US 12,280,379 B2
Molecular diagnostic assay system
Douglas B Dority, Santa Cruz, CA (US); Tien Phan, Sunnyvale, CA (US); David Fromm, Sunnyvale, CA (US); Richard J. Casler, Jr., Sunnyvale, CA (US); Dustin Dickens, Santa Clara, CA (US); Stuart Morita, Sunnyvale, CA (US); and Matthew Piccini, Sunnyvale, CA (US)
Assigned to Cepheid, Sunnyvale, CA (US)
Filed by Cepheid, Sunnyvale, CA (US)
Filed on Nov. 11, 2022, as Appl. No. 18/054,729.
Application 18/054,729 is a division of application No. 16/738,944, filed on Jan. 9, 2020, granted, now 11,524,301.
Application 16/738,944 is a division of application No. 15/217,920, filed on Jul. 22, 2016, granted, now 10,562,030, issued on Feb. 18, 2020.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/196,845, filed on Jul. 24, 2015.
Prior Publication US 2023/0166263 A1, Jun. 1, 2023
Int. Cl. B01L 7/00 (2006.01); B01L 3/00 (2006.01); G01N 33/487 (2006.01); G01N 35/00 (2006.01); G01N 35/10 (2006.01); H02P 6/182 (2016.01); H02P 27/06 (2006.01)
CPC B01L 7/52 (2013.01) [B01L 3/50273 (2013.01); G01N 35/00871 (2013.01); G01N 35/1016 (2013.01); G01N 35/1095 (2013.01); H02P 6/182 (2013.01); H02P 27/06 (2013.01); B01L 2200/025 (2013.01); B01L 2200/04 (2013.01); B01L 2200/0647 (2013.01); B01L 2200/143 (2013.01); B01L 2300/023 (2013.01); B01L 2300/027 (2013.01); B01L 2300/0663 (2013.01); B01L 2300/14 (2013.01); B01L 2300/1822 (2013.01); B01L 2300/1827 (2013.01); B01L 2300/1894 (2013.01); B01L 2400/0436 (2013.01); B01L 2400/0439 (2013.01); B01L 2400/0496 (2013.01); G01N 33/4875 (2013.01); G01N 2035/00019 (2013.01); G01N 2035/00316 (2013.01); G01N 2035/00356 (2013.01); G01N 2201/0221 (2013.01); G01N 2201/0256 (2013.01); G01N 2800/00 (2013.01)] 9 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A system for operating a valve drive mechanism, the system comprising:
a valve drive mechanism chassis;
a brushless DC (BLDC) motor coupled to the chassis, wherein the BLDC motor comprises a plurality of hall-effect sensors and does not include any encoder hardware;
a transmission coupled to BLDC motor; and
a valve drive coupled to the transmission, the valve drive configured to rotate positions of a valve body of a removable assay cartridge,
wherein position of the valve drive output is determined based on analyzing a sinusoidal signal generated by the hall-effect sensors, and
wherein the BLDC motor is configured to monitor cartridge integrity based a current measurements of a bridge circuit of the BLDC motor, the current draw measurements being associated with events indicating loss of integrity of the removable assay cartridge.