Capacitive Microfluidic Pump-Valve Cartridge for Stable Flow Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Microfluidic systems with pumps and valves face challenges in alignment, stability, portability, manufacturability, and sterilizability, particularly in organ-on-chip bioreactors and microclinical analyzers, due to issues with pump and valve fluidics and their actuators, as well as connections and connections thereof.
Innovation Solution
A fluidic device with a body having channels for fluid transfer, an actuator for controlling flow rates, and a registration mechanism for precise alignment, along with capacitive pumps and valves that reduce flow and pressure transients, and modular designs for easy assembly and sterilization, including a rotary planar peristaltic micropump and rotary planar valve configurations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If standard soft-lithographic techniques are used to demonstrate microfluidic devices, then device functionality can be achieved, but alignment of pump and valve fluidics with actuators becomes problematic
Solution Approach 1:
The device is divided into separate functional modules (pump module, valve module, reservoir module) that can be independently fabricated and then assembled. Each module contains its own fluidic channels and actuators, eliminating alignment problems between separately made components. The segmentation allows each module to be optimized and tested independently before integration.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple fluidic functions (pumping, valving, fluid storage) are merged into a single integrated chip structure where pump and valve fluidics are co-fabricated with precise relative positioning. The actuator mounting structures are integrated into the chip design, ensuring automatic alignment when actuators are attached to their respective ports.
2Ease of operation
If complex pump and valve assemblies are used to achieve precise fluid control, then flow control capability is improved, but device stability and portability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system is segmented into a compact integrated chip that combines all fluid control functions in a single stable platform. This eliminates the instability caused by multiple separate components and their connections. The segmentation also allows for a simplified actuator system with fewer moving parts, enhancing overall device stability while maintaining precise flow control capability.
3Productivity
If traditional microfluidic devices are used, then basic fluid transfer is achieved, but adaptability to different applications is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The device incorporates universal interface standards and modular components that can be configured for different applications. The pump and valve modules can be selectively assembled with different reservoirs and fluidic path configurations to suit various bioreactor and analyzer applications. The actuator interfaces are designed to accommodate different fluidic channel geometries and flow rates, providing broad adaptability while maintaining efficient fluid transfer capability.
4Measurement precision
If integrated pump and valve systems are implemented, then fluid control precision is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The integrated system is manufactured by segmenting the fabrication process into standard soft-lithography steps that can be performed sequentially using conventional equipment. Each module is fabricated independently using well-established techniques, reducing manufacturing complexity while achieving precise fluid control through the integrated assembly of these modules.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables precise and stable fluid control, reduces pulsatility and pressure transients, and facilitates easy assembly and sterilization of microfluidic systems, enhancing their performance and adaptability in bioreactors and analyzers.
Implementation Method 1
compression of the actuator on a second surface of the second layer causes at least one of the one or more channels in the second layer to be occluded
Implementation Method 2
the second layer is elastomeric
Implementation Method 3
capacitive pumps and multi-throw valves and pump-valve systems
Data Source
AI summary
In one aspect of the invention, the fluidic device includes a fluidic chip includes a body having a first surface and an opposite, second surface, one or more channels formed in the body in fluidic communications with input ports and output ports for transferring one or more fluids between the input ports and the output ports, and a fluidic chip registration means formed on the first surface for aligning the fluidic chip with a support structure; and an actuator configured to engage with the one or more channels at the second surface of the body for selectively and individually transferring the one or more fluids through the one or more channels from at least one of the input ports to at least one of the output ports at desired flowrates.