LU103260B1

LU103260B1 - System for rinsing of a pipetteing needle

Info

Publication number: LU103260B1
Application number: LU103260A
Authority: LU
Inventors: Martin Trump; Martin Zver
Original assignee: Stratec Se
Priority date: 2024-03-04
Filing date: 2024-03-04
Publication date: 2025-09-04

Abstract

The present invention provides a system for the rinsing of a pipetting needle, comprising a separate inlet for a rinsing solution, wherein the separate inlet is connected to a fluidic system by a connecting point which is located fluidically downstream of a system's dosing pump

Description

LU rcs Fortmann Tegethoff 30001.20434LU Intellectual Property Atforneys LU103260

SYSTEM FOR RINSING OF A PIPETTEING NEEDLE

DESCRIPTION Field of the Disclosure

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a system for rinsing of a pipetting needle.

Brief description of the related art

[0002] Automated analyser systems for use in clinical diagnostics and life sciences are produced by a number of companies. For example, STRATEC® SE, Birkenfeld, Germany, produces a number of devices for specimen handling and detection for use in automated analyser systems and other laboratory instrumentation.

[0003] Fluidic samples which are to be processed in automated analyser systems will be transferred by pipetting needles. A common type of reusable pipetting needles is made of steel.

Such pipetting needles must be cleaned after every transfer of a fluid with a rinsing solution to avoid contaminations by a fluid carryover which may cause falsified results of analytical or diagnostic assays.

[0004] An analyser system liquid is often mixed with buffer for making the rinsing and thus cleaning of the pipetting needle more efficient. The buffer is usually a saline liquid and often has surfactants mixed in. This salty solution is critical for the dosing pumps and leads to problems with crystallization of the buffer in many places.

[0005] The prior art provides solutions for the rinsing of pipetting needles, where a rinsing fluid for the system is prepared in a large storage reservoir or mixed at a centralised location. A rinsing pump is used to pump the fluid to the actual pipetting system with the Integrated 1

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STRATECSE Lorman Tegethoff 30001.20434LU | Intellectual Property Attomeys LU103260 dispensing pump. This rinsing pump is permanently installed somewhere in the analyser system, usually in a rear panel ofthe device, and is connected to the pipetting system via a hose.

[0006] The rinsing pump is switched on for a short time for rinsing of the pipetting needles and the valve on the pipetting system is switched to flow for this purpose.

[0007] Alternatively, the rinsing fluid is aspirated in a rinsing station by the needle which is to be cleaned. Often, more aggressive liquids are also absorbed. In this variant, the dosing pump is protected by the buffer solution, but this variant costs additional time and requires positions in the system for aspirating the buffer solution as well as additional time for moving the pipetting module.

[0008] The rinsing fluid (saline solution) is critical for the dosing pump, which is usually a piston pump, and leads to problems with crystallization of the buffer. The most problematic location is the seal on the moving components of the pump. Crystallization can damage seals and cause the pump to leak or become sluggish. If the buffer is aspirated in the rinsing station, the pipetting system must be moved to the rinsing station after each dispensing operation which is time-consuming.

[0009] The present disclosure aims to provide a system for rinsing pipetting needles which protects the dosing pumps and allows for a rinsing process without a loss of time.

Summary of the Disclosure

[0010] The present invention provides a system for the rinsing of a pipetting needle, comprising a separate Inlet for a rinsing solution, wherein the separate inlet is connected to a fluidic system by a connecting point which is located fluidically downstream of a system’s dosing pump.

[0011] The system according to the present disclosure comprises in another embodiment a rinsing pump for supplying a system liquid.

[0012] It is further envisaged that the system comprises a reservoir which is connected to the ; separate inlet. : 2

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STRATEC SE roman, Te g eth off 30001.20434LU Intellectual Property Atfomeys LU103260

[0013] The system according to the present disclosure comprises in another embodiment a metering pump which is connected to the reservoir for providing the rinsing liquid stored in the reservoir to the system.

[0014] It is also envisaged that the system according to the present disclosure comprises a changeover valve arranged between the pipetting needle and the metering pump.

[0015] It is also intended that the system according to the present disclosure comprises an intermediate storage which is arranged between the system’s dosing pump and the pipetting needle.

[0016] The system according to the present disclosure comprises in another embodiment a hose spiral which is fluidly arranged directly upstream of the pipetting needle.

