Tunable excitation and/or tunable detection microplate reader

Claim 2

A multilabel counting apparatus, comprising: a sample holding stage; a source for illuminating a sample within said sample holding stage with radiation within a first band of wavelengths, wherein said first band of wavelengths is a subset of the emittance of said source, said first band of wavelengths selected by a first wavelength band selection system, wherein said sample comprises a plurality of individual sample wells; at least one projection optic for focussing said radiation from said source onto a selected location of a selected individual sample well wherein said focussed radiation irradiates only a discrete portion of said selected individual sample well; a detector for detecting emissions from said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well, wherein a second wavelength band selection system determines the wavelength band of emissions detected by said detector, and wherein said detector generates a plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said emissions within said selected sample emission wavelength band; and a moving mechanism for moving the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, and said detector, wherein said moving mechanism determines which of said plurality of individual sample wells receives focussed radiation from said source and wherein said moving mechanism determines said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well irradiated by said focussed radiation and from which said emissions are detected.

Claim 3

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said sample is a multiple well microplate.

Claim 4

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the number of said plurality of individual sample wells is selected from the group consisting of 6, 12, 24, 48, 96, and 384 wells.

Claim 5

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said emissions are detected at a plurality of discrete locations within each of a predetermined quantity of said plurality of individual sample wells.

Claim 6

The multilabel counting appartus of claim 4, wherein said predetermined quantity of said plurality of individual sample wells is the total quantity of said plurality of individual sample wells.

Claim 7

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said moving mechanism is operable in a continuous manner whereby the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, and said detector continuously change, and wherein said emissions are continuously detected by said detector.

Claim 8

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 6, wherein said output signals of said detector are used by a microprocessor to form a bit map image of said sample.

Claim 9

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 7, further comprising a display device for displaying said bit map image, wherein said display device is coupled to said microprocessor.

Claim 10

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said focussed source radiation has a variable diameter.

Claim 11

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said focussed source radiation has a variable depth of focus.

Claim 12

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said source is a xenon flash lamp.

Claim 13

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said source is a laser producing at least one wavelength.

Claim 14

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said detector is selected from the group consisting of a photomultiplier tube, a CCD array, a cooled CCD array, and a silicon photodiode.

Claim 15

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said first and second wavelength band selection systems are selected from the group consisting of prisms, diffraction gratings, short pass and long pass filters, variable filters, acousto-optic filters, polarization dependent filters, interference filters based on continuously varying film thickness, Fabrey-Perot etalon tunable filters, tunable liquid crystal filters, common path interferometers, and SAGNAC interferometers.

Claim 16

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a filtering element interposed between said sample and said detector, said filtering element selected from the group consisting of bandpass filters, notch filters, and polarization dependent filters.

Claim 17

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a neutral density filter interposed between said sample and said detector.

Claim 18

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the emittance of said source is between 250 and 750 nanometers.

Claim 19

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said source is comprised of a plurality of individual sources.

Claim 20

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a look-up table of operating parameters based on a set of user defined testing parameters, wherein said operating parameters include said first band of wavelengths for said illumination radiation and said emission detection wavelength band.

Claim 21

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a reagent dispensing mechanism for dispensing at least one reagent of a predetermined type and quantity into predetermined sample wells of said plurality of individual sample wells, wherein said source is disabled prior to dispensing said reagent, and wherein said detector is programmable to allow emission detection at a predetermined time interval after activation of said reagent dispensing mechanism.

Claim 22

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said first band of wavelengths has an adjustable bandwidth and said wavelength band of emissions detected by said detector has an adjustable bandwidth.

Claim 23

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well is a substantial portion of said selected individual sample well, and wherein said detector has a plurality of pixels for detecting emissions from said discrete portion.

Claim 24

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 22, wherein each of said plurality of pixels outputs an individual output signal dependent upon the intensity of said emissions of a corresponding fragment of said discrete portion.

Claim 25

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, wherein said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well is a substantial portion of said selected individual sample well, and wherein said detector output signal is an average of said irradiated discrete portion.

