CN116443555A

CN116443555A - Container transfer method and container transfer device

Info

Publication number: CN116443555A
Application number: CN202310024004.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 巴山幸贤; 大前勇一郎; 若宫裕二; 黑岩知弘
Original assignee: Sysmex Corp
Current assignee: Sysmex Corp
Priority date: 2022-01-14
Filing date: 2023-01-09
Publication date: 2023-07-18
Also published as: CN116443579A; CN116449043A; JP2023103899A

Abstract

The invention provides a container transfer method and a container transfer device, which can realize miniaturization of the device and can smoothly take out a container to be taken out from a plurality of containers held closely. In a container transfer method in which a container (110) is moved from a buffer rack (120) capable of holding a plurality of containers (110) by using a grip part (640) capable of performing an opening and closing operation, a vertical movement, and a horizontal movement, the grip part (640) is moved downward to a position lower than a lid part (113) of the container (110) in a plan view, the grip part (640) in an open state is moved in a horizontal direction toward a target container (T1) on the buffer rack (120), the grip part (640) is brought into a closed state with respect to the target container (T1) after the grip part (640) is moved in a horizontal direction with respect to the target container (T1), and the grip part (640) in a closed state is moved upward.

Description

Container transfer method and container transfer device

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a container transfer method and a container transfer apparatus.

Background

As a device for holding a plurality of sample containers arranged in a row, for example, a sample transfer device disclosed in patent document 1 is known. The sample transfer apparatus is connected to a measurement unit for measuring a sample stored in a sample container via a transport unit. The sample transfer apparatus includes a buffer rack for temporarily storing sample containers. The sample transfer apparatus accommodates a sample container taken out from a sample rack for conveyance in a buffer rack, and accommodates a sample container accommodated in the buffer rack in the sample rack, so that samples can be rearranged.

In the sample transfer apparatus of patent document 1, when a sample container stored in a rack is taken out, the holding portion is positioned immediately above a container to be transferred in a state where the holding portion is opened. Then, the holding portion is lowered to close the holding portion, thereby holding the container to be held, and the holding portion is raised. Then, the holding part is moved to another place, lowered, released from the container, and raised.

Prior art literature

Patent literature

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open No. 2015-087306

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

In order to more effectively utilize the limited space of the inspection chamber, miniaturization of the apparatus related to the inspection of the sample is required. In order to miniaturize the sample transfer apparatus, it is necessary to reduce the interval between sample containers held in a rack inside the apparatus. However, in the method of patent document 1 in which the grip portion is lowered in an open state and is inserted between two adjacent sample containers, there is a limit to reducing the interval between the sample containers in order to perform a stable operation without colliding the grip portion with the containers.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a container transfer method and a container transfer device capable of achieving downsizing of a device and taking out a container to be taken out from a plurality of containers held in proximity.

Means for solving the problems

The container transfer method of the present invention relates to a container transfer method in which containers 110 and T1 are moved from container holding units 22, 24, 25, 100, 120, and 130 capable of holding a plurality of containers 110 by using a holding unit 640 capable of opening and closing, moving in the vertical direction, and moving in the horizontal direction. In the container transfer method of the present invention, at a position where the containers 110 and T1 are not held in a plan view, the grip 640 is moved downward to a position lower than the heads 113 of the containers 110 and T1 (S11), the open-state grip 640 is moved horizontally toward the target containers 110 and T1 on the container holding parts 22, 24, 25, 100, 120 and 130 (S12), and after the horizontal movement with respect to the target containers 110 and T1, the grip 640 is brought into a closed state with respect to the target containers 110 and T1 (S13), and the closed-state grip 640 is moved upward (S14).

According to the container transfer method of the present invention, when the target container is taken out of the container holding portion, the holding portion is temporarily lowered toward the position where no container is present. This can prevent the grip portion from colliding with the target container or another container when the grip portion is lowered. Further, since the grip portion in the opened state moves toward the target container after the descent, even if another container exists on the movement path, the grip portion moves horizontally toward the target container through the side surface of the other container, thereby smoothly reaching the target container. Then, the object container is gripped by the gripping portion by bringing the gripping portion into a closed state. Further, by moving the closed holding portion upward, the target container is pulled out of the container holding portion. Therefore, even when a plurality of containers are closely arranged to the container holding portion for downsizing, the holding portion can be taken out without colliding with the target container or the peripheral container.

The container transfer method of the present invention relates to a container transfer method in which containers 110 and T1 are moved to holding positions where the container holding portions 22, 24, 25, 100, 120, and 130 of a plurality of containers 110 can be held by using a holding portion 640 that can be opened and closed, moved in the vertical direction, and moved in the horizontal direction. In the container transfer method of the present invention, the gripping portion 640 gripping the target container 110, T1 is moved downward toward the holding position on the container holding portion 22, 24, 25, 100, 120, 130 of the storage target container 110, T1 (S21), the gripping portion 640 is opened (S22), the gripping portion 640 in the opened state is moved in the horizontal direction toward the position where the container 110 is not held (S23), and the gripping portion 640 is moved upward (S24).

According to the container transfer method of the present invention, after the container is accommodated in the holding position, the grip portion is moved in the horizontal direction toward the position where the container is not present in the opened state, and is moved in the upward direction from the position. Thus, even if another container is present on the horizontal movement path, the holding portion moves to a position where no container is present through the side surface of the other container. Thereafter, the holding portion moves in an upward direction at a position where the container is not present. Therefore, even when a plurality of containers are closely arranged to the container holding portion for downsizing, the container can be prevented from being accidentally detached from the container holding portion due to the grip portion being caught by the container.

The container transfer devices 20, 40, 70 of the present invention relate to a container transfer device that moves containers 110, T1 from container holding sections 22, 24, 25, 100, 120, 130 capable of holding a plurality of containers 110. The container transfer devices 20, 40, 70 of the present invention include: a grip 640 that can be opened and closed; a moving mechanism 610, 620, 630 for moving the grip 640 in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction; and control units 801, 811, 821 for controlling the operations of the grip unit 640 and the movement mechanism units 610, 620, 630. The control units 801, 811, 821 control the gripping unit 640 and the moving mechanism units 610, 620, 630 to: the holding part 640 is moved downward to a position lower than the head 113 of the container 110, T1 toward a position where the container 110, T1 is not held in a plan view, the holding part 640 in an open state is moved in a horizontal direction toward the target container 110, T1 on the container holding part 22, 24, 25, 100, 120, 130, the holding part 640 is brought into a closed state with respect to the target container 110, T1 after being moved in the horizontal direction with respect to the target container 110, T1, and the holding part 640 in the closed state is moved upward.

According to the container transfer device of the present invention, even when a plurality of containers are closely arranged to the container holding portion, the holding portion can be removed without colliding with the target container or the peripheral container. Therefore, the device can be miniaturized, and the container to be taken out can be taken out from the plurality of containers held in proximity.

Effects of the invention

According to the present invention, the device can be miniaturized, and the container to be taken out can be taken out from a plurality of containers held in close proximity.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the structure of a sample inspection system according to an embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the structure of the holder and the container according to the embodiment.

Fig. 3 is a plan view schematically showing the structure of the supply device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 4 is a plan view schematically showing the structure of the first layer of the sample rearranging device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 5 is a plan view schematically showing the structure of the second layer of the sample rearranging device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view schematically showing the appearance of the sample rearranging device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 7 is a plan view schematically showing the structure of the first layer of the sample storage device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 8 is a plan view schematically showing the structure of the second layer of the sample storage device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view schematically showing an external appearance of the sample storage device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 10 is a plan view schematically showing the structure of a container transfer mechanism of the sample rearranging apparatus according to the embodiment.

Fig. 11 is a side view schematically showing the structure of the up-and-down transfer portion and the grip portion according to the embodiment.

Fig. 12 is a perspective view showing a structure of the grip portion seen from the front side in the embodiment.

Fig. 13 is a perspective view showing a structure of the grip portion of the embodiment as viewed from the rear side.

Fig. 14 is a plan view schematically showing a state in which the holding portion of the embodiment holds the container.

Fig. 15 is a side view schematically showing a state in which the holding portion of the embodiment holds the container.

Fig. 16 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a supply device according to an embodiment.

Fig. 17 is a block diagram showing the structure of the sample rearrangement device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 18 is a block diagram showing the structure of the sample storage device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 19 is a plan view schematically showing an example of a position where the grip portion is lowered to the outside of the holder in a plan view in the embodiment.

