MANUALLY-OPERATED MONO-CHANNEL OR MULTI-CHANNEL PIPETTES AND CONTROL BUTTON INTENDED FOR SUCH PIPETTES

Abstract

A manually-operated mono-channel or multi-channel pipette for the sampling and dispensing of a liquid sample in accordance with a given protocol, comprising a control button equipped with an autonomous control device which can supply a user with information relating to a pipetting operation in real time during the pipetting operation.

Claims

1. An actuating knob for equipping a manually-operated pipette for sampling and dispensing a sample of a liquid according to a user-selected predefined protocol, wherein the actuating knob includes an autonomous control device comprising a microcontroller, a wireless communication module enabling said actuating knob to communicate, on the one hand, with a first set of sensors for measuring physical quantities peculiar to the pipette and a second set of sensors for providing to the autonomous control device data relating to the environment of the pipetting operation, and on the other hand, with an information processing apparatus adapted to compare the measured physical quantities peculiar to the pipette and the data relating to the environment of the pipetting operation with expected data of the protocol and, in case a fault is detected, to send back to the autonomous control device an error signal, wherein the autonomous control device further includes an alarm module adapted to generate upon reception of the error signal an alert signal to be transmitted in real time to a user.

2. The actuating knob of claim 1, wherein the first set of sensors includes a pressure sensor adapted to measure in real time the pressure corresponding to compression and decompression motions of a gas volume included between a piston of the pipette and the liquid to be sampled, wherein the information processing apparatus is adapted to detect a fault by analysing variations of the pressure measured by the pressure sensor as a function of time.

3. The actuating knob of claim 1, wherein the first set of sensors includes means for measuring the movements of the actuating knob cooperating with means for measuring the amount of sampled and/or dispensed liquid.

4. The actuating knob of claim 3, wherein the means for measuring the movements of the actuating knob include at least one force sensor and/or one speed sensor and/or one acceleration sensor.

5. The actuating knob of claim 3, wherein the means for measuring the movements of the actuating knob include a force sensor adapted to detect a passage of the piston through a determined position.

6. The actuating knob of claim 1, wherein the second set of sensors includes at least one clock, at least one motion and spatial position sensor, and at least one thermometer.

7. The actuating knob of claim 1, wherein the alert signal transmitted to the user is haptic.

8. The actuating knob of claim 1, wherein the alert signal transmitted to the user is optical.

9. The actuating knob of claim 1, wherein the alert signal transmitted to the user is acoustic.

10. The actuating knob of claim 1, wherein the actuating knob is configured to communicate with other connected pipettes and/or with automated pipetting systems, and/or with connected instruments relating to the predefined pipetting protocol.

11. A manually-operated pipette for sampling and dispensing a sample of a liquid according to a user-selected predefined protocol, the pipette comprising: a suction chamber provided with a piston and a pressure sensor; and an actuating knob including an autonomous control device comprising a microcontroller and a wireless communication module enabling said actuating knob to communicate, on the one hand, with a first set of sensors for measuring physical quantities peculiar to the pipette and a second set of sensors for providing to the autonomous control device data relating to the environment of the pipetting operation, and on the other hand, with an information processing apparatus adapted to detect a fault in performing the user-selected predefined protocol by analysing variations as a function of a time of the pressure measured by a pressure sensor included in the first set of sensors, and to deliver to a user, in real time, during a pipetting operation, information relating to said pipetting operation, a force sensor included in the first set of sensors and being adapted to detect a passage of the piston through a determined position, and the pressure sensor being adapted to measure in real time the pressure corresponding to compression and decompression motions of a gas volume included between the piston and the liquid to be sampled in order to allow drawing versus time a variation curve as a function of the time of the measured pressure, an analysis of said curve enabling a fault in the pipetting operation to be detected and an alert signal to be transmitted in real time to the user.

12. The manually-operated pipette of claim 11, wherein the first set of sensors includes means for measuring the movements of the actuating knob cooperating with means for measuring the amount of sampled and/or dispensed liquid.

13. The manually-operated pipette of claim 12, wherein the means for measuring the movements of the actuating knob include at least the force sensor and/or at least one speed sensor and/or at least one acceleration sensor.

14. The manually-operated pipette of claim 11, wherein the second set of sensors includes at least one clock, at least one motion and spatial position sensor, and at least one thermometer.

15. The manually-operated pipette of claim 11, wherein the alert signal transmitted to the user is haptic.

16. The manually-operated pipette of claim 11, wherein the alert signal transmitted to the user is optical.

17. The manually-operated pipette of claim 11, wherein the alert signal transmitted to the user is acoustic.

18. The manually-operated pipette of claim 11, wherein the actuating knob is configured to communicate with other connected pipettes and/or with automated pipetting systems, and/or with connected instruments relating to the predefined pipetting protocol.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become clearer from the description that follows, given by way of non-limiting example, in reference to the appended figures in which:

[0017] FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a pipette according to the invention;

[0018] FIG. 2 schematically illustrates a knob according to the invention; and

[0019] FIG. 3 is an exploded view of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DISCLOSURE OF PARTICULAR EMBODIMENTS

