Integrated Pump Carriage for Pipette Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional pipetting systems face challenges with precision due to high dead volume caused by long hose connections between pumps and pipetting needles, leading to reduced accuracy and increased complexity.
Innovation Solution
A compact positioning device integrates the pump drive and pump chambers within the sliding carriage, eliminating the need for external hose connections and reducing dead volume, allowing for precise pipetting across a wide volume range with modular design and integrated pressure sensors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If external hose connections are used between pumps and pipetting needles, then the system can be designed with separate pump units, but the dead volume increases significantly reducing pipetting precision
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the pump units and pipetting apparatus into a single integrated sliding carriage assembly. The pump chambers are positioned directly adjacent to the pipetting needles within the same carriage, eliminating the need for external hose connections. This merging of previously separate components directly reduces dead volume and improves pipetting precision while maintaining manageable system complexity through modular integration.
2Measurement precision
If pump units are integrated within the sliding carriage, then dead volume is reduced improving precision, but the carriage structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a nested arrangement where pump chambers are positioned within the same carriage structure that houses the pipetting apparatus. The pump units are integrated into the carriage's internal volume, with pump chambers arranged to fit within the available space alongside the needle modules. This nesting approach minimizes the overall carriage footprint while accommodating all necessary components, managing structural complexity through efficient spatial utilization.
3Speed
If long hose connections are used, then pump placement is flexible, but response time increases and precision decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the hose connection system entirely by integrating pump chambers directly within the sliding carriage. The fluid transfer path is shortened from external hoses to internal direct connections between adjacent pump chambers and needle modules. This extraction of the hose system eliminates the associated delays and complexity, achieving rapid response times through direct fluid coupling.
Data Source
AI summary
A positioning device is provided for positioning pipettes in medical-technical applications including at least one pipetting apparatus with at least one pipette as well as several drive units for positioning a pipette tip and for moving it over a working area and transversely to a working area, a sliding carriage that is moveable transversely to the working area supports the pipette, at least one pump drive with at least one pump and at least one pump chamber is provided for aspirating or dispensing a medium, such that by providing the at least one pump drive with pump and at least one pump chamber integrated in the sliding carriage that is moveable transversely to the working area, the design of the positioning device becomes compact and precise pipetting is achieved.