18,318 research outputs found
Fluid flow meter with comparator reference means Patent
Photometric flow meter with comparator reference mean
Conventional Industrial Robotics Applied to the Process of Tomato Grafting Using the Splicing Technique
Horticultural grafting is routinely performed manually, demanding a high degree of concentration and requiring operators to withstand extreme humidity and temperature conditions. This article presents the results derived from adapting the splicing technique for tomato grafting, characterized by the coordinated work of two conventional anthropomorphic industrial robots with the support of low-cost passive auxiliary units for the transportation, handling, and conditioning of the seedlings. This work provides a new approach to improve the efficiency of tomato grafting. Six test rates were analyzed, which allowed the system to be evaluated across 900 grafted units, with gradual increases in the speed of robots work, operating from 80 grafts/hour to over 300 grafts/hour. The results obtained show that a higher number of grafts per hour than the number manually performed by skilled workers could be reached easily, with success rates of approximately 90% for working speeds around 210–240 grafts/hour
Planar digital nanoliter dispensing system based on thermocapillary actuation
We provide guidelines for the design and operation of a planar digital nanodispensing system based on
thermocapillary actuation. Thin metallic microheaters embedded within a chemically patterned glass
substrate are electronically activated to generate and control 2D surface temperature distributions
which either arrest or trigger liquid flow and droplet formation on demand. This flow control is
a consequence of the variation of a liquid’s surface tension with temperature, which is used to draw
liquid toward cooler regions of the supporting substrate. A liquid sample consisting of several
microliters is placed on a flat rectangular supply cell defined by chemical patterning. Thermocapillary
switches are then activated to extract a slender fluid filament from the cell and to divide the filament into
an array of droplets whose position and volume are digitally controlled. Experimental results for the
power required to extract a filament and to divide it into two or more droplets as a function of
geometric and operating parameters are in excellent agreement with hydrodynamic simulations. The
capability to dispense ultralow volumes onto a 2D substrate extends the functionality of microfluidic
devices based on thermocapillary actuation previously shown effective in routing and mixing nanoliter
liquid samples on glass or silicon substrates
A Protocol Generator Tool for Automatic In-Vitro HPV Robotic Analysis
Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) could develop precancerous
lesions and invasive cancer, as it is the main cause of nearly all cases
of cervical cancer. There are many strains of HPV and current vaccines
can only protect against some of them. This makes the detection and
genotyping of HPV a research area of utmost importance. Several biomedical
systems can detect HPV in DNA samples; however, most of
them do not have a procedure as fast, automatic or precise as it is actually
needed in this field. This manuscript presents a novel XML-based
hierarchical protocol architecture for biomedical robots to describe each
protocol step and execute it sequentially, along with a robust and automatic
robotic system for HPV DNA detection capable of processing from
1 to 24 samples simultaneously in a fast (from 45 to 162 min), efficient
(100% markers effectiveness) and precise (able to detect 36 different HPV
genotypes) way. It includes an efficient artificial vision process as the last
step of the diagnostic.FIDETIA P055-12/E03Ministerio de Economía y Competitivida TEC2016-77785-
Index to nasa tech briefs, issue number 2
Annotated bibliography on technological innovations in NASA space program
Recommended from our members
Linked optical and gene expression profiling of single cells at high-throughput.
Single-cell RNA sequencing has emerged as a powerful tool for characterizing cells, but not all phenotypes of interest can be observed through changes in gene expression. Linking sequencing with optical analysis has provided insight into the molecular basis of cellular function, but current approaches have limited throughput. Here, we present a high-throughput platform for linked optical and gene expression profiling of single cells. We demonstrate accurate fluorescence and gene expression measurements on thousands of cells in a single experiment. We use the platform to characterize DNA and RNA changes through the cell cycle and correlate antibody fluorescence with gene expression. The platform's ability to isolate rare cell subsets and perform multiple measurements, including fluorescence and sequencing-based analysis, holds potential for scalable multi-modal single-cell analysis
Recommended from our members
Hydrogels in Stereolithography
The use of stereolithography (SL) for fabricating complex three-dimensional (3D) tissue
engineered scaffolds of aqueous poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) hydrogel solutions is described.
The primary polymer used in the study was PEG-dimethacrylate (PEG-dma) with an average
molecular weight (MW) of 1000 in distilled water with the photoinitiator Irgacure 2959 (I-2959).
Successful layered manufacturing (LM) with embedded channel architecture required
investigation of the photopolymerization characteristics of the PEG solution (measured as
hydrogel thickness or cure depth) as a function of photoinitiator concentration and laser energy
dosage for a specific photoinitiator type and polymer concentration in solution. Hydrogel
thickness was a strong function of PI concentration and energy dosage. Curves of hydrogel
thickness were utilized to successfully plan, perform, and demonstrate layered manufacturing of
highly complex hydrogel scaffold structures, including structures with internal channels of
various orientations. Successful fabrication of 3D, multi-layered bioactive PEG scaffolds
containing cells was accomplished using a slightly modified commercial SL system (with 325
nm wavelength laser) and procedure. Human dermal fibroblast (HDF) cells were encapsulated in
PEG hydrogels using small concentrations (~ 5 mg/ml) of acryloyl-PEG-RGDS (MW 3400)
added to the photopolymerizable PEG solution to promote cell attachment. HDF cells were
combined with the PEG solution, photocrosslinked using SL, and successfully shown to survive
the fabrication process. The combined use of SL and photocrosslinkable biomaterials such as
PEG makes it possible to fabricate complex 3D scaffolds that provide site-specific and tailored
mechanical properties (i.e., multiple polymer materials) with a polymer matrix that allows
transport of nutrients and waste at the macroscale and facilitates cellular processes at the
microscale through precisely placed bioactive agents.Mechanical Engineerin
Implementation and performance of SIBYLS: a dual endstation small-angle X-ray scattering and macromolecular crystallography beamline at the Advanced Light Source.
The SIBYLS beamline (12.3.1) of the Advanced Light Source at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, supported by the US Department of Energy and the National Institutes of Health, is optimized for both small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and macromolecular crystallography (MX), making it unique among the world's mostly SAXS or MX dedicated beamlines. Since SIBYLS was commissioned, assessments of the limitations and advantages of a combined SAXS and MX beamline have suggested new strategies for integration and optimal data collection methods and have led to additional hardware and software enhancements. Features described include a dual mode monochromator [containing both Si(111) crystals and Mo/B(4)C multilayer elements], rapid beamline optics conversion between SAXS and MX modes, active beam stabilization, sample-loading robotics, and mail-in and remote data collection. These features allow users to gain valuable insights from both dynamic solution scattering and high-resolution atomic diffraction experiments performed at a single synchrotron beamline. Key practical issues considered for data collection and analysis include radiation damage, structural ensembles, alternative conformers and flexibility. SIBYLS develops and applies efficient combined MX and SAXS methods that deliver high-impact results by providing robust cost-effective routes to connect structures to biology and by performing experiments that aid beamline designs for next generation light sources
- …