1. Apparatus for discontinuous filtration of a liquid comprising: a filter station for carrying out filtration, a feed line for supplying a desired quantity of the liquid to be filtered to the filter station, and a filter medium movable relative to the filter station, wherein the filter medium comprises at least two different membranes, which together effect multistage filtration in the filter station.
2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the filter medium comprises a first membrane and a second membrane, each of said membranes forming a respective filtration stage, the first and second membranes optionally being flat membranes and arranged next to one another in the filter station.
3. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the first membrane has a higher average andor nominal pore size than the second membrane and is arranged upstream of the second membrane, such that the first membrane may effect preliminary filtration of liquid.
4. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the first membrane and the second membrane are separate components, which can be brought together andor combined with one another either in or shortly before the filter station.
5. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the membranes are kept available andor held in stock in or on the apparatus, such that clean andor unused membranes are available for each filtration operation, wherein the apparatus further comprises transportation means for moving andor guiding the membranes out of stock into the filter station, wherein the transportation means optionally moves andor guides the membranes out of the filter station after filtration.
6. Apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the transportation means is configured such that said transportation means takes the membranes separately out of stock and guides said membranes together into the filter station and optionally removes said membranes from the filter station after filtration.
7. Apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a control system, which can control area andor length of the membranes responsible for multistage filtration in the filter station.
8. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the filter station comprises a chamber, in which filtration is carried out, and wherein the chamber is of a shape which can assist with andor effect distribution of supplied liquid over an entire surface area of the filter medium in the chamber, such that liquid can be filtered substantially evenly over the filter medium, wherein a shape of the chamber is optionally conical, with an opening angle optionally in a range from 90\xb0 to 180\xb0, optionally in a range from 120\xb0 to 180\xb0.
9. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the filter station further comprises a supporting structure, which can support the filter medium and can counteract deformation andor a tearing of the membranes during filtration.
10. Method for discontinuous filtration of a liquid andor for filtration of isolated quantities of liquid, said method comprising:
providing a filter station for carrying out filtration, wherein the filter station comprises a chamber, in which filtration can be carried out;
moving andor transporting a filter medium from a stock into the filter station, wherein the filter medium comprises at least two membranes, optionally flat membranes, which are arranged next to one another in the chamber; and
supplying a desired quantity of liquid to be filtered to the chamber, such that the liquid is subject to multistage filtration through the membranes.
11. Method according to claim 10, wherein the chamber is located in a housing, which comprises at least one movable housing part in order to open andor close the chamber, and wherein the method further comprises:
opening the chamber for movement andor transport of the filter medium into the filter station;
closing the chamber to carry out filtration; and
removing andor drawing off filtered liquid from the chamber during filtration of a desired andor isolated quantity of liquid.
12. Method according to claim 10, wherein the at least two membranes of the filter medium are taken separately from the stock and brought together andor combined either in or shortly before the filter station.
13. Method according to claim 12, wherein the membranes take a form of strip-form flat membranes, which can be stored on respective rolls in the stock, and wherein the method further comprises:
controlling a length of the membranes which are transported off the rolls from the stock into the filter station for filtration.
14. Method according to claim 10, further comprising:
flushing the chamber with a cleaning liquid, once supplied liquid has been subjected to multistage filtration, wherein flushing of the chamber comprises:
opening the chamber and moving the filter medium used out of the chamber andor out of the filter station;
closing the chamber and feeding cleaning liquid through the chamber, to remove residue of liquid to be filtered,
wherein flushing optionally comprises back-flushing of the chamber, in which flushing liquid flows through the chamber in an opposite direction to filtration.
15. System for analysing processes, optionally biological processes, wherein the system comprises a fully automated or semi-automated automation platform, in which an apparatus for discontinuous filtration according to claim 1 is incorporated, wherein the apparatus optionally takes the form of a modular unit.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
What is claimed is:
1. A method of delivering a command in a bus system including one or more master devices and two or more slave devices, the method comprising the steps of:
(a) delivering a first command to a first slave device; and
(b) delivering a second command to a second slave device at a point in time which is less than or equal to a latency time of the second slave device in advance of the completion of data transfer according to the first command.
