CN113578410A

CN113578410A - Filter and filter cartridge

Info

Publication number: CN113578410A
Application number: CN202110949852.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 涂奇奇; 陈勇
Original assignee: Shanghai Sciway Medical Technology Co ltd
Current assignee: Shanghai Sciway Medical Technology Co ltd
Priority date: 2021-08-18
Filing date: 2021-08-18
Publication date: 2021-11-02

Abstract

The invention provides a filter which comprises a main body, wherein an inner cavity is arranged in the main body, an upper opening and a lower opening which are communicated with the inner cavity are respectively arranged at two ends of the main body, the main body further comprises a combining part and a filtering assembly, the combining part is arranged at one end close to the upper opening, and the filtering assembly is arranged in the inner cavity. The filter can directly use the existing mature liquid transfer equipment, realizes two functions of liquid transfer and filtration separation by a single liquid transfer equipment principle, and realizes miniaturization, low cost and convenient operation. The invention also provides a filter box, the filters provided by the invention are stored into a multi-position system, and the filters are independent from each other, so that the flux flexibility problem is solved; the problem of a specific individual treatment in a batch process is solved by a mature technique with each individual control of the pipetting device.

Description

Filter and filter cartridge

Technical Field

The invention belongs to the technical field of analysis and detection, and particularly relates to a filter and a filter box.

Background

The analysis technology is an important ring of scientific and technological progress and social production development, and plays an important role in the fields of drug research and development, food safety, drug production quality control, environmental monitoring and medical auxiliary diagnosis.

In order to make the analysis and detection result more accurate, analysis laboratories generally adopt various pretreatment means to extract and purify the substance to be detected from a complex matrix and remove interfering impurities. The existing mainstream pretreatment methods are generally classified into a filtration method, a liquid-liquid extraction method, a solid-phase extraction method, a protein precipitation method (only facing to biological matrixes) and the like, and various pretreatment methods also correspond to various filter forms.

The main flow filter forms of the filtration method are three, namely a needle filter (the middle is a filter membrane), filter paper + a funnel and a 96-hole plate type (the middle is the filter membrane). In the finished product filter of the lower filtering method, for a needle type filter or a funnel combined filter paper type, the biggest problem is that the micro-quantification cannot be realized, namely the finished product filter is not suitable for a micro-sample; in addition, there is a large shortage in throughput, and it is necessary to perform the operation one by one, so that there is a large limitation in efficiency if the number of samples to be processed is large. For the 96-well plate format, the main problem is the inflexibility in throughput, which means that there are waste cases if the number of samples is less than 96, because the whole plate must be used once to avoid cross-contamination, and it is not recommended to use half the plate and then half the plate; meanwhile, the fact that 96 samples are processed on one plane plate at one time also means that the requirement on used mechanical pressure parts is very strict, and absolute air path balance on a 1-path air-to-96-path air path must be achieved; in addition, due to individual sample differences, there are also some wells that need to be pressurized individually, and this need is not met today due to the high cost of manufacturing.

Disclosure of Invention

In order to overcome the above-described drawbacks of the prior art, the present invention provides a filter which achieves miniaturization, cost reduction, and convenience in operation of equipment used, and solves the problem of flexibility in throughput.

The embodiment of the invention provides a filter, which is used for being combined with a liquid outlet end head of a liquid transfer device to filter liquid to be filtered and comprises a main body, wherein an inner cavity is arranged in the main body, an upper opening and a lower opening which are communicated with the inner cavity are respectively arranged at two ends of the main body, the caliber of the upper opening is not smaller than the outer diameter of the liquid outlet end head of the liquid transfer device, the upper opening is used for allowing the liquid outlet end head of the liquid transfer device to be inserted into or pulled out of the inner cavity, and the lower opening is used for allowing filtrate to flow out of the inner cavity;

the main part still includes the joint portion that is used for with liquid-transfering equipment liquid outlet end cooperation to be connected and is used for crossing the filtering component of liquid, the joint portion sets up near upper shed's one end, filtering component sets up the inside of inner chamber.

