Patent application number | Description | Published |
20140216932 | Droplet Actuator with Improved Top Substrate - The invention provides a droplet actuator. The droplet actuator may include a base substrate and a top substrate separated to form a gap. The base substrate may include electrodes configured for conducting droplet operations in the gap; and the top substrate may include a glass substrate portion coupled to a non-glass portion, where the non-glass portion may include one or more openings establishing a fluid path extending from an exterior of the droplet actuator and into the gap. The invention also provides related methods of manufacturing the droplet actuator, methods of using the droplet actuator, and methods of loading the droplet actuator. | 08-07-2014 |
20140231259 | Filler Fluids for Droplet Operations - The present invention relates to filler fluids for droplet operations. According to one embodiment of this aspect, a droplet microactuator including an opaque filler fluid and a transparent droplet thereon is provided. The droplet microactuator may further include a first substrate comprising electrodes configured to effect electrowetting mediated droplet operations on a surface of the first substrate; a second substrate spaced apart from the surface of the first substrate by a distance sufficient to define an interior volume between the first substrate and second substrate; and wherein the droplet and the filler fluid are in the interior volume, and wherein the droplet is surrounded by the filler fluid and arranged with respect to the electrodes in a manner which permits electrowetting mediated droplet operations to be effected on the droplet using the electrodes. | 08-21-2014 |
20140242662 | Manipulation of Cells on a Droplet Actuator - A method of growing cells on a droplet actuator is provided. The method may include providing a droplet actuator including a cell culture droplet including a cell culture medium and one or more cells; and maintaining the droplet at a temperature suitable for causing the cells to grow in the cell culture medium on the droplet actuator. Related methods, droplet actuators, and systems are also provided. | 08-28-2014 |
20140302580 | Manipulation of Beads in Droplets and Methods for Manipulating Droplets - The invention provides a method of dispersing or circulating magnetically responsive beads within a droplet in a droplet actuator. The invention, in one embodiment, makes use of a droplet actuator with a plurality of droplet operations electrodes configured to transport the droplet, and a magnetic field present at a portion of the plurality of droplet operations electrodes. A bead-containing droplet is provided on the droplet actuator in the presence of the uniform magnetic field. Beads are circulated in the droplet during incubation by conducting droplet operations on the droplet within a uniform region of the magnate field. Other embodiments are also provided. | 10-09-2014 |
20140329307 | Method and Device for Conducting Biochemical or Chemical Reactions at Multiple Temperatures - Methods and devices for conducting chemical or biochemical reactions that require multiple reaction temperatures are described. The methods involve moving one or more reaction droplets or reaction volumes through various reaction zones having different temperatures on a microfluidics apparatus. The devices comprise a microfluidics apparatus comprising appropriate actuators capable of moving reaction droplets or reaction volumes through the various reaction zones. | 11-06-2014 |
20140332380 | Capacitance Detection in a Droplet Actuator - A method, circuit and apparatus for detecting capacitance on a droplet actuator, inter alia, for determining the presence, partial presence or absence of a droplet at an electrode on a droplet actuator by: (a) providing a droplet actuator comprising: (i) a substrate comprising electrodes arranged on the substrate for conducting droplet operations on a surface of the substrate; (ii) a capacitance detection circuit for detecting capacitance at the droplet operations surface at one or more of the electrodes; (b) detecting capacitance at the droplet operations surface at one or more of the electrodes; and (c) determining from the capacitance the presence, partial presence or absence of a droplet at the droplet operations surface at the electrode. | 11-13-2014 |
20140339082 | Droplet Manipulation System and Method - Methods are provided for manipulating droplets. The methods include providing the droplet on a surface comprising an array of electrodes and a substantially co-planer array of reference elements, wherein the droplet is disposed on a first one of the electrodes, and the droplet at least partially overlaps a second one of the electrodes and an intervening one of the reference elements disposed between the first and second electrodes. The methods further include activating the first and second electrodes to spread at least a portion of the droplet across the second electrode and deactivating the first electrode to move the droplet from the first electrode to the second electrode. | 11-20-2014 |
20150021189 | Multiplexed Detection Schemes for a Droplet Actuator - A droplet actuator configured to improve the throughput of droplet operations in a detection spot of the droplet actuator and/or to reduce carryover problems is provided. The droplet actuator may include electrodes configured for effecting droplet operations transporting droplets on a surface; a sensor arranged in proximity to one or more of the electrodes establishing a detection window on the surface for detection of one or more properties of one or more droplets on the surface; wherein the electrodes may establish at least two pathways for transport of droplets into the detection window. | 01-22-2015 |
