Liquid adding method, control device, equipment, system and storage medium

Abstract

This invention relates to the field of liquid addition equipment technology, and discloses a liquid addition method, control device, equipment, system, and storage medium. The liquid addition method is applied to a liquid addition equipment, which includes an orifice plate rotatable about a horizontal axis and a liquid addition needle. The liquid addition method includes the following steps: in response to a liquid addition signal, controlling the orifice plate to deflect upward about the horizontal axis by a preset angle so that the walls of the liquid storage holes on the orifice plate are tilted; selecting a target liquid storage hole from the set of liquid storage holes on the orifice plate; controlling the movement of the liquid addition needle and / or the orifice plate so that the liquid outlet of the liquid addition needle is above the wall of the target liquid storage hole; controlling the liquid dispensing from the liquid addition needle, thereby improving the accuracy of experimental results.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of liquid dispensing equipment technology, specifically to a liquid dispensing method, control device, equipment, system, and storage medium. Background Technology

[0002] Liquid addition equipment has been widely used in high-throughput experiments based on multi-well plates, such as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), cell culture, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR). During the experiment, it is usually necessary to add liquids such as reagents, samples, or culture media into the wells of the multi-well plate.

[0003] In related technologies, when adding liquid into the well, the liquid dosing needle is prone to splashing, bubbles, cell damage, and other adverse effects, which can affect the experimental results. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This invention aims to at least solve one of the technical problems existing in the prior art. To this end, this invention proposes a liquid addition method, control device, equipment, system, and storage medium that can improve the accuracy of experimental results.

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present invention, a liquid addition method is applied to a liquid addition device, the liquid addition device including an orifice plate rotatable about a horizontal axis and a liquid addition needle; the liquid addition method includes the steps of: in response to a liquid addition signal, controlling the orifice plate to deflect upward about the horizontal axis by a preset angle so that the orifice wall of the liquid storage hole on the orifice plate is tilted; selecting a target liquid storage hole from the set of liquid storage holes of the orifice plate; controlling the liquid addition needle and / or the orifice plate to move so that the liquid outlet of the liquid addition needle is above the orifice wall of the target liquid storage hole; and controlling the liquid addition needle to dispensing liquid.

[0006] The liquid addition method according to the embodiments of this application has at least the following beneficial effects: The liquid addition method is applied to a liquid addition device, which includes a well plate rotatable about a horizontal axis and a liquid addition needle; the liquid addition method includes the steps of: responding to a liquid addition signal, controlling the well plate to deflect upward about a preset angle about a horizontal axis so that the wall of the liquid storage hole on the well plate is tilted; selecting a target liquid storage hole from the set of liquid storage holes in the well plate; controlling the liquid addition needle and / or the well plate to move so that the liquid outlet of the liquid addition needle is above the wall of the target liquid storage hole; controlling the liquid addition needle to dispensing liquid; in this way, the liquid coming out of the outlet first contacts the hole wall, and the hole wall can buffer and guide the liquid, which can reduce the impact force of the liquid. The liquid can flow smoothly along the hole wall to the bottom of the liquid storage hole or the original liquid surface, which can reduce the occurrence of bubbles and splashes. Moreover, the smooth flow of liquid has less impact on cells, which can improve the cell survival rate, thereby improving adverse conditions such as liquid splashing, bubbles, and cell damage, and improving the accuracy of experimental results.

[0007] According to some embodiments of this application, after step: controlling the liquid dispensing needle to dispense liquid, the liquid dispensing method further includes the steps: marking the target liquid storage hole as liquid-filled; in response to the existence of an unmarked liquid storage hole in the liquid storage hole set, selecting the unmarked liquid storage hole as the target liquid storage hole, and returning to step: controlling the liquid dispensing needle and / or orifice plate to move; in response to all liquid storage holes in the liquid storage hole set being marked as liquid-filled, controlling the orifice plate to deflect downwards by a preset angle around the horizontal axis.

[0008] According to some embodiments of this application, controlling the movement of the liquid dispensing needle and / or orifice plate to position the liquid outlet of the liquid dispensing needle above the orifice wall of the target liquid storage hole includes the following steps: selecting a reference point from the edge of the orifice of the target liquid storage hole; obtaining the reference coordinates of the reference point; determining the target coordinates based on the reference coordinates and a preset position compensation value; the target coordinates being located inside the orifice of the target liquid storage hole; and controlling the liquid dispensing needle to move toward the target coordinates so that the liquid outlet moves to the target coordinates.

[0009] According to a second aspect embodiment of the present invention, a liquid addition control device is applied to a liquid addition device, the liquid addition device including an orifice plate rotatable about a horizontal axis and a liquid addition needle; the liquid addition control device is used to execute the liquid addition method in any of the above embodiments, the liquid addition control device including a first control module, a selection module, a second control module and a liquid addition module, the first control module being used to control the orifice plate to deflect upward about a predetermined angle about a horizontal axis in response to a liquid addition signal, so that the orifice wall of the liquid storage hole on the orifice plate is tilted; the selection module being used to select a target liquid storage hole from the set of liquid storage holes of the orifice plate; the second control module being used to control the movement of the liquid addition needle and / or the orifice plate so that the liquid outlet of the liquid addition needle is above the orifice wall of the target liquid storage hole; the liquid addition module being used to control the liquid dispensing from the liquid addition needle.

[0010] According to a third aspect embodiment of the present invention, a liquid dispensing device includes a device body, an orifice plate module, a liquid dispensing needle, and a liquid dispensing control device as described in the above embodiments. The device body has a working space; the orifice plate module is located within the working space and includes a first mounting base, an orifice plate, and a driving member; the first mounting base is connected to the device body; the orifice plate is rotatably connected to the first mounting base about a horizontal axis and has a plurality of liquid storage holes; the driving member is connected to the first mounting base, and its driving end is connected to the orifice plate for driving the orifice plate to rotate about a horizontal axis; the liquid dispensing needle is connected to the device body and is located within the working space.

