According to one embodiment, a plating apparatus for electroplating a substrate including a non-pattern area is provided. The plating apparatus includes a plating tank for holding the plating solution, an anode configured to be connected to a positive electrode of a power supply, and a paddle configured to move in the plating tank to stir the plating solution held in the plating tank. The paddle is configured such that at least a part of the non-pattern area of the substrate is constantly blocked when the paddle is viewed from the anode while the paddle is stirring the plating solution.

A reciprocating stirrer device with which favorable gas absorption into the stirred substance can be obtained. The reciprocating stirrer device is obtained from: a stirring vessel in which the substance to be stirred is placed; a reciprocating drive shaft provided inside the stirring vessel; a stirring blade connected and affixed so as to intersect the drive shaft; and a microbubble-generating unit. The microbubble-generating unit is obtained from a sparger that is made of a porous body and a gas supply means for supplying a gas to the sparger. Bubbles are generated in the substance being stirred by passing gas supplied to the sparger by the gas supply means through pores of the porous body.

A continuous mixing apparatus for a powder/granular material and a viscous liquid, with a mixing cylinder, a shaft member which is on a central axis of the mixing cylinder and rotates inside the mixing cylinder, and a plurality of mixing paddles disposed on a surface of the shaft member, wherein the mixing cylinder is with a powder/granular material feed port on one end portion, a mixed material discharge port on the other end portion, and a viscous liquid injection unit between the powder/granular material feed port and the mixed material discharge port, and the plurality of mixing paddles are disposed on the shaft member so as to form a spiral around the central axis, the plurality of mixing paddles being, in at least a portion between the viscous liquid injection unit and the mixed material discharge port, attached to provide first rows having an attachment angle of 5 to 60.

A liquid handling system for use with a liquid sample in a container includes a probe and an actuator. The probe is configured to be inserted into the container to contact the liquid sample in the container. The probe has a probe axis. The probe includes an elongate probe body having a distal end, and an integral mixing device on the probe body proximate the distal end. The actuator is operable to reciprocate the probe in the container along the probe axis such that the mixing device generates mixing currents in the liquid sample.

Methods and apparatuses for mixing a fluid/media for an assay are disclosed herein. In an embodiment, a mixing device for an immunochemistry system includes a pipette configured to aspirate fluid and/or paramagnetic particles from or dispense fluid and/or paramagnetic particles into a cuvette, at least one nonconcentric mass configured cause the pipette to move in a mixing motion, and a control unit configured to activate the at least one nonconcentric mass while the pipette is located within the cuvette so as to mix the fluid and/or paramagnetic particles within the cuvette.

The present invention involves the use of a small profile device for preparation and/or delivery of cold slurry into the human body. The cold slurry can be generated within the device itself or within a separate small chamber, both of which produce a cold slurry using a cooling source and an injectable fluid. The delivery device provides continued agitation to the fluid/slurry through rotation and/or vibration of blades within the device. The fluid/cold slurry is cooled/kept cool through the use of an external cooling device, such as a cooling sleeve, that at least partially surrounds the delivery device. The cooling sleeve can cool or maintain the temperature of the cold slurry through a number of mechanisms. The cold slurry can be delivered using a device in accordance with the present invention to any tissue inside the body, including subcutaneous fat, visceral fat, and brown fat.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a surface treatment device and a paddle with improved strength and uniform plating thickness by uniformly stirring surface treatment solution near an object to be plated. Also, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a surface treatment method capable of stirring for a long period of time, by uniformizing plating thickness, and by improving a strength of a paddle. A surface treatment device comprising at least one plateshaped paddle, in a surface treatment tank, for stirring surface treatment solution near an object to be plated by reciprocally moving the paddle with respect to the object to be plated, wherein the paddle is configured by integrally forming a plurality of square bars provided in depth direction of the surface treatment solution along the object to be plated at regular intervals, and a square bar of the plurality of square bars is provided with a curved surface with respect to the object to be plated in a cross section in thickness direction of the square bar.

According to one embodiment, a plating apparatus for electroplating a substrate including a non-pattern area is provided. The plating apparatus includes a plating tank for holding the plating solution, an anode configured to be connected to a positive electrode of a power supply, and a paddle configured to move in the plating tank to stir the plating solution held in the plating tank. The paddle is configured such that at least a part of the non-pattern area of the substrate is constantly blocked when the paddle is viewed from the anode while the paddle is stirring the plating solution.

To prevent turbulence on a surface of a plating solution as much as possible and suppress spattering and splashing of the plating solution even when the plating solution is stirred. Provided is a wave absorbing member that is attachable to a paddle moveable in a horizontal direction to stir liquid. The wave absorbing member includes a thin plate shaped body portion configured to move on a liquid surface when moving in the horizontal direction and a front end portion designed to be tapered toward an end from the body portion.

Device and method for intermixing a mass. The device includes a container and a mixing unit arranged on the container. The mixing unit includes at least one piston that is positioned in the container, and is movable in a linear direction and has at least one mixing element. The mixing element extends around the piston and includes an upper planar surface and an opposed lower planar surface. The mixing element further includes cone-shaped extensions extending from the lower planar surface and conically tapering in the linear direction away from the lower planar surface to an opening at an end of the cone-shaped extensions facing a bottom of the container to facilitate movement of the piston in the linear direction for intermixing the mass.