Claim 26

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an incubator for maintaining said sample at a predetermined temperature.

Claim 27

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a data processor for monitoring said detector output signals, wherein said data processor optimizes said detector output signals by varying said first band of wavelengths and varying said wavelength band of emissions detected by said detector.

Claim 28

An absorption monitoring apparatus, comprising: a sample holding stage; a source for illuminating a sample within said sample holding stage with radiation within a first band of wavelengths, wherein said first band of wavelengths is a subset of the emittance of said source, said first band of wavelengths selected by a first wavelength band selection system wherein said sample comprises a plurality of individual sample wells; at least one projection optic for focussing said radiation from said source onto a selected location of a selected individual sample well wherein said focussed radiation illuminates only a discrete portion of said selected individual sample well; a detector for detecting said illumination radiation passing through said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well, and wherein said detector generates a plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said passed illumination radiation; and a moving mechanism for moving the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, and said detector, wherein said moving mechanism determines which of said plurality of individual sample wells receives focussed radiation from said source and wherein said moving mechanism determines said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well illuminated by said focussed radiation and from which said passed illumination radiation is detected.

Claim 29

An absorption monitoring apparatus, comprising: a sample holding stage; a source for illuminating a sample within said sample holding stage with radiation within a first band of wavelengths, wherein said first band of wavelengths is a subset of the emittance of said source, said first band of wavelengths selected by a first wavelength band selection system wherein said sample comprises a plurality of individual sample wells; at least one projection optic for focussing said radiation from said source onto a selected location of a selected individual sample well wherein said focussed radiation illuminates only a discrete portion of said selected individual sample well; a detector for detecting said illumination radiation passing through said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well, and wherein said detector generates a plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said passed illumination radiation; and a moving mechanism for moving the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, and said detector, wherein said moving mechanism determines which of said plurality of individual sample wells receives focussed radiation from said source and wherein said moving mechanism determines said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well illuminated by said focussed radiation and from which said passed illumination radiation is detected.

Claim 30

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, wherein said sample is comprised of a microplate.

Claim 31

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claims 27, wherein said passed illumination radiation is detected at a plurality of discrete locations within each of a predetermined quantity of said plurality of individual sample wells.

Claim 32

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, wherein said moving mechanism is operable in a continuous manner whereby the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, and said detector continuously change, and wherein said passed illumination radiation is continuously detected by said detector.

Claim 33

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 30, wherein said output signals of said detector are used by a microprocessor to form a bit map image of said sample.

Claim 34

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 31, further comprising a display device for displaying said bit map image, wherein said display device is coupled to said microprocessor.

Claim 35

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, wherein said focussed source radiation has a variable diameter.

Claim 36

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, wherein said focussed source radiation has a variable depth of focus.

Claim 37

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, wherein said first wavelength band selection system is selected from the group consisting of prisms, diffraction gratings, short pass and long pass filters, variable filters, acousto-optic filters, polarization dependent filters, interference filters based on continuously varying film thickness, Fabrey-Perot etalon tunable filters, tunable liquid crystal filters, common path interferometers, and SAGNAC interferometers.

Claim 38

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, further comprising a filtering element interposed between said sample and said detector, said filtering element selected from the group consisting of bandpass filters, notch filters, and polarization dependent filters.

Claim 39

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, further comprising a look-up table of operating parameters based on a set of user defined testing parameters, wherein said operating parameters include said first band of wavelengths for said illumination radiation.

Claim 40

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, further comprising a reagent dispensing mechanism for dispensing at least one reagent of a predetermined type and quantity into predetermined sample wells of said plurality of individual sample wells.

Claim 41

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, wherein said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well is a substantial portion of said selected individual sample well, and wherein said detector has a plurality of pixels for detecting passed illumination radiation from said discrete portion.

Claim 42

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 39, wherein each of said plurality of pixels outputs an individual output signal dependent upon the intensity of said passed illumination radiation of said discrete portion.

