IonWorks Quattro 48 Channel Pipettor

Date: August 09, 2004

Company: Molecular Devices


This project came about as an effort to increase the throughput of our automated patch clamping instrument called the IonWorks. The goals of the project were to deliver a pipettor design that could increase the throughput at least 4 fold, while not compromising accuracy and precision performance. The design incorporated 48 independent glass pipettes that were manufactured by an independent vendor. This pipettor was designed to dispense between 2.5 – 4.0 uL per dispense. I managed the relationship with our vendor, working closely with them on a design that suited our needs. The design was praised for it’s manufacturability and robustness.

Tools used:

  • Pro/Engineer Wildfire 2.0
  • Intralink
  • Excel
  • Pro/Mechanica