Sample tube with integrated mixing plunger head

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10537892-B2
Application number	US-201715841113-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 13, 2017
Priority date	Jan 3, 2017
Publication date	Jan 21, 2020
Grant date	Jan 21, 2020

Abstract

Disclosed herein are devices and techniques for providing for enhanced fluid mixing in a sample vial. A plunger head may be removably housed inside of a cap that is attached to a container; the cap may have an opening allowing a shaft, e.g., a probe or sipper shaft, to be inserted into the cap and into the plunger head. The shaft may be used to push the plunger head free of the cap, and then to reciprocate the plunger head within the container to mix the content. Withdrawal of the shaft may then cause the plunger head to disengage from the shaft and remain in the container.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a cap with a capping surface and one or more sidewalls extending away from the capping surface along a direction having a major component that is parallel to a normal of the capping surface;
a plunger head, the plunger head sized to fit within an interior of a container with which the cap is to interface;
a retaining feature; and
an opening in the cap, wherein:
the plunger head includes a shaft-receiving feature to receive a shaft that is insertable through the opening,
the shaft-receiving feature is a hole that extends through the plunger head,
the plunger head is positioned within the cap by the retaining feature such that the opening is aligned with the shaft-receiving feature, and
the retaining feature releases the plunger head when a force higher than a first threshold amount is applied to the plunger head in a direction facing away from, and normal to, the capping surface.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the plunger head is a circular disk.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the plunger head is made of an elastomeric material.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the retaining feature has one or more interior-facing surfaces that compress the plunger head radially when the plunger head is inserted into the retaining feature.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
the retaining feature has one or more interior-facing surfaces and one or more ledge surfaces that extend radially inwards from the one or more interior-facing surfaces, and
the one or more ledge surfaces have one or more innermost edges that are within a prismatic volume bounded by an outermost perimeter of the plunger head and extending along an axis that is parallel to the normal of the capping surface.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the one or more interior-facing surfaces define an inner perimeter that is larger than the plunger head, thereby allowing the plunger head to translate laterally at least some amount when positioned within the retaining feature.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more sidewalls is a single circular sidewall.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein an interior surface of the circular sidewall includes thread features to engage with corresponding thread features on an exterior surface of the container with which the cap is to interface.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a perforable seal that is affixed to the cap and seals the opening in the cap, and that is perforable by the shaft when the shaft is inserted through the opening.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the shaft-receiving feature is sized to be smaller in diameter than a maximum dimension of the shaft in a direction that is perpendicular to the normal to the capping surface when the shaft is aligned with the normal to the capping surface.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising the container, wherein:
the cap is mounted to the container, and
the interior of the container is sized to allow the plunger head to be reciprocated within the interior of the container in a direction parallel to the normal of the capping surface.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the container has a portion with a substantially constant cross section along the direction parallel to the normal of the capping surface.

13. The apparatus of claim 11 , further comprising the shaft, wherein:
the shaft has a center axis that is parallel to the normal of the capping surface when the shaft is inserted through the opening,
the shaft has an insertion portion and a stop portion,
the insertion portion extends from one end of the shaft to the stop portion,
the stop portion is sized larger than the insertion portion in a direction perpendicular to the center axis and is also sized larger than the shaft-receiving feature in the direction perpendicular to the center axis, and
the stop portion engages with the plunger head when the insertion portion is fully inserted into the shaft-receiving feature.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 , further comprising a shaft reciprocation mechanism, wherein the shaft reciprocation mechanism is to:
translate the shaft through the opening along the center axis such that the insertion portion is fully inserted into the shaft-receiving feature,
apply a force of at least the first threshold amount to the shaft, and
reciprocate the shaft one or more times within the interior of the container.

15. The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the shaft is a hollow tube.

16. A method comprising:
inserting an insertion portion of a shaft through an opening in a cap of a container and into a shaft-receiving feature in a plunger head that is positioned within the cap by a retaining feature, wherein the shaft-receiving feature is a hole extending through the plunger head;
applying a force greater than a first threshold amount to the shaft after the insertion portion of the shaft is fully inserted into the shaft-receiving feature of the plunger head, thereby causing the retaining feature to release the plunger head; and
reciprocating the shaft, after the plunger head has been released from the retaining feature, such that the plunger head is reciprocated within an interior volume of the container.

17. The method of claim 16 , further comprising piercing a perforable seal in the cap with the insertion portion prior to inserting the insertion portion into the shaft-receiving feature.

18. The method of claim 16 , further comprising withdrawing the insertion portion from the container, thereby causing the plunger head to engage with the cap and be pushed off the insertion portion by the cap.

19. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the hole that extends through the plunger head extends in a direction parallel to the normal of the capping surface.

20. An apparatus comprising:
a cap with a capping surface and one or more sidewalls extending away from the capping surface along a direction having a major component that is parallel to a normal of the capping surface;
a plunger head, the plunger head having an outer diameter and sized to fit within an interior of a container with which the cap is to interface;
a retaining feature; and
an opening in the cap, wherein:
the plunger head includes a shaft-receiving feature to receive a shaft that is insertable through the opening,
the shaft-receiving feature is a hole that extends through the plunger head,
the plunger head is positioned within the cap by the retaining feature such that the opening is aligned with the shaft-receiving feature,
the retaining feature releases the plunger head when a force higher than a first threshold amount is applied to the plunger head in a direction facing away from, and normal to, the capping surface, and
a largest dimension of the plunger head is larger than a smallest dimension of the opening in the cap.

Assignees

• Illumina Inc

Inventors

• Blake James Christopher
• Ulmanella Umberto
• Drews Bradley Kent
• Wang Michael Dai
• Clark Stephen Wayne
• Niziolek Michael Adalbert

Classifications

• B01L2400/0478

  pistons · CPC title

• B01L2300/045

  whereby the whole cover is slidable · CPC title

• B01L3/00

  Containers or dishes for laboratory use, e.g. laboratory glassware; Droppers · CPC title

• B01L2300/087

  Multiple sequential chambers · CPC title

• B01L2300/0832

  cylindrical, tube shaped · CPC title