Patent ID: 7175334

Claim:
A vessel agitator, comprising: a plurality of vessel holders, each of said plurality of vessel holders constructed and arranged for removably holding a vessel; a vessel conveyor constructed and arranged to move said plurality of vessel holders along a path having at least one substantially linear section; and a vessel contact agitator constructed and arranged such that when a vessel is held by at least one of said plurality of vessel holders, and is conveyed by said vessel conveyor along said path, said vessel contact agitator contacts said vessel at a plurality of contact locations along said path in a manner that displaces said vessel at each contact location in a direction perpendicular to the direction of the path at that contact location, wherein said vessel conveyor is constructed and arranged to move said at least one vessel holder such that said vessel contacts at least one of said plurality of contact locations of said vessel contact agitator a selectable number of times wherein at least one of said vessel holders is a U-shape structure.