US 11,815,518 B2
Automated high volume slide processing system
Kurt Reinhardt, Tucson, AZ (US); Charles D. Lemme, Tucson, AZ (US); Glen Ward, Tucson, AZ (US); William L. Richards, Tucson, AZ (US); Wayne Showalter, Tucson, AZ (US); Brandon Ambler, Tucson, AZ (US); Austin Micheil Ashby, Tucson, AZ (US); Chris Borchert, Tucson, AZ (US); Devon C. Campbell, Oro Valley, AZ (US); Kimberly Christensen, Tucson, AZ (US); Matthew Freeman, Tucson, AZ (US); Andrew Ghusson, Tucson, AZ (US); Rick Griebel, Tucson, AZ (US); Kendall B. Hendrick, Tucson, AZ (US); Miroslav Holubec, Tucson, AZ (US); Parula Mehta, Oro Valley, AZ (US); and Vince Rizzo, Tucson, AZ (US)
Assigned to Ventana Medical Systems, Inc., Tucson, AZ (US)
Filed by Ventana Medical Systems, Inc., Tucson, AZ (US)
Filed on Jul. 6, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/368,781.
Application 11/181,625 is a division of application No. 11/116,676, filed on Apr. 27, 2005, granted, now 7,468,161, issued on Dec. 23, 2008.
Application 17/368,781 is a continuation of application No. 16/399,592, filed on Apr. 30, 2019, granted, now 11,092,611.
Application 16/399,592 is a continuation of application No. 15/351,411, filed on Nov. 14, 2016, granted, now 10,302,665, issued on May 28, 2019.
Application 15/351,411 is a continuation of application No. 14/082,092, filed on Nov. 15, 2013, granted, now 9,528,918, issued on Dec. 27, 2016.
Application 14/082,092 is a continuation of application No. 11/181,625, filed on Jul. 13, 2005, granted, now 8,663,991, issued on Mar. 4, 2014.
Prior Publication US 2021/0405078 A1, Dec. 30, 2021
Int. Cl. G01N 35/00 (2006.01); G01N 1/31 (2006.01); G01N 1/36 (2006.01); G01N 1/30 (2006.01); B01L 9/00 (2006.01)
CPC G01N 35/00029 (2013.01) [B01L 9/52 (2013.01); G01N 1/30 (2013.01); G01N 1/312 (2013.01); G01N 1/36 (2013.01); G01N 35/0099 (2013.01); B01L 2300/0822 (2013.01); G01N 35/00732 (2013.01); G01N 2035/00039 (2013.01); G01N 2035/00138 (2013.01); Y10T 436/11 (2015.01); Y10T 436/112499 (2015.01); Y10T 436/25 (2015.01); Y10T 436/2575 (2015.01)] 12 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of automatically preparing a coverslipped microscope slide using an automated slide processing apparatus, the method comprising:
heating a specimen on a microscope slide using a heater inside the automated slide processing apparatus to liquefy paraffin contacting the specimen on the microscope slide;
deparaffinizing the specimen by applying a deparaffinizing fluid to rinse the liquefied paraffin from the heated specimen and the microscope slide;
robotically staining the specimen by contacting the specimen with at least one staining reagent;
robotically moving the microscope slide to a tilted position to drain the at least one staining reagent from the microscope slide;
robotically moving the microscope slide from the tilted position to a coverslipping position;
robotically coverslipping the microscope slide at the coverslipping position; and
moving the coverslipped microscope slide to a waiting position for removal from the automated slide processing apparatus.