Difference between revisions of "Weekly Progress Reports"
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==March 14== | ==March 14== | ||
| − | ===Work | + | ===Work=== |
| − | + | - Researched different printer methodologies (i.e., piezoelectric vs thermal drop-on-demand) | |
| − | - | + | |
- Attempted contact with T. Boland and other leaders in the cell printing field | - Attempted contact with T. Boland and other leaders in the cell printing field | ||
| − | + | ===Risks identified=== | |
| − | ===Risks identified | + | |
- Determining an existing printing platform on which to actually build the device will be difficult | - Determining an existing printing platform on which to actually build the device will be difficult | ||
- Key considerations include: | - Key considerations include: | ||
| − | + | - How easy will this printer sync with my computer? | |
| − | + | - How accessible are the printer drivers? | |
| − | + | - Which printer is the least sensitive to having components removed or altered? | |
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | ==March 21== | ||
| + | ===Work=== | ||
| + | - Confirmed the Canon BubbleJet 2100 printer as first platform to attempt construction; reasons include: | ||
| + | - T. Boland et al. have had success with altering this system for biological samples | ||
| + | - Claims that the printer drivers are accessible and modifiable | ||
| + | - Lack of filtration system (older printers do not have fine filters for ink clumps as many new printers do) | ||
| + | - Easy mechanism to modify (BJC2100 has one simple paper feed drive) | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Printer ordered from Ebay; due to arrive within one week | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===Risks identified=== | ||
| + | - Ebay listing described the printer as "for parts" so it may not be completely functional (fingers crossed!) | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Spring Break is putting a slight delay on things... | ||
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | ==March 28== | ||
| + | ===Work=== | ||
| + | - Downloaded printer drivers from a Canon BJC 2100 to attempt modifications | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Researched printer driver documentation and modification | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===Risks identified=== | ||
| + | - Modifying the drivers may be more difficult than previously thought; the only clear method is to back engineer the system from .dll files which will be tedious and an extremely long process | ||
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | ==April 4== | ||
| + | ===Work=== | ||
| + | - BCJ arrived, and cover and extraneous components were removed (e.g., cover and plastic base) | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Built small stands on which to mount the printer head and track | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Evaluated the use of a movable stage (which would utilize the stepper-motorized stage from the PSF lab); opted not to use this method and instead decided to utilize existing paper advancement mechanisms | ||
| + | |||
| + | - [[More info on BJC2100 Attempt]] | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===Risks identified=== | ||
| + | - BJC 2100 does not sync well with modern OS (both Mac and Windows), making it difficult to manage | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Printer systems are less modular than originally thought, making it harder to actually separate each of the different components and mechanisms | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Which is easier: altering an existing system or building a completely new one? | ||
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | ==April 11== | ||
| + | ===Work=== | ||
| + | - Obtained second platform, Hewlett Packard Office Jet 5700 Series, in order to adapt a more user-friendly computer interface with the printer | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Removed extraneous covering and upper feeding mechanisms in order to minimize the amount of paper touching advancement wheels | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Lowered the platform on which the paper sat in order to increase the distance between printer head and sample | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Altered cleaning mechanism that periodically blotted ink droplets from the cartridge head | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Discussed with MIT-ERs via email and personal meetings the feasibility of driver modification | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Met with James Serdy of Mech E and Z-Corp (http://www.zcorp.com/), a 3D-printing start-up, to discuss the project and driver functionality | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===Risks identified=== | ||
| + | - Sample sizes are currently limited to the width of a microscope slide due to lateral distance between printer head and feeding mechanism | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Thick sample printing surfaces may collide with the cartridge dispensing mechanism | ||
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | ==April 18== | ||
| + | ===Work=== | ||
| + | - Replaced ink with new dye to verify new liquid can be passed through cartridge | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Conducted flow experiments to establish how much fluid is required to pass through cartridge before a new liquid would begin printing | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Conducted minimum fluid test to verify that a sample of only 100 uL could function properly | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Conducted drying experiments to estimate the amount of time the printed sample would remain moist in a protected environment | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Confirmed cell culture preparation and grew cells for experimentation | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===Risks identified=== | ||
| + | - Potential issues with filters eliminating particles of cell size | ||
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | ==April 25== | ||
| + | ===Work=== | ||
| + | - Conducted fluorescent bead assay with 3 Micron beads to verify that the modified cartridges could function properly | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Imaged fluorescent bead samples to demonstrate that samples were printed in defined patterns | ||
| + | |||
| + | - Printed first cells onto coverslips and verified their presence via fluorescence microscopy | ||
| − | + | - Printed cells in a density gradient in an effort to optimize the printing parameters (e.g., dpi, etc.) | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| + | ===Risks identified=== | ||
| + | - Samples appear to be beading up, especially at dots-per-inch (dpi) on glass, which may jeopardize the accuracy of the printed pattern | ||
| − | + | - Cells appear very light and in varying densities across the sample | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | == | + | ==May 2== |
| − | Work | + | ===Work=== |
| − | + | - Experimented with different printing surfaces, using both plastic slides and plastic transparencies | |
| − | + | ||
| + | - Verified that printed samples were in fact complete cells and not simply fluorescence in the media | ||
| − | == | + | ===Risks identified=== |
| − | + | - Drying may occur more quickly on the plastic surfaces | |
| − | + | ||
| − | Risks identified | + | |
| − | == | + | ==May 9== |
| − | Work | + | ===Work=== |
| − | + | - Modified a second printer cartridge to print two color (GFP and RFP) samples in adjacent patterns | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | - Attempted a viability assay by growing the cells in media overnight and imaging after 24 hours | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | == | + | ===Risks identified=== |
| − | + | - After being grown, cells may not adhere well or grow well to a plain (uncoated) surface | |
| − | + | ||
| − | Risks identified | + | |
| − | + | - Two color imaging is hard to do given existing resources and microscopes available | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
| − | + | ||
Note: Much of this electronic documentation has been done retrospectively, taken from actual lab notebook. | Note: Much of this electronic documentation has been done retrospectively, taken from actual lab notebook. | ||
Latest revision as of 08:32, 19 May 2011
Contents
March 14
Work
- Researched different printer methodologies (i.e., piezoelectric vs thermal drop-on-demand)
- Attempted contact with T. Boland and other leaders in the cell printing field
Risks identified
- Determining an existing printing platform on which to actually build the device will be difficult
- Key considerations include:
- How easy will this printer sync with my computer? - How accessible are the printer drivers? - Which printer is the least sensitive to having components removed or altered?