[0011] According to some embodiments of this application, the driving component includes a driving unit and a cam. The driving unit is connected to a first mounting base, and the cam is located below the orifice plate. The driving unit is used to drive the cam to rotate so as to drive the orifice plate to rotate about a horizontal axis.

[0012] According to some embodiments of this application, the driving component further includes a connecting rod, one end of which is rotatably connected to the driving end of the driving unit; one end of the cam is rotatably connected to the first mounting base, and the other end of the cam is slidably connected to the other end of the connecting rod; the driving unit is used to drive the connecting rod to move so as to drive the cam to rotate.

[0013] According to some embodiments of this application, the orifice plate module further includes an elastic element connected between the orifice plate and the first mounting base.

[0014] A liquid dispensing system according to a fourth aspect of the present invention includes a processor and a memory, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor, the instructions being executed by the processor to enable the processor to perform the liquid dispensing method in any of the above embodiments.

[0015] According to a fifth aspect embodiment of the present invention, a computer-readable storage medium stores program code that can be invoked by a processor to execute the liquid addition method in any of the above embodiments.

[0016] Additional aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. Attached Figure Description

[0017] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments, wherein:

[0018] Figure 1 A partial structural schematic diagram of the liquid addition device provided in an embodiment of this application is shown;

[0019] Figure 2 This paper shows another part of the structural diagram of the liquid addition device provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0020] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of a drive component provided in another embodiment of this application is shown;

[0021] Figure 4 A flowchart of the liquid addition method provided in an embodiment of this application is shown;

[0022] Figure 5 This paper presents a schematic diagram of the structure of the liquid dosing needle moving to the reference coordinate according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0023] Figure 6 This paper presents a schematic diagram illustrating the structure of the liquid dispensing needle moving to the target coordinates according to an embodiment of this application.

[0024] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the liquid addition control device provided in an embodiment of this application is shown;

[0025] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the structure of a liquid dispensing device according to another embodiment of this application is shown;

[0026] Figure 9 A structural block diagram of a computer-readable storage medium provided in an embodiment of this application is shown.

[0027] Figure label:

[0028] Liquid dispensing device 100; orifice plate module 110; first mounting base 111; orifice plate 113; liquid storage hole 1131; drive component 115; drive unit 1151; cam 1155; sliding part 1159; connecting rod 1157; slide groove 1161; second mounting base 117; elastic component 119; dispensing needle 130; liquid outlet 131; dispensing control device 150; first control module 151; selection module 153; second control module 155; dispensing module 157; laser needle alignment device 170; horizontal axis L; origin O; reference coordinate N; target coordinate P; dispensing system 400; processor 410; memory 420; computer-readable storage medium 500; program code 510. Detailed Implementation

[0029] Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below. Examples of these embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain the present invention, and should not be construed as limiting the present invention.

[0030] In the description of this invention, it should be understood that the orientation descriptions, such as up, down, front, back, left, right, etc., are based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limiting this invention.

[0031] In the description of this invention, "several" means one or more, "multiple" means two or more, "greater than," "less than," and "exceeding" are understood to exclude the stated number, while "above," "below," and "within" are understood to include the stated number. The use of "first" and "second" in the description is merely for distinguishing technical features and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance, or implicitly indicating the number of indicated technical features, or implicitly indicating the order of the indicated technical features.

[0032] In the description of this invention, unless otherwise explicitly defined, terms such as "set up," "install," and "connect" should be interpreted broadly, and those skilled in the art can reasonably determine the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention in conjunction with the specific content of the technical solution.

[0033] In the description of this invention, the terms "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "illustrative embodiment," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., refer to specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described in connection with that embodiment or example, which are included in at least one embodiment or example of the invention. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

[0034] The embodiments of this application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and various changes can be made within the scope of knowledge possessed by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Furthermore, the embodiments of the present invention and the features thereof can be combined with each other unless otherwise specified.

[0035] Please see Figures 1 to 2 This application provides a liquid dispensing device 100, which includes a device body, an orifice plate module 110, a liquid dispensing needle 130, and a liquid dispensing control device 150 (e.g., ...). Figure 7 (As shown).

[0036] The liquid filling device 100 can be a biological organoid 3D printer or a liquid workstation containing a biological organoid 3D printer. The specific structure of the biological organoid 3D printer and the liquid workstation can refer to the existing technology and will not be described in detail here.

[0037] The main body of the equipment has a working space, in which the orifice plate module 110 and the liquid dosing needle 130 are located.

[0038] As an example, the liquid dispensing device 100 may also include a door, and the workspace may have a doorway. The door is used to open or close the doorway to open or close the workspace.

[0039] The orifice plate module 110 includes a first mounting base 111, an orifice plate 113, and a drive component 115.

[0040] The first mounting base 111 is connected to the main body of the equipment. Specifically, the first mounting base 111 is detachably connected to the main body of the equipment. The first mounting base 111 can be detachably connected to the main body of the equipment by means of snap-fit, fasteners or other means. The fasteners can be screws, bolts, rivets or other fasteners.

[0041] The perforated plate 113 is rotatably connected to the first mounting base 111 about the horizontal axis L. Specifically, the perforated plate 113 is rotatably connected to the first mounting base 111 about the horizontal axis L via a first rotating shaft.

[0042] The orifice plate 113 has several liquid storage holes 1131, with the opening of each hole 1131 located on the top surface of the orifice plate 113. A dispensing needle 130 is connected to the main body of the device and located within the working space. The dispensing needle 130 can be used to add liquid reagents, liquid samples, culture media, or other liquids into the liquid storage holes 1131. The bottom end of the dispensing needle 130 may have an outlet 131 from which liquid can flow out.

[0043] Specifically, the liquid injection needle 130 and / or orifice plate 113 are movably connected to the main body of the device so that the liquid injection needle 130 can be vertically aligned with any liquid storage hole 1131.

[0044] As an example, the liquid dispensing device 100 may include a motion device to which a dispensing needle 130 may be connected. The motion device is used to move the dispensing needle 130 along the X, Y, and Z axes. The motion device may be communicatively connected to a liquid dispensing control device 150, which can control the movement of the dispensing needle 130 by controlling the motion device. The motion device may include an XYZ three-axis linear guide, a robotic arm, or other devices. The X-axis and Y-axis can be two mutually perpendicular horizontal directions, and the Z-axis can be a vertical direction.