2. The method of claim 1, prior to the step (b), further comprising the steps of:
(b1) the first slave device informing a corresponding master device of pseudo execution completion indicating that data transfer is complete at a point in time which is less than or equal to the latency time of the second slave device in advance of the completion of data transfer according to the first command; and
(b2) receiving the second command for the second slave device upon receipt of the pseudo execution completion information.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second slave devices each include a memory device and a slave controller for controlling the memory device,
wherein the step (a) comprises the step of delivering the first command to a first slave controller, and
wherein the step (b) comprises the step of (b) delivering the second command to a second slave controller at a point in time which is less than or equal to the latency time of the second slave device in advance of the completion of data transfer according to the first command.
4. The method of claim 3, prior to the step (b), further comprising the steps of:
(b1) the first slave controller informing a corresponding master device of pseudo execution completion indicating that data transfer is complete at a point in time which is less than or equal to the latency time of the second slave device in advance of the completion of data transfer according to the first command; and
(b2) receiving the second command for the second slave device from the corresponding master device that has received the pseudo execution completion information.
5. The method of claim 3, wherein each memory device is a synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), and the slave controller is an SDRAM controller.
6. A method of delivering a command in a bus system including a master device and two or more slave devices, at least one of the slave devices having a latency time for data inputoutput, the method comprising the steps of:
(a) providing respective difference values between a longest of the latency times of all the slave devices and the latency time of each slave device;
(b) receiving a first command for a first slave device from the master device; and
(c) delivering the first command to the first slave device after a time equivalent to the difference value corresponding to the first slave device has lapsed.
7. The method of claim 6, further comprising the step of (d) delivering a second command to a second slave device at a point in time which is less than or equal to a latency time of the second slave device in advance of the completion of data transfer according to the first command.
8. A bus system including a master device and two or more slave devices, at least one of which has a latency time for data inputoutput, the bus system comprising a pseudo-delayer for delivering a second command to a second slave device at a first point in time which is less than or equal to a latency time of the second slave device in advance of a second point in time when a first slave device completes data transfer according to a first command.
9. The bus system of claim 8, wherein the first slave device informs a corresponding master device of pseudo execution completion information at a third point in time which is less than or equal to a latency time of the second slave device in advance of the completion of data transfer according to the first command, and the corresponding master device receiving the pseudo execution completion information delivers the second command to the pseudo-delayer.
10. The bus system of claim 8, wherein the first and second slave devices each comprise a memory device, and a slave controller for controlling the memory device, and
wherein the pseudo-delayer delivers the first command to a first slave controller, and delivers the second command to a second slave controller at a fourth point in time which is less than or equal to the latency time of the second slave device in advance of the completion of data transfer according to the first command.
11. The bus system of claim 10, wherein the first slave controller informs a corresponding master device of a pseudo execution completion at a fifth point in time which is less than or equal to the latency time of the second slave device in advance of the completion of data transfer according to the first command, and
wherein the corresponding master device delivers the second command to the pseudo-delayer upon receipt of the pseudo execution completion.
12. The bus system of claim 10, wherein each memory device is a synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), and the slave controller is an SDRAM controller.
13. A bus system including a master device and two or more slave devices, at least one of which has a latency time for data inputoutput, the bus system comprising a pseudo-delayer which includes a storing unit for storing a number of delay clock cycles which corresponds to respective differences between a longest of the latency times of all the slave devices and the latency time of each slave device, which receives a first command for a first slave device from the master device, and which delivers the first command to the first slave device after a number of delay clock cycles corresponding to the number stored in the storing unit for the first slave device have lapsed.
14. The bus system of claim 13, wherein the first slave device includes a memory device and a slave controller for controlling the memory device,
wherein the slave controller informs a corresponding master device of pseudo execution completion at a point in time which is the longest of the latency times in advance of the completion of data transfer according to the first command, and
wherein the corresponding master device delivers the second command to the pseudo-delayer upon receipt of the pseudo execution completion information.