Universal non-contact dispense peripheral apparatus and method for a primary liquid handling device

1. A universal liquid handling system to dispense fluids into the test sites of one or more sample carriers comprising:

an automated primary liquid handling system including:

a work area having a plurality of discrete work stations for performing lab work;

a carrier alignment structure at one or more work stations configured to removably receive and secure one sample carrier therein;

a frame assembly positioned about the work area; and

a movable support system movably cooperating with the frame assembly to operationally access each discrete work station within the work area, said movable support system further including

a sample carrier positioning mechanism containing a positioning head to grip, move, and position the one or more sample carriers to and from the respective work station, and into and out of engagement with the respective carrier alignment structure thereof, and

a primary liquid dispensing device to selectively dispense discrete quantities of fluid, in the range of microliter to milliliter volumes, into the test sites of the one or more sample carriers secured in the respective alignment structure at the respective work station; and

a removable, self-contained secondary liquid handling peripheral system adapted for retrofittedly placed and used within the work area of the primary liquid handling system at a selected one or more discrete work stations said liquid handling peripheral system containing a base formed and dimensioned to be placed within a footprint of the selected one or more discrete work stations, and including a support platform having respective carrier alignment structure to removably receive and secure a sample carrier therein provided by the sample carrier positioning mechanism said secondary liquid handling peripheral system being operationally independent of the primary liquid handling system and including a secondary liquid dispensing device having one or more non-contact dispense nozzles to selectively non-contact dispense discrete quantities of fluid, in the range nanoliter to microliter volumes, into the test sites of the sample carrier positioned therein,

wherein a sample carrier is positioned on the support platform and is operationally accessible by both the primary liquid dispensing device and the secondary liquid dispensing device.

2. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 1 , wherein

said secondary liquid dispensing device is adapted to dispense fluids in the range of about one (1) nanoliter to about ten (10) microliters.

3. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 2 , wherein

said primary liquid dispensing device is adapted to dispense fluids in the range of about one (1) microliter to about ten (10) milliliters.

4. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 1 , wherein

said carrier alignment structure of said secondary liquid handling peripheral system is adapted to receive and secure standardized sample carrier microtiter-plates.

5. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 2 , wherein

at least one work station conforms to a Society of Bimolecular Screening (SBS) lab ware site.

6. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 3 , wherein

said carrier alignment structure is adapted to conform with an SBS standard microtiter-plate lab ware site.

7. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 6 , further including:

mounting hardware enabling removable mounting of said peripheral system to an SBS standard lab ware site.

8. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 1 , wherein

said primary liquid dispensing device is a contact-type liquid dispenser.

9. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 1 , wherein

said secondary liquid dispensing device includes a fluid control component to aspirate fluids therein, and dispense fluids from the one or more non-contact dispense nozzles, and a motion control component for positioning of the one or more non-contact dispense nozzles to selectively dispense the aspirated fluids into a targeted test site of a mounted sample carrier.

10. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 9 , wherein

said secondary liquid dispensing device further includes an operation interface component coupled between the fluid control component and the motion control component for stand-alone or remote control operation of the fluid control component and the motion control component.

11. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 9 , wherein

said fluid control component includes a hybrid valve apparatus that enables fluid aspiration, fluid dispensing and fluid switching to transfer fluid from a fluid reservoir and through the one or more non-contact dispense nozzles to the targeted test sites.

12. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 11 , wherein

said fluid control component includes an aspiration source in fluid communication with a first aspiration port of the hybrid valve apparatus, and a dispensing source in fluid communication with a first dispensing port of the hybrid valve apparatus, and

said hybrid valve apparatus including

a valve assembly movable between an aspiration condition and a dispensing condition, and

a manifold device providing a fluid aspiration conduit in fluid communication with the aspiration source through said first aspiration port thereof, and a second aspiration port in selective fluid communication with the valve assembly to selectively aspirate a liquid slug from the fluid reservoir into a discrete sample path of the valve apparatus when the valve assembly is in the aspiration condition, said manifold device further providing a fluid dispensing conduit in fluid communication with the dispensing source through said first dispensing port thereof, and a second dispensing port in selective fluid communication with the valve assembly to selectively dispense at least one droplet of the liquid slug from the sample path when the valve assembly is in the dispensing condition,

wherein, in the aspiration condition, said sample path is out of fluid communication with the dispensing source and, in the dispensing condition, said sample path is out of fluid communication with the aspiration source.

13. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 12 , wherein

said manifold device includes a stator face containing the second aspiration port and the second dispensing port, and said valve assembly includes a valve body having a contact face slideably contacting the stator face at a stator-contact interface for sliding sealed contact between

the aspiration condition, fluidly coupling the second aspiration port to the sample path, and

the dispensing condition, fluidly coupling the second dispensing port to the sample path.

14. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 13 , wherein

said contact face of the valve body includes

an aspiration channel, fluidly coupling the second aspiration port to the sample path through the aspiration channel, in the aspiration condition, and

a dispensing channel, fluidly coupling the second dispensing port to the sample path through the dispensing channel, in the dispensing condition.

15. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 14 , wherein

at least one of said valve body and said manifold device is rotatable about a rotation axis extending substantially perpendicular to the stator-contact interface to rotate said contact face, said aspiration channel and said dispensing channel relative to the stator face between the aspiration condition and the dispensing condition.

16. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 15 , wherein

said dispensing channel and said aspiration channel extend in a direction substantially radially about said rotational axis.

17. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 16 , wherein

said manifold device includes

a primary passage having an upper communication port terminating at the stator face, and an opposite end in fluid communication with a respective nozzle having a dispensing orifice configured to dispense said droplet, and

a source conduit having an upper communication opening terminating at the stator face, and an opposite end in fluid communication with the reservoir.

18. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 17 , wherein

said contact face of the valve body includes a sample channel forming at least a portion of the sample path, said sample channel fluidly coupling the second aspiration port of the aspiration conduit to the upper communication opening of the source conduit, in the aspiration condition, and fluidly coupling the second dispensing port of the dispensing conduit to the upper communication port of the primary passage, in the dispensing condition.

19. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 18 , wherein

said manifold device includes a flush passage having an upper flush port terminating at the stator face, and an opposite end in fluid communication with a flush source, and

said contact face of the valve body includes a flush channel fluidly coupling the flush port of the flush passage to the upper communication port of the primary passage, in the aspiration condition, to flush said respective nozzle, and fluidly coupling the flush port to the upper communication opening of the source conduit, in the dispensing condition.

20. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 9 , wherein

said motion control component includes a base member supporting said support platform thereon such that when said base member is strategically positioned at a respective discrete work station, said respective carrier alignment structure removably receives and secures the sample carrier therein.

21. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 20 , wherein

said motion control component further includes a motion controller device, supporting the one or more liquid dispense nozzles, and positioning the same for said selective dispense of the discrete quantities of fluid into the targeted test site.

22. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 21 , wherein

said motion controller device includes a control post configured for movement along a three-axis X-Y-Z Cartesian coordinate system.

23. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 22 , wherein

said motion controller device includes a rail system and stepper motor device which cooperate with the control post to move the one or more nozzles independently along the X, Y and X axis.

24. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 23 , wherein

the carrier alignment structure of said secondary liquid handling peripheral system and the support platform of the secondary liquid handling peripheral system cooperate to provide a Society of Bimolecular Screening (SBS) standard microtiter-plate lab ware site.

25. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 24 , wherein

each of the work stations conform to a Society of Bimolecular Screening (SBS) lab ware site,

the secondary liquid handling peripheral system includes mounting hardware enabling removable mounting of said peripheral system to an SBS standard lab ware site.

26. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 22 , wherein

said motion controller device is one of linear motion control based, servo control based and pneumatic control based.

27. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 22 , wherein

said one or more nozzles are provided by a plurality of non-contact dispense nozzles each having one end fluidly coupled to the fluid control component and an opposite end terminating at a dispensing orifice configured to dispense said droplet.

28. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 27 , wherein

said fluid control component includes a hybrid valve apparatus fluidly coupled between one or more fluid reservoirs and the one ends of the plurality of the non-contact dispense nozzles to enable fluid aspiration, fluid dispensing and fluid switching to transfer fluid from selected fluid reservoir and through selected dispense nozzles to the targeted test sites.

29. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 12 , wherein

said dispensing source includes drop-on demand valving.

30. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 29 , further including

said drop-on demand valving is one of a thermal ink-jet valve, a solenoid ink-jet valve, a piezoelectric ink-jet valve, and a pneumatic pilot valve.

31. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 12 , wherein

said dispensing source includes one of a syringe-type metering device, a piezoelectric-type metering device, a thermoelectric-type metering device and a positive displacement-type metering device.

32. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 31 , wherein

said syringe-type metering device includes a multiple selector valve connecting a single syringe-type metering device to multiple fluid paths.

33. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 32 , wherein

said aspiration source includes one of a diaphragm pump-type metering device, an electromechanical piston-type metering device actuated by a motor with sub microliter resolution, a vacuum source-type metering device and a peristaltic pump-type metering device.

34. The universal liquid handling system according to claim 12 , wherein

said aspiration source includes a plurality of aspiration actuators, and

said dispensing source includes a plurality of dispensing actuators to transfer aspirated fluid from one or more fluid reservoirs to test sites of said sample carrier positioned on the secondary liquid handling peripheral system, and

said manifold device including a plurality of fluid aspiration conduits each having a first aspiration port in fluid communication with a corresponding aspiration actuator, and a second aspiration port terminating at the stator face for selective fluid communication with the valve assembly to selectively aspirate a respective liquid slug from a corresponding fluid reservoir into discrete sample paths when the valve assembly is in the aspiration condition, said manifold body further defining a plurality of fluid dispensing conduits each having a respective first dispensing port in fluid communication with a corresponding dispensing actuator, and a second dispensing port terminating at the stator face for selective fluid communication with the valve assembly to selectively dispense at least one droplet of the corresponding liquid slug from the corresponding sample path when the valve assembly is in the dispensing condition wherein, in the aspiration condition, each respective sample path is out of fluid communication with the respective dispensing actuator and, in the dispensing condition, each respective sample path is out of fluid communication with the respective aspiration actuator.