Patent ID: 7785304

Claim:
A method for providing at least one sample of liquid from an amount of said liquid contained in a pouch while mitigating the danger of contaminating the liquid in the pouch, the method comprising the steps of: establishing a sterile fluid connection between the pouch and a sterile transparent rigid sight chamber, the sight chamber having: a vent fitted with a bacterial filter through which air can flow to and from the chamber; an inlet including: a flexible inlet tube having first and second ends, said first end being in fluid connection with said chamber, and a tube clamp mounted on the inlet tube remote from the second end and operable to close the inlet tube; and an outlet, by establishing a sterile fluid connection between the pouch and said inlet; allowing a minor quantity of the liquid in the pouch to flow into the chamber from the pouch through said inlet while venting displaced air from the chamber through the vent, immediately after said quantity of liquid has flowed into the chamber, closing said tube clamp to clamp the inlet tube closed to close the inlet to prevent fluid flow into or out of the chamber via said inlet and to initially isolate all of said quantity of liquid mixture that has flowed into the chamber in the chamber, and then terminating the connection between the pouch and the chamber, and immediately after terminating the connection, withdrawing at least one sample of the liquid from the chamber into at least one sample phial through said outlet while allowing air to enter the chamber via the vent to replace the liquid withdrawn, said liquid flowing into said at least one sample phial under the action of gravity or a vacuum in said at least one sample phial, said at least one sample having the same composition as the liquid in the pouch, and wherein the pouch has a sealed flexible thermoplastic outlet tube, and wherein said step of establishing sterile fluid connection between the pouch and said chamber is performed by: first clamping the inlet tube closed with the tube clamp at a location remote from the second end to block flow of liquid therethrough, then sterile-docking said inlet tube with said outlet tube to provide a sterile fluid connection therebetween at a location between the second end and the tube clamp, and then unclamping the tube clamp and the inlet tube to permit flow of liquid from the pouch to the chamber, and said steps of closing the inlet and then terminating the connection is effected by first clamping the inlet tube with the tube clamp to block further flow of liquid into the chamber and then heat-sealing the outlet tube from the pouch on the pouch side of the tube clamp.