Patent ID: 7560272

Claim:
A specimen collection and assay device, comprising: a sample chamber sized and shaped to receive a liquid sample, and comprising a circumferential chamber side wall having an upper edge, a lower edge, an inner surface and an outer surface, a chamber bottom wall adjoining the lower edge of the chamber side wall, and an opening defined by the upper edge of the chamber side wall; a lid for sealing the opening; a test reservoir external to the sample chamber, the test reservoir having a reservoir side wall having an upper edge, a lower edge, and an inner surface, a portion of the reservoir side wall being defined by a common portion of the chamber side wall, a bottom wall contiguous with the chamber bottom wall and adjoining the lower edge of the reservoir side wall, a portion of the inner surface of the reservoir side wall being defined by the outer surface of the common portion of the chamber side wall; a reservoir seal separate from the lid, the reservoir seal adjoining the upper edge of the reservoir side wall and sealing the test reservoir; a test device for detecting an analyte, the test device being sealed within the test reservoir; and a valveless specimen passage slot disposed in the common portion of the chamber side wall adjacent to the chamber bottom wall, and functionally interposed between the sample chamber and the test reservoir for fluid communication between the sample chamber and the test reservoir, whereby upon addition of the sample to the sample chamber, a portion of the sample enters the test reservoir through the specimen passage slot, the portion of the sample entering the test reservoir compresses gases present in the test reservoir, the compression of the gases limiting the amount of sample added to the test reservoir.