Description
0112-0127 B
35
Temperature Regulation
The instrument regulates the temperature of the microplate reading
chamber from 2°C above ambient to 45°C. On power up, when the
incubator is off, the temperature in the reading chamber is ambient and
isothermal. Turning on the incubator by pressing the
Temp on/off
key
causes the instrument to begin warming the reading chamber and the
fluidics module.
The temperature set point defaults to 37°C at startup. With the incubator
on, the temperature of the reading chamber can be set and regulated
from 2°C above ambient to 45°C. Accuracy of the temperature set point
is only guaranteed if the set point is at least 2°C above ambient. If the
temperature set point is lower than the ambient temperature, the
chamber temperature remains at ambient. Temperature regulation is
controlled by heaters only and, therefore, cannot cool the temperature
to a setting lower than ambient.
Temperature regulation and control of the reading chamber is achieved
through electric heaters, a fan, efficient insulation, and temperature
sensors. The heaters are located within the instrument, which is
insulated to maintain the temperature set point. The seven sensors are
mounted inside the reading chamber and measure the air temperature
and chamber temperature. The temperature feedback closed-loop
control algorithms measure the chamber air temperature, compare it to
the temperature set point, and use the difference to calculate the
regulation of the heating cycles. This technique results in accurate,
precise control of the reading chamber temperature with a temperature
variation of the air across the entire assay plate of less than 1°C.
Temperature uniformity within the assay plate itself depends on its
design, materials, and configuration.
Note:
The reading chamber is warmed to the set temperature.
However, the fluidics module might be lower than the set point.
Note:
Temperature of samples in all assay plates are affected by
evaporation.
FlexStation_manual.book Page 35 Tuesday, June 25, 2013 10:22 AM
