The QBC STAR, for "Stand-Alone AutoReader" is a further simplification of the already easy-to-use QBC method of performing CBCs. We recognized that the original QBC system required the filling of a glass capillary tube and its later transfer to a reader. Although only a few steps were required, there were several potential problems. Since AIDS is always a concern when dealing with human blood samples, having the user handle a glass tube which could be broken was a potential hazard. Also, if the tube leaks during centrifugation, blood is thrown around the inside of the centrifuge, and potentially into the air, forming an infectious aerosol. Finally, the user had to remove the glass tube from the centrifuge into the reader. This invention avoids all of these problems.
First,
we placed the glass
capillary tube inside of an unbreakable plastic container so that
if the tube were accidentally broken, any glass fragments and blood
would stay safely within the container. The container patent
contains a complete description of the assembly.
<-- Click the picture for a larger image.
Second, we designed a combined
centrifuge and reader, where the analysis takes place while the
tube is spinning. This not only obviates the need to manually
transfer the tube, but it allows us to look at the motion of the
cell layers as they separate. A technical description of the reader can
be found in its patent.
Another interesting feature of
this instrument is that it was designed using advanced solid modeling
techniques, which substantially shortened its development time and
increased its reliability. You can read about this process here.
<-- Click the picture for a larger image.