March 21
Work
- Confirmed the Canon BubbleJet 2100 printer as first platform to attempt construction; reasons include:
- T. Boland et al. have had success with altering this system for biological samples - Claims that the printer drivers are accessible and modifiable - Lack of filtration system (older printers do not have fine filters for ink clumps as many new printers do) - Easy mechanism to modify (BJC2100 has one simple paper feed drive)
- Printer ordered from Ebay; due to arrive within one week
Risks identified
- Ebay listing described the printer as "for parts" so it may not be completely functional (fingers crossed!)
- Spring Break is putting a slight delay on things...
March 28
Work
- Downloaded printer drivers from a Canon BJC 2100 to attempt modifications
- Researched printer driver documentation and modification
Risks identified
- Modifying the drivers may be more difficult than previously thought; the only clear method is to back engineer the system from .dll files which will be tedious and an extremely long process
April 4
Work
- BCJ arrived, and cover and extraneous components were removed (e.g., cover and plastic base)
- Built small stands on which to mount the printer head and track
- Evaluated the use of a movable stage (which would utilize the stepper-motorized stage from the PSF lab); opted not to use this method and instead decided to utilize existing paper advancement mechanisms
- More info on BJC2100 Attempt
Risks identified
- BJC 2100 does not sync well with modern OS (both Mac and Windows), making it difficult to manage
- Printer systems are less modular than originally thought, making it harder to actually separate each of the different components and mechanisms
- Which is easier: altering an existing system or building a completely new one?
April 11
Work
- Obtained second platform, Hewlett Packard Office Jet 5700 Series, in order to adapt a more user-friendly computer interface with the printer
- Removed extraneous covering and upper feeding mechanisms in order to minimize the amount of paper touching advancement wheels
- Lowered the platform on which the paper sat in order to increase the distance between printer head and sample
- Altered cleaning mechanism that periodically blotted ink droplets from the cartridge head
- Discussed with MIT-ERs via email and personal meetings the feasibility of driver modification
- Met with James Serdy of Mech E and Z-Corp (http://www.zcorp.com/), a 3D-printing start-up, to discuss the project and driver functionality
Risks identified
- Sample sizes are currently limited to the width of a microscope slide due to lateral distance between printer head and feeding mechanism
- Thick sample printing surfaces may collide with the cartridge dispensing mechanism
April 18
Work
- Replaced ink with new dye to verify new liquid can be passed through cartridge
- Conducted flow experiments to establish how much fluid is required to pass through cartridge before a new liquid would begin printing
- Conducted minimum fluid test to verify that a sample of only 100 uL could function properly
- Conducted drying experiments to estimate the amount of time the printed sample would remain moist in a protected environment
- Confirmed cell culture preparation and grew cells for experimentation
Risks identified
- Potential issues with filters eliminating particles of cell size
April 25
Work
- Conducted fluorescent bead assay with 3 Micron beads to verify that the modified cartridges could function properly
- Imaged fluorescent bead samples to demonstrate that samples were printed in defined patterns
- Printed first cells onto coverslips and verified their presence via fluorescence microscopy
- Printed cells in a density gradient in an effort to optimize the printing parameters (e.g., dpi, etc.)
Risks identified
- Samples appear to be beading up, especially at dots-per-inch (dpi) on glass, which may jeopardize the accuracy of the printed pattern
- Cells appear very light and in varying densities across the sample
May 2
Work
- Experimented with different printing surfaces, using both plastic slides and plastic transparencies
- Verified that printed samples were in fact complete cells and not simply fluorescence in the media
Risks identified
- Drying may occur more quickly on the plastic surfaces
May 9
Work
- Modified a second printer cartridge to print two color (GFP and RFP) samples in adjacent patterns
- Attempted a viability assay by growing the cells in media overnight and imaging after 24 hours
Risks identified
- After being grown, cells may not adhere well or grow well to a plain (uncoated) surface
- Two color imaging is hard to do given existing resources and microscopes available
Note: Much of this electronic documentation has been done retrospectively, taken from actual lab notebook.
