Condensed water collector

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10156397-B2
Application number	US-201615261166-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 9, 2016
Priority date	Sep 24, 2015
Publication date	Dec 18, 2018
Grant date	Dec 18, 2018

Abstract

A compartment comprising at least one target area susceptible to condensed water formation includes at least one condensed water collector is presented. The condensed water collector comprises at least a first portion arranged to collect condensed water from the at least one target area and at least a second portion outside of the at least one target area. A porous material is arranged between the first portion and the second portion. The condensed water collector is configured to transport the collected condensed water. The compartment further including a condensed water remover configured to remove condensed water from the second portion thereby facilitating transportation of condensed water from the first portion to the second portion via the porous material.

First claim

We claim:

1. A compartment, wherein the compartment is one or more of a sample storage compartment, a reagent storage compartment, a reagent manipulator compartment, a sample manipulator compartment and/or a quality control compartment, the compartment comprising:
at least one opening configured to insert a tool into the compartment, wherein the at least one opening is a target area susceptible to condensed water formation;
at least one condensed water collector having a shape of a plug with a through-going hole, wherein the condensed water collector comprises at least a first portion arranged on the at least one opening to collect condensed water from the at least one target area and at least a second portion outside of the at least one target area and wherein the condensed water collector comprises a porous material being arranged between the first portion and the second portion and being configured to collect condensed water in the first portion and being configured to transport the collected condensed water from the first portion to the second portion and to set free condensed water from the second portion;
a condensed water remover configured to remove condensed water from the second portion thereby facilitating transportation of condensed water from the first portion to the second portion via the porous material, wherein the condensed water remover comprises a fan configured to generate a stream of gas over the second portion for facilitating evaporation of condensed water collected by the porous material from the at least one condensed water collector and a condenser arranged inside the compartment configured to remove vaporized condensed water from the stream of gas circulating in the compartment; and wherein the condensed water remover comprises a warm surface of a Peltier element configured to heat the second portion for facilitating evaporation of condensed water collected by the porous material from the condensed water collector.

2. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein the condensed water collector extends through a wall of the compartment to place the second portion of the porous material outside of the compartment.

3. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein the porous material is adapted to transport the collected condensed water at least partially by capillary forces.

4. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein the compartment includes a plurality of openings as target areas and wherein the condensed water collector comprises a plurality of first portions arranged in the plurality of openings to collect condensed water at each of the plurality of openings.

5. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein the condensed water collector is an integral part of the walls of the compartment.

6. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein the condensed water collector includes an element extending in an upward direction and configured to guide condensed water in the upward direction by capillary forces.

7. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein the target area includes one or more openings in the compartment and wherein the compartment is configured to be pressurized to generate a stream of gas from the interior of the compartment through the one or more openings.

8. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein the second portion extends towards and/or through a drainage hole of the compartment inside the compartment or outside the compartment.

9. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein the porous material has an average pore diameter between 10 μm and 100 μm.

10. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein the porous material is hydrophilic.

11. The compartment according to claim 10 , wherein the porous material includes a hydrophilic coating.

12. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein surfaces of the condensed water collector where condensed water is to be collected are open-pored.

13. The compartment according to claim 1 , further comprises,
at least one condensing zone to condense water removed from the condensed water collector.

14. The compartment according to claim 13 , further comprises,
a drainage to drain the water condensed in the at least one condensing zone out of the compartment.

15. The compartment according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one condensed water collector and the condense water remover are configured to prevent dropping of condensed water inside the compartment.

Assignees

• Roche Diagnostics Operations Inc

Inventors

• Marty Christian
• Widmer Beat Rene
• Jeziorski Markus

Classifications

• B01L2300/1894

  Cooling means; Cryo cooling · CPC title

• B01D1/14 Primary

  with heated gases or vapours {or liquids} in contact with the liquid · CPC title

• B01L2300/1822

  using Peltier elements · CPC title

• B01L2400/0457

  passive flow or gravitation · CPC title

• B01D5/0042

  Thermo-electric condensing; using Peltier-effect · CPC title