In one embodiment, the inner cavity is a tapered inner cavity, a wide opening end of the tapered inner cavity is communicated with the upper opening, and a sharp opening end of the tapered inner cavity is communicated with the lower opening.

In one embodiment, the combination portion is a gasket, the inner cavity is provided with an expanded portion, and the expanded portion is arranged between the upper opening and the filter assembly.

In a specific embodiment, the combining part is a soft rubber ring, and the soft rubber ring is arranged on the inner side wall of the inner cavity; the size and shape of the soft rubber ring are matched with the size and shape of the liquid outlet end of the liquid transfer equipment, and the soft rubber ring is in interference fit with the liquid outlet end of the liquid transfer equipment.

In one embodiment, the combining part is a hook, one end of the hook is rotatably installed on the outer side of the main body, and the other end of the hook is provided with a hook-shaped part fixed with the liquid outlet end of the liquid transferring device.

In a specific embodiment, the filter assembly is clamped in the inner cavity, the cross-sectional shape of the filter assembly is consistent with that of the inner cavity, and the filter assembly is tightly matched and fixed with the inner wall of the inner cavity to form zero clearance fit.

In a specific embodiment, the filter assembly comprises a fixer and a filter membrane, the fixer is of a hollow structure, the outer side of the fixer is tightly attached to the inner wall of the inner cavity, and the filter membrane is fixed on the fixer.

In one embodiment, the filter assembly includes a microporous filter element embedded within the internal cavity.

In one embodiment, the microporous filter element is provided with a filter membrane on the upper surface.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a filter box, which comprises a box body plate, wherein the box body plate is provided with a plurality of accommodating holes, and the accommodating holes are provided with the filters.

Therefore, the invention provides a filter which only needs to be matched with a pipetting device, so that the whole filtering and separating operation only relates to one type of device principle, and the existing mature pipetting device can be completely and directly used. Meanwhile, only one type of equipment principle is involved, so that the used equipment can realize miniaturization, low cost and convenient operation. The liquid transferring and filtering functions are realized through a single liquid transferring device principle, so that the problem of cost control of automatic equipment, miniaturization of the automatic equipment and normalization of mechanical actions are solved.

The invention also provides a filter box, which solves the flexibility problem of flux by storing the filters provided by the invention into a multi-position system and making the filters independent from each other; the problem of specific and independent treatment in batch treatment is solved by the mature technology of independent control of each liquid transfer device; by setting the size of the conical cavity and the size of the filtering module, the universality of the same filter form is realized.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the drawings needed to be used in the description of the embodiments are briefly introduced below, and it is obvious that the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application, and it is obvious for those skilled in the art to obtain other drawings based on these drawings without creative efforts.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a filter according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a filter using a holder and a filter membrane;

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the holder and the filter membrane;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a filter using a filter membrane and a filter element;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a filter using a filter membrane and upper and lower filter elements;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a filter using a membrane-in-filter cartridge;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of the separation of precipitated proteins in example 1;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of a filter cassette according to the present invention;

fig. 9 is a schematic view of a single filter comprising a filter cassette according to the present invention.

Reference numerals:

1-a body; 2-inner cavity; 3-upper opening; 4-lower opening; 5-a binding moiety; 6-a filter assembly; 7-pipette tips; 11-a holder; 12-a filter membrane; 13-a filter element; 14-a first filter element; 15-a second filter element; 16-a filter membrane integrated filter element; 21-a protein-containing biological matrix; 22-protein; 23-filtrate; 24-a container; 31-a cassette plate; 32-a containment hole; 33-filter.