[0045] As another example, both the dispensing needle 130 and the orifice plate module 110 are movable. The dispensing device 100 may also include a drive mechanism, on which the orifice plate module 110 can be mounted. The drive mechanism can be used to drive the orifice plate module 110 to move along the Y-axis. A motion mechanism is used to drive the dispensing needle 130 to move along the X-axis and Z-axis, thereby allowing both the dispensing needle 130 and the orifice plate module 110 to move. This helps to reduce the size of the dispensing device 100 and improve the dispensing speed.

[0046] In some other embodiments, only the orifice plate module 110 may be movably connected to the main body of the device, while the liquid injection needle is fixed in place.

[0047] The number of liquid storage holes 1131 can be flexibly set according to needs. For example, the number of liquid storage holes 1131 can be 12, 24, 96, 384 or other numbers.

[0048] The driving component 115 is connected to the first mounting base 111, and the driving end of the driving component 115 is connected to the orifice plate 113. The driving component 115 is used to drive the orifice plate 113 to rotate around the horizontal axis L, thereby flexibly adjusting the deflection angle of the orifice plate 113 so that the wall of the liquid storage hole 1131 can be inclined. The liquid addition needle 130 can be moved to be opposite to the wall of the liquid storage hole 1131 to add liquid to the wall. The wall can act as a buffer and guide to direct the liquid to the bottom of the liquid storage hole 1131 or the original liquid surface in the liquid storage hole 1131, thereby avoiding the liquid directly impacting the bottom of the hole or the liquid surface, which helps to improve adverse conditions such as liquid splashing, bubbles, and cell damage, and improves the accuracy of experimental results. The inclined setting of the wall of the liquid storage hole 1131 can refer to the fact that the wall of the liquid storage hole 1131 is inclined relative to the vertical plane.

[0049] Specifically, in the relevant technology, when the liquid addition needle is directed towards the reservoir, the liquid is almost perpendicular to the bottom of the reservoir or the original liquid surface inside the reservoir. The liquid coming out of the liquid addition needle outlet will directly impact the bottom of the reservoir or the original liquid surface inside the reservoir. The violent impact will cause the liquid in the reservoir to generate a large number of bubbles. These bubbles can easily interfere with subsequent detection (such as absorbance detection, fluorescence detection, etc.). Furthermore, since the distance between the reservoirs is relatively short, the violent impact will cause the liquid in the reservoir to splash into other reservoirs, causing cross-contamination. In addition, in experiments such as cell culture, cells are usually attached to the pore wall of the reservoir or suspended in the liquid in the reservoir. The vertical liquid addition method can easily damage the cells and affect the cell survival rate.

[0050] In this embodiment, the drive component 115 tilts the orifice plate 113, thereby tilting the orifice wall of the orifice plate 113. During the liquid addition process, the outlet 131 of the liquid addition needle 130 can be opposite to the tilted orifice wall. The liquid coming out of the outlet 131 preferentially contacts the orifice wall, which can buffer and guide the liquid, reducing the impact force of the liquid. The liquid can flow smoothly along the orifice wall to the bottom of the storage hole 1131 or the original liquid surface, reducing bubbles and splashing. The smooth flow of liquid has less impact on the cells, which can improve the cell survival rate. Thus, the liquid addition device 100 provided in this embodiment can improve adverse conditions such as liquid splashing, bubbles, and cell damage, and improve the accuracy of experimental results.

[0051] The liquid addition control device 150 can communicate with the drive unit 115 and the motion device respectively to control the start, stop, and speed of the drive unit 115 and the motion device respectively.

[0052] In some embodiments, the orifice plate 113 may include a second mounting base 117 and an orifice plate body.

[0053] The second mounting base 117 can be connected to the first mounting base 111, and the second mounting base 117 is provided with a first mounting groove. The orifice plate body can be installed in the first mounting groove, and the orifice plate body is provided with a plurality of liquid storage holes 1131. The second mounting base 117 can be rotatably connected to the first mounting base 111 via a first rotating shaft. The driving end of the driving member 115 can be connected to the second mounting base 117 to drive the second mounting base 117 to rotate around the horizontal axis L. The orifice plate body can rotate synchronously with the second mounting base 117. Thus, the rotation of the orifice plate body can be driven by driving the second mounting base 117 to rotate, which helps to avoid damage to the orifice plate body.

[0054] In some embodiments, the first mounting base 111 may be provided with a second mounting groove, the opening of which may be located on the top surface of the first mounting base 111. The second mounting base 117 may be installed in the second mounting groove and rotatably connected to the first mounting base 111 via a first rotating shaft to indirectly connect to the device body. The drive component 115 may also be installed in the second mounting groove and located below the second mounting base 117, which helps to make the overall structure of the orifice plate module 110 more compact.

[0055] The driving component 115 in this application embodiment can be selected from various options, as shown in the following embodiments:

[0056] In some embodiments, the drive member 115 may include a telescopic driver and a slider. The bottom of the perforated plate 113 may be provided with a groove 1161, and the slider is slidably mounted in the groove 1161. The telescopic driver may be connected to the first mounting base 111 and located below the perforated plate 113. The telescopic end of the telescopic driver may be connected to the slider, so that when the telescopic end extends or retracts, it can drive the slider to slide within the groove 1161, thereby causing the perforated plate 113 to deflect about the horizontal axis L.

[0057] In some embodiments, the drive 115 may include a drive unit 1151 and a cam 1155.

[0058] The drive unit 1151 can be connected to the first mounting base 111, and the cam 1155 is located below the orifice plate 113. The drive unit 1151 is used to drive the cam 1155 to rotate so that the orifice plate 113 rotates around the horizontal axis L. In this way, the orifice plate 113 is deflected by the cam 1155. The cam 1155 mainly relies on its outer peripheral contour to drive the orifice plate 113 to deflect, which helps the orifice plate 113 to achieve a smaller angle of deflection, with higher deflection accuracy, and can achieve stepless rotation, which helps to better meet experimental requirements and also helps to simplify the structure of the drive component 115.

