Microflow Constant-Volume Mechanism for Bubble-Resistant Dispensing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current microfluidic devices face challenges in accurately dispensing small volumes of DNA samples into multiple reaction chambers due to complex structures and the interference of bubbles, leading to cumbersome, time-consuming, and error-prone sample treatment processes in biological testing.
Innovation Solution
A microfluidic mechanism with a base and quantitative mechanism that switch between relative states, featuring a tandem connection passage with sealed ends to prevent bubble interference and reduce waste storage needs, allowing for precise and efficient fluid control and sampling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a microfluidic device uses a complex structure to control fluid flow, then fluid control capability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device is divided into distinct functional modules: a reservoir for fluid storage, a microfluidic channel for fluid transport, and a separate waste storage chamber. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function efficiently while maintaining overall system simplicity. The physical separation of fluid pathways prevents bubble interference and enables independent optimization of each module.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts and eliminates the bubble interference problem by designing a system where bubbles are naturally directed to the waste storage chamber rather than contaminating the measurement or reaction zones. The fluid pathway is specifically designed to separate bubble-containing fluid from clean fluid, effectively taking out the harmful bubbles from the functional fluid path.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If a microfluidic device uses larger waste storage volume to accommodate bubbles, then bubble interference is reduced, but device volume increases
Solution Approach 1:
The waste storage chamber is integrated into the vertical stacking architecture of the microfluidic device, utilizing the third dimension (vertical space) rather than expanding horizontally. This allows the waste chamber to be positioned beneath or adjacent to the reservoir in the vertical stack, accommodating bubbles without significantly increasing the device's footprint area.
3Adaptability or versatility
If sample treatment procedures are performed manually, then flexibility is maintained, but time consumption and error rate increase
Solution Approach 1:
The microfluidic device incorporates dynamic control elements such as valves and pumps that can be actuated to change fluid flow paths, mix samples, and transfer fluids between chambers. This dynamic capability allows the system to perform complex sample treatment procedures automatically while maintaining the flexibility to adapt to different experimental protocols and sample types.
Data Source
AI summary
A flow control mechanism and a system comprising the mechanism, specifically relating to a microflow control mechanism and system. The mechanism comprises a base and a constant volume mechanism. The base and the constant volume mechanism are dynamically connected to form two or more relative activity states, comprising a first relative state and a second relative state. A fluid input end and a fluid receiving end are provided on the base. The constant volume mechanism is provided with a constant volume pipeline. In the first relative state, the fluid input end communicates with the constant volume pipeline. In the second relative state, the constant volume pipeline communicates with the fluid receiving end. The microflow control mechanism and system can achieve precise micro-scale fluid flow control, and have a simple structure.