Detailed Description

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, and not all of the embodiments. All other embodiments, which can be derived by a person skilled in the art from the embodiments given herein without making any creative effort, shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 1, the present invention provides a filter including a body 1, and an inner chamber 2 is provided in the body 1. The both ends of main part 1 and external intercommunication, main part 1 both ends are equipped with respectively with the upper shed 3 and the under shed 4 of inner chamber 2 intercommunication. The caliber of the upper opening 3 is not less than the outer diameter of the liquid outlet end of the liquid transfer equipment, and the upper opening is used for allowing the liquid outlet end of the liquid transfer equipment to be inserted into or pulled out of the inner cavity 2; the lower opening 4 is used to allow filtered liquid to flow out of the inner cavity.

Preferably, the inner cavity 2 is a conical inner cavity, a wide opening end of the conical inner cavity is communicated with the upper opening 3, and a sharp opening end of the conical inner cavity is communicated with the lower opening 4.

The body 1 further comprises a joint 5 and a filter assembly 6. The joint 5 is disposed near one end of the upper opening, and the filter assembly 6 is disposed inside the inner chamber 2.

In particular, the inner chamber 2 is provided with a bulge, which is arranged between said upper opening 3 and said filter assembly 6.

The combining part 5 is used for being matched and connected with a liquid outlet end head of the liquid-transfering equipment, so that the liquid-transfering gun head 7 achieves the effect of being tightly attached to the inner part of the inner cavity 2. The outer side shape of the pipette tip 7 is matched with the inner side shape of the combining part 5, after the pipette tip 7 enters the inner cavity 2, the outer side part of the pipette tip 7 is mutually attached to the combining part 5, no gap exists, and a closed space is formed in the hollow cavity 1.

In one embodiment, the joint 5 is a soft rubber ring disposed on the inner sidewall of the inner cavity 2. The soft rubber ring has certain flexibility, and the size and the shape are matched with those of the liquid outlet end of the liquid-moving equipment. The soft rubber ring is in interference fit with the liquid outlet end of the liquid transferring equipment, so that the liquid transferring gun head 7 can be tightly attached to the inner part of the inner cavity 2.

In a particular embodiment, the joint 5 is a sealing strip provided on the inner side wall of the inner cavity 2. The size and shape of the sealing strip are matched with the size and shape of the liquid outlet end of the liquid transfer equipment, and the sealing strip is in interference fit with the liquid outlet end of the liquid transfer equipment, so that the liquid transfer gun head 7 can be tightly attached to the inner part of the inner cavity 2.

In one embodiment, the coupling portion 5 is a hook, one end of the hook is rotatably mounted on the outer side of the main body 1, and the other end of the hook is provided with a hook-shaped portion fixed to the liquid outlet end of the liquid-transferring apparatus. By applying a certain inward pressure to the main body 1, the pipette tip 7 is brought into close contact with the inside of the inner chamber 2.

Preferably, the hook can be designed in a detachable manner.

Preferably, the hook can be designed into a form capable of adjusting tightness.

The filtering component 6 is clamped in the inner cavity 2, is tightly attached to the inner side of the inner cavity 2 and is used for filtering liquid to be filtered in the liquid-transferring gun head 7. The cross-sectional shape of filter component 6 is unanimous with the cross-sectional shape of inner chamber 2, and filter component 6 is fixed with the tight fit of inner wall 2 of inner chamber, forms zero clearance fit. The filter assembly 6 retains large particulate matter and other liquid passes through the filter assembly 6 and into a collector at the bottom.

Referring to fig. 2, 3, in one embodiment, the filter assembly 6 includes a stationary assembly 11 and a filter membrane 12. The outer side of the fixed component 11 is tightly attached to the inner wall of the inner cavity 2, and the filter membrane 12 is arranged in the fixed component 11, so that the filtered liquid is filtered by the filter membrane.

In one embodiment, the fixing element 11 is a hollow-out fixing element, and the filter membrane 12 is fixed to the fixing element.