Claim 43

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, wherein said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well is a substantial portion of said selected individual sample well, and wherein said detector output signal is an average of said illuminated discrete portion.

Claim 44

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, further comprising an incubator for maintaining said sample at a predetermined temperature.

Claim 45

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, further comprising a second wavelength band selection system for determining the wavelength band of passed illumination radiation detected by said detector.

Claim 46

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 27, further comprising a neutral density filter interposed between said sample and said detector.

Claim 47

An absorption monitoring apparatus, comprising: a sample holding stage; a source for illuminating a sample within said sample holding stage with radiation, wherein said sample comprises a plurality of individual sample wells; at least one projection optic for focussing said radiation from said source onto a selected location of a selected individual sample well, wherein said focussed radiation illuminates only a discrete portion; a detector for detecting said illumination radiation passing through said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well, wherein a wavelength band selection system determines the wavelength band of passed illumination radiation detected by said detector, and wherein said detector generates a plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said passed illumination radiation; and a moving mechanism for moving the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, and said detector, wherein said moving mechanism determines which of said plurality of individual sample wells receives focussed radiation from said source, and wherein said moving mechanism determines said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well illuminated by said focussed radiation and from which said passed illumination radiation is detected.

Claim 48

An absorption monitoring apparatus, comprising: a sample holding stage; a source for illuminating a sample within said sample holding stage with radiation, wherein said sample comprises a plurality of individual sample wells; at least one projection optic for focussing said radiation from said source onto a selected location of a selected individual sample well, wherein said focussed radiation illuminates only a discrete portion; a detector for detecting said illumination radiation passing through said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well, wherein a wavelength band selection system determines the wavelength band of passed illumination radiation detected by said detector, and wherein said detector generates a plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said passed illumination radiation; and a moving mechanism for moving the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, and said detector, wherein said moving mechanism determines which of said plurality of individual sample wells receives focussed radiation from said source, and wherein said moving mechanism determines said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well illuminated by said focussed radiation and from which said passed illumination radiation is detected.

Claim 49

The absorption monitoring apparatus of claim 45, further comprising a neutral density filter interposed between said sample and said detector.

Claim 50

A multilabel counting apparatus, comprising: a sample holding stage; a source for illuminating a sample within said sample holding stage with radiation within a first band of wavelengths, wherein said first band of wavelengths is a subset of the emittance of said source, said first band of wavelengths selected by a first wavelength band selection system, wherein said sample comprises a plurality of individual sample wells; at least one projection optic for focussing said radiation from said source onto a selected location of a selected individual sample well, wherein said focussed radiation illuminates only a discrete portion of said selected individual sample well; a first detector for detecting emissions from said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well, wherein a second wavelength band selection system determines the wavelength band of emissions detected by said first detector, and wherein said first detector generates a first plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said emissions; a second detector for detecting said illumination radiation passing through said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well, and wherein said second detector generates a second plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said passed illumination radiation; and a moving mechanism for moving the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, said first detector, and said second detector, wherein said moving mechanism determines which of said plurality of individual sample wells receives focussed radiation from said source, and wherein said moving mechanism determines said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well illuminated by said focussed radiation and from which said passed illumination radiation is detected and from which said emissions are detected.

Claim 51

A multilabel counting apparatus, comprising: a sample holding stage; a source for illuminating a sample within said sample holding stage with radiation within a first band of wavelengths, wherein said first band of wavelengths is a subset of the emittance of said source, said first band of wavelengths selected by a first wavelength band selection system, wherein said sample comprises a plurality of individual sample wells; at least one projection optic for focussing said radiation from said source onto a selected location of a selected individual sample well, wherein said focussed radiation illuminates only a discrete portion of said selected individual sample well; a first detector for detecting emissions from said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well, wherein a second wavelength band selection system determines the wavelength band of emissions detected by said first detector, and wherein said first detector generates a first plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said emissions; a second detector for detecting said illumination radiation passing through said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well, and wherein said second detector generates a second plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said passed illumination radiation; and a moving mechanism for moving the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, said first detector, and said second detector, wherein said moving mechanism determines which of said plurality of individual sample wells receives focussed radiation from said source, and wherein said moving mechanism determines said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well illuminated by said focussed radiation and from which said passed illumination radiation is detected and from which said emissions are detected.