[0059] As an example, cam 1155 may be located below the second mounting base 117. Cam 1155 may include a rotating portion and a protruding portion. The rotating portion may be connected to the drive end of drive unit 1151. The rotating portion is generally cylindrical, and the protruding portion may protrude from a local position on the outer peripheral wall of the rotating portion and extend radially away from the rotating portion. The protruding portion may be used to abut against the bottom of the orifice plate 113 to lift the orifice plate 113 when rotating with the rotating portion, thereby causing the orifice plate 113 to deflect upward. When the protruding portion rotates in the opposite direction with the rotating portion, the orifice plate 113 always remains in contact with the protruding portion under its own weight. The protruding portion can always support the bottom plate of the orifice plate 113, which helps the orifice plate 113 to stably return to a horizontal state.

[0060] In this embodiment, the drive unit 1151 can be a motor, a rotary cylinder, or other rotary drive structure, and the cam 1155 can be connected to the drive end of the drive unit 1151 (e.g., Figure 2 (As shown). The drive unit 1151 can also be located below the perforated plate 113.

[0061] Please see Figure 1 and Figure 3 It should be noted that the drive unit can also adopt a non-rotational drive structure. Specifically, in some embodiments, the drive element 115 may also include a connecting rod 1157.

[0062] One end of the connecting rod 1157 is rotatably connected to the driving end of the driving unit 1151, and one end of the cam 1155 is rotatably connected to the first mounting base 111. The other end of the cam 1155 is slidably connected to the other end of the connecting rod 1157. The driving unit 1151 is used to drive the connecting rod 1157 to move so as to drive the cam 1155 to rotate. When the connecting rod 1157 moves, it can drive the cam 1155 to rotate through sliding contact with the cam 1155. When the cam 1155 rotates, it can lift the perforated plate 113. The connecting rod 1157 can rotate relative to the driving unit 1151 to avoid interference with the movement of the cam 1155.

[0063] The other end of the cam 1155 and the other end of the connecting rod 1157 are slidably connected. One of the other ends of the cam 1155 and the other end of the connecting rod 1157 may be provided with a sliding part 1159, and the other end may be provided with a groove 1161. The sliding part 1159 is slidably disposed in the groove 1161.

[0064] As an example, the connecting rod 1157 may include a first end and a second end opposite to each other. The first end is rotatably connected to the driving end of the driving unit 1151 via a second rotating shaft, and the rotating part is rotatably connected to the first mounting base 111 via a third rotating shaft. One of the protrusion and the second end is provided with a sliding part 1159, and the other is provided with a groove 1161. The sliding part 1159 is slidably disposed in the groove 1161. Taking the second end being provided with the groove 1161 and the protrusion being provided with the sliding part 1159 as an example, the driving unit 1151 drives the connecting rod 1157 to move in the horizontal direction. As the connecting rod 1157 moves, the sliding part 1159 slides in the groove 1161. When the sliding part 1159 slides to abut against the end wall of one end of the groove 1161, the end wall can drive the sliding part 1159 to move, thereby driving the cam 1155 to rotate, thereby lifting the orifice plate 113 and achieving upward deflection. The drive unit 1151 then drives the connecting rod 1157 to move in the opposite direction, thereby controlling the orifice plate 113 to deflect downward.

[0065] In this embodiment, the drive unit 1151 may be a linear servo, a telescopic actuator, or other linear motion drive structure.

[0066] Please see Figures 1 to 2 In some embodiments, the liquid dispensing device 100 may also include an elastic element 119, which may be connected between the orifice plate 113 and the first mounting base 111 to provide an elastic restoring force to keep the orifice plate 113 in a horizontal state, thereby helping the orifice plate 113 to be reset more stably.

[0067] Specifically, when the orifice plate 113 deflects upward, it can stretch the elastic element 119, which generates an elastic restoring force to keep the orifice plate 113 against the cam 1155. When the drive unit 1151 drives the cam 1155 to rotate in the opposite direction, the orifice plate 113, under its own weight and the elastic restoring force, remains against the cam 1155. The orifice plate 113 and the cam 1155 can always maintain a contacting state, which helps the orifice plate 113 to return to a horizontal state more stably. This reduces the violent shaking of the liquid in the reservoir 1131 caused by rotation jamming or other issues, further improving adverse conditions such as liquid splashing, bubbles, and cell damage, and enhancing the accuracy of experimental results.

[0068] As an example, the elastic element 119 can be connected between the first mounting base 111 and the second mounting base 117.

[0069] The elastic element 119 can be a spring, elastic rope, or other elastic structure.

[0070] In some embodiments, the orifice plate module 110 may also include a laser needle alignment device 170 (e.g., Figure 1 and Figure 5As shown, the first mounting base 111 may also be provided with a third mounting slot, and the third mounting slot and the second mounting slot may be distributed along the X-axis direction. The laser needle alignment device 170 may be installed in the third mounting slot, that is, the laser needle alignment device 170 and the orifice plate 113 may be distributed along the X-axis direction.

[0071] The laser needle alignment device 170 is used to calibrate the coordinate origin of the dispensing needle 130. Each liquid storage hole 1131 on the orifice plate 113 uses the origin provided by the laser needle alignment device 170 as its origin coordinate. The first mounting base 111, the second mounting base 117, the orifice plate 113, the drive component 115, the elastic component 119, and the laser needle alignment device 170 can be assembled into an independent orifice plate module 110, which helps to adapt to different types of dispensing equipment 100.

[0072] Please see Figure 4 This application also provides a liquid addition method, which is applied to the liquid addition device in any of the above embodiments. The liquid addition control device in the above embodiments can be used to execute each step of the liquid addition method in this embodiment. The liquid addition method includes steps S010, S020, S030 and S040.

[0073] Step S010: In response to the liquid addition signal, control the orifice plate to deflect upwards by a preset angle around the horizontal axis so that the walls of the liquid storage holes on the orifice plate are tilted.

