Pipette Verification via Weight Force Tolerance Testing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for verifying pipettes lack efficiency and accuracy in determining whether a pipette remains calibrated within predefined standards between calibration intervals, leading to potential measurement errors and increased costs due to uncertain pipette performance.
Innovation Solution
A method and device for pipette verification that calculates the pipette liquid volume by determining weight forces before and after introducing the liquid volume into a loading cell, assigns it to a volume class, and outputs a release or warning message based on tolerance, allowing for automatic and frequent verification with minimal user intervention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If pipette verification is performed frequently and automatically with minimal user intervention, then measurement reliability and detection of defective pipettes improve, but device complexity and initial costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The verification device performs automatic verification of pipettes with minimal user intervention. The system self-regulates by automatically detecting weight changes, comparing them against calibration data, and generating verification results without requiring manual operation for each measurement, thereby improving reliability while maintaining operational simplicity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical verification processes with an automated electronic system that uses a loading cell to detect weight changes and a processing unit to analyze data. This substitution of mechanical/manual operations with electronic automation improves measurement reliability while the standardized protocol keeps the system manageable in complexity
2Productivity
If calibration intervals are extended to reduce costs, then productivity improves, but measurement precision may deteriorate due to undetected pipette drift
Solution Approach 1:
The verification device provides immediate feedback on pipette performance by automatically detecting weight changes during verification and comparing them against expected values. This continuous feedback mechanism allows for extended calibration intervals while maintaining measurement precision, as the system promptly identifies when a pipette drifts outside acceptable tolerances
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary verification checks between formal calibrations to detect potential drift before it affects measurement precision. By conducting these preliminary automatic verifications, the system maintains precision over extended calibration intervals, allowing productivity to improve without sacrificing measurement quality
3Device complexity
If manual calibration processes are used with predefined evaporation rates, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement precision deteriorates due to unrealistic assumptions about environmental conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts for environmental parameters by using a windbreak to minimize air movement effects and by implementing correction algorithms that account for actual environmental conditions during verification. This allows the system to maintain measurement precision without requiring complex real-time environmental sensing, balancing precision with manageable device complexity
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
This approach provides immediate feedback on pipette accuracy, extends calibration intervals, reduces costs, and prevents material losses by detecting defective pipettes early, thereby ensuring consistent measurement quality and reducing the risk of reputational damage.
Implementation Method 1
a loading cell connected in a force-transmitting manner to the liquid measuring container, which outputs a measurement signal corresponding to the weight force acting on the loading cell
Implementation Method 2
determining a first weight force from the stable measurement signal at the time point t1 of a last stable measurement point by the processing unit
Data Source
AI summary
A verification of a pipette results in a release or a warning message. A liquid measuring container (110) receives the pipette liquid volume (VP) to be verified. A loading cell (120) is connected to the liquid measuring container in a force-transmitting manner. The loading cell outputs a measurement signal (ms) corresponding to the weight force (FG) acting thereon. A processing unit (130) detects and processes the measurement signal (ms), determines a first weight force (Gt1) at time point (t1) and determines a second weight force (Gt2) at time point (t2). The pipette liquid volume is calculated and the calculated value is assigned to a pipette volume class (Ki) having a defined class nominal value (VKi). The processing unit tests whether or not an absolute value of the volume difference (ΔV) is within a predetermined tolerance value (T) for the assigned pipette volume class. The processing unit outputs the test result.