[0020] FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a manually-operated single-channel or multi-channel pipette 1 provided with an actuating knob 2, an operating rod 4 the top end 6 of which is integral with the actuating knob 2 and the bottom end 8 of which operates the movement of a piston in a suction chamber 10. A force sensor 12 is arranged in the actuating knob 2 to detect the passage of the piston through a determined position, and a pressure sensor 14 is arranged in the suction chamber 10 to measure in real time the pressure corresponding to the compression and depression motions of the gas volume included between the piston and the liquid to be sampled. The actuating knob 2 further includes an autonomous control device comprising a microcontroller 16 and a wireless communication module 18, being Bluetooth or Wifi for example, enabling said actuating knob to communicate, on the one hand, with the pressure sensor 14, and with several environmental sensors 26 such as for example a clock, a motion and spatial position sensor, a thermometer, and on the other hand, with an information processing apparatus 20 which records any interpreted event from data provided, during the pipetting operation, by the pressure sensor and the force sensor, and by the different environmental sensors. The pressure values measured during the pipetting operation are transmitted to the information processing apparatus 20 which draws in real time a curve representing the measured pressure variations as a function of time. The analysis of the obtained curve enables a fault to be detected in the pipetting operation and an alert to be triggered in real time by means of an alarm unit 22. In case of fault, the alarm unit immediately transmits to the user a haptic signal and/or an optical signal and/or an acoustic signal.

[0021] The information processing apparatus 20 is connected via a WIFI connection for example to a storage memory 24 in which data peculiar to the user's environment and shared by a group of permitted users (physical values, analysis results, documentation, history etc. . . . ) is recorded.

[0022] FIGS. 2 and 3 respectively represent a cross-section view and an exploded view of an actuating knob 2 equipping the pipette 1. This actuating knob consists of a base 30 under a metal ring 32 including a central opening accommodating a magnifier 34 covering an identification tag 36 including the identification of the model of the pipette 1. A strain distributing disk 38 is arranged above an elastomeric disk 40 overhanging the force sensor 42. An electronic board 44 including the microcontroller 16 associated to a memory in which the information specifically relating to the pipette (for example a serial number, a batch number as well as a single identification relating to the component used to ensure wireless communication (for example the address of the component ensuring the Bluetooth communication)) is recorded, the wireless communication module 18, and the electric supply of the actuating knob is under the disk 40.

[0023] The strain distributing disk 38, the elastomeric disk 40 and the force sensor 42 are drilled in the centre thereof to receive a light indicator 46.

[0024] In use, upon performing a given pipetting protocol, the operator selects on the information processing apparatus the pipetting protocol to be performed, conduct the pairing of the information processing apparatus with the pipette and the complementary accessories which will be used to perform the given protocol. If the contemplated pipetting operation requires several pipettes, each of these pipettes will be paired with the information processing apparatus by virtue of its single identification stored in the memory associated with the microcontroller 16. For this, the pipette or the accessory is activated by a pressure on the actuating knob which triggers sending of an electromagnetic signal via a wireless connection (for example a Bluetooth signal). The information contained in the message stored beforehand in the knob of the pipette or the accessory is then transmitted to the information processing apparatus. After pairing, each action on the pipette knob will trigger a reaction of the sensors integrated in the actuating knob 1 and the environmental sensors external to the actuating knob. Thus, the force sensor will react when it detects a pressure, validating thereby the performance of a suction or dispensing, the motion sensor will detect the use of the pipette or the accessory, the geographical positioning sensor will detect the spatial position of the pipette or of the accessory in the user's environment, and the real time clock will provide the accurate date and time of each event identified by each sensor.

[0025] The wireless communication module 18 sends a message containing all the information provided by each sensor to the information processing apparatus 20 which compares the sent information with the result expected in the current step of the pipetting protocol. On the other hand, the information collected by the information processing apparatus is cross-checked.

[0026] Thus, if a pipette and an accessory are used at the same time (deduction based on the information provided by the real time clocks), then the information processing apparatus 20 couples the information received from the pipette with that received from the accessory to generate new information which will be recorded in the report.

[0027] If the information processing apparatus 20 detects a fault in performing the protocol, it sends back to the concerned pipette an error signal by means of the wireless communication module 18. Upon receiving this error signal, the concerned pipette immediately generates an alert signal immediately perceivable by the user, either as a visual form (light indicator integrated to the knobs), or as an acoustic form, or a haptic form. In the latter form, the operator could feel a vibration at his/her thumb which would enable him/her to react immediately to the fault.

[0028] When the motion sensor is activated by moving the pipette, the position sensor enables the spatial position of the pipette to be checked. If this is in a zone in which it should not be, then an alert signal is sent to the operator which can avoid, for example, putting a contaminated pipette into a sterile zone or reversely. An extension of this use is contemplatable in the case of micro-titration plates (96 wells) avoiding or signalling thereby a dispensing error in a row or in a well.

[0029] When the motion sensor is activated, the pipette or accessory automatically checks the current date and the next maintenance or control date. If the current date is after the next maintenance or control date, then an alert is sent to the operator informing him/her that the pipette or accessory cannot be used.

[0030] The alerts thus listed, based on the information read out by the sensors and compared with the information relayed by the information processing apparatus 20, make it possible to have an increased control on performing pipetting protocols without the operator being asked to make these checks by himself/herself.

[0031] It is worth nothing that when the motion sensor is activated by a full manual pipetting operation, the microcontroller 16 triggers the continuous record of the pressure values of the dead space volume of the pipette and gives back a curve corresponding to these pressure values. This curve is compared in real time with a reference curve bounded by validity limits P+ and P−. If the measured curve departs from the validity field, an alarm is transmitted to the user.

[0032] It is to be noted that this control can be extended to any type of sensor which would inform about the pipetting accuracy and precision (detection of physical properties as viscosity, detection of the volume delivered by an ultrasound, optical, electromagnetic type signal . . . ) without departing from the scope of the invention.