Patent ID: 8577658

Claim:
A method comprising: creating a fluid flow map for a feature, wherein the fluid flow map defines a plurality of one-to-one relationships between any point on an input fluid profile of a fluid flowing in a direction through a channel, the input fluid profile corresponding to a disposition of the fluid at an input surface within the channel and comprising input coordinates upstream of the feature, with its corresponding point on an output fluid profile of the fluid flowing in the direction through the channel, the output fluid profile corresponding to a disposition of the fluid at an output surface within the channel and being disposed at a distance from the input surface in a direction of the fluid flow and comprising output coordinates downstream from the feature; storing the fluid flow map in a database, the fluid flow map relating the output fluid profile to the input fluid profile for the feature; and characterizing fluid transport through a micro-fluidic system based on the fluid flow map stored in the database, wherein the micro-fluidic system comprises the feature.