited in this embodiment, but the sealing of the chamber 1 must be ensured. The test chamber in this embodiment provides a stable and good oxygen-free environment, and the perspective window facilitates observation of the state of the microfluidic chip during the test.

[0042] like Figure 2As shown, in some embodiments of the present invention, among the four side walls of the cabin 1, the inner wall surfaces of the other three side walls except the side wall where the perspective window is located are provided with a plurality of air inlet holes 12, and the plurality of air inlet holes 12 are arranged in an array, and the arrangement method, position and number of the array-arranged air inlet holes 12 are determined by the size of the cabin, and the hollow sandwich structure 11 is connected to the interior of the cabin 1 through the plurality of air inlet holes 12, that is, the protective gas in the hollow sandwich structure 11 flows evenly into the cabin 1 through the array-arranged air inlet holes 12. The design of the hollow sandwich structure 11 and the array-arranged air inlet holes 12 makes it possible for the protective gas to enter the cabin 1 not only from one point, but to be more stably and evenly transported into the cabin 1 from various positions, so that each position in the cabin 1 can be guaranteed to be in an oxygen-free state, which greatly improves the stability of the test environment in the cabin 1 and the success rate of the microfluidic chip test process.

[0043] Continue as Figure 1 As shown, in order to ensure the stability of the oxygen-free environment in the cabin 1, that is, to ensure the amount of protective gas in the hollow sandwich structure 11, a first mounting structure is provided on the outer wall surface of the side wall of the cabin 1. The first mounting structure can be provided with a connecting hole or a connecting pipeline, which is a first circular hole 13 in this embodiment. The first circular hole 13 is used to connect the external gas source with the hollow sandwich structure 11 to fill the hollow sandwich structure 11 with protective gas. The aperture of the first circular hole 13 is adapted to the aperture of the external gas source pipeline. At the same time, the sealing of the cabin 1 must be ensured. The first circular hole 13 is preferably provided in the middle and lower part of the side wall of the cabin 1 to avoid interference with operations during the test.

[0044] At the same time, in order to ensure the smooth progress of the test process, a second mounting structure is also provided on the outer wall surface of the side wall of the cabin 1. The second mounting structure can penetrate the side wall of the cabin 1 and communicate with the interior of the cabin 1. During the test of the microfluidic chip, it is necessary to connect with the equipment outside the cabin 1 through a connecting line. The second mounting structure includes a plurality of second circular holes 14 for guiding the connecting lines and fluid channels of the microfluidic chip to pass through the side wall of the cabin 1. The number, size and position of the second circular holes 14 are determined by the conditions of the connecting lines between the microfluidic chip and the external equipment.

[0045] The microfluidic chip testing process not only requires an oxygen-free environment, but some microfluidic chips also need to be tested in an environment with a specific temperature. Figure 3 As shown, a temperature control module 4 is also provided at the bottom of the cabin 1. The temperature control module 4 is detachably connected to the bottom of the cabin 1. The temperature control module 4 is used to heat the microfluidic chip. The temperature control module 4 is an independent component. When testing a microfluidic chip with temperature control requirements, it can be placed in the cabin 1 to heat the microfluidic chip. The temperature control module 4 can also be made by 3D printing. The detachable temperature control module 4 provides a test environment for the test cabin that can achieve temperature control and realizes real-time monitoring of the temperature in the test cabin.

[0046] Specifically, the temperature control module 4 includes a substrate 41, a heater 42 and a thermocouple 43. The substrate 41 is provided with a groove, and the heater 42 is arranged in the groove. The size of the substrate 41 matches the size of the cabin 1. The heater 42 is a thin film heater, and the size of the thin film heater is determined by the heating amount and temperature required during the test. Figure 3 As shown, the heater 42 is the test platform of the microfluidic chip. During the test, the microfluidic chip to be tested is placed above the heater 42, and a thermocouple 43 is configured in the cabin through the second circular hole 14 to monitor the temperature in the cabin in real time. In this way, while meeting the oxygen-free environment required for the test, a test environment with precise temperature control is provided to meet the test environment requirements of the microfluidic chip.