[0017] It is also envisaged that the system according to the present disclosure comprises a first valve connected to a supply of the system’s liquid and a second valve connected to the separate inlet for supplying the rinsing liquid. Such a system comprises in an embodiment a hose spiral which is fluidly arranged directly upstream of the pipetting needle, wherein the coupling point is located between the hose spiral and the pipetting needle. : [0018]

[0019] The foregoing summary is not intended to summarize each potential embodiment or every aspect of the present disclosure.

Summary of the Figures

[0020] The invention will be described based on figures. It will be understood that the ‘ embodiments and aspects of the invention described in the figures are only examples and do not limit the protective scope of the claims in any way. The invention is defined by the claims and their equivalents. It will be understood that features of one aspect or embodiment of the invention can be combined with a feature of a different aspect or aspects of other embodiments of the invention, in which:

[0021] FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment according to the present disclosure. 3

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STRATECSE rortmann Tegethoff 30001.20434LU | intellectual Property Attomeys LU103260

[0022] FIG. 2 shows an embodiment for filling the reservoir with an external pump.

[0023] FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of a system according to the present disclosure with a changeover valve.

[0024] FIG. 4 shows an embodiment, where the pipetting system is operated only by the system’s dosing pump.

[0025] FIG. 5 shows an embodiment, where the coupling point connecting the reservoir to the system is attached to changeover valve which is located between the buffer reservoir and the needle.

[0026] FIG. 6 shows an embodiment using two valves for suppling a rinsing solution or the system liquid.

[0027] FIG. 7 shows the embodiment of FIG. 6, wherein the coupling point for supplying the rinsing solution is located between needle and a tube spiral.

Detailed Description of the Disclosure and the Figures

[0028] The technical problem is solved by the independent claims. The dependent claims cover further specific embodiments of the invention.

[0029] The system according to the present disclosure is based on adding the buffer/cleaning solution to the system so that it does not get in contact with the system’s dosing pump. Adding the cleaning buffer only behind or downstream of the dosing pump allows to operate the system’s dosing pump only with distilled water.

[0030] FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment according to the present disclosure. A rinsing pump 31 provides the system liquid. The cleaning solution or buffer is stored in a reservoir 5, or the reservoir 5 comprises a buffer concentrate or another cleaning liquid. A metering pump 10 is arranged between the reservoir 5 and the needle 15 which is to be cleaned. During rinsing, the buffer is added at a coupling point 13 between the needle 15 and the system’s dosing pump 20 by the metering pump10, while the rinsing pump 31 provides the system liquid through the system. 4

> 30001.20434LU fimieiaain Property Afomeus LU103260 . | [0031] The reservoir 5 for the buffer can be refilled e.g. at a washing station with an external . pump 30 (comp.

FIG. 2). Rinsing pump 31 provides the system liquid.

2 [0032] FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of a system according to the present disclosure with a , | changeover valve 35 which is arranged between the needle 15 and the system’s dosing pump ) | 20. In this embodiment, reservoir 5 can be refilled at regular intervals at a flushing station by ) | metering pump 10. The changeover valve 35 switches between the metering pump 10 and the , system’s dosing pump 20 and ensures that the metering pump 10 does not draw liquid into the , system so that the systems dosing pump 20 would get in contact with the rinsing or cleaning . solution.

Metering pump 10 aspirates the cleaning solution though tip 16 of needle 15 and ) pumps it into reservoir 5 for refilling it.

Changeover valve 35 is switched cleaning the needle ) 15 after its use, so that cleaning solution from reservoir 5 is used for the cleaning.

During ) ; processing of a sample, the sample liquid is aspirated and released with the needle 15 using the / { dosing pump 20.

. [0033] FIG. 4 shows an embodiment, where the pipetting system is operated only by the ) | system’s dosing pump 20. For this purpose, a changeover valve 35 and an intermediate storage - | reservoir 40 are installed between the system” s dosing pump 20 and the needle 15. For cleaning, [ : the buffer is aspirated by the system’s dosing pump 20 into the intermediate storage reservoir : | 40 but not into the system's dosing pump 20.

- | [0034] Changeover valve 35 can be switched so that the system’s dosing pump 20 pumps the buffer into the needle 15. To fill reservoir 5, the needle 15 aspirates the buffer into the buffer reservoir 5 and then the changeover valve 35 is switched so that the system’s dosing pump 20 ) | pumps the buffer into the reservoir.

With this variant, it is important that the size of the buffer / | reservoir 5 is larger than the dispensed liquid quantity in order to be able to exclude ) | contamination of the system*s dosing pump 20. Furthermore, a larger pumping volume of the systems dosing pump 20 is required.

Alternatively. a hose spiral 42 directly above needle 15 can be a stretched hose (comp.

FIG. 4).

