Multitube peristaltic pump with individual programming control

Claim 1

A peristaltic pump comprising a rotatable head having a plurality of axially offset planar arrays of circumferentially spaced rollers jointly rotatable about a common axis; a respective arcuate pressure-bar segment extending over a portion of each array of supporting a length of tubing thereagainst upon rotation of said head; a common support for all of said pressurebar segments and means for pivotally mounting each of said pressure-bar segments on said support for swinging movement about an axis parallel to that of said head but offset therefrom; means for rotating said head; and respective control means individual to said pressure-bar segments for individually and independently swinging same about its pivotal axis to control the displacement of fluid through the respective tubing, said head comprising respective circular disks disposed between said arrays of rollers, said rollers being angularly equispaced about the respective disks and rotatably journaled thereon about axes parallel to the axis of rotation of said head, said rollers of each disk being located along one side thereof, said head including keying means for positioning said disks selectively with the rollers in contact and in an axially aligned relationship to define relatively wide tube-receiving channels between the disks and with nonroller sides in contact with the roller arrays of adjoining disks defining relatively narrow tubereceiving channels.