Patent ID: 7932081
Filing Date: 2011-04-26
Classification: B01L,C12Q,G01N,Y10S,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A system for processing the contents of multiple reaction receptacles to determine the presence of a target nucleic acid in each of said reaction receptacles, said system comprising: (A) a temperature-controlled incubator comprising: (B) a reaction receptacle transport system including at least one transport mechanism constructed and arranged to transport reaction receptacles laterally to or from said reaction receptacle carrier through said reaction receptacle access openings; (C) a plurality of signal measuring devices disposed at angularly-spaced positions with respect to the axis of rotation of said carousel, each signal measuring device being constructed and arranged to measure the amount of a signal emitted by the contents of a reaction receptacle placed in operative proximity to said signal measuring device, each signal measuring device being constructed and arranged to measure a different signal emitted by the contents of a reaction receptacle, and each signal measuring device being positioned with respect to said reaction receptacle carrier such that reaction receptacles carried on said reaction receptacle carrier are successively moved into operative proximity to said signal measuring device as said reaction receptacle carrier moves the reaction receptacles within said incubation chamber, wherein each signal measuring device is located outside said incubation chamber in a position to measure, through one of said signal measuring openings, the amount of signal emitted by the contents of reaction receptacles within said incubation chamber, and wherein said reaction receptacle carrier is controlled so as to move reaction receptacles within said incubation chamber to successively and periodically place reaction receptacles carried thereby in operative proximity to each signal measuring device, and each signal measuring device being controlled so as to make periodic measurements of the amount of signal emitted by the contents of reaction receptacles placed in operative proximity to said signal measuring device; (D) a plurality of signal measuring device transport mechanisms, each signal measuring device transport mechanism being constructed and arranged to move one of said signal measuring devices with respect to said reaction receptacle carrier, wherein each reaction receptacle station of said reaction receptacle carrier is constructed and arranged to carry more than one reaction receptacle aligned in a radial orientation with respect to the axis of rotation of said carousel, said reaction receptacle carrier is constructed and arranged to successively present said reaction receptacle stations in signal measuring positions with respect to said signal measuring devices, and each signal measuring device transport mechanism is constructed and arranged to move each corresponding signal measuring device with respect to said reaction receptacle carrier in a generally radial direction with respect to the axis of rotation of said carousel to successively place said signal measuring device into operative proximity to each of the reaction receptacles carried in said reaction receptacle station moved into the signal measuring position corresponding to said signal measuring device; and (E) a microprocessor adapted to quantify the amount of a different target nucleic acid in the reaction receptacles based upon the periodic measurements made by each said signal measuring device.