Aspects of the present disclosure include a titration probe that mitigate the occurrences of titration probe clots. A bar such as segment of music wire, is extended across the tip of a titration probe and attached at both ends to the titration probe. The bar is configured to catch clots and prevent the clots from being collected along with a blood sample to be analyzed. The bar effectively reduces the cross sectional area of the titration probe tip.

A system and method of fluid delivery for providing a surface fluid pattern. The system includes a fluid delivery head for fluid flow therethrough. The fluid delivery head includes a fluid delivery surface having surface openings defined therein and arranged across the fluid delivery surface as a two-dimensional display. Some of the surface openings are grouped as a surface opening unit. The surface opening unit includes at least one aspiration opening through which fluid can be provided to the fluid delivery surface and at least one injection opening through which fluid can be moved away from the fluid delivery surface. The surface opening unit includes at least three surface openings positioned as a two-dimensional display and outwardly of at least one other surface opening.

The invention relates to a method for dispensing a liquid sample by means of a dispensing apparatus in which it is determined whether a particle condition is satisfied, wherein the determination comprises checking whether at least one target particle present in a liquid of the liquid sample is contained in a monitoring region of the dispensing apparatus, wherein the monitoring region comprises a discharge region and a buffer region, wherein the buffer region is a region from which the at least one target particle is movable into the discharge region during a time delay between the determination of whether the particle condition is satisfied and an output operation of the dispensing apparatus. The method is characterised in that it is determined that the particle condition is satisfied when the at least one target particle is arranged in the buffer region and no target particle is arranged in the discharge region, and that the liquid sample is dispensed onto a target particle carrier if the particle condition is satisfied.

A method is proposed for detecting an error state when aspirating a liquid, including: immersing a tip of an aspiration needle in the liquid, generating a negative pressure in the aspiration needle for a predefined time period to aspirate a predetermined partial volume of the liquid in the aspiration needle, continuously acquiring a sensor signal curve by means of continuous measurement of a sensor signal, which indicates a pressure in the aspiration needle, during an overall time period, which comprises the predetermined time period and furthermore a further time period following the predetermined time period, detecting the error state in the case that the sensor signal falls below a first threshold value during the predetermined time period, characterized by providing a reference signal curve, determining a deviation measure, which indicates a deviation of the sensor signal curve from the reference signal curve during the further time period, providing a predetermined second threshold value, detecting the error state as a function of the deviation measure and the second threshold value.

A fluid aspiration probe apparatus for automatic fluid testing equipment includes a pair of electrodes mounted on a distal probe tip. The electrodes are coupled to an impedance measurement apparatus via conductive pathways along the probe. The impedance measurements and probe tip height are monitored as the probe tip is lowered into a fluid sample. Boundaries between layers of fluid in the container are detected by recognizing sudden changes in the impedance measurements and heights of the boundaries are determined by tracking the position of probe tip when the sudden changes of impedance occur.

Improved sub-assemblies and methods of control for use in a diagnostic assay system adapted to receive an assay cartridge are provided herein. Such sub-assemblies include: a brushless DC motor, a door opening/closing mechanism and cartridge loading mechanism, a syringe and valve drive mechanism assembly, a sonication horn, a thermal control device and optical detection/excitation device. Such systems can further include a communications unit configured to wirelessly communicate with a mobile device of a user so as to receive a user input relating to functionality of the system with respect to an assay cartridge received therein and relaying a diagnostic result relating to the assay cartridge to the mobile device.

A method for the contact metering of liquids having the following steps: a first liquid is introduced into at least one elongate hollow body, some of the first liquid contained in the elongate hollow body is pressed out of the lower end of the elongate hollow body as a contacting volume such that the contacting volume forms a drop suspended from the lower end of the elongate hollow body, at least some of the drop is immersed in a second liquid in a target vessel and the defined metering volume consisting of the contacting volume and a residual volume contained in the elongate hollow body is dispensed into the second liquid.

A method for detecting a liquid surface of a liquid sample with a pipetting tip, the method includes receiving an indication of a capacitance of the pipetting tip, and determining, based on a rate of change of the indication of the capacitance rising above a first preselected threshold, that the pipetting tip has come into contact with the liquid surface. The method also includes determining, based on the rate of change of the indication of the capacitance falling below a second preselected threshold, that the pipetting tip has lost contact with the liquid surface.

One embodiment provides a method for detecting aspiration in a clinical analyzer, including: acquiring, from a sensor, pressure measurement data; transforming the pressure measurement data into frequency domain data; generating a clean version of the frequency domain data by attenuating, using a filter, unwanted frequencies; comparing the cleaned version of the frequency domain data to one or more predetermined data points; and determining, based on the comparison, if an aspiration was properly performed. Other aspects are described and claimed herein.

A liquid amount control device includes a position detector, a pump, a driver and a controller. The pump is connected with a first tip and configured to suck up the liquid out of the test tube. The driver is connected with the pump and configured to drive the pump to move. The controller is configured to: (1) control the driver to drive a first suction end of the first tip to enter a detection region of the position detector to obtain an end height position of the first suction end; (2) control the driver to drive the first suction end of the first tip to enter the liquid by a first entering depth according to the end height position; and (3) control the pump to suck up the liquid in the test tube through the first tip.