Fig. 20 is a side view schematically showing an example of a position where the grip portion is lowered to the outside of the holder in a plan view according to the embodiment.

Fig. 21 is a side view schematically showing an example of a position where the grip portion is lowered to the outside of the holder in a plan view according to the embodiment.

Fig. 22 is a plan view schematically showing an example in which the grip portion of the embodiment is lowered to a position between two adjacent holes in the holder.

Fig. 23 is a plan view schematically showing an example in which the grip portion of the embodiment is lowered to a wider position among positions between two adjacent holes on the holder.

Fig. 24 is a plan view schematically showing an example in which the grip portion of the embodiment is lowered to a position of a hole in the holder where the container is not held.

Fig. 25 is a side view schematically showing an example in which the grip portion is stepped up at the time of storage in the embodiment.

Fig. 26 is a side view schematically showing an example in which the grip portion is stepped up at the time of storage in the embodiment.

Fig. 27 is a side view schematically showing an example in which the grip portion is stepped up at the time of storage in the embodiment.

Fig. 28 is a flowchart showing a process of the extraction operation according to the embodiment.

Fig. 29 is a flowchart showing a process of the housing operation according to the embodiment.

Fig. 30 is a flowchart showing a process of moving the grip portion upward during the storage operation according to the embodiment.

Fig. 31 is a diagram schematically showing a container transfer operation performed between the heating unit and the holder at the transfer position in the supply device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 32 is a diagram schematically showing a transfer operation of a container to be performed on a cleaning liquid holder and a precision control sample holder in the supply device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 33 is a diagram schematically showing a transfer operation of a container between a buffer rack and a rack in a lifting position in the sample rearranging apparatus according to the embodiment.

Fig. 34 is a diagram schematically showing a transfer operation of a container between a rack in a lifting position and an filing rack in the sample storage device according to the embodiment.

Fig. 35 is a schematic diagram for explaining the effect of the embodiment in more detail.

Fig. 36 is a side view and a top view for explaining the effect of the embodiment in more detail.

Fig. 37 is a plan view schematically showing the operation of the grip portion in the case where the gripping direction of the grip portion and the direction in which the grip portion moves downward are inclined with respect to the front-rear-left-right direction in the modification.

Fig. 38 is a plan view schematically showing a structure of a grip portion for gripping a container at 4 positions in a modification.

Description of the reference numerals

20 feeder (Container transfer device)

22a, 24a, 25a, 101, 121, 131 holes

22 heating part (Container holding part)

22a hole

24 cleaning liquid support (Container holder)

24a hole

25 precision control sample holder (Container holder)

25a hole

40 sample rearranging device (Container transfer device)

70 sample storage device (Container transfer device)

100 stand (Container holder)

101 holes

110 container (object container)

113 cover (head)

120 buffer rack (Container holder)

121 hole

130 filing rack (Container holder)

131 holes

610 front and rear transfer units (movement mechanism unit)

620 left and right transfer units (movement mechanism unit)

630 up and down transfer part (movement mechanism part)

640 holding part

710 holding member (one holding member)

712 opening

713. 717 cut

714 plane part

716 step portion

720 holding part (holding part of the other)

722 opening

723. 726, 727 incision

724 protrusion

801. 811 and 821 control part

T1 container (object container)

Detailed Description

Fig. 1 is a diagram schematically showing the structure of a sample inspection system 1.

Fig. 1 shows a structure of the sample inspection system 1 in a plan view, and shows a front-rear-left-right direction in a plan view. The downstream direction and the rear-stage direction are left directions, and the upstream direction and the front-stage direction are right directions. The operator approaches the sample inspection system 1 from the front side of the sample inspection system 1. The front side of the sample inspection system 1 corresponds to the near side of the operator.

The sample testing system 1 includes a loading device 11, a transporting device 12, a collecting device 13, a supplying device 20, a blood cell counting device 30 for counting blood cells contained in a sample, a sample rearranging device 40, a transporting device 51, a smear preparation device 52, a transporting device 61, an analyzing device 62 for measuring measurement items such as CRP, hbA1c, and ESR, a sample storage device 70, and a transport control device 80. The blood cell counting device 30 includes two sets including one conveying device 31 and two measuring devices 32, and includes one control device 33.

The control device 33 is communicably connected to the conveying device 31, the measuring device 32, and the host computer 2. The smear preparation apparatus 52 is communicably connected to the transfer apparatus 51 and the host computer 2. The analysis device 62 is communicably connected to the transport device 61 and the host computer 2. The transport controller 80 is communicably connected to the input device 11, the transport device 12, the recovery device 13, the supply device 20, the transport device 31, the sample rearranging device 40, the transport devices 51 and 61, the sample storage device 70, and the host computer 2. In fig. 1, a communication cable for performing communication between devices is indicated by a single-dot chain line.

The sample inspection system 1 is a system that automatically measures a sample and performs analysis based on measurement data. The sample is, for example, whole blood collected from a subject. The container 110 (see fig. 2) containing the sample is transported while being held by the holder 100, and the sample is sucked from the container 110 in the measuring device 32, the smear preparation device 52, and the analyzing device 62, and the sample is measured or the like. The transport control device 80 controls each device connected to the transport control device 80 so as to transport the stent 100 to the target device.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the structure of the holder 100 and the container 110.

The holder 100 is provided with 10 holes 101 and bar code labels 102 capable of holding containers 110. The bar code label 102 is attached to the rear side surface of the holder 100. A bar code representing the stent ID is printed on the bar code label 102 as identification information capable of individually identifying the stent 100.

The container 110 includes a main body 111, a barcode label 112, and a lid 113. The main body 111 is a tubular container with an open upper end, and accommodates a sample therein. The barcode label 112 is attached to a side surface of the main body 111. A barcode indicating a sample ID is printed on the barcode label 112 as identification information capable of individually identifying the sample inside. The lid 113 is provided at the upper end of the main body 111 so as to seal the inside of the main body 111. The lid 113 is configured to be vertically penetrable by a perforator provided in the measuring device 32, the smear preparation device 52, and the analysis device 62.

Returning to fig. 1, in the sample inspection system 1, the input device 11, the supply device 20, the two transport devices 31, the transport device 12, the sample rearranging device 40, the transport device 51, the transport device 61, the sample storage device 70, and the recovery device 13 are arranged in a row so as to be adjacent to each other in this order in the left direction. In two adjacent devices, the stents 100 are delivered to each other.

The feeder 11, the feeder 20, the conveyor 31, the conveyor 12, the sample rearranging device 40, the conveyors 51, 61, the sample storage device 70, and the recovery device 13 are each provided with a rack transport path 1a for transporting the rack 100. The stent conveying path 1a is indicated by an arrow in fig. 1, and the direction of the arrow indicates the direction in which the stent 100 can be conveyed in the stent conveying path 1a. The rack transport paths 1a of the respective devices are connected to each other at front positions. The rack transport path 1a is constituted by a transport belt that moves in the left-right direction, a plate member whose upper surface is parallel to the horizontal plane, and the like.

In the case of the configuration shown in fig. 1, the operator sets the container 110 containing the sample to be inspected in the rack 100, and sets the rack 100 in the loading device 11. Thereby, the stent 100 is conveyed along the stent conveying path 1a, and the sample is sucked by the target device according to the inspection item set for the sample, and the sample is inspected. When all the required examinations are completed, the rack 100 is retrieved by the retrieving means 13.

The conveyance of the rack 100 from the loading device 11 to the recovery device 13 will be described with reference to fig. 1.

The loading device 11 feeds the rack 100 loaded by the operator to the supply device 20.

The feeder 20 reads the rack ID and the sample ID from the rack 100 fed from the feeder 11, and feeds the rack ID and the sample ID to the left-side adjacent conveyor 31. The supply device 20 holds a container 110 containing a quality control sample and a container 110 containing a cleaning solution. The accuracy control sample is a sample containing a known component at a known concentration, and is used to control the measurement accuracy of a sample collected from a subject. Hereinafter, the sample is merely expressed as a "sample", and this sample represents a sample collected from a subject. The cleaning liquid is used to clean a predetermined portion of each device. A barcode indicating an ID capable of identifying the quality control sample is also printed on the barcode label 112 of the container 110 containing the quality control sample, and a barcode indicating an ID capable of identifying the cleaning solution is also printed on the barcode label 112 of the container 110 containing the cleaning solution. The ID of the accuracy control sample and the cleaning liquid are also read in the same manner as the sample ID.

The supply device 20 sends the rack 100 of the container 110 holding the sample, the rack 100 of the container 110 holding the precision-controlled sample, and the rack 100 of the container 110 holding the cleaning liquid to the left-hand adjacent conveying device 31.

