Reactor with Segmented Chambers for Interference Correction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for estimating the concentration of a target material in samples, such as in medical diagnosis, face challenges due to interfering materials like enzymes and electrolyte ions that can inaccurately influence the measurement.
Innovation Solution
A reactor and test apparatus system that includes separate chambers for target and interfering materials, using enzyme reactions to measure and correct the concentration of the target material by accounting for the influence of interfering substances like amylase and electrolyte ions, with reagents containing specific reactants to accelerate reactions and optical detection for precise measurement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a single chamber is used to detect target material, then the device structure is simple, but the measurement accuracy deteriorates due to interference from interfering materials
Solution Approach 1:
The reactor is divided into multiple chambers: a first chamber for detecting target material and a second chamber for detecting interfering material. This segmentation allows independent detection of each material type, eliminating cross-interference and improving measurement accuracy while maintaining reasonable device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The interfering material detection function is extracted from the target material detection system. By using separate chambers and specific reagents for interfering material detection, the system can measure interfering material concentration independently and use this information to correct the target material measurement, thereby improving overall measurement accuracy.
2Measurement precision
If separate chambers are used for target and interfering materials, then the measurement accuracy is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The reactor uses a unified microfluidic channel system that can handle multiple detection functions. The same basic chamber and channel structure is used for both target material and interfering material detection, allowing the system to perform multiple functions with a relatively simple overall architecture, thus limiting the increase in device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a correction mechanism as an intermediary between the raw measurements and the final result. The controller uses the interfering material concentration measurement to calculate a correction value, which is then applied to the target material measurement. This intermediary correction process achieves high measurement accuracy without requiring completely separate independent detection systems.
3Reliability
If interfering material concentration is measured and used for correction, then the reliability of target material concentration is improved, but the measurement process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection of interfering material concentration before finalizing the target material concentration result. By measuring the interfering material first and using its concentration to calculate a correction value, the system prepares the necessary correction data in advance, ensuring reliable target material measurement while streamlining the overall process through systematic sequencing.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements a feedback mechanism where the interfering material concentration measurement feeds into the target material concentration calculation. The controller continuously monitors both concentrations and uses the interfering material data to adjust and correct the target material measurement in real-time, improving reliability through continuous feedback-based correction.
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 system improves the accuracy and reliability of target material concentration measurements by accounting for interfering substances, reducing errors caused by their presence in the sample.
Implementation Method 1
a detector configured to irradiate light of a first predetermined wavelength to a target material detecting chamber and a first material detecting chamber, and to detect light that has propagated through or been reflected from the target material detecting chamber and the first material detecting chamber
Implementation Method 2
an enzyme method of estimating a concentration of a target material by using an enzyme which is activated by the target material and an enzyme reaction in which the enzyme acts as a catalyst
Implementation Method 3
an enzyme reaction in which the enzyme acts as a catalyst
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein are a reactor, a test apparatus, and a test method, which measure, when a material included in a sample acts as an interfering material with respect to estimating a concentration of a target material, a concentration of the interfering material, and correct an estimated concentration of the target material based on the concentration of the interfering material, thereby improving the reliability and accuracy of the concentration of the target material. The reactor includes: a target material detecting chamber in which a first reagent that includes a first material that is activated by a target material is contained; a first material detecting chamber in which a second reagent that includes the target material is contained; an inlet hole into which a sample is injected; and a channel configured to connect the inlet hole, the target material detecting chamber, and the first material detecting chamber to each other.