Sample Plate Recesses for Stable Reagent Bead Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current assay devices face challenges in maintaining reagent beads at the correct height during processing, leading to inaccurate results, and are prone to damage and manufacturing issues due to complex designs with protruding fingers, which increase production costs and complexity.
Innovation Solution
A sample plate system with recesses, such as tapered sections or countersunk portions, in the sample wells to securely hold reagent beads, and a bead dispensing system that includes a syringe body with an annular chamber and plunger for controlled dispensing of beads into the wells.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If molded fingers protrude from the well base to hold reagent beads, then the reagent bead can be captured in the fingers, but the fingers are susceptible to damage during pipetting and washing stages and may become stuck at undesired heights
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of having fingers protrude upward from the well base to hold beads, the invention inverts the approach by having recesses or cavities formed in the well base that receive and hold the beads from below. This inversion eliminates the protruding fingers that are vulnerable to damage while maintaining the bead-holding function through complementary geometric fitting between the bead and recess.
2Reliability
If long thin fingers are used to hold reagent beads, then the reagent bead can be captured, but the fingers are difficult to form by molding and prone to damage during manufacture
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replaces difficult-to-mold protruding fingers with easily-formed recesses or cavities in the well base. These recesses can be directly formed during standard injection molding processes without requiring complex undercut features or post-molding operations. The recesses provide the same bead-capturing function through a simpler, more manufacturable geometry.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the problematic protruding finger structure from the design and replaces it with an integrated recess structure that is part of the well base itself. This eliminates the need for separate finger components and their associated manufacturing complexities, while maintaining the essential function of securing the reagent bead in the correct position.
3Productivity
If high density of wells is used in the sample plate, then multiple assays can be performed at once, but the wells are more susceptible to crosstalk between different samples
Solution Approach 1:
The invention segments each well into functionally distinct zones: a bead-receiving recess area and a sample-addition area. The recesses are positioned and sized to contain beads and associated reagents, while the upper well volume accommodates sample addition and mixing. This spatial segmentation prevents crosstalk by containing reagents and samples within their respective zones, even in high-density plate configurations.
Data Source
AI summary
A sample plate comprising a sample well is disclosed. The sample well can comprise one or more bead retaining chambers. Also provided herein is a method of using the sample plate and kits comprising the sample plate.