Apparatus and process for reagent fluid dispensing and printing

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Turning now to the drawings, FIG.
1 shows a schematic representation of a first preferred embodiment of a reagent dispensing system generally represented as reference numeral 30.
The dispensing system 30 comprises a plurality of reagent fluid reservoirs 200, a plurality of filters 300, a plurality of reagent jetting heads 400, a plurality of jetting head control units 500, an interface unit 600, a computer 700, transportation unit 902, a plurality of fluid mixing cells 904 and a detection station 906.
The reservoir 200 holds a selected quantity of reagent fluid for dispensing.
The reservoir 200 is maintained at atmospheric pressure by suitable means such as an atmospheric vent.
The reagent fluid is transferred from the reservoir 200 through the filter 300 to the reagent jetting head 400.
The filter 300 is placed between the reservoir 200 and the jetting head 400 to ensure that any particulate foreign matter in the reagent fluid is trapped before entering the jetting head 400.
The plurality of jetting heads 400 and the detection station 906 define a processing path.
Each jetting head 400, which is described in detail below, ejects uniformly sized droplets 2 of reagent fluid.
The droplets 2 are propelled, with controlled velocity and direction, towards a selected mixing cell 904 positioned along the processing path by the transportation unit 902.
The mixing cells 904 are comprised of nonreactive material and function as minute holding tanks for the dispensed reagent fluid.
The plurality of jetting heads 400, shown in FIG.
1, are positioned sequentially along the processing path.
Alternately, some or all of the plurality of jetting heads 400 may be positioned with respect to the transportation unit 902 such that the heads 400 direct the droplets 2 into a selected mixing cell 904 simultaneously.
The jetting heads 400 and the transportation unit 902 are controlled by the computer 700.
The computer 700 issues commands to an interface unit 600 which is electrically connected to the transportation unit 902 and to the jetting head control unit 500