The conveyor 31 conveys the rack 100 fed from the device adjacent to the right to the front of the measuring device 32. The measurement device 32 sucks the sample and the accuracy control sample from the container 110 held by the rack 100, and counts particles of blood cells contained in the sample and the accuracy control sample. The control device 33 analyzes the sample and the accuracy management sample based on the measurement data obtained by each measurement device 32. The measuring device 32 sucks the cleaning liquid from the container 110 held by the transported rack 100, and cleans the inside.

In the case of holding the rack 100 containing the sample-containing containers 110, when the measurement device 32 ends the desired measurement, the rack 100 is sent out to the device adjacent to the left. In the case of holding the rack 100 in which the containers 110 for storing the quality control samples or the cleaning solutions are stored, when the necessary processing is completed in each measuring device 32, the rack 100 is conveyed in the rightward direction and stored in the supply device 20.

The rack 100 fed from the right-side adjacent conveyor 31 is conveyed backward by the conveyor 12, and is fed out to the sample rearranging device 40 at a backward position.

The sample rearranging device 40 transfers the containers 110 to be processed in the sample processing device, i.e., the smear preparation device 52 and/or the analysis device 62 at the subsequent stage, from the rack 100 fed from the transport device 12 to the empty rack 100 held by the sample rearranging device 40. The sample rearranging device 40 conveys the rack 100 holding the transferred containers 110 forward, and sends out to the left-hand adjacent conveying device 51 at a forward position. The sample rearranging device 40 conveys the rack 100, which holds the containers 110 that are not transferred to the rack 100 without requiring the processing in the sample processing device at the subsequent stage, forward, and sends the rack to the conveying device 51 adjacent to the left at the forward position. All of the containers 110 are transferred and the empty rack 100 is held by the sample rearranging device 40.

The transport device 51 transports the rack 100 holding the container 110 that is required to be processed in the smear preparation device 52, among the racks 100 fed from the sample rearrangement device 40 adjacent to the right, to the front of the smear preparation device 52. The smear preparation apparatus 52 sucks a sample from the container 110 held by the transported rack 100, and prepares a smear. The conveyor 51 feeds the rack 100, which has been subjected to the processing in the smear preparation apparatus 52, to the left-side adjacent conveyor 61. The transport device 51 does not transport the rack 100 holding only the containers 110 that do not require the smear preparation device 52 to prepare the smear, but sends the containers to the transport device 61 adjacent to the left, to the front of the smear preparation device 52.

The conveyor 61 conveys the rack 100 holding the containers 110 that need to be processed in the analyzer 62, among the racks 100 fed from the conveyor 51 adjacent to the right, to the front of the analyzer 62. The analysis device 62 is, for example, a device capable of measuring measurement items such as CRP, hbA1c, and ESR. The analyzer 62 suctions a sample from the container 110 held by the transported rack 100, and analyzes the sample. The transport device 61 sends the rack 100, which has been processed by the analysis device 62, to the sample storage device 70 adjacent to the left. The transport device 51 does not transport the rack 100 holding only the containers 110 that do not need to be analyzed by the analyzer 62 to the front of the analyzer 62, but feeds the rack to the sample storage device 70 adjacent to the left.

The sample storage device 70 conveys the rack 100 fed from the conveyor 61 adjacent to the right to a lifting position P25 described later in the sample storage device 70, and transfers the container 110 held by the rack 100 to an filing rack 130 described later in the sample storage device 70. The sample storage device 70 sends out the empty rack 100 to the right-side adjacent conveyor 61 or the left-side adjacent recovery device 13.

The collection device 13 conveys and stores the empty rack 100 fed from the sample storage device 70 adjacent to the right in the rear direction.

The conveyance control device 80 determines the conveyance destination of the stent 100 and controls each device that conveys the stent 100 so as to convey the stent 100 to the determined conveyance destination.

Fig. 3 is a plan view schematically showing the structure of the supply device 20.

The supply device 20 includes a storage unit 21, a heating unit 22, a tray 23, a cleaning liquid holder 24, a precision control sample holder 25, a container transfer mechanism 26, a reading unit 27, and a reader 28. The supply device 20 includes, as a configuration for conveying the stent 100, a feeding path 201, a stent storage 211, a conveying path 231, a stent storage 241, a feeding path 251, and the like, as will be described later.

The container 110 for storing the quality control sample is held in a hole 21b of a heat conduction member 21a formed in the storage section 21. The storage unit 21 cools and stores the container 110 held in the hole 21 b.

The heating portion 22 includes an aluminum block heater, and a plurality of holes 22a capable of holding the container 110 are formed in the front-rear direction in the aluminum block heater. The heating unit 22 heats the container 110 held in the hole 22a as needed. The sample for quality control in the container 110 is kept at room temperature in a state where the container 110 is held in the hole 22a.

The tray 23 is provided with a cleaning liquid holder 24 and a precision control sample holder 25. The cleaning liquid holder 24 has a plurality of holes 24a for holding the container 110 containing the cleaning liquid. The accuracy control sample holder 25 has a plurality of holes 25a formed therein for holding the containers 110 containing the accuracy control samples. The tray 23 is configured to be movable in the front-rear direction. The operator pulls the tray 23 forward, sets the container 110 containing the cleaning liquid in the hole 24a, and sets the container 110 containing the quality control sample in the hole 25a.

The container transfer mechanism 26 has a structure for holding and transferring the container 110. The container transfer mechanism 26 takes out the container 110 containing the quality control sample from the hole 21b of the storage unit 21, and stores the taken-out container 110 in the hole 22a of the heating unit 22. The container transfer mechanism 26 takes out the container 110 held in the hole 22a of the heating unit 22, and accommodates the taken-out container 110 in the hole 101 of the holder 100 positioned at the transfer position 223. The container transfer mechanism 26 takes out the container 110 containing the cleaning solution from the hole 24a of the cleaning solution holder 24, and accommodates the taken-out container 110 in the hole 101 of the holder 100 positioned at the transfer position 223. In this way, the rack 100 holding the container 110 containing the quality control sample or the cleaning liquid is sent out to the left-side adjacent conveyor 31.

The rack 100 holding the container 110 containing the quality control sample or the cleaning solution is returned to the supply device 20 at the end of the subsequent process, and is positioned at the transfer position 223. The container transfer mechanism 26 takes out the container 110 containing the quality control sample from the rack 100 positioned at the transfer position 223, and stores the container 110 in the hole 21b of the storage unit 21, and takes out the container 110 containing the cleaning solution, and stores the container in the hole 24a of the cleaning solution rack 24. The container transfer mechanism 26 takes out the container 110 containing the quality control sample from the quality control sample holder 25, and stores the taken-out container 110 in the hole 21b of the storage unit 21.

The feeding path 201 conveys the rack 100 fed from the feeder 11 in the left direction. The conveying mechanism 202 conveys the stent 100 on the feeding path 201 to the stent storage section 211. The conveying mechanism 212 conveys the stent 100 on the stent storage section 211 to the conveying path 231.

The conveying mechanism 222 pulls the stent 100 located at the right end of the conveying path 231 toward the stent storage section 221, and conveys the stent 100 on the stent storage section 221 to the conveying path 231. As described above, the container 110 containing the quality control sample or the cleaning liquid is taken out and stored in the rack 100 positioned at the transfer position 223 in front of the rack storage unit 221.

The conveying path 231 conveys the stent 100 conveyed from the stent storage sections 211, 221 in the left-right direction. When the rack 100 is positioned at the left end of the conveyance path 231, the reading unit 27 reads the rack ID and the sample ID from the rack 100 on the conveyance path 231. The reading unit 27 includes two moving portions 27a that move in the left-right direction. The moving unit 27a includes: a drive roller 27b for rotating the container 110 held by the holder 100 in the circumferential direction; two driven rollers 27c of the container 110 are rotatably pressed from opposite sides of the driving roller 27b; and a reader 27d that reads the sample ID from the container 110 sandwiched by the driving roller 27b and the driven roller 27 c. The bar code is reliably read by rotating the container 110 in the hole 101 with the drive roller 27b about the vertical direction as the rotation axis. The rack ID is read by the reader 27d on the left side. The reader 27d is a bar code reader.

The conveying mechanism 232 conveys the stent 100 positioned at the left end of the conveying path 231 to the stent storage section 241. The conveying mechanism 242 conveys the stent 100 on the stent storage section 241 to the delivery path 251. The delivery path 251 delivers the stent 100 delivered from the stent storage section 241 to the left-side adjacent delivery device 31. At this time, the reader 28 reads the stent ID of the sent stent 100. The reader 28 is a bar code reader.

