Integrated Sensing Systems (ISSYS, www.mems-issys.com) was granted a utility patent (US 7,381,628), titled “Process of Making a Microtube and Microfluidic Devices Formed Therewith,” from the U.S. Patent Office (www.uspto.gov). The patent and technology propose a method for improving the manufacturing of micromachined tubes and fluidic sensors.
The technology is currently being use in industrial and biomedical devices, as well as fuel cell systems. ISSYS holds other patents on the design, packaging, fabrication, and application of microtube-based sensors.
The new patent describes a design and method of forming micromachined tubes used by ISSYS to produce Coriolis mass flowmeters, density and chemical concentration sensors, drug infusion systems, fuel cell concentration sensors, and other devices that employ microtube technology. It provides techniques to make larger microtubes for higher flow applications. According to ISSYS, the new fabrication methods also reduce the cost of manufacturing micromachined devices by allowing lower cost wafers and materials to be employed. This cost reduction, in particular, is of importance for high-volume applications, such as fuel cells, aviation fuel quality and drug delivery systems or any applications with disposable sensing parts.
