Biological Sample Punching Tool with Guidance Channel
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Solution Overview
Problem
Biological samples often adhere to the punching tool due to fluff from the filter material, leading to incorrect sample release and increased maintenance needs, which can result in fatal errors.
Innovation Solution
A punching tool with a guidance channel that widens conically from the punching channel, featuring a shoulder with angled walls (170-300 degrees) and a polished surface, ensures successful sample release by preventing fluff adherence and guiding the sample into a shaft tube.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional punching channel is used to convey the sample, then the sample can be transferred from the upper surface to the lower end, but the sample may adhere to the instrument due to fluff from the filter material
Solution Approach 1:
The guidance channel acts as an intermediary between the punching channel and the sample collection point. It provides a dedicated pathway that guides the sample away from surfaces where fluff could cause adhesion, effectively mediating the transition from the punching zone to the collection zone while minimizing harmful interactions with the instrument surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The sample conveyance path is segmented into two distinct parts: the punching channel for initial sample extraction and the guidance channel for sample redirection and collection. This segmentation allows each channel to be optimized for its specific function, with the guidance channel specifically designed to prevent adhesion issues that occur in conventional single-channel designs.
2Productivity
If punching is repeated when sample release is not registered, then another sample can be taken, but the sample may be registered into an incorrect vessel
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms to detect whether a sample has been successfully released and registered. This feedback allows the system to distinguish between legitimate punching operations and failed releases, enabling accurate tracking of sample placement and preventing misregistration in incorrect vessels while maintaining productivity through automated monitoring.
3Measurement precision
If the guidance channel diameter is close to the punch diameter, then the sample path is precise, but the sample may adhere to the channel walls
Solution Approach 1:
The guidance channel is designed with varying diameter characteristics at different locations. The channel diameter is larger than the punch diameter, creating a local quality difference that prevents adhesion to the channel walls. This local expansion provides sufficient clearance for the sample to pass through without contacting the channel surfaces where adhesion could occur, while still maintaining precise guidance through the channel's geometric constraints.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to a punching tool for taking a biological sample from a filter using punching, the punching tool comprising a punch and a die provided with a punching channel for conveying the sample from the upper surface of the die towards the lower end of the die that includes a guidance means of the sample comprising a guidance channel arranged as an extension of the punching channel for receiving the sample from the punching channel, the diameter of the guidance channel is 1.02 to 2× the diameter of the punch and is greater than the diameter of the punching channel, and at the connecting point with the punching channel the guidance channel forms a shoulder and broadens towards the free end of the guidance means. In order to reduce the number of mistakes when taking samples, while the structure of the punching tool still remains simple at the end of the guidance means that faces towards the punching channel of the die, the diameter of the guidance channel is constant at a portion of the length thereof and the walls of the shoulder are placed at an angle from 170 to 300 degrees in relation to one another.