) | [0035] FIG. 5 shows an embodiment, where the coupling point 13 connecting reservoir 5 to the , | system is attached to changeover valve 35 which is located between the buffer reservoir 5 and . the needle 15. The cleaning liquid is operated through the changeover valve 35 with the

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STRATEC SE = 50001 2043410 LE LU103260 system’s dosing pump, 20 as described for the previous embodiment. The system can fill the reservoir itself and also fetch the cleaning liquid from there.

[0036] Another embodiment in shown in FIG. 6. The buffer is transferred via a second valve 52 and a separate hose line 44. A further flushing pump (not shown) is attached to the second valve 52, which feeds the rinsing solution to the system downstream of the dosing pump 20. A first flushing pump (not shown) which is connected to a first valve 51 is used to operate dosing pump 20 with distilled water. In this embodiment, the further flushing pump is only used to rinse needle 15 and is only operated with the rinsing solution through the second valve 52. The rinsing pump is switched accordingly via the valves.

[0037] Alternatively, a multi-lumen hose can also be used here to transport the buffer to the module.

[0038] FIG. 7 shows an embodiment as described for FIG. 6 with a first valve 51 and a second valve 52, wherein the coupling point 13 is located at a different position between the pipetting needle 15 and the hose spiral 42.

[0039] The advantages of this embodiment are - Liquid savings: with small volumes, only the pipetting needle is contaminated, so that cleaning of the tubing spiral is not necessary. For this reason, only the pipetting needle is cleaned in this variant, which saves cleaning liquid. Furthermore, after cleaning, the pipetting needle is additionally rinsed with system liquid, so that system liquid can also be saved in this case. - Time saving: The fact that only the pipetting needle is contaminated reduces the rinsing process. Only the pipetting needle is cleaned, so that the rinsing process is reduced in time. Alternatively, with small volumes, the cleaning liquid can act longer without the time being lost at another process step -> increase in rinsing efficiency.

[0040] The carried reservoir can also be heated to increase the washing efficiency of the buffer.

[0041] The heated buffer reservoir could also be combined with the concept of the second valve so that the reservoir does not have to be carried directly with the pipetting module. 6

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[0042] Advantages of a system according to the disclosure can be summarised as follows: - lt saves time and allow the fluids to act longer. - Buffer and system liquid can be saved by using the cleaning concepts. - The sensitive system’s dosing pump for the pipetting unit does not come into contact with the cleaning liquid. - The reservoir carried along can be automatically refilled at regular intervals at a rinsing station by means of the metering pump.

[0043] The foregoing description of preferred and other embodiments is not intended to limit or restrict the scope or applicability of the inventive concepts conceived of by the Applicants.

It will be appreciated with the benefit of the present disclosure that features described above in accordance with any embodiment or aspect of the disclosed subject matter can be utilized, either alone or in combination, with any other described feature, in any other embodiment or aspect of the disclosed subject matter. 7 we Cortmann Tegeathoft ; Sp enn TORO mace reservoir

: | 10 metering pump

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/ | 20 system’s dosing pump

. | 30 external pump

, 31 rinsing pump

. 35 changeover valve

, | 40) intermediate storage reservoir

, j 42 hose spiral 44 separate hose line

; 52 second valve

Claims

LU STRATECSE Fortmann Tegethoff 30001.20434LU | Intelecival Property Attomeys LU103260 CLAIMS

1. A system for the rinsing of a pipetting needle, comprising a separate inlet for a rinsing solution, wherein the separate inlet is connected to a fluidic system by a connecting point which is located fluidically downstream of a system’s dosing pump.

2. The system of claim 1, comprising a rinsing pump for supplying a system liquid.

3. The system of claim 1 or 2, comprising a reservoir which is connected to the separate inlet.

4. The system of any one of claims 1 to 3, comprising a metering pump which is connected to the reservoir for providing the rinsing liquid stored in the reservoir to the system. .

5. The system of any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising a changeover valve arranged between the pipetting needle and the metering pump.

6. The system of any one of claims 1 to 5, comprising an intermediate storage arranged between the system’s dosing pump and the pipetting needle.

7. The system of any one of claims 1 to 6, comprising a hose spiral which is fluidly arranged directly upstream of the pipetting needle.

8. The system of claim 1, comprising a first valve connected to a supply of the system’s liquid and a second valve connected to the separate inlet for supplying the rinsing liquid.

9. The system of claim 8, comprising a hose spiral which is fluidly arranged directly upstream of the pipetting needle. ;

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the coupling point is located between the hose spiral and the pipetting needle. 9