Patent ID: 7361308

Claim:
A device for removing one or more gel plugs ( 47 , 61 ′, 61 ″) from a sheet of gel ( 3 ) which is bonded to a plate ( 5 ) comprising: a needle ( 27 ) with an open end wherein the bottom part ( 39 ) of said needle ( 27 ) is provided with at least one internal bulkhead ( 37 , 37 ′) extending at least from a position on the inner wall of said needle ( 27 ) to the centre of said needle ( 27 ); wherein said device has means ( 11 , 13 , 17 ) to rotate said needle ( 7 ), and thereby said at least one bulkhead, at a particular angle after it has been lowered into contact with, or adjacent to, said plate ( 5 ) said rotation of the needle ( 27 ) being performed until a bond between said at least one gel plug ( 47 , 61 ′, 61 ″) and plate ( 5 ) is broken by the rotation of said at least one bulkhead; and the open end of the needle ( 27 ) is configured to extract at least one gel plug ( 47 , 61 ′, 61 ″) from the plate ( 5 ) and receive the at least one gel plug ( 47 , 61 ′, 61 ″) into the open end of the needle ( 27 ), and wherein the needle ( 27 ) is provided with another bulkhead ( 45 ) that is configured to prevent material associated with the at least one gel plug ( 47 , 61 ′, 61 ″) that is sucked up into the needle ( 27 ) from being sucked up into a body ( 9 ) to which the needle ( 27 ) is attached.