In one embodiment, the inner cavity 2 is of circular design, the outer side of the fixing member 11 is also circular and closely fits the inner side of the inner cavity 2, and the fixing member 11 is provided with an interlayer for clamping the filter membrane 12 up and down.

Preferably, the fixing assembly 11 comprises a mounting area and a fixer, wherein the outer side of the mounting area is tightly attached to the inner side of the inner cavity 2, the fixer is arranged in the mounting area, and the filter membrane 12 is arranged in the fixer.

Referring to FIG. 4, in one embodiment, the filter assembly 6 includes a filter membrane 12 and a filter insert 13. The filter element 13 is embedded in the inner cavity 2, the filter membrane 12 is arranged on the upper side of the filter element 13, and the filter membrane 12 and the filter element 13 can be combined by using the modes of electrostatic adsorption, glue adhesion and the like.

Referring to FIG. 5, in one particular embodiment, the filter assembly 6 includes a filter membrane 12, a first filter element 14, and a second filter element 15. The upside of filter membrane 12 sets up first filter core 14, and the downside of filter membrane 12 sets up second filter core 15, can use modes such as electrostatic absorption and glue adhesion to combine between filter membrane 12 and first filter core 14, filter membrane 12 and second filter core 15.

Referring to FIG. 6, in one embodiment, the filter assembly 6 is a filter membrane integrated cartridge 16, the filter membrane integrated cartridge 16 being embedded in the inner chamber 2.

Preferably, the filter element 13, the first filter element 14, the second filter element 15 and the filter membrane integrated filter element 16 are microporous filter elements.

After the liquid to be filtered in the pipette tip 7 enters the inner cavity 2, the downward pushing of the pipetting equipment is continuously controlled. Because the inner cavity 2 is a closed space, the pipetting equipment pushes down to form a pressure difference between the inner part and the outer part of the inner cavity 2. Large particulate matter in the liquid to be filtered is trapped on the filter assembly 6 by the action of the pressure differential, and the filtered liquid is discharged through the lower opening 4.

Example 1

Taking the example of precipitated protein separation on a protein-containing biological matrix 21, the filter assembly 6 is set to a filter particle size that does not allow the passage of proteins 22.

Referring to fig. 7, the lower part of the body 1 of the filter shown in fig. 7 is in a pointed cone shape, the lower opening 4 is arranged at the bottom of the pointed cone, the filter assembly 6 comprises a filter membrane 12 and a filter element 13, and the pipette tip 7 is used for storing the protein-containing biological matrix 21 which is moved by the pipetting device.

The upper opening 3 of the body 1 enables the pipette tip 7 to enter the inner cavity 2 through the upper opening, and the outer part of the pipette tip 7 and the joint part 5 are attached to each other without a gap, thereby forming a closed space in the inner cavity 2.

The filter membrane 12 and the filter element 13 allow the proteins 22 in the protein-containing biological matrix 21 to be retained on the filter assembly 6. The container 24 is disposed below the lower opening 4 for receiving the filtrate 23 of the protein-containing bio-matrix 21 filtered by the filter assembly 6.

Example 2

Referring to fig. 8, the present invention further provides a filter cartridge, which comprises a cartridge body plate 31, wherein the cartridge body plate 31 is provided with a plurality of accommodating holes 32, and the accommodating holes 32 are used for accommodating a plurality of filters 33 provided by the present invention. Each filter 33 is independent of the other, so that a plurality of filters can be processed in batches, and the purpose of single use can be achieved.

Preferably, the existing pipette tip cartridge is 96-bit system, and the filter cartridge can be made into a 96-bit system corresponding to the existing pipette tip cartridge. Because each filter 33 is independent of the other, the purpose of batch processing of 96 filters and single use can be achieved.

Preferably, the filter cassette is designed to be assembled from multiple filters and referring to fig. 9, the filter cassette can be disassembled and assembled to meet different needs as needed using a single filter 32 or a filter cassette of a particular location.