[0074] The liquid addition control device can receive a liquid addition signal. Based on the received liquid addition signal, the liquid addition control device can output a first control signal to the drive component. The drive component, based on the received first control signal, causes the orifice plate to deflect upward by a preset angle, thereby tilting the orifice wall of the liquid storage hole. Orifice wall tilting refers to the orifice wall being tilted relative to a vertical plane.

[0075] The dispensing signal can be generated based on user input. For example, the dispensing device can be equipped with a touch screen displaying dispensing options, allowing the user to input a dispensing signal to the dispensing control device by touching these options. Alternatively, the device can have a dispensing button, allowing the user to input a dispensing signal by pressing the button. Furthermore, the device can also include a communication module that connects to the user's terminal, enabling the user to trigger and generate a dispensing signal through an application associated with the device.

[0076] The preset angle can be flexibly set according to needs, for example, the preset angle can be 5 degrees, 6 degrees, 7 degrees or other angles. Understandably, the initial state of the orifice plate is roughly horizontal, and the preset angle can refer to the deflection angle of the orifice plate relative to the horizontal plane.

[0077] Step S020: Select the target liquid storage hole from the set of liquid storage holes of the orifice plate.

[0078] The orifice plate can be provided with a number of liquid storage holes. All of the liquid storage holes can form a liquid storage hole set, or a portion of the liquid storage holes can form a liquid storage hole set. The specific settings can be preset in the liquid addition control device according to the requirements.

[0079] The liquid dispensing equipment may also include a vision device, which can be installed on the main body of the equipment and located within the workspace. The vision device can communicate with the liquid dispensing control device. The vision device can be used to photograph the orifice plate and transmit the captured image files to the liquid dispensing control device.

[0080] When the drive unit rotates the orifice plate by a preset angle, the drive unit sends a first completion signal to the liquid addition control device. The liquid addition control device can send a shooting signal to the vision device based on the received first completion signal. The vision device takes a picture of the orifice plate based on the received shooting signal and transmits the captured image file to the liquid addition control device. The liquid addition control device can select one liquid storage hole from several liquid storage holes on the orifice plate as the target liquid storage hole based on the captured image file.

[0081] The vision device can be a vision sensor, a camera, or other vision devices.

[0082] Step S030: Control the movement of the liquid injection needle and / or orifice plate so that the liquid injection needle outlet is above the orifice wall of the target liquid storage hole.

[0083] Step S040: Control the liquid dispensing from the liquid dispensing needle.

[0084] Since the outlet is located above the pore wall, the liquid coming out of the outlet preferentially contacts the pore wall. The pore wall can buffer and guide the liquid, reducing the impact force of the liquid. The liquid can flow smoothly along the pore wall to the bottom of the storage hole or the original liquid surface, reducing bubbles and splashing. Moreover, the smooth flow of liquid has less impact on the cells, which can improve the cell survival rate. Thus, the liquid addition method provided in this application embodiment can improve adverse conditions such as liquid splashing, bubbles, and cell damage, and improve the accuracy of experimental results.

[0085] The movement of the liquid dosing needle and / or orifice plate can be controlled by manually operating the liquid dosing control device, or by using a preset program within the control device to drive the movement of the liquid dosing needle.

[0086] As an example, taking the movement of the dispensing needle via a preset program within the control device as an example, after selecting the target liquid storage hole, the dispensing control device can first calculate the coordinates of the hole wall of the target liquid storage hole, and send a first movement signal to the motion device based on the coordinates of the hole wall. The motion device controls the dispensing needle to move towards the coordinates of the hole wall according to the received first movement signal, so that the liquid outlet can be aligned with the hole wall of the target liquid storage hole. When the liquid outlet is aligned with the hole wall of the target liquid storage hole, the motion device can send a second completion signal back to the dispensing control device. The dispensing control device controls the dispensing needle to start dispensing liquid into the storage hole according to the received second completion signal, and the liquid flows from the liquid outlet to the hole wall of the target liquid storage hole.

[0087] It should be noted that the amount of liquid added each time can be preset according to needs, and this application does not limit it. Before the liquid addition needle moves toward the reference coordinate, the liquid addition control device can first control the liquid addition needle to draw the liquid to be added into the target liquid storage hole.

[0088] For example, the liquid addition device may also include a liquid reservoir, which may be located in the working space and spaced apart from the orifice plate module. The liquid reservoir may have a receiving cavity, which stores the liquid to be added to the target liquid reservoir orifice. The upward-facing side of the receiving cavity may be open so that the liquid addition needle can be inserted into the receiving cavity to draw liquid. For details, please refer to the prior art. The above is only an example for understanding purposes.

[0089] Understandably, when the motion device moves the liquid injection needle toward the wall of the target liquid storage hole, the drive device can also drive the orifice plate module to move so that the liquid outlet of the liquid injection needle can move to the top of the wall of the target liquid storage hole more quickly; or the orifice plate module can be fixed and the liquid outlet can be moved to the top of the wall of the target liquid storage hole by moving the liquid injection needle alone.

[0090] When the outlet of the liquid injection needle is above the wall of the target liquid storage hole, the outlet and the wall of the target liquid storage hole can be spaced apart, or the edge of the outlet can also abut against the wall of the target liquid storage hole.

[0091] In some embodiments, after step S040, the liquid addition method may further include the following steps:

[0092] (1) Mark the target liquid storage hole as liquid added.

[0093] (2) In response to the presence of an unmarked reservoir in the reservoir set, select the unmarked reservoir as the target reservoir and return to the step: control the movement of the injection needle and / or orifice plate.

[0094] (3) In response to all the liquid storage holes in the liquid storage hole set being marked as liquid-filled, the control plate deflects downwards by a preset angle around the horizontal axis.