The conveying path 261 conveys the stent 100 sent out from the conveying device 31 adjacent to the left in the rightward direction. The conveying mechanism 202 conveys the stent 100 positioned at the right end of the conveying path 261 to the stent storage section 211 through the feeding path 201.

Fig. 4 and 5 are plan views schematically showing the structure of a sample rearranging device 40 for rearranging samples. Fig. 4 and 5 are diagrams showing the first layer and the second layer of the sample rearranging device 40, respectively. Fig. 6 is a perspective view schematically showing the appearance of the sample rearranging device 40. As shown in fig. 6, the sample rearranging device 40 has a 2-layer structure. The inside of the sample rearranging device 40 is divided into an upper layer 48 and a lower layer 49 by a partition 47 constituting the bottom surface of the second layer and the top plate of the first layer. The first layer 48 and the second layer 49 overlap in plan view. The partition 47 is provided with an opening 47a for passing one bracket 100. In addition to the opening 47a, an opening, a cutout, or the like may be provided in the partition plate 47. The first layer 48 and the second layer 49 may be formed by disposing a frame constituting the second layer 49 on a frame constituting the first layer 48, instead of the separator 47.

Referring to fig. 4, the first stage of the sample rearranging apparatus 40 includes a reading unit 41, a lifting mechanism 42, a reader 43, a feeding path 301, a sensor 302, a conveying mechanism 303, an intermediate path 304, an opening 305, a connecting portion 306, a relay portion 307, a rack standby area 311, sensors 312 to 318, conveying mechanisms 319 to 322, a feeding path 331, a sensor 332, a feeding path 341, and a sensor 342.

The transporting device 12 located adjacent to the right side of the sample rearranging device 40 transports the rack 100 rearward, and the rack 100 is transported out to the sample rearranging device 40 at the rearward position.

The feeding path 301 extends in the left-right direction and is disposed on the rear side of the sample rearranging device 40. The feeding path 301 is constituted by a conveyor belt that moves in the left-right direction, and conveys the rack 100 fed from the conveyor 12 in the left direction. The rack 100 is fed into the feeding path 301 along the longitudinal direction (left-right direction) of the rack 100. The sensor 302 is a transmission-type photoelectric sensor, and detects the stent 100 positioned at the feeding position P11 on the feeding path 301. The reading unit 41 reads the rack ID and the sample ID from the rack 100 positioned at the feeding position P11.

The reading unit 41 includes two moving portions 41a that move in the left-right direction. The moving unit 41a includes: a drive roller 41b for rotating the container 110 held by the holder 100 in the circumferential direction; two driven rollers 41c of the container 110 are rotatably pressed from opposite sides of the driving roller 41b; and a reader 41d that reads the sample ID from the container 110 sandwiched by the driving roller 41b and the driven roller 41 c. The bar code is reliably read by rotating the container 110 in the hole 101 with the drive roller 41b about the vertical direction as the rotation axis. The rack ID is read by the reader 41d on the left side. The reader 41d is a bar code reader.

The conveying mechanism 303 includes a member for pressing the side surface of the rack 100, conveys the rack 100 at the feeding position P11 in the short side direction (front-rear direction) of the rack 100, and conveys the rack to the lifting position P12 and the rack standby area 311 of the lifting mechanism 42 via the intermediate path 304.

The intermediate path 304, the connection portion 306, the relay portion 307, and the stand-by area 311 are each constituted by a plate member having an upper surface parallel to the horizontal plane. The intermediate path 304 and the stand-by area 311 are connected to each other via the connection portion 306. A connection portion 306, a relay portion 307, and a lifting position P12 of the lifting mechanism 42 are disposed between the intermediate path 304 and the stand-by area 311.

The intermediate path 304 is disposed between the feeding position P11 and the lifting position P12, which is the arrangement position of the rack 100 in the first layer. The width of the intermediate path 304 in the front-rear direction is substantially the same as the width of one bracket 100 in the front-rear direction (short-side direction). That is, the elevation position P12 is provided in the front side with respect to the feeding path 301 so as to be spaced apart by the width of one rack 100 in the front-rear direction.

The rack standby area 311 is an area where the rack 100 is standby when the rack 100 stays in the left-side adjacent conveyor 51 or the right-side adjacent conveyor 12 and the rack 100 cannot be fed out from the feeding position P13 or the feeding position P14, and is a transfer path for transferring the rack 100 from the lifting position P12 to the feeding position P13. The stand-by area 311 is a rectangular area having a long side in the front-rear direction, and extends from the lifting position P12 to the front in the front-rear direction. The rack standby area 311 has a length in which 20 racks 100 are arranged in the short side direction between the lifting position P12 of the rack 100 in the first layer and the delivery position P13 at which the rack is delivered from the rack transport path 1a of the left-side apparatus.

The rack standby area 311 may have an area for standby of the racks 100, but from the viewpoint of reducing the installation area of the sample inspection system 1, it is preferable to have an area for standby of 10 or more, more preferably 15 or more, and still more preferably 20 or more racks 100. In addition, from the viewpoint of suppressing the length of the sample inspection system 1 in the front-rear direction, the rack standby area 311 may have an area for standby of not more than 50, preferably not more than 40, of the racks 100.

The elevating mechanism 42 is disposed between the intermediate path 304 and the stand-by area 311. The lifting mechanism 42 lifts the carriage 100 positioned at the lifting position P12 to the second floor. The conveying mechanism 303 positions the rack 100 on the feeding path 301 at the lifting position P12. The sensor 312 is a reflective photoelectric sensor, and detects the carriage 100 positioned at the raising and lowering position P12.

An opening 305 is formed between the intermediate path 304 and the stand-by area 311. The opening 305 is a hole penetrating a plate member constituting the intermediate path 304, the connection portion 306, and the stand-by area 311 in the up-down direction. The connection 306 is located to the right of the opening 305. The relay 307 is disposed at the left end in the opening 305. The lower surface of the stand 100 positioned at the lifting position P12 is supported by the connecting portion 306 and the relay portion 307. The support portion 42a of the elevating mechanism 42 is housed in the opening 305 in a plan view, and is shaped so as not to interfere with the connecting portion 306 and the relay portion 307.

When the rack 100 is lifted from the first floor to the second floor, the lifting mechanism 42 positions the support portion 42a in advance at a position lower than the rack standby area 311. After that, when the rack 100 is conveyed to the lifting position P12, which is the position of the upper surfaces of the connection portion 306 and the relay portion 307, the lifting mechanism 42 moves the support portion 42a upward, thereby placing the rack 100 on the upper surface of the support portion 42a and lifting the rack 100 to the second floor. In the second layer, as described later, the containers 110 held by the holder 100 are rearranged. When the rearrangement of the containers 110 is completed, the lifting mechanism 42 moves the supporting portion 42a downward, and is positioned at a position lower than the rack standby area 311. Thereby, the stand 100 is positioned at the lifting position P12, which is the position of the upper surfaces of the connection portion 306 and the relay portion 307.

The rack 100 at the lifting position P12 is conveyed in the short side direction (front-rear direction) of the rack 100 along the rack standby area 311 toward the front of the sample rearranging device 40. The carriage 100 returned to the lifting position P12 is conveyed forward of the lifting position P12 by the conveying mechanism 303. In the case where the rearranged rack 100 is not required, the rack is positioned at the lifting position P12, and then is conveyed forward of the lifting position P12 without being moved to the second floor.

At the end of reading the rack 100 at the feeding position P11 by the reading unit 41, in the case where there is no rack 100 at the lifting position P12 and there is no rack 100 lifted to the second floor by the lifting mechanism 42, the conveying mechanism 303 positions the rack 100 at the feeding position P11 at the lifting position P12. When the reading unit 41 finishes reading the rack 100 at the feeding position P11, if the rack 100 returned from the second floor or the rack 100 which does not need to be raised to the second floor is positioned at the lifting position P12, the conveying mechanism 303 pushes out the rack 100 at the feeding position P11 forward, and conveys the rack 100 at the feeding position P11 and the rack 100 at the lifting position P12 together forward. Thereby, the carriage 100 at the feeding position P11 is positioned at the lifting position P12, and the carriage 100 at the lifting position P12 is conveyed forward of the lifting position P12.

