Software for the display of chromatographic separation data

Abstract

Techniques and systems for displaying chromatographic data using a graphical user interface are provided. Chromatographic separation data that represent multiple series of measurements for multiple samples can be displayed on a display device of a computer system as a series of bands, the bands being arranged to resemble output from an electrophoresis gel. The bands may be aligned using a marker included in each sample.

1 . A method of acquiring and displaying chromatographic separation data, comprising:
 acquiring, using a device that analyses a plurality of samples, first a series of measurements indicating presence of constituents and at least one marker in a first sample at a detection system and then a series of measurements indicating presence of constituents and at least one marker in a second sample at the detection system;   displaying the series of measurements for the first sample as a first series of bands;   identifying at least one peak in the series of measurements for the first sample that corresponds to the at least one marker;   identifying at least one peak in the series of measurements for the second sample that corresponds to the at least one marker;   scaling the series of measurements for the second sample so that the displayed bands that correspond to the at least one marker in the first and second samples are aligned when displayed; and   displaying the series of measurements for the second sample as a second series of bands adjacent to the first series of bands.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises the computer-implemented steps of:
 first receiving the series of measurements for the first sample;   then receiving the series of measurements for the second sample.   
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the device includes multiple wells that are interconnected with microchannels or fluid conduits. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the device includes multiple sample introduction ports or wells for the parallel introduction and analysis of the plurality of samples. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the device analyses the plurality of samples one at a time to record a series of measurements for each sample one after the other. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the device is a microscale device. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the device comprises an aggregation of two or more separate layers. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the detection system includes a light detector for gathering a light-based signal. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the light detector is selected from a group consisting of a photodiode, an avalanche photodiode, a photomultiplier tube, a diode array, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the light detector is an imaging system. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the imaging system comprises a charge-coupled device (CCD). 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the series of measurements for the first and second samples include peaks that indicate the presence of the constituents and the at least one marker such that each peak corresponds to a displayed band. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one marker peak is identified by an optical intensity of the marker in the chromatographic separation data. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising displaying the series of measurements for one or more of the samples as a graph of measurements vs. time. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising displaying bands that correspond to the constituents in the sample visually different than the bands that correspond to the at least one marker. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising displaying bands that correspond to different constituents in the sample using different colors. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 receiving input to invert the display of the series of bands for the first and second samples; and   inverting the displayed series of bands for the first and second samples.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising generating the first and second series of bands using a modifiable criterion. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the displayed bands that correspond to the at least one marker in the first and second samples are aligned with a predetermined location when displayed. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 identifying two peaks in the series of measurements for each sample that correspond to two markers; and   scaling the series of measurements for each sample so that the two displayed bands that correspond to the two markers are aligned with predetermined locations.