[0095] The liquid addition control device can obtain a distribution map of each liquid storage hole based on image files captured by a vision device. For liquid storage holes that have already undergone the liquid addition step, the liquid addition control device can mark them as liquid-added. For liquid storage holes that have not undergone the liquid addition step, the liquid addition control device can select a new liquid storage hole from the unmarked liquid storage holes as the new target liquid storage hole, and then perform the liquid addition step on the newly selected target liquid storage hole. After the liquid addition step, it is marked as liquid-added. This process is repeated until all liquid storage holes in the liquid storage hole set are marked as liquid-added, thus reducing the number of manual operation steps and lowering the difficulty of liquid addition. Once all liquid storage holes in the liquid storage hole set are marked as liquid-added, the liquid addition control device determines that all liquid storage holes have been liquid-added and sends a reset signal. Upon receiving the reset signal, the drive component rotates in the opposite direction, causing the orifice plate to deflect downwards by a preset angle, resetting the orifice plate to a horizontal state for subsequent experiments.

[0096] In some embodiments, step S030 above may include the following steps:

[0097] (1) Select a reference point from the edge of the target liquid storage hole.

[0098] (2) Obtain the reference coordinates of the reference point (e.g.) Figure 5 (Reference coordinate N).

[0099] (3) Determine the target coordinates based on the reference coordinates and the preset position compensation value (e.g.) Figure 6 (Target coordinates P).

[0100] (4) Control the movement of the liquid injection needle and / or orifice plate to make the liquid outlet at the target coordinate.

[0101] The target coordinates are located inside the target liquid storage hole.

[0102] This embodiment determines the coordinates of a reference point, then uses the reference coordinates and a preset position compensation value to determine the target coordinates within the target liquid storage hole. The dispensing needle's outlet is then moved to the target coordinates. This allows for more precise control of the outlet position and adapts to different types of orifice plates and varying deflection angles. Furthermore, it controls the distance between the outlet and the orifice wall, reducing the impact force of the liquid on the orifice wall and further mitigating issues such as splashing, bubbles, and cell damage. Specifically, the motion device first moves the dispensing needle towards the reference coordinates, and then moves it towards the target coordinates.

[0103] As an example, when the orifice plate is in a horizontal position, the user can import the coordinate information of the orifice plate module (which may include the coordinate origin and the coordinate information of each liquid storage hole relative to the coordinate origin) into the liquid filling control device. The liquid filling control device can determine the initial coordinates of each liquid storage hole based on the size information and the coordinate origin. The initial coordinates of the liquid storage hole can be the initial coordinates of the orifice center or the initial coordinates of the orifice edge.

[0104] Once the orifice plate has deflected upwards by a preset angle and the target liquid storage orifice has been located, the liquid addition control device can obtain the deflection coordinates of the target liquid storage orifice based on the preset angle, the origin coordinates, and the initial coordinates of the target liquid storage orifice. These deflection coordinates can be the coordinates of the orifice center or the coordinates of the orifice edge (i.e., the deflection coordinates can be used as reference coordinates). When the deflection coordinates are the coordinates of the orifice center, since the orifice diameter and the deflection angle (i.e., the preset angle) are known parameters, the reference coordinates of the orifice edge can be calculated. After obtaining the reference coordinates, a preset position compensation value can be further set to obtain the target coordinates.

[0105] Specifically, the preset compensation values ​​can include a first compensation value in the Z-axis direction and a second compensation value in the horizontal direction (i.e., the X-axis or Y-axis direction). The second compensation value allows the dispensing needle to deflect horizontally, bringing it closer to the center of the target reservoir. The first compensation value allows the dispensing needle to extend downwards into the target reservoir, shortening the distance between the outlet and the reservoir wall.

[0106] The first compensation value can be a fixed value, or it can be flexibly set according to a preset angle so that the liquid outlet can be closer to the hole wall.

[0107] The second compensation value can be a fixed value, which can be flexibly set according to the diameter of the needle and the diameter of the liquid storage hole. For example, the second compensation value can be greater than or equal to the diameter of the liquid dispensing needle, which helps the needle to be offset from the edge of the target liquid storage hole, so as to reduce the situation of the needle hitting the needle during the downward movement.

[0108] Understandably, for the second compensation value, when the reference point is located on one side of the orifice edge along the X-axis direction, the second compensation value can be the compensation value in the X-axis direction; when the reference point is located on one side of the orifice edge along the Y-axis direction, the second compensation value can be the compensation value in the Y-axis direction; when the reference point is neither located on one side of the orifice edge along the X-axis direction nor on one side of the orifice edge along the Y-axis direction, the second compensation value can include a first sub-compensation value in the X-axis direction and a second sub-compensation value in the Y-axis direction, so that the liquid injection needle can smoothly avoid the orifice edge and move towards the center of the orifice.

[0109] It should be noted that when the motion device moves the dispensing needle toward the reference coordinates, the drive device can also move the orifice plate module, or the orifice plate module can remain stationary. Understandably, when both the dispensing needle and the orifice plate module move, the dispensing needle can move along the X-axis and Z-axis, with the reference coordinates being (X1, Z1). The orifice plate module can move along the Y-axis. Since the relative positions of the orifice plate and the laser needle alignment device are fixed, the coordinates of each reservoir relative to the origin remain constant. Therefore, even if the orifice plate module moves along the Y-axis, the coordinate values ​​of the reference coordinates (X1, Z1) can remain unchanged, and the dispensing needle can still move according to the reference coordinates.

[0110] When the motion device moves the liquid dispensing needle toward the target coordinates, the orifice plate module can remain stationary to reduce the risk of needle collision. The target coordinates are then (X1+a, Z1+b), where a can be the second compensation value and b is the first compensation value.

[0111] In some embodiments, selecting a reference point from the edge of the target liquid storage hole includes the step of selecting a reference point from the side of the edge of the hole with lower height.

[0112] This embodiment selects a reference point on the side of the orifice with lower height. Since the reference point is already at a low position on the orifice edge, when the liquid dispensing needle moves horizontally by the second compensation value, even if the liquid dispensing needle moves a small distance downward along the Z-axis, the liquid outlet of the liquid dispensing needle can still enter the storage hole. Therefore, the first compensation value can be set as a constant, avoiding complex calculations and helping to reduce the energy consumption of the liquid dispensing control device, as well as the space occupied within the device's storage area. Of course, the first compensation value can still be flexibly set according to a preset angle.