When the reading of the rack 100 at the feeding position P11 by the reading unit 41 is completed, the conveying mechanism 303 may convey the rack 100 at the feeding position P11 to the front of the lifting position P12 at the lifting position P12 when it is not necessary to lift the rack 100 at the feeding position P11 to the second floor and the rack 100 is lifted to the second floor by the lifting mechanism 42.

The sensors 313 to 318 detect the rack 100 on the rack standby area 311. Based on the detection signals from the sensors 313 to 318, the retention state of the stent 100 in the stent standby area 311 is detected. The sensors 313, 314, 318 are reflective photoelectric sensors, and the sensors 315 to 317 are transmissive photoelectric sensors.

The conveying mechanisms 319 to 322 move the rack 100 conveyed forward of the lifting position P12 by the conveying mechanism 303 along the rack standby area 311 in the short side direction (front-rear direction) of the rack 100, and convey the rack to the delivery positions P13 and P14. At this time, the rack 100 at the delivery position P13 is appropriately standby at the delivery position P13 according to the processing condition on the rear stage side. The rack 100 at the delivery position P14 is appropriately standby at the delivery position P14 according to the processing condition on the front stage side.

The conveying mechanism 319 includes a member protruding upward from the upper surface of the rack standby area 311 and pressing the lower portion of the rack 100, and conveys the rack 100 conveyed forward of the lifting position P12 further forward. The conveying mechanism 320 includes a pair of members for pressing the side surfaces of the rack 100, and conveys the rack 100 conveyed forward by the conveying mechanism 319 further forward. The conveying mechanism 321 has the same structure as the conveying mechanism 319, and conveys the rack 100 conveyed forward by the conveying mechanism 320 further forward. The conveying mechanism 322 has the same configuration as the conveying mechanism 320, and conveys the rack 100 conveyed forward by the conveying mechanism 321 to the delivery path 331 or the delivery path 341. The reader 43 reads the rack ID of the rack 100 positioned near the front end of the rack standby area 311. The reader 43 is a bar code reader.

The feeding path 331 is configured by a conveyor belt that moves in the left-right direction, and feeds the rack 100 fed from the rack standby area 311 to the left-adjacent conveyor device 51. The sensor 332 is a transmission type photoelectric sensor, and detects the carriage 100 positioned at the delivery position P13 on the delivery path 331. The feeding path 341 is formed of a conveyor belt that moves in the left-right direction, and feeds the rack 100 fed from the left-side adjacent conveyor 51 and the rack 100 fed from the rack standby area 311 through the feeding path 331 to the right-side adjacent conveyor 12. The sensor 342 is a transmission-type photoelectric sensor, and detects the stent 100 positioned at the delivery position P14 on the delivery path 341.

Referring to fig. 5, the second stage of the sample rearranging device 40 includes a reader 44, a container transfer mechanism 45, a sensor 351, a transport mechanism 352, a rack storage 361, a rack setting unit 362, sensors 363 to 366, a transport mechanism 367, a sensor 368, a stopper 369, and a buffer rack 120.

The lifting mechanism 42 positions the rack 100 lifted from the lifting position P12 of the first floor at the lifting position P15, which is the arrangement position of the rack 100 in the second floor. The sensor 351 is a transmission-type photoelectric sensor, and detects the carriage 100 positioned at the lifting position P15. The reader 44 reads the rack ID of the rack 100 positioned at the lifting position P15. The reader 44 is a bar code reader.

The container transfer mechanism 45 is configured to be capable of transferring the container 110 between the rack 100 and the buffer rack 120. The container transfer mechanism 45 transfers the container 110 from the rack 100, which is transferred from the lifting position P12 of the first floor to the lifting position P15 of the second floor by the lifting mechanism 42, to the buffer rack 120 disposed on the second floor. The container transfer mechanism 45 rearranges the containers 110 using the buffer rack 120 so that the containers 110 held by the rack 100 are only containers 110 containing samples that need to be processed in the devices of the subsequent stage (the smear preparation apparatus 52 and the analysis apparatus 62) or only containers 110 containing samples that do not need to be processed in the devices of the subsequent stage. When the rearrangement of the containers 110 is completed, the lifting mechanism 42 lowers the rack 100 at the lifting position P15 to the first level, and positions it at the lifting position P12.

The conveying mechanism 352 includes a member for pressing the side surface of the rack 100, and conveys the rack 100 at the lifting position P15 to the rack storage 361. When all the containers 110 are transferred from the rack 100 positioned at the lifting position P15 to the buffer rack 120, the rack 100 becomes a rack 100 (hereinafter, referred to as an "empty rack") that does not hold the containers 110. In this case, the conveying mechanism 352 conveys the empty rack emptied at the lifting position P15 to the rack storage 361.

The rack storage portion 361 and the rack installation portion 362 are each constituted by a rear side portion and a front side portion of the plate member, the upper surface of which is parallel to the horizontal plane. The plate members constituting the rack storage portion 361 and the rack mount portion 362 extend from the rear to the front in the front-rear direction. The upper side of the holder installation portion 362 is opened to the outside through an opening provided in the housing of the sample rearranging device 40.

The sensors 363, 364 detect the rack 100 on the rack storage 361. Based on the detection signals of the sensors 363 and 364, the storage state of the empty stent on the stent storage section 361 is detected. The sensor 363 is a reflective photosensor, and the sensor 364 is a transmissive photosensor. The sensors 365, 366 detect the stent 100 on the stent placement portion 362. The installation state of the empty stent on the stent installation part 362 is detected based on the detection signals of the sensors 365, 366. The sensors 365, 366 are transmissive photosensors.

The conveying mechanism 367 includes a pair of members for pressing the side surfaces of the rack 100, and conveys the rack 100 on the rack storage portion 361 and the rack mounting portion 362 in the front-rear direction. The sensor 368 is a transmission type photoelectric sensor, and detects that the transport mechanism 367 is positioned at the origin position. When the conveying mechanism 367 moves the transfer portion of the conveying mechanism 367 to the foremost position, the transfer portion is positioned at the sensor 368. The sensor 368 detects the transfer portion, and thereby detects that the transport mechanism 367 is positioned at the origin position.

The buffer rack 120 has a plurality of holes 121 formed therein for holding the containers 110 containing the samples. In the cushioning material 120 of fig. 5, a total of 60 holes 121 are formed in a lattice shape, with 6 rows in the front-rear direction and 10 columns in the left-right direction. When the buffer rack 120 holds a predetermined number N of containers 110, or when a predetermined time T has elapsed after the buffer rack 120 has received the first sample, the containers 110 are transferred from the buffer rack 120 to the rack 100 at the lifting position P15 so that only the containers 110 having the same destination are held by the rack 100. The predetermined number N can be set in a range of 1 to 10 via the display input unit 813 (see fig. 17), for example. The predetermined time T can be set in a range of 1 to 30 minutes via the display input unit 813, for example.

When the rack 100 is not present at the lifting position P15 during the transfer from the buffer rack 120 to the rack 100, the conveying mechanism 367 presses the front surface of the forefront empty rack among the empty racks stored in the rack storage 361 and the rack installation 362, and pushes out the rearmost empty rack among the empty racks stored in the rack storage 361 and the rack installation 362 to the lifting position P15. At this time, the stopper 369 protrudes upward from the upper surface of the rack storage 361, thereby separating the rearmost empty rack from the front-adjacent empty rack of the rearmost empty rack. Thereafter, the container 110 of the buffer rack 120 is transferred to the empty rack positioned at the lifting position P15 by the container transfer mechanism 45.

When the transfer of the container 110 to the rack 100 at the lifting position P15 is completed, the rack 100 is transferred to the lifting position P12 of the first floor by the lifting mechanism 42, and is sent out to the left-side adjacent conveyor 51 or the right-side adjacent conveyor 12.

If the number of empty racks stored in the rack storage 361 is equal to or less than a predetermined number, the transport control device 80 controls each device so that the racks 100, in which all the containers 110 are taken out and empty in the sample storage device 70, are transported to the sample rearrangement device 40 via the transport device 12. The sample rearranging device 40 conveys the empty rack fed from the conveying device 12 to the rack storage section 361 of the second layer.

The operator can set the empty stent in the stent setting section 362 that is open to the outside in the upper direction with reference to the notification of the empty stent shortage displayed in the display input section 813 (see fig. 17). The conveying mechanism 367 appropriately conveys the empty rack set in the rack setting section 362 by the operator to the rack storage section 361 and the lifting position P15.

