US 12,146,821 B2
Shape analysis device
Mark Platt, Leicestershire (GB); Marcus Andrew Pollard, Leicestershire (GB); Eugenie Lee Hunsicker, Leicestershire (GB); Rhushabh Maugi, Leicestershire (GB); and Steven Douglas Rae Christie, Leicestershire (GB)
Assigned to Loughborough University, Leicestershire (GB)
Appl. No. 17/771,345
Filed by Loughborough University, Leicestershire (GB)
PCT Filed Oct. 23, 2020, PCT No. PCT/GB2020/052699
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Apr. 22, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/079153, PCT Pub. Date Apr. 29, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 1915345.1 (GB), filed on Oct. 23, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0390347 A1, Dec. 8, 2022
Int. Cl. G01N 15/10 (2024.01); G01N 15/1031 (2024.01); G01N 15/12 (2024.01); G01N 15/00 (2006.01)
CPC G01N 15/12 (2013.01) [G01N 15/1023 (2024.01); G01N 15/1031 (2013.01); G01N 2015/0038 (2013.01); G01N 2015/103 (2024.01)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A device for characterization of one or more particles in a fluid sample, the device comprising:
an inlet;
an outlet;
a microfluidic channel extending between the inlet and the outlet and providing an axial flow path for fluid flowing therealong;
a particle sensor for detecting the passage of particles moving along the axial flow path first and second electrodes positioned along the microfluidic channel;
wherein, in use, one or more particles flowing along the microfluidic channel are detected by the first particle sensor and passage of said one or more particles is recorded as a pulse; and
wherein the device further comprises at least one second particle sensor for detecting particles comprising a nanopore and wherein the nanopore of the second particle sensor is located in a second channel which extends from the microfluidic channel of the first particle sensor.
 
18. A computer implemented method, the method comprising:
receiving, as an input from a particle sensor having first and second electrodes, pulse data representing a current pulse corresponding to a particle, and
comparing the received data to prestored characterizing shape data representing particles of known shape;
determining, based on the comparison, a shape of the at least one particle; and
outputting an indication of the determined shape of the particle.
 
19. The method of claim 18, wherein the prestored characterizing shape data comprises one or more spline coefficients representing the particles of known shape and wherein the one or more spline coefficients are one or more spline coefficients for b-splines representing the particles of known shape or are a predetermined set of spline coefficients representing the particles of known shape.