US 11,674,883 B2
Image-based assay performance improvement
Stephen Y. Chou, Princeton, NJ (US); Wei Ding, Princeton, NJ (US); Wu Chou, Basking Ridge, NJ (US); Jun Tian, Belle Mead, NJ (US); Yuecheng Zhang, Yardley, PA (US); Mingquan Wu, Princeton Junction, NJ (US); and Xing Li, Metuchen, NJ (US)
Assigned to Essenlix Corporation, Monmouth Junction, NJ (US)
Filed by Essenlix Corporation, Monmouth Junction, NJ (US)
Filed on Dec. 29, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/565,115.
Application 17/565,115 is a continuation of application No. 17/268,663, granted, now 11,346,764, previously published as PCT/US2019/046971, filed on Aug. 16, 2019.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/719,129, filed on Aug. 16, 2018.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/764,886, filed on Aug. 16, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2022/0299422 A1, Sep. 22, 2022
Int. Cl. G06T 1/00 (2006.01); G01N 15/14 (2006.01); G06N 20/00 (2019.01); G01N 1/28 (2006.01); G06N 3/08 (2023.01)
CPC G01N 15/1484 (2013.01) [G01N 1/2813 (2013.01); G06N 3/08 (2013.01); G06N 20/00 (2019.01); G06T 1/0014 (2013.01); G01N 2001/282 (2013.01)] 38 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An apparatus for assaying a sample using an optical system suspected of having an imperfection, comprising:
a sample holder comprising a first plate, a second plate, and a plurality of monitoring marks, wherein
(i) each of the first and second plates comprises a respective sample contact area contacting the sample that contains or is suspected of containing an analyte
(ii) the plurality of monitoring marks comprise a plurality of spacers that are distributed in the sample contact areas, wherein the spacers regulate the spacing between the first and second plates, and wherein the plurality of monitoring marks have a flat surface that is parallel to the surface and the plates, have at least one predetermined parameter associated with a geometric property or an optical property of the spacers, and a lateral linear dimension of 1 μm or larger, and at least one lateral linear dimension of 300 μm or less;
(iii) the first and second plates sandwich at least a part of the sample into a thin layer having a substantially uniform thickness of 200 μm or less and
(iv) one of the first and second plates is flexible; the fourth power of the inter-spacer-distance (ISD) divided by the thickness (h) and the Young's modulus (E) of the flexible plate (ISD4/(hE)) is 5×106 μm3/GPa or less, and the thickness of the flexible plate times the Young's modulus of the flexible plate is in the range 60 to 750 GPa-μm;
an optical imaging system that is suspected of having an imperfection, wherein the optical imaging system is configured to take one or more images of the at least part of the sample, wherein the imperfection is associated with an image distortion and/or an illumination variation, and wherein the imperfection of the optical system causes an image imperfection in the image; and
a non-transitory computer-readable medium configured to store a correction algorithm that corrects the image imperfection using the at least one predetermined parameter and the image of the monitoring marks in the at least part of the sample.