A liquid dispenser that uses rotary motion to create a relative movement between one or more dispensing elements and one or more receivers is disclosed. The dispensing elements are fluidically coupled to one or more reservoirs, which contain ingredients that are to be dispensed by the dispensing elements into one or more receivers. The receivers are disposed on a receiver support structure that is located beneath the dispensing elements. In some embodiments, the dispenser operates according to a quasi-continuous dispensing protocol or quasi-simultaneous dispensing protocol, or both quasi-continuous and quasi-simultaneous dispensing protocol.

The container carrier serves to hold containers for fluid samples. For the transport of the sample containers, the container carrier, which is directly but detachably connected with a cover part during the dispensation of fluid samples into the sample containers, is separated from the cover part, with the sample containers remaining in the container carrier in transport. A transport cap is provided for closing the container carrier in transport, particularly in a fluid-tight manner.

Process and device for the feeding of fluid additives and, in particular, of replenishers to a photographic processing fluid. Fluid additives are supplied to the processing fluid contained in a photographic processing tank by a feeding duct. The feeding duct is filled with processing fluid before different fluid additives are introduced into the feeding duct. The volume of the fluid additive supplied is measured by a flow meter which is arranged in an area of the feeding duct which during the measuring operation carries only processing fluid and not the fluid additive being fed into the feeding duct.

The present invention provides a highly universal out-of-liquid sensor that allows an out-of-liquid condition to be accurately detected for a long time, and provides a liquid supply device using the same. The out-of-liquid sensor 1, that is mounted in a liquid supply route for supplying a liquid to a predetermined location and forms a part of the liquid supply route, comprises a light-transmissive tubular body 2, the opening at one end of which is formed into a connecting section 4 capable of communicating with an upstream piping 16 of the liquid supply route, and the opening at the other end of which is formed into a connecting section 5 capable of communicating with a downstream piping 16' of the liquid supply route, and in which an internal bore section 6 communicating between the two connecting sections 4 and 5 is formed in the liquid-transmitting channel; and also comprises a photosensor 3 mounted on the tubular body 2, the detector 11 of the photosensor 3 being constructed to sense, through the light-transmissive wall surface of the tubular body 2, the presence or absence of a liquid flowing through the internal bore section 6.

A process and system are provided for forming and transporting precise small volumes of liquid samples by means of controlled gas pressures. As the controlled gas pressures are changed at a multiplicity of control points in the fluid circuit, transitions take place involving the transport of small liquid samples. This transport is arrested by the geometry of the fluid circuit to produce a new state, which state remains stable until another transition is initiated by a change in the multiplicity of controlled gas pressures. Various combinations of control elements are described for effecting formation of fixed liquid volumes, transporting, mixing, and removing entrained bubbles from small liquid samples.