[0047] In order to further improve the sealing performance of the cabin 1, Figure 2 As shown, a sealing groove 15 is provided at the top of the cabin 1. The sealing groove 15 is arranged along the top of the cabin 1 in a circle, that is, it is also in a rectangular shape. The sealing groove 15 is used to seal with the hatch cover 3. Further, a sealing groove 15 is also provided at the bottom of the hatch cover 3. A sealing structure 16 is provided in the sealing groove 15 at the bottom of the hatch cover 3. The sealing structure 16 is placed in the sealing groove 15 at the bottom of the hatch cover 3. The sealing structure 16 is adapted to the sealing groove 15 at the bottom of the hatch cover 3. The sealing structure 16 should be able to protrude from the sealing groove 15 at the bottom of the hatch cover 3, that is, a downward protrusion is formed at the bottom of the hatch cover 3, and then form a sealing match with the sealing groove at the top of the cabin 1. The sealing between the cabin 1 and the hatch cover 3 is achieved through the sealing groove 15 and the sealing structure 16, which further improves the sealing performance in the cabin 1.

[0048] The sealing structure 16 can use a silicone pad or a rubber pad, etc. The length, width and height of the sealing structure 16 can be adjusted according to the size of the 3D printed test chamber 1. Usually, its width ranges from 3-6 mm and its height ranges from 3-8 mm. The height of the sealing groove 15 should be greater than the height of the sealing structure 16 to ensure that the sealing structure 16 can be embedded in the sealing groove 15.

[0049] In order to achieve an oxygen-free environment in the cabin 1, the protective gas may be an inert gas, such as helium or argon, etc., and may also be nitrogen or carbon dioxide.

[0050] Further, if Figure 1 As shown, multiple buckles 5 are provided on the outside of the cabin 1, and the multiple buckles 5 are used to open or lock the cabin 1 and the hatch 3. When the buckles 5 lock the cabin 1 and the hatch 3, a closed environment is formed in the cabin 1 of the test cabin. The model and size of the buckles 5 are determined by the size of the cabin 1 of the test cabin. The buckles 5 are fixed to the appropriate positions of the cabin 1 and the hatch 3 by using an electric drill and self-tapping screws, and the pressure of the buckles 5 is used to further improve the sealing performance of the test cabin.

[0051] Before testing, the microfluidic chip to be tested is placed in the chamber 1 , and the connection wires of the microfluidic chip to be tested are led out through the second circular holes 14 on the side wall of the chamber 1 to connect with external testing equipment.

[0052] Insert the pipeline of the external gas source into the first circular hole 13 and open the gas source to release the protective gas into the hollow sandwich structure 11. The protective gas then enters the cabin body 1 through the air inlet 12. After the cabin body 1 is filled, align the sealing groove 15 of the hatch cover 3 with the sealing structure 16 in the sealing groove 15 on the cabin body 1 and buckle it to achieve the connection between the hatch cover 3 and the cabin body 1, thereby blocking the channel for the protective gas to leak out.

[0053] Then, the buckles 5 around the test chamber are locked to complete the connection between the cover 3 and the chamber body 1 and further block the channel for the protection gas to leak out, so that the test chamber is filled with protection gas to form an oxygen-free environment, thereby meeting the requirements of testing the microfluidic chip in an oxygen-free environment.

[0054] After starting the test, the tester can observe the status of the internal microfluidic chip in real time through the perspective window 2 on the cabin 1, so as to make timely adjustments to the test.