20150027889 | DROPLET ACTUATOR AND METHOD - The invention provides droplet actuators and droplet actuator cassettes including reagent storage capabilities, as well as methods of making and using the droplet actuators and cassettes. The invention also provides continuous flow channel elements and techniques for using electrodes to manipulate droplets in flowing streams. The invention also discloses methods of separating compounds on a droplet actuator. Various other aspects of the invention are also disclosed. | 01-29-2015 |
20150034485 | BEAD INCUBATION AND WASHING ON A DROPLET ACTUATOR - The present invention relates to bead incubating and washing on a droplet actuator. Methods for incubating magnetically responsive beads that are labeled with primary antibody, a sample (i.e., analyte), and secondary reporter antibodies on a magnet, on and off a magnet, and completely off a magnet are provided. Also provided are methods for washing magnetically responsive beads using shape-assisted merging of droplets. Also provided are methods for shape-mediated splitting, transporting, and dispensing of a sample droplet that contains magnetically responsive beads. The apparatuses and methods of the invention provide for rapid time to result and optimum detection of an analyte in an immunoassay. | 02-05-2015 |
20150038344 | Method of Preparing a Nucleic Acid Library - A method of preparing a nucleic acid library in droplets in contact with oil, including: (a) blunt-ending nucleic acid fragments in a droplet in the oil to yield blunt-ended nucleic acid fragments; (b) phosphorylating the blunt-ended nucleic acid fragments in a droplet in the oil to yield phosphorylated nucleic acid fragments; coupling A-tails to the phosphorylated nucleic acid fragments in a droplet in the oil to yield A-tailed nucleic acid fragments; and (d) coupling nucleic acid adapters to the A-tailed nucleic acid fragments in a droplet in the oil to yield the nucleic acid library comprising adapter-ligated nucleic acid fragments. | 02-05-2015 |
20150053562 | Droplet-Based Particle Sorting - The present invention relates to droplet-based particle sorting. According to one embodiment, a droplet microactuator is provided and includes: (a) a suspension of particles; and (b) electrodes arranged for conducting droplet operations using droplets comprising particles. A method of transporting a particle is also provided, wherein the method includes providing a droplet comprising the particle and transporting the droplet on a droplet microactuator. | 02-26-2015 |
20150060284 | Apparatuses and Methods for Manipulating Droplets - Apparatuses and methods for manipulating droplets are disclosed. In one embodiment, an apparatus for manipulating droplets is provided, the apparatus including a substrate, multiple arrays of electrodes disposed on the substrate, wherein corresponding electrodes in each array are connected to a common electrical signal, and a dielectric layer disposed on the substrate first side surface and patterned to cover the electrodes. | 03-05-2015 |
20150068903 | DROPLET OPERATIONS DEVICE - The invention provides droplet actuators with droplet operations surfaces for manipulating droplets, e.g., by conducting droplet operations. The droplet operations surfaces are typically exposed to a droplet operations gap. One or more regions of a droplet operation surface may include patterned topographic features. The invention also provides a droplet actuator in which one or both gap-facing droplet operations surfaces is formed using a removable film. The removable film may, in various embodiments, also include other components ordinarily associated with the droplet actuator substrate, such as the dielectric layer and the electrodes. Further, the invention provides droplet actuator devices and methods for coupling and/or sealing substrates of a droplet actuator, such as techniques for self-aligning assembly of droplet actuator substrates. The invention provides droplet actuators and methods of disassembling the droplet actuator in order to provide access for cleaning and/or recycling of droplet actuator surfaces. | 03-12-2015 |
20150072900 | SAMPLE PROCESSING DROPLET ACTUATOR, SYSTEM AND METHOD - Sample processing droplet actuators, systems and methods are provided. According to one embodiment, a stamping device including a droplet microactuator is provided and includes: (a) a first plate including a path or network of control electrodes for transporting droplets on a surface thereof; (b) a second plate mounted in a substantially parallel orientation with respect to the first plate providing an interior volume between the plates, the second plate including one or more stamping ports for transporting some portion or all of a droplet from the interior volume to an exterior location; (c) a port for introducing fluid into the interior volume between the plates; and (d) a path or network of reference electrodes corresponding to the path or network of control electrodes. Associated systems and methods including the stamping device are also provided. | 03-12-2015 |
20150075985 | Droplet Dispensing Device and Methods - The invention provides nonlimiting examples of structures for and methods of dispensing droplets in a droplet actuator. The droplet actuator structures and methods of the invention exhibit numerous advantages over droplet actuators of the prior art. In various embodiments, the structures and methods of the invention provide, among other things, improved efficiency, throughput, scalability, and/or droplet uniformity, as compared with existing droplet actuators. Further, in some embodiments, the droplet actuators provide configurations for improved methods of loading and/or unloading fluid and/or droplets. In yet other embodiments, the droplet actuators provide fluid loading configurations for loading numerous fluid reservoirs in a substantially simultaneous and/or substantially sequential manner. | 03-19-2015 |