Patent ID: 8288154

Claim:
A method for determining residence times of motile specimens on a force transducing sensor comprising the steps of: introducing a multiplicity of motile specimens in a medium into a motion sensor system comprising: an enclosed chamber adapted to receive a multiplicity of motile specimens; at least one force transducing sensor positioned within the chamber so as to be immersed in the medium during operation; force transducing sensor surface coatings having characteristics appropriate for the motile specimens; and a motion detector for detecting motion of the force transducing sensor caused by the motion of the motile specimens; measuring the motion of the force transducing sensor caused by the motion of the specimens, said measuring including the steps of: directing a sensing beam through a transparent substrate toward the force transducing sensor using a beam generator mounted on the transparent substrate; and receiving a reflected beam through the transparent substrate from the force transducing sensor using a beam detector mounted on the transparent substrate; and calculating the residence times of the motile specimens on the force transducing sensor surface coatings from the motion of the force transducing sensor, wherein an interaction of the motile specimens with the force transducing sensor as a result of the motion of the motile specimens is categorized as one of an impact, an oscillation, and a retention to facilitate identifying a binding behavior of the motile specimens.