When the conveying mechanism 367 conveys the empty rack to the lifting position P15, the number of empty racks stored in the rack storage 361 and the rack setting 362 is detected based on the number of steps of the stepping motor from the driving position when the empty rack is positioned at the lifting position P15 to the origin position detected by the sensor 368. The number of steps of the stepping motor is counted by a rotary encoder or the like.

Fig. 7 and 8 are plan views schematically showing the structure of a sample storage device 70 for storing a sample. Fig. 7 and 8 are diagrams showing the first layer and the second layer of the sample storage device 70, respectively. Fig. 9 is a perspective view schematically showing the appearance of the sample storage device 70. As shown in fig. 9, the sample storage device 70 has a 2-layer structure similar to the sample rearranging device 40. The inside of the sample storage device 70 is divided into two upper and lower layers by a partition 77 constituting the bottom surface of the second layer and the top plate of the first layer, the lower layer being the first layer 78 and the upper layer being the second layer 79. The first layer 78 and the second layer 79 overlap in plan view. An opening 77a for passing one bracket 100 is provided in the partition 77. In addition to the opening 77a, an opening, a cutout, or the like may be provided in the partition 77. The first layer 78 and the second layer 79 may be formed by disposing a frame constituting the second layer 79 on a frame constituting the first layer 78, instead of the separator 77.

Referring to fig. 7, the first layer of the sample storage device 70 includes a reading unit 71, a lifting mechanism 72, a reader 73, a feeding path 401, a sensor 402, a conveying mechanism 403, a transfer path 411, sensors 412 to 416, conveying mechanisms 417 and 418, a feeding path 421, a sensor 422, a conveying mechanism 423, an intermediate path 424, an opening 425, a connecting portion 426, a relay portion 427, a stand-by area 431, sensors 432 to 438, conveying mechanisms 439 to 442, a feeding path 451, a sensor 452, a feeding path 461, and a sensor 462.

The transport device 61 located adjacent to the right side of the sample rearranging device 40 feeds out the rack 100 to the sample storage device 70 at a front position along the rack transport path 1a (see fig. 1) in front.

The feeding path 401 is constituted by a conveyor belt that moves in the left-right direction, and conveys the rack 100 fed from the conveyor 61 in the left direction. The sensor 402 is a transmission-type photoelectric sensor, and detects the stent 100 positioned at the feeding position P21 on the feeding path 401. The conveying mechanism 403 includes a member for pressing the side surface of the rack 100, and conveys the rack 100 at the feeding position P21 to the transfer path 411.

The transfer path 411 is formed of a plate member having an upper surface parallel to a horizontal plane, and extends from the front of the sample storage device 70 to the rear in the front-rear direction. The sensors 412 to 416 detect the rack 100 on the transfer path 411. Based on the detection signals from the sensors 412 to 416, the state of retention of the rack 100 on the transfer path 411 is detected. The sensors 412 to 416 are transmissive photosensors.

The conveying mechanisms 417 and 418 move the rack 100 along the transfer path 411 in the short side direction (front-rear direction) of the rack 100, and convey the rack to the feeding path 421. The conveying mechanism 417 includes a pair of members for pressing the side surfaces of the rack 100, and conveys the rack 100 on the conveying path 411 to the position of the sensor 415. The conveying mechanism 418 includes a member protruding upward from the upper surface of the transfer path 411 and pressing the lower portion of the rack 100, and conveys the rack 100 at the position of the sensor 415 to the right end of the feed path 421.

The reading unit 71 reads the rack ID and the sample ID from the rack 100 positioned at the right end of the feeding path 421. The reading unit 71 has the same structure as the reading unit 41 of fig. 4. The reading unit 71 includes two moving portions 71a, and the moving portion 71a includes a driving roller 71b, two driven rollers 71c, and a reader 71d. The reader 71d is a bar code reader.

The feeding path 421 extends in the left-right direction and is disposed at the rear side of the sample storage device 70. The feeding path 421 is formed of a conveyor belt that moves in the left-right direction, and transfers the rack 100 transferred from the transfer path 411 in the left direction. The sensor 422 is a transmission type photoelectric sensor, and detects the stent 100 positioned at the left end of the feeding path 421. The conveying mechanism 423 includes a member for pressing the side surface of the rack 100, and conveys the rack 100 at the left end of the feeding path 421 to the rack standby area 431 via the intermediate path 424.

The intermediate path 424, the opening 425, the connection 426, the relay 427, the rack standby area 431, the sensors 432 to 438, the conveyance mechanisms 439 to 442, the elevating mechanism 72, and the reader 73 are configured in the same manner as the intermediate path 304, the opening 305, the connection 306, the relay 307, the rack standby area 311, the sensors 312 to 318, the conveyance mechanisms 319 to 322, the elevating mechanism 42, and the reader 43 in fig. 4, respectively. The width of the intermediate path 424 in the front-rear direction is substantially the same as the width of one bracket 100 in the front-rear direction (short-side direction).

The rack standby area 431 is an area where the rack 100 is standby when the rack 100 stays in the left-side adjacent collecting device 13 or the right-side adjacent conveying device 61 and the rack 100 cannot be conveyed out from the conveying position P23 or the conveying position P24, and is a conveying path for conveying the rack 100 from the lifting position P22 to the conveying position P23. The rack standby area 431 is a rectangular area having a long side in the front-rear direction, and extends forward in the front-rear direction from the lifting position P22, which is the arrangement position of the rack 100 in the first layer. The rack standby area 431 has a length in which 20 racks 100 are arranged in the short side direction between the lifting position P22 of the rack 100 in the first layer and the delivery position P23 delivered from the rack transport path 1a of the left-side apparatus.

The rack standby area 431 may have an area for standby of the racks 100, but from the viewpoint of reducing the installation area of the sample inspection system 1, it is preferable to have an area for standby of 10 or more, more preferably 15 or more, and still more preferably 20 or more racks 100. In addition, from the viewpoint of suppressing the length of the sample inspection system 1 in the front-rear direction, the rack standby area 431 may have an area for standby of not more than 50, preferably not more than 40, of the racks 100.

The lifting mechanism 72 moves the support 100 up and down by moving the support portion 72a that supports the lower surface of the support 100 up and down.

The rack 100 sent out from the feeding path 421 is positioned at the lifting position P22 via the intermediate path 424, and the rack 100 positioned at the lifting position P22 is transferred to the second floor by the lifting mechanism 72. In the second layer, as described later, the container 110 held by the stent 100 is taken out from the stent 100 and stored. Thereby, the stent 100 transferred to the second layer becomes an empty stent. When the storage of the container 110 is completed, the lifting mechanism 72 lowers the rack 100 positioned at the second floor to the first floor and positions it again at the lifting position P22.

The rack 100 at the lifting position P22 is conveyed in the short side direction (front-rear direction) of the rack 100 along the rack standby area 431 toward the front of the sample storage device 70. The rack 100 returned to the lifting position P22 is conveyed forward of the lifting position P22 by the conveying mechanism 423.

When the rack 100 reaches the left end of the feeding path 421, the conveying mechanism 423 positions the rack 100 located at the left end of the feeding path 421 at the lifting position P22 in a case where there is no rack 100 at the lifting position P22 and no rack 100 lifted to the second floor by the lifting mechanism 72. When the rack 100 reaches the left end of the feeding path 421, the conveying mechanism 423 pushes out the rack 100 positioned at the left end of the feeding path 421 forward to convey the rack 100 positioned at the left end of the feeding path 421 and the rack 100 positioned at the lifting position P22 together when the rack 100 returned from the second floor or the rack 100 not required to be lifted to the second floor is positioned at the lifting position P22. Thereby, the rack 100 positioned at the left end of the feeding path 421 is positioned at the lifting position P22, and the rack 100 at the lifting position P22 is conveyed forward of the lifting position P22.

The conveying mechanisms 439 to 442 move the empty rack conveyed forward of the lifting position P22 by the conveying mechanism 423 in the short side direction (front-rear direction) of the rack 100 along the rack standby area 431, and convey the empty rack to the delivery positions P23, P24. At this time, the rack 100 at the delivery position P23 is appropriately standby at the delivery position P23 according to the processing condition on the rear stage side. The rack 100 at the delivery position P24 is appropriately standby at the delivery position P24 according to the processing condition on the front stage side. The reader 73 reads the rack ID from the rack 100 positioned near the front end of the rack standby area 431. The reader 73 is a bar code reader.