[0055] In addition, when the microfluidic chip needs to be tested in an environment with a specific temperature, the temperature control module 4 is placed in the cabin 1 as a test platform for the microfluidic chip. The plane size of the substrate 41 of the temperature control module 4 is comparable to the plane size of the cabin 1, and can be just placed in the cabin 1 to cooperate with it. During the test, the microfluidic chip to be tested is placed above the heater 42, and a thermocouple 43 is configured in the cabin through the second circular hole 14 to monitor the cabin temperature in real time. The rest of the preparatory work before the test is the same as when there is no temperature control requirement as mentioned above. In this way, while meeting the oxygen-free environment required for the test, a test environment with precise temperature control is provided to meet the microfluidic chip's requirements for the test environment.

[0056] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, rather than to limit it. Although the present invention 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 of the technical features therein. However, these modifications or replacements do not deviate the essence of the corresponding technical solutions from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A microfluidic chip test chamber, characterized in that: include: A cabin (1), wherein a hollow sandwich structure (11) is provided in a side wall of the cabin (1), wherein the hollow sandwich structure (11) is filled with a protective gas, and wherein the hollow sandwich structure (11) is capable of communicating with the interior of the cabin (1) so that the protective gas in the hollow sandwich structure (11) can enter the interior of the cabin (1), thereby being able to provide gas protection for a microfluidic chip in the cabin (1); A hatch cover (3), the hatch cover (3) is arranged on the top of the cabin body (1), and the hatch cover (3) is sealedly connected to the cabin body (1).

2. The microfluidic chip test chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that: A perspective window (2) is provided on the side wall of the cabin (1), and the perspective window (2) is used to observe the microfluidic chip inside the cabin (1); A plurality of air inlet holes (12) are provided on the inner wall surface of the side wall of the cabin (1), and the plurality of air inlet holes (12) are arranged in an array, and the hollow sandwich structure (11) is connected to the interior of the cabin (1) through the plurality of air inlet holes (12).

3. The microfluidic chip test chamber according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: A first mounting structure and a second mounting structure are provided on the outer wall surface of the side wall of the cabin (1); Wherein, the first mounting structure is used to connect an external air source with the hollow sandwich structure (11); The second mounting structure can penetrate the side wall of the cabin (1) so as to communicate with the interior of the cabin (1).

4. The microfluidic chip test chamber according to claim 3, characterized in that: The first mounting structure comprises a first circular hole (13), wherein the first circular hole (13) is used to connect an external gas source with the hollow sandwich structure (11) so as to fill the hollow sandwich structure (11) with protective gas, and the second mounting structure comprises a plurality of second circular holes (14) for guiding the connection wires and fluid pipelines of the microfluidic chip to pass through the side wall.

5. The microfluidic chip test chamber according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: A temperature control module (4) is also provided at the bottom of the cabin (1), and the temperature control module (4) is used to heat the microfluidic chip and control its temperature.

6. The microfluidic chip test chamber according to claim 5, characterized in that: The temperature control module (4) comprises: A substrate (41), wherein a groove is provided on the substrate (41); a heater (42), the heater (42) being disposed in the groove; A thermocouple (43), wherein the thermocouple (43) is arranged on the substrate (41).

7. The microfluidic chip test chamber according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: A sealing groove (15) is provided on the top of the cabin body (1), and the sealing groove (15) is used for sealingly cooperating with the cabin cover (3).

8. The microfluidic chip test chamber according to claim 7, characterized in that: A sealing groove (15) is provided at the bottom of the hatch cover (3), a sealing structure (16) is placed in the sealing groove (15), the sealing structure (16) is adapted to the sealing groove (15) provided at the bottom of the hatch cover (3), and the sealing structure (16) is used to achieve sealing between the cabin body (1) and the hatch cover (3).

9. The microfluidic chip test chamber according to claim 1, characterized in that: The protective gas is one of inert gas, nitrogen or carbon dioxide.

10. The microfluidic chip test chamber according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: A plurality of buckles (5) are provided on the outside of the cabin body (1), and the plurality of buckles (5) are used to open or lock the cabin body (1) and the cabin cover (3).

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