Claim 52

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47 wherein said sample is comprised of a microplate.

Claim 53

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, wherein said emissions and said passed illumination radiation are detected at a plurality of discrete locations within each of a predetermined quantity of said plurality of individual sample wells.

Claim 54

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, wherein said moving mechanism is operable in a continuous manner whereby the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, and said detector continuously change, and wherein said emissions and said passed illumination radiation are continuously detected by said detector.

Claim 55

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, wherein said focussed source radiation has a variable diameter.

Claim 56

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, wherein said focussed source radiation has a variable depth of focus.

Claim 57

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, wherein said first and second wavelength band selection systems are selected from the group consisting of prisms, diffraction gratings, short pass and long pass filters, variable filters, acousto-optic filters, polarization dependent filters, interference filters based on continuously varying film thickness, Fabrey-Perot etalon tunable filters, tunable liquid crystal filters, common path interferometers, and SAGNAC interferometers.

Claim 58

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, further comprising a filtering element interposed between said sample and said first detector, said filtering element selected from the group consisting of bandpass filters, notch filters, and polarization dependent filters.

Claim 59

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, further comprising a filtering element interposed between said sample and said second detector, said filtering element selected from the group consisting of bandpass filters, notch filters, and polarization dependent filters.

Claim 60

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, further comprising a look-up table of operating parameters based on a set of user defined testing parameters, wherein said operating parameters include said first band of wavelengths for said illumination radiation and said emission detection wavelength band.

Claim 61

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, further comprising a reagent dispensing mechanism for dispensing at least one reagent of a predetermined type and quantity into predetermined sample wells of said plurality of individual sample wells.

Claim 62

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, wherein said discrete portion of said selected individual sample well is a substantial portion of said selected individual sample well.

Claim 63

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, further comprising an incubator for maintaining said sample at a predetermined temperature.

Claim 64

The multilabel counting apparatus of claim 47, further comprising a neutral density filter interposed between said sample and said second detector.

Claim 65

A multilabel counting apparatus, comprising: a sample holding stage; a source for illuminating a sample within said sample holding stage with radiation within a first band of wavelengths, wherein said first band of wavelengths is a subset of the emittance of said source, said first band of wavelengths selected by a first wavelength band selection system, wherein said sample is selected from the group consisting of gels and storage phosphor plates; at least one projection optic for focussing said radiation from said source onto a selected location of said sample, wherein said focussed radiation irradiates only a discrete portion of said sample; a detector for detecting emissions from said discrete portion of said sample, wherein a second wavelength band selection system determines the wavelength band of sample emissions detected by said detector, and wherein said detector generates a plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said emissions within said selected sample emission wavelength band; and a moving mechanism for moving the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, and said detector, wherein said moving mechanism determines said selected location of said sample.

Claim 66

A multilabel counting apparatus, comprising: a sample holding stage; a source for illuminating a sample within said sample holding stage with radiation within a first band of wavelengths, wherein said first band of wavelengths is a subset of the emittance of said source, said first band of wavelengths selected by a first wavelength band selection system, wherein said sample is selected from the group consisting of gels and storage phosphor plates; at least one projection optic for focussing said radiation from said source onto a selected location of said sample, wherein said focussed radiation irradiates only a discrete portion of said sample; a detector for detecting emissions from said discrete portion of said sample, wherein a second wavelength band selection system determines the wavelength band of sample emissions detected by said detector, and wherein said detector generates a plurality of output signals dependent upon the intensity of said emissions within said selected sample emission wavelength band; and a moving mechanism for moving the relative positions of said sample holding stage, said source, and said detector, wherein said moving mechanism determines said selected location of said sample.