The delivery path 451 is configured by a conveyor belt that moves in the left-right direction, and delivers the rack 100 delivered from the rack standby area 431 to the left-adjacent recovery device 13. The sensor 452 is a transmission type photoelectric sensor, and detects the stent 100 positioned at the delivery position P23 on the delivery path 451. The delivery path 461 is constituted by a conveyor belt moving in the left-right direction, and delivers the rack 100 delivered from the left-side adjacent collecting device 13 and the rack 100 delivered from the rack standby area 431 through the delivery path 451 to the right-side adjacent conveying device 61. The sensor 462 is a transmission type photoelectric sensor, and detects the carriage 100 positioned at the feeding position P24 at the right end of the feeding path 461. The conveying mechanism 403 may convey the rack 100 positioned at the delivery position P24 to the transfer path 411.

Referring to fig. 8, the second stage of the sample storage device 70 includes a container transfer mechanism 74, a tray 75, an filing holder 130, a sensor 471, and a take-out unit 472.

The lifting mechanism 72 positions the rack 100 lifted from the lifting position P22 of the first floor at the lifting position P25, which is the arrangement position of the rack 100 in the second floor. The sensor 471 is a transmission type photoelectric sensor, and detects the carriage 100 positioned at the raising and lowering position P25.

The container transfer mechanism 74 is configured to be capable of transferring the container 110 between the rack 100 and the filing rack 130. The container transfer mechanism 74 transfers the container 110 from the rack 100 transferred from the first layer to the second layer by the lifting mechanism 72 to the filing rack 130 disposed on the second layer. The container transfer mechanism 74 takes out all the containers 110 from the rack 100 positioned at the lifting position P25, and stores the taken-out containers 110 in the filing rack 130. After all the containers 110 are taken out from the rack 100, the lifting mechanism 72 moves the empty rack 100 to the lifting position P22 of the first floor. The empty rack returned to the first layer is transported to the recovery device 13 or the sample rearranging device 40.

The filing holder 130 is detachably provided on a tray 75 that can be pulled out to the front of the sample storage device 70. The filing holder 130 has a plurality of holes 131 capable of holding the sample-containing containers 110. In the filing holder 130 of fig. 8, a total of 50 holes 131 are formed in a lattice shape, with 10 rows in the front-rear direction and 5 columns in the left-right direction. In fig. 8, 5 trays 75 are provided in the left-right direction, and one tray 75 is configured to hold three filing holders 130 aligned in the front-rear direction. When an instruction to take out the tray 75 is input by the operator, the lock of the tray 75 to be set is released. This allows the operator to pull the target tray 75 forward and take out the target filing rack 130.

The extracting unit 472 is configured to be able to be pulled out to the front of the sample storage device 70. The removal portion 472 has a hole 472a capable of holding the container 110. The container transfer mechanism 74 is configured to be able to transfer the container 110 between the filing holder 130 and the takeout portion 472. When an operator inputs a predetermined instruction to take out the container 110 via the display input unit 823 (see fig. 18), the container 110 to be taken out is transferred from the filing holder 130 to the take-out unit 472 by the container transfer mechanism 74, and the take-out unit 472 is pushed forward. Thereby, the operator can take out the container 110 to be taken out from the take-out section 472.

Next, the structure of the container transfer mechanism 45 of the sample rearranging device 40 will be described with reference to fig. 10 to 15.

The container transfer mechanism 26 of the supply device 20 and the container transfer mechanism 74 of the sample storage device 70 are similar to the container transfer mechanism 45 of the sample rearranging device 40. That is, each of the container transfer mechanisms 26, 45, 74 includes the front-rear transfer portion 610, the left-right transfer portion 620, the up-down transfer portion 630, and the grip portion 640 shown in fig. 10 to 15. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, only the structure of the container transfer mechanism 45 will be explained.

Fig. 10 is a plan view schematically showing the structure of the container transfer mechanism 45 of the sample rearranging device 40. In fig. 10, for convenience of explanation, the structures other than the holder 100, the container 110, and the cushioning holder 120 are omitted from illustration.

The container transfer mechanism 45 includes a front-rear transfer portion 610, a left-right transfer portion 620, an upper-lower transfer portion 630, and a grip portion 640. The container transfer mechanism 45 moves one container 110 from the buffer rack 120 capable of holding a plurality of containers 110 using the grip portion 640.

The front-rear transfer portion 610 includes a motor and a rail extending in the front-rear direction, and transfers the left-right transfer portion 620 in the front-rear direction. The left and right transfer portions 620 include motors and rails extending in the left and right directions, and transfer the upper and lower transfer portions 630 in the left and right directions. The upper and lower transfer portion 630 includes a motor and a rail extending in the up-down direction, and transfers the grip portion 640 in the up-down direction. The holding portion 640 can be opened and closed, and can be moved in the vertical direction and in the horizontal direction by the front-rear transfer portion 610, the left-right transfer portion 620, and the up-down transfer portion 630. The vertical direction is synonymous with the up-down direction and the vertical direction. The holding portion 640 is configured to be capable of opening and closing operations, and holds the container 110.

Fig. 11 is a side view schematically showing the structure of the upper and lower transfer portions 630 and the grip portion 640.

The upper and lower transfer section 630 includes a substrate 631, a motor 632, pulleys 633, 634, a belt 635, and a rail 636.

The motor 632 is a stepping motor and is provided on the substrate 631. The pulley 633 is provided on a shaft of the motor 632 extending in the front-rear direction. Pulley 634 is provided below pulley 633 on substrate 631. The belt 635 is connected to pulleys 633, 634, and moves up and down by driving of a motor 632. The rail 636 extends in the up-down direction and is provided on the substrate 631.

The holding part 640 includes a connection member 641, a substrate 642, a motor 643, a conversion mechanism 644, and a pair of holding members 710 and 720.

The right end of the connection member 641 is fixed to the belt 635. When the belt 635 moves in the up-down direction, the connection member 641 moves in the up-down direction while being supported by the rail 636. The connection member 641 is fixed to the substrate 642.

The motor 643 is a stepping motor and is provided on the substrate 642. The rotation shaft of the motor 643 extends in the up-down direction. The conversion mechanism 644 is provided on the substrate 642, and the holding members 710 and 720 are provided on the conversion mechanism 644. The conversion mechanism 644 is configured to convert the rotation direction of the motor 643 into a direction in which the grip member 710 approaches and separates from the grip member 720. Therefore, when the motor 643 is driven, the holding member 710 approaches and separates from the holding member 710. As a result, as shown in fig. 11, the body 111 of the container 110 is gripped by the inner surface of the gripping member 710 and the inner surface of the gripping member 720.

Fig. 12 and 13 are perspective views showing the structure of the holding members 710 and 720. Fig. 12 is a view of the holding members 710, 720 from the front side, and fig. 13 is a view of the holding members 710, 720 from the rear side.

Referring to fig. 12, a thin plate portion 721, an opening 722, a pair of cutouts 723, a pair of protrusions 724, and a recess 725 are formed on the lower side of the holding member 720.

The thin plate portion 721 is configured to have a smaller thickness in the left-right direction than a portion above the grip member 720. The thickness of the thin plate portion 721 in the lateral direction is, for example, about several millimeters. The opening 722 is formed in the thin plate portion 721 so as to penetrate the thin plate portion 721 in the left-right direction. A pair of cutouts 723 are formed in the front end side surface and the rear end side surface of the lower end of the holding member 720, and are inclined to the vertical direction so as to approach each other as going downward. As shown in fig. 15, cutouts 726, 727 are formed in the right and left side surfaces of the lower end of the holding member 720, respectively, and the cutouts 726, 727 are inclined to the vertical direction so as to approach each other as going downward.

A pair of protrusions 724 are located below the opening 722 and are formed on the left side surface of the lower end of the thin plate portion 721. The pair of protrusions 724 are separated from each other in the front-rear direction, and have a ridge shape extending in the up-down direction. That is, the leftmost protruding portion of the protrusion 724 extends parallel to the up-down direction. A recess 725 is formed between the pair of protrusions 724. The concave portion 725 has the same shape as the side surface of the cylinder in which the bus bar extends in the up-down direction.

Referring to fig. 13, a thin plate portion 711, an opening 712, a pair of cutouts 713, a flat surface portion 714, a recess 715, and a stepped portion 716 are formed below the holding member 710.

The thin plate portion 711 is configured to have a smaller thickness in the left-right direction than a portion above the grip member 710. The thickness of the thin plate portion 711 in the lateral direction is, for example, about several millimeters, and is the same as that of the thin plate portion 721. The opening 712 is formed in the thin plate portion 711 so as to penetrate the thin plate portion 711 in the left-right direction. A pair of cutouts 713 are formed in the front end side surface and the rear end side surface of the lower end of the holding member 710, and are inclined to the vertical direction so as to approach each other as going downward. As shown in fig. 15, a notch 717 is formed in the left side surface of the lower end of the holding member 710. The slit 717 is inclined with respect to the up-down direction in such a manner as to approach the inner side surface as advancing in the down direction.

