Patent ID: 7188515

Claim:
A viscometer for determining the viscosity of a liquid, the viscometer comprising: a first substrate having a first channel-defining surface; a second substrate having a second channel-defining surface; a first channel defined by the first and second channel-defining surfaces, the first channel having an inlet for introduction of liquid into the first channel and an outlet for venting gas as liquid fills the first channel; and a liquid rate measuring meter for measuring the rate at which liquid fills the first channel, the liquid rate measuring meter in communication with the first channel wherein the rate at which liquid fills the first channel is used to determine the viscosity; and a data processing system for calculating the viscosity of a liquid, the data processing system operable to calculate the viscosity, μ, using formula 2: μ=( d 2 /S )(Δ P/νL ) (2) wherein ν is the mean velocity, d is the depth of the channel, L is the length of the liquid column inside the channel at any time, μ is the liquid viscosity, ΔP is the pressure difference across liquid inside the first channel, and S is the shape factor.