[0113] In some embodiments, the perforated plate can be disposed on one side of the laser needle alignment instrument along a first horizontal direction. The perforated plate can be rotatably connected to the main body of the device via a first rotating shaft at one end near the laser needle alignment instrument. The reference point can be located on one side of the edge of the orifice in the first horizontal direction, which can be the X-axis direction or the Y-axis direction.

[0114] The liquid addition method provided in this application embodiment is applied to a liquid addition device, which includes a well plate rotatable about a horizontal axis and a liquid addition needle. The liquid addition method includes the following steps: in response to a liquid addition signal, controlling the well plate to deflect upward about a preset angle about the horizontal axis so that the wall of the liquid storage hole on the well plate is tilted; selecting a target liquid storage hole from the set of liquid storage holes in the well plate; controlling the liquid addition needle and / or the well plate to move so that the liquid outlet of the liquid addition needle is above the wall of the target liquid storage hole; controlling the liquid to be discharged from the liquid addition needle, so that the liquid coming out of the outlet first contacts the hole wall, and the hole wall can buffer and guide the liquid, which can reduce the impact force of the liquid. The liquid can flow smoothly along the hole wall to the bottom of the liquid storage hole or the original liquid surface, which can reduce the occurrence of bubbles and splashes. Moreover, the smooth flow of liquid has less impact on cells, which can improve the cell survival rate, thereby improving adverse conditions such as liquid splashing, bubbles, and cell damage, and improving the accuracy of experimental results.

[0115] Please see Figure 7 This application also provides a liquid addition control device 150, which is applied to a liquid addition device including an orifice plate rotatable about a horizontal axis and a liquid addition needle. The liquid addition control device 150 is used to execute the various steps in the above-described liquid addition method embodiments. The liquid addition control device 150 includes a first control module 151, a selection module 153, a second control module 155, and a liquid addition module 157.

[0116] The first control module 151 is used to: respond to the liquid addition signal and control the orifice plate to deflect upward by a preset angle around the horizontal axis so that the wall of the liquid storage hole on the orifice plate is tilted.

[0117] The selection module 153 is used to select a target liquid storage hole from the set of liquid storage holes in the orifice plate.

[0118] The second control module 155 is used to control the movement of the liquid injection needle and / or orifice plate so that the liquid outlet of the liquid injection needle is above the orifice wall of the target liquid storage hole.

[0119] The liquid dispensing module 157 is used to control the dispensing of liquid from the dispensing needle.

[0120] In some embodiments, the second control module 155 is specifically used for: selecting a reference point from the edge of the orifice of the target liquid storage hole; obtaining the reference coordinates of the reference point; determining the target coordinates based on the reference coordinates and a preset position compensation value; the target coordinates are located inside the orifice of the target liquid storage hole; and controlling the liquid filling needle to move toward the target coordinates so that the liquid outlet moves to the target coordinates. The second control module 155 is also used for: marking the target liquid storage hole as having been filled; in response to the presence of an unmarked liquid storage hole in the set of liquid storage holes, selecting the unmarked liquid storage hole as the target liquid storage hole, and returning to the step: controlling the liquid filling needle and / or the orifice plate to move so that the liquid outlet of the liquid filling needle is above the orifice wall of the target liquid storage hole; and in response to all liquid storage holes in the set of liquid storage holes being marked as having been filled, controlling the orifice plate to deflect downwards by a preset angle around the horizontal axis.

[0121] It should be noted that, for the device-type embodiments, since they are basically similar to the method embodiments, the description is relatively simple, and relevant details can be found in the descriptions of the method embodiments. Any processing method described in the method embodiments can be implemented in the device embodiments through corresponding processing modules, and will not be elaborated upon further in the device embodiments.

[0122] Furthermore, the functional modules in the various embodiments of the present invention can be integrated into one processing module, or each module can exist physically separately, or two or more modules can be integrated into one module. The integrated modules described above can be implemented in hardware or as software functional modules.

[0123] Please see Figure 8 This application also provides a liquid addition system 400, including a processor 410 and a memory 420. The memory 420 stores instructions executable by the processor 410. The instructions are executed by the processor 410 to enable the processor 410 to perform the various steps of the liquid addition method described in the above-described method embodiments. The number of processors 410 can be one or more. Figure 8 Take a processor 410 as an example.

[0124] In some implementations, the processor 410 and the memory 420 may be connected via a bus or other means. Figure 8 Taking the example of a connection between China and Israel via a bus.

[0125] In some embodiments, the processor 410 is configured to: in response to a liquid addition signal, control the orifice plate to deflect upwards by a preset angle about a horizontal axis so that the walls of the liquid storage holes on the orifice plate are tilted; select a target liquid storage hole from the set of liquid storage holes on the orifice plate; control the liquid addition needle and / or the orifice plate to move so that the liquid outlet of the liquid addition needle is above the wall of the target liquid storage hole; and control the liquid addition needle to dispensing liquid.

[0126] In some embodiments, the memory 420 serves as a non-volatile computer-readable storage medium 500, which can be used to store non-volatile software programs, non-volatile computer-executable programs, and modules, such as the program instructions / modules of the liquid addition method in the embodiments of this application. The processor 410 executes various functional applications and data processing of the liquid addition system 400 by running the non-volatile software programs, instructions, and modules stored in the memory 420, thereby implementing the liquid addition method of the above-described method embodiments.

[0127] In some embodiments, memory 420 may include a program storage area and a data storage area, wherein the program storage area may store an operating system and an application program required for at least one function; and the data storage area may store data created based on the use of the liquid dispensing system 400, etc. Furthermore, memory 420 may include high-speed random access memory, and may also include non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk storage device, flash memory device, or other non-volatile solid-state storage device.

[0128] In some embodiments, the memory 420 may optionally include a memory 420 remotely located relative to the processor 410, which can be connected to the liquid filling control device 150 via a network. Examples of such networks include, but are not limited to, the Internet, corporate intranets, local area networks, mobile communication networks, and combinations thereof.

