LIQUID PIN TRANSFER ASSEMBLY WITH COMMON PIN BIAS

摘要

Several pin transfer assemblies are disclosed that utilize the surface tension of liquids for picking up and dispensing minute volumes of liquid form wells in a first well plate to a flat substrate surface or into wells in a second well plate. In one embodiment, a plurality of pins (14) reciprocate through complementary arrays of holes (16) in a base plate (12) and an overlying spring plate biased apart by coil springs located around the periphery of the base plate. A foam layer sits on top of the spring plate and a weight plate (18) sits on top of the foam layer. A sing coil spring is positioned between a center of the weight plate and the cover to push the weight plated downwardly. The periphery of the cover guides the vertical movements of the weight plate and is connected to the periphery of the base plate. The periphery of the base plate is supported by a frame used to register the pin assembly in a receptacle of a manual or automated liquid transfer apparatus.