AUTOMATIC SCANNING APPARATUS FOR PERFORMING OPTICAL DENSITY TESTS ON LIQUID SAMPLES, METHOD FOR TESTING FOR ANTIBIOTIC SUSCEPTIBILITY, AND METHOD FOR IDENTIFYING MICROORGANISMS

摘要

AUTOMATIC SCANNING APPARATUSFOR PERFORMING OPTICAL DENSITY TESTS ON LIQUID SAMPLES,METHOD FOR TESTING FOR ANTIBIOTIC SUSCEPTIBILITY,AND METHOD FOR IDENTIFYING MICROORGANISMSAbstract of the DisclosureApparatus is provided for automatically scanningelectronically each well of a multi-well tray containingmany liquid samples. A light source, preferably a singlesource, is passed through the wells to an array of photo-sensitive cells, one for each well. There is also a cali-brating or comparison cell receiving the light. Electronicapparatus reads each cell in sequence, quickly completingthe scan without physical movement of any parts. Theresultant signals are compared with the signal from thecomparison cell and with other signals or stored data anddeterminations are made and displayed or printed out.Thereby, and by the methods of the invention, such mattersas minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of drugs andidentification of microorganisms are achieved.