Industrial Consultancy & Sponsored Research (IC&SR) , IIT Madras

Automated Coverslipper for Large Format Slides with Switchable Compatibility to Handle Multi Format Slides

Categories for this Invention

Technology: Automated coverslipper to handle multi format slides

Category: Biotechnology & Genetic Engineering

Industry: Biomedical

Application: Tissue engineering

Market: The global market size was valued at USD 184.5 Million in 2023 and is projected to reach USD 259.2 Million by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 5.1% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

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Problem Statement

  • Periodontitis is an inflammation caused by biofilms, causing tooth loss and edentulism.
  • Traditional treatments involve guided tissue regeneration using periodontal membranes.
  • Graphene, with its large surface area, high thermal and electrical conductivity, and superior mechanical properties, has been used in engineering and biomedical fields.
  • Recent developments in 3D graphene foams (GFs) have been developed to avoid agglomeration and facilitate uniform distributions, making them ideal for scaffold preparation in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.
  • However, there is a gap in understanding 3-D organization in multicellular tissue formation and functional restoration on scaffolds.

Technology

  • A coverslipping system consists of a coverslipper device on a frame that moves from one or more zones.
  • A coverslipping system consists of a coverslipper device on a frame that moves from one or more zones.
  • The dispensation zone dispenses a mountant medium, and the slip pick-up zone picks up the coverslips from the tray.
  • The coverslipping zone positions the platform in the coverslipping zone, and the picked coverslip is mounted over the slide.
  • The output zone transports the processed cover slip slide and inserts it into a tray, which is moved up and down to accommodate the next processed slide.

Key Features / Value Proposition

Coverslipper Device Overview:

  • Processes large format slides of 6” X 8” and 5” X 7”, and can be customized to smaller sizes.
  • Features a slide tray with stained slides inserted into grooves for easy pick-up. Uses a wedge-shaped nozzle to uniformly dispense mountant medium over the slide.
  • Controlled by a dedicated algorithm for accurate and uniform placement and air bubble prevention.
  • Composed of a vertical plate, a first curved plate, and a second curved plate.
  • Rotates the second curved plate along a predefined path, allowing vacuum suction cups to lift the cover slip.
  • Achieves a unique locus of motion to prevent air pockets and bubbles below the cover slip.The rack mimics human ankle motion between Dorsiflexion and Plantarflexion positions.

Uses and Applications:

  • Prevents contact between the microscope’s objective lens and the specimen.
  • Provides an even thickness (in wet mounts) for viewing depth.
  • Viewing enhancement as the specimen is flattened.
  • Deceleration of evaporation from the sample, both in wet and dry mounted slides.
  • Permanent affixation for long term and repeated use of Permanent Specimens.

Large Format Specimen Protection and Storage:

  • Enables long-term preservation and storage of large format specimens.
  • Economizes cover-slipping process through indigenous algorithms
  • Versatile, supporting multiple slide sizes, a unique feature not found anywhere else
  • Supports cover-slipping of large quantities of slides, like adult human brain sections.
  • Processes large format cover-slips, a unique feature not developed globally.

Questions about this Technology?

Contact For Licensing

sm-marketing@imail.iitm.ac.in
ipoffice2@iitm.ac.in

Research Lab

Prof. Jayaraj Joseph

Prof. Mohanasankar sivaprakasam

Department of Electrical Engineering

Intellectual Property

  • IITM IDF Ref. 2202

  • Patent No: IN 546396

  • PCT/IN2022/050598

Technology Readiness Level

TRL- 4

Experimentally validated in Lab

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