The existing pipetting equipment can meet the requirement that each pipetting equipment head is independently operated, so that single additional operation after batch operation can be realized, and the rework of the whole batch caused by sample difference is avoided.

The filter and the filter box can be suitable for processing 10 mu L-1250 mu L of liquid, and the filtering granularity can be selected from the filtering components 6 or the filtering membranes 12 with different pore diameters according to requirements.

The filter and the filter box can be suitable for filtering most laboratory samples in food and environment, and can also be suitable for pretreatment of biological matrixes in the field of biological medicine, such as separation of precipitated proteins of blood and serum, pre-filtration of urine and the like.

In summary, in order to overcome the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, the present invention provides a filter, which only needs to cooperate with a pipetting device, so that only one kind of device principle is involved in the whole filtering and separating operation, and the existing mature pipetting device can be directly used. Meanwhile, only one type of equipment principle is involved, so that the used equipment can realize miniaturization, low cost and convenient operation. The two functions of liquid transferring and filtering separation are realized through a single liquid transferring device principle, so that the problems of cost control of automatic equipment, miniaturization of the automatic equipment and mechanical action normalization are solved.

The above description is only for the purpose of illustrating the preferred embodiments of the present invention and is not to be construed as limiting the invention, but rather as the subject matter of the invention is to be construed in all aspects and as broadly as possible, and all changes, equivalents and modifications that fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

Claims

1. A filter for combining with a pipetting device outlet tip for filtering a liquid to be filtered, characterized in that: the device comprises a main body, wherein an inner cavity is arranged in the main body, an upper opening and a lower opening which are communicated with the inner cavity are respectively arranged at two ends of the main body, the caliber of the upper opening is not smaller than the outer diameter of a liquid outlet end of the liquid transferring equipment, the upper opening is used for allowing the liquid outlet end of the liquid transferring equipment to be inserted into or pulled out of the inner cavity, and the lower opening is used for allowing filtrate to flow out of the inner cavity;

the main part still includes the joint portion that is used for with liquid-transfering equipment liquid-out end cooperation to be connected and is used for filtering the filtering component of liquid, the joint portion sets up near upper shed's one end, filtering component sets up the inside of inner chamber.

2. The filter of claim 1 wherein said interior chamber is a conical interior chamber, a wide open end of said conical interior chamber communicating with said upper opening and a pointed open end of said conical interior chamber communicating with said lower opening.

3. A filter as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the internal chamber is provided with an enlarged portion, the enlarged portion being disposed between the upper opening and the filter assembly.

4. The filter of claim 1, wherein the joint is a soft rubber ring disposed on an inner sidewall of the inner chamber; the size and shape of the soft rubber ring are matched with the size and shape of the liquid outlet end of the liquid transfer equipment, and the soft rubber ring is in interference fit with the liquid outlet end of the liquid transfer equipment.

5. The filter of claim 1, wherein the coupling portion is a hook, one end of the hook is rotatably mounted on the outer side of the main body, and the other end of the hook is provided with a hook-shaped portion fixed to the liquid outlet end of the liquid-transferring device.

6. The filter of claim 1, wherein the filter assembly is clamped in the inner cavity, a cross-sectional shape of the filter assembly is consistent with a cross-sectional shape of the inner cavity, and the filter assembly is tightly fitted and fixed with an inner wall of the inner cavity to form a zero-clearance fit.

7. The filter of claim 6, wherein the filter assembly comprises a holder and a filter membrane, the holder has a hollow structure, the outer side of the holder is tightly attached to the inner wall of the inner cavity, and the filter membrane is fixed to the holder.

8. The filter of claim 6, wherein the filter assembly includes a microporous filter element embedded in the interior chamber.

9. The filter of claim 8 wherein said microporous filter element is provided with a filter membrane on an upper surface thereof.

10. A filtration cassette comprising a cassette plate provided with a plurality of receiving holes in which a filter according to any of claims 1-9 is placed.