[0129] In some implementations, one or more modules are stored in memory 420 and, when executed by processor 410, perform the liquid addition method in any of the above method embodiments, for example, the method described above. Figure 4 The method steps S010 to S040 are described in the text.

[0130] Please see Figure 9 This application embodiment also provides a computer-readable storage medium 500, which stores program code 510. The program code 510 can be called by the processor 410 to execute various steps in the liquid addition method provided in this application embodiment.

[0131] The computer-readable storage medium 500 may be an electronic memory such as flash memory, EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), EPROM, hard disk, or ROM. Optionally, the computer-readable storage medium 500 includes a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium 500 has storage space for program code 510 that performs any of the method steps of the above-described liquid addition method. This program code 510 can be read from or written to one or more program code products. The program code 510 may be compressed in an appropriate form.

[0132] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, and not to limit them; under the concept of the present invention, the technical features of the above embodiments or different embodiments can also be combined, the steps can be implemented in any order, and there are many other variations of different aspects of the present invention as described above. For the sake of brevity, they are not provided in detail; although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some of the technical features; and these modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention. Through the description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that each embodiment can be implemented by means of software plus a general hardware platform, and of course, it can also be implemented by hardware. Those skilled in the art can understand that all or part of the processes in the methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by a computer program instructing related hardware. The program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, and when the program is executed, it can include the processes of the embodiments of the above methods. The storage medium can be a magnetic disk, optical disk, read-only memory (ROM), or random access memory (RAM), etc.

Claims

1. A liquid adding apparatus characterized by comprising: The device includes a main body, an orifice plate module, a liquid dispensing needle, and a liquid dispensing control device. The main body has a working space. The liquid dispensing needle is connected to the main body and located within the working space. The orifice plate module is located within the working space and includes a first mounting base, an orifice plate rotatable about a horizontal axis, a drive component, an elastic component, and a laser needle alignment device. The first mounting base is detachably connected to the main body and has a second mounting slot and a third mounting slot, which are distributed horizontally. The laser needle alignment device is installed in the third mounting slot for calibrating the coordinate origin of the liquid dispensing needle. The orifice plate includes a second mounting base and an orifice plate body. The second mounting base is installed in the second mounting slot and rotatably connected to the first mounting base via a first rotating shaft. The second mounting base has a first mounting slot, and the orifice plate body is installed in the first mounting slot. The orifice plate body has several liquid storage holes. The driving component is installed in the second mounting groove and located below the second mounting base. The driving component includes a driving unit, a cam, and a connecting rod. The driving unit is connected to the first mounting base, the cam is located below the perforated plate, and one end of the connecting rod is rotatably connected to the driving end of the driving unit. The connecting rod includes a first end and a second end, the first end being rotatably connected to the driving end of the driving unit via a second rotating shaft, and the second end having a sliding groove. The cam includes a rotating part and a protruding part. The rotating part is rotatably connected to the first mounting base via a third rotating shaft, the protruding part abuts against the bottom of the perforated plate, and the protruding part has a sliding part protruding from it. The driving unit drives the connecting rod to move horizontally. As the connecting rod moves, the sliding part slides in the sliding groove. When the sliding part slides to abut against the end wall of one end of the sliding groove, the end wall drives the sliding part to move, thereby rotating the cam and lifting the perforated plate to achieve upward deflection. The driving unit drives the connecting rod to move in the opposite direction, thereby controlling the perforated plate to deflect downward. The elastic element is connected between the first mounting base and the second mounting base to generate an elastic restoring force so that the orifice plate abuts against the cam. The liquid addition control device includes: The first control module is used to control the orifice plate to deflect upward by a preset angle around the horizontal axis in response to the liquid addition signal, so as to tilt the wall of the liquid storage hole on the orifice plate. A selection module is used to select a target liquid storage hole from the set of liquid storage holes in the orifice plate; The second control module is used to control the movement of the liquid injection needle and / or the orifice plate so that the liquid outlet of the liquid injection needle is above the orifice wall of the target liquid storage hole; The liquid dispensing module is used to control the liquid dispensing from the liquid dispensing needle.

2. A liquid adding method characterized by, Applied to the liquid addition device according to claim 1, the liquid addition method includes the following steps: Step S010: In response to the liquid addition signal, control the orifice plate to deflect upwards by a preset angle around the horizontal axis so that the walls of the liquid storage holes on the orifice plate are tilted; Step S020: Select a target liquid storage hole from the set of liquid storage holes in the orifice plate; Step S030: Control the movement of the liquid injection needle and / or the orifice plate so that the liquid outlet of the liquid injection needle is above the orifice wall of the target liquid storage hole; Step S040: Control the liquid dispensing from the liquid dispensing needle.

3. The liquid addition method according to claim 2, characterized in that, Following step S040, the liquid addition method further includes the following steps: Mark the target liquid storage hole as having been filled with liquid; In response to the presence of an unmarked reservoir in the reservoir set, the unmarked reservoir is selected as the target reservoir, and the process returns to step: controlling the movement of the injection needle and / or the orifice plate. In response to all the liquid storage holes in the set of liquid storage holes being marked as filled, the orifice plate is controlled to deflect downwards by the preset angle around the horizontal axis.

4. The liquid addition method according to claim 2, characterized in that, Controlling the movement of the liquid injection needle and / or the orifice plate to position the liquid injection needle outlet above the orifice wall of the target liquid storage hole includes the following steps: Select a reference point from the edge of the opening of the target liquid storage hole; Obtain the reference coordinates of the reference point; The target coordinates are determined based on the reference coordinates and the preset position compensation value; the target coordinates are located inside the target liquid storage hole; Control the movement of the liquid injection needle and / or the orifice plate to position the liquid outlet at the target coordinates.

5. A liquid dispensing system, characterized in that, include: processor; A memory storing instructions executable by the processor to enable the processor to perform the liquid addition method according to any one of claims 2 to 4.

6. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium contains program code that can be called by a processor to execute the liquid addition method according to any one of claims 2 to 4.

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