In an embodiment, a system includes a plurality of sensor devices contained in a plurality of wells contained in a well-plate assembly. The sensor devices are used in a plurality of oscillators. Each oscillator generates a frequency and a resistance based on a quality of living biological cells contained in a corresponding well. The quality may include, for example, surface coupled mass, density, viscosity, and/or viscoelasticity of the living biological cells. The system also includes logic for measuring a resonant frequency and motional resistance associated with each sensor device and logic for processing the measured resonant frequency and motional resistance. Moreover, the system includes logic for displaying one or more graphs showing one or more characteristics of the living biological cells contained in the wells.

A photo acoustic non-destructive measurement apparatus and method for quantitatively measuring texture of a liquid. The apparatus includes a laser generating tool, an acoustic capturing device, and a data processing unit. The laser generating tool directs a laser towards a surface of a liquid contained in a container and creates pressure waves that propagate through the air and produce an acoustic signal. The acoustic capturing device records and forwards the signal to a data processing unit. The data processing unit further comprises a digital signal processing module that processes the received acoustic signal. A statistical processing module further filters the acoustic signal from the data processing unit and generates a quantitative acoustic model for texture attributes such as hardness and fracturability. The quantitative model is correlated with a qualitative texture measurement from a descriptive expert panel. Textures of liquids are quantitatively measured with the quantitative acoustic model.

A device for estimating a mechanical property of a sample is disclosed herein. The device may include a chamber configured to hold the sample; a transmitter configured to transmit a plurality of waveforms, including at least one forcing waveform; and a transducer assembly operatively connected to the transmitter and configured to transform the transmit waveforms into ultrasound waveforms. The transducer assembly can also transmit and receive ultrasound waveforms into and out of the chamber, as well as transform at least two received ultrasound waveforms into received electrical waveforms. The device also includes a data processor that can receive the received electrical waveforms; estimate a difference in the received electrical waveforms that results at least partially from movement of the sample; and estimate a mechanical property of the sample by comparing at least one feature of the estimated difference to at least one predicted feature, wherein the at least one predicted feature is based on a model of an effect of the chamber wall. Finally, the device can also include a controller configured to control the timing of the ultrasound transmitter and data processor.

A density and viscosity sensor for measuring density and viscosity of a fluid, comprises: a housing (4) defining a chamber (8) isolated from the fluid (3), the housing (4) comprising an area defining a membrane (9) separating the chamber (8) from the fluid (3); a resonating element (5) arranged to be immersed in the fluid (3) and mechanically coupled to the membrane (9); and an actuating/detecting element (6) coupled to the resonating element (5), the actuating/detecting element (6) being positioned within the chamber (8) and mechanically coupled to the membrane (9), the actuating/detecting element (6) comprising at least one piezoelectric element (10) comprising two sides (11, 12) substantially parallel to the membrane (9); The membrane (9) has a thickness enabling transfer of mechanical vibration between the actuating/detecting element (6) and the resonating element (5). One side (11) of the piezoelectric element (10) comprises a single conductive area (13). Another side (12) of the piezoelectric element (10) comprises at least two conductive areas (14A, 14B, 14C, 14D, 14E, 14F, 14G, 14H) isolated from each other, each conductive area (14A, 14B, 14C, 14D, 14E, 14F, 14G, 14H) being coupled to an electrical potential (V1, V2) of opposite sign relatively to adjacent areas such that the resonating element (5) is driven to vibrate in a selected plane (P1, P2) perpendicular to the membrane (9).

System and methods for determining a non-condensable gas parameter relating to the amount of non-condensable gas within a variable flow rate fluid flow containing both non-condensable gas and condensate are disclosed. An apparatus may include a measurement tube for receiving the fluid flow and arranged such that the fluid flow through the measurement tube comprises alternating sections of non-condensable gas and condensate; a flow sensor for generating a flow rate signal relating to the flow rate of the fluid flow in the measurement tube; a phase sensor for monitoring over time the alternating sections of non-condensable gas and condensate flowing through the measurement tube and arranged generates a phase signal characteristic of the said sections monitored; and a non-condensable gas determining unit configured to determine a non-condensable gas parameter relating to the amount of non-condensable gas in the fluid flow based on the flow rate signal and phase signal.

Methods and apparatus for non-invasive determination of one or more physical properties of a material in a conduit are presented. In one example, the method comprises initiating a vibration on a wall of the conduit at a first location, capturing a response to the vibration at the first location, capturing a response to the vibration at a second location, and determining at least one physical property of the material based on at least one of the captured responses at the first location and the second location.

Described embodiments include a culture incubator, method, and sensor circuit. A culture incubator includes an accessible incubation compartment configured to contain a culture item at a specified incubation temperature; a phase change material having a phase transition temperature over the specified incubation temperature; and a heat transfer element in thermal communication with the phase change material and configured to transfer heat to the phase change material. A sensor circuit is configured to acquire data indicative of a phase composition state of the phase change material. A manager circuit is configured to determine a difference between the phase composition state and a target phase composition state for the phase change material. A controller circuit is configured to transfer heat to the phase change material in an amount estimated to change the phase composition state of the phase change material to the target phase composition state.

A piezoelectric resonator for use in a sensor arrangement for detecting or measuring an analyte in a medium, comprises a quartz crystal plate, having a first crystal surface and a second crystal surface. The first crystal surface is provided with a first electrode, which has a surface area of less than 15 mm.sup.2 and the second crystal surface is provided with a second electrode. The first electrode may have a rectangular surface shape. A flow cell for use in an apparatus for detecting or measuring an analyte in a medium, comprises walls that form a sensing chamber together with the resonator, and inlet and outlet openings for leading a fluid through the sensing chamber. A part of the resonator constitutes one of the walls of the sensing chamber and is arranged such that the first electrode is situated inside the sensing chamber.

This disclosure relates generally to a method and system for determining viscosity information of fluids. The present disclosure utilizes an intensity modulated continuous wave (CW) laser diode-based PA sensing method to obtain a continuous wave photoacoustic (CWPA) spectra. Through this CWPA spectra, a full width half maximum (FWHM) and a spectral area is determined to obtain the information about the viscosity of fluids. Although, the CWPA based sensing technique is used for distinguishing different types of abnormalities in tissues, so far it is not used for measuring viscosity which is an important thermo-physical property. The viscosity information of the fluids from the normalized Gaussian fitted CWPA spectra is based on a viscosity feature computed from a FWHM, and a spectral area. The viscosity feature improves the good of fit parameter (R.sup.2) significantly to 0.98 as compared to the traditional only FWHM based viscosity determination for which R.sup.2 is 0.91.

The invention discloses methods for simultaneously measuring various properties of a fluid using a waveguide. The method includes transmitting a plurality of wave modes into the fluid using an ultrasonic shear wave transducer from one end of a waveguide. Further, the wave modes are reflected from the other end of the waveguide. The reflected wave modes are processed simultaneously. The time of flight and the amplitude of the received wave modes are determined. Further, one or more properties of the fluid are measured using determined time of flight and amplitude of the received wave modes. The disclosed method is used to accurately measure the properties of fluid such as level, density, viscosity or flow rate in a short period of time.