Liquid Dispensing

This configuration uses an aerosol type of dispensing nozzle that use pressurized air to atomize the fluid passing through the nozzle. This creates a quantitative spray format where a dot or line can be quantitatively generated on a continuous basis. AirJet technology is non-contact, quantitative aerosol dispensing. BioDot's proprietary technology couples any one of the three AirJets with a high resolution syringe pump to meter exact amounts of reagents. This process produces a precise and easy to use method for dispensing microliter quantities of fluids. Unique design features ensure repeatability and allow for disassembly and cleaning without affecting calibration.

A syringe pump operates by first filling the syringe using a fill line connected to a reagent reservoir and then it can switch the outlet connection on the syringe to a second line and reverse the direction of the syringe plunger and displace the fluid through the second line to dispense the reagent using a programmed displacement. The problem is that once the dispensed fluid equals the original fill volume of the syringe the syringe must be refilled by switching the syringe valve to the fill position. At this point the dispensing operation must cease to allow the syringe to refill and then switching back to the dispensing position. In dispensing operations where continuous dispensing such as dispensing on a continuous moving web a single syringe pump will not work. The solution to this problem is to use two syringe pumps for a single dispense operation where the syringes alternately fill and dispense to provide continuous flow for the dispensing operation. This configuration is denoted as a “Tandem Pump”. This allows the use of small high resolution syringes in the range of 250 μL to be used. With this configuration continuous dispensing can be achieved with no limitations of the web length.

A syringe pump operates by first filling the syringe using a fill line connected to a reagent reservoir and then it can switch the outlet connection on the syringe to a second line and reverse the direction of the syringe plunger and displace the fluid through the second line to dispense the reagent using a programmed displacement. The problem is that once the dispensed fluid equals the original fill volume of the syringe the syringe must be refilled by switching the syringe valve to the fill position. At this point the dispensing operation must cease to allow the syringe to refill and then switching back to the dispensing position. In dispensing operations where continuous dispensing such as dispensing on a continuous moving web a single syringe pump will not work. The solution to this problem is to use two syringe pumps for a single dispense operation where the syringes alternately fill and dispense to provide continuous flow for the dispensing operation. This configuration is denoted as a “Tandem Pump”. This allows the use of small high resolution syringes in the range of 250 μL to be used. With this configuration continuous dispensing can be achieved with no limitations of the web length.

This configuration has a flexible dispense tip that rides on the substrate surface with the dispensed fluid emerging from dragging tip. The fluid flow rate can be synchronized with motion to create a quantitative rate of flow per unit length of reagent on the substrate surface.FrontLine dispensing is ideal for printing lines on membranes and other substrates for BioChips. The technology couples a high resolution syringe pump with a microtube. During dispensing the micro-tube glides across the surface of the membrane or substrate to create a quantitative line. The width of the line can be adjusted by increasing or decreasing the programmed volume of the line.

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