US Patent 7785868 Apparatus to automatically lyse a sample

A standalone bench top laboratory instrument designed to disrupt, or lyse, cells, spores and tissue samples using ultrasonic energy. The lysing device is programmable, allowing the user control over the sample volume, sonication power level, and lysing duration in order to optimize lysing protocols for specific targets. Once a lysing protocol is entered, the device automatically lyses the sample according to the entered lysing protocol. The lysing device also provides a cooling feature, enabled by a heat exchanging sub-assembly, to prevent the sample from exceeding a maximum set temperature.