Sample preparation system with rotatable gripper
US9670044B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 16, 2014 |
| Grant date | Jun 6, 2017 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 12, 2035 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01N2035/0405
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A rotatable gripper grips and turns a container cap. When locked, a collet clamp engages the cap, and when unlocked, the clamp releases the cap. The collet clamp is elongate with a first and second ends. The first end has a substantially rigid section. The second end has a gripper section with a substantially cylindrical recess that expands in width to hold the cap when the clamp is moved from locked to unlocked. Between the rigid and gripper sections is a clamping section. An outside surface of the clamping section is conical with a width increasing towards the gripper section. Sliding a ring on the conical clamping section deforms it into the locked position, constricting the recess tightly onto a container cap. When unlocked, the recess widens, permitting the cap to be removed from the recess.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.