The flat surface portion 714 is located below the opening 712, and is formed on the right side surface of the lower end of the thin plate portion 711. The planar portion 714 is parallel to a plane formed by the front-rear direction and the up-down direction. A recess 715 is formed between the opening 712 and the planar portion 714. The concave portion 715 is parallel to the flat portion 714 and is located at a position offset to the left from the flat portion 714. The step 716 is formed between the flat surface 714 and the recess 715, and is parallel to a plane (horizontal surface) formed by the front-rear direction and the left-right direction.

Fig. 14 is a plan view schematically showing a state in which the holding members 710 and 720 hold the container 110.

Fig. 14 shows a cross section of the holding members 710, 720 taken in a plane parallel to the horizontal plane through the openings 712, 722. Fig. 14 shows a cross section of the container 110 taken along a plane parallel to the horizontal plane passing through a position where the body 111 of the container 110 contacts the holding members 710, 720. For convenience of explanation, the lid 113 of the container 110 is shown by a broken line.

When the holding members 710 and 720 hold the container 110, the holding members 710 and 720 are pinched from the left and right near the upper end of the body 111 of the container 110. At this time, the left end of the main body 111 is supported at a point on the boundary line between the flat surface 714 and the step 716, and the vicinity of the right end of the main body 111 is supported at a line in a ridge shape extending in the up-down direction of the protrusion 724.

In addition, the lid 113 of the container 110 is accommodated in the openings 712, 722 while the container 110 is held. In this way, when the cover 113 having a larger diameter than the body 111 is accommodated in the openings 712, 722, the width from the left side surface of the grip member 710 to the right side surface of the grip member 720 can be reduced.

Fig. 15 is a side view schematically showing a state in which the holding members 710 and 720 hold the container 110.

Fig. 15 shows a cross section of the holding members 710, 720 when the holding members 710, 720 are sectioned with a plane parallel to the vertical and horizontal directions passing through the central positions of the holding members 710, 720 in the front-rear direction. In fig. 15, the shape of the container 110 when the container is cut by a plane parallel to the vertical and horizontal directions passing through the central positions of the gripping members 710 and 720 in the front-rear direction is shown by a broken line.

The main body 111 of the container 110 shown in fig. 15 is configured to have a slightly smaller diameter as it proceeds downward. In the case where the diameter of the container 110 becomes smaller as it advances in the downward direction, if it is desired to hold the container 110 only by a line or plane parallel to the up-down direction, it is difficult to hold the container 110 appropriately so as not to move. In contrast, in the embodiment, a step 716 is provided between the flat surface 714 and the concave 715 on the gripping member 710 side, and a pair of protrusions 724 extending in the vertical direction are provided on the gripping member 720 side. Thus, the left side of the container 110 is supported by the position P31 on the boundary line between the flat surface 714 and the step 716, and the right side of the container 110 is supported by the position P32 of the protrusion 724. Position P31 is a point and position P32 is a line.

As shown in fig. 14, in a plan view, a portion of the holding member 710 that contacts the container 110 (a portion at the position P31) is positioned on a straight line that vertically divides a straight line connecting two portions of the holding member 720 that contact the container 110 (portions at the position P32) by 2. This enables the container 110 to be held stably.

As shown in fig. 15, in the up-down direction, the position P31 is located between the upper end P32a and the lower end P32b of the position P32. This can prevent the container 110 gripped by the gripping members 710 and 720 from rotating about the longitudinal direction.

Fig. 16 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the supply device 20.

The supply device 20 includes: a control unit 801, a storage unit 802, a display input unit 803, a communication unit 804, conveying mechanisms 202, 212, 222, 232, 242, other mechanisms 805, a sensor 806, a storage unit 21, a heating unit 22, a container transfer mechanism 26, a reading unit 27, and a reader 28.

The control unit 801 is constituted by, for example, a CPU. The control unit 801 controls each part of the hardware of the supply device 20 by executing a computer program stored in the storage unit 802. The storage unit 802 is constituted by SSD, HDD, RAM, for example. The display input unit 803 is constituted by, for example, a touch panel type display. The display input unit 803 may be divided into a display unit such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display, and an input unit such as a mouse or a keyboard. The communication unit 804 is constituted by, for example, a network card, and is communicably connected to the conveyance control device 80. Other mechanisms 805 include mechanisms for driving the conveyor belt within the supply device 20. The sensor 806 includes a sensor for detecting the stent 100 within the feeding device 20.

Fig. 17 is a block diagram showing the structure of the sample rearranging device 40.

The sample rearranging device 40 includes: the control unit 811, the storage unit 812, the display input unit 813, the communication unit 814, the conveying mechanisms 303, 319 to 322, 352, 367, the other mechanisms 815, the sensors 302, 312 to 318, 332, 342, 351, 363 to 366, 368, the reading unit 41, the elevating mechanism 42, the readers 43, 44, and the container transfer mechanism 45.

The control unit 811 is constituted by, for example, a CPU. The control unit 811 controls each part of the hardware of the sample rearranging device 40 by executing the computer program stored in the storage unit 812. The storage portion 812 is constituted by SSD, HDD, RAM, for example. The display input unit 813 is constituted by a touch panel type display, for example. The display input unit 813 can be divided into a display unit such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display, and an input unit such as a mouse or a keyboard. The communication unit 814 is constituted by, for example, a network card, and is communicably connected to the conveyance control device 80. Other mechanisms 815 include a mechanism for driving a conveyor belt within sample realignment device 40, a mechanism for driving stop 369.

Fig. 18 is a block diagram showing the structure of the sample storage device 70.

The sample storage device 70 includes: the control unit 821, the storage unit 822, the display input unit 823, the communication unit 824, the conveying mechanisms 403, 417, 418, 423, 439 to 442, the other mechanisms 825, the sensors 402, 412 to 416, 422, 432 to 438, 452, 462, 471, the reading unit 71, the elevating mechanism 72, the reader 73, and the container transfer mechanism 74.

The control unit 821 is constituted by, for example, a CPU. The control unit 821 controls each part of the hardware of the sample storage device 70 by executing the computer program stored in the storage unit 822. The storage unit 822 is constituted by SSD, HDD, RAM, for example. The display input unit 823 is constituted by, for example, a touch panel type display. The display input unit 823 may be divided into a display unit such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display, and an input unit such as a mouse or a keyboard. The communication unit 824 is constituted by, for example, a network card, and is communicably connected to the conveyance control device 80. Other mechanisms 825 include mechanisms for driving the conveyor belt within sample storage device 70.

However, in the sample inspection system 1, various kinds of containers 110 having different diameters can be used. In this case, the container 110 having a small diameter is easily held obliquely in the hole formed in the bracket. In order to remove the container in such a state from the holder, when the holding members 710 and 720 are lowered from above the container 110, the lower ends of the holding members 710 and 720 may collide with the upper portion of the container 110. In order to avoid this, when the holding members 710, 720 are lowered in a state of being opened more, there is a possibility that the lower ends of the holding members 710, 720 collide with other containers adjacent to the container. The above-described problem is more remarkable when the container 110 is held in close contact with the holder as much as possible in order to reduce the installation area of the apparatus.

In contrast, in the embodiment, the holding members 710 and 720 are lowered toward the position where the container 110 is not held in the opened state. The "position where the container 110 is not held" refers to, for example, a position outside the holder in a plan view, a position between two adjacent holes on the holder, a position of a hole on the holder where the container 110 is not held, a position between an outermost hole on the holder and an outer edge of the holder in a plan view, a position of an outer edge on the holder, and the like. That is, the position where the container 110 is not held refers to a position different from the position on the holder where the container 110 is held. Thereby, the lower ends of the holding members 710 and 720 are positioned lower than the head (the lid 113) of the container 110 held by the holder.

Then, the holding members 710 and 720 in the opened state are moved in the horizontal direction toward the target container 110. Then, the holding members 710 and 720 are brought into the closed state to hold the target container 110, and the holding members 710 and 720 are lifted to take out the target container 110. This allows the container 110 to be smoothly taken out.

When the holding members 710 and 720 are lowered, the holding members 710 and 720 may not necessarily be in an open state. That is, the holding members 710 and 720 may be lowered in the closed state, and then the holding members 710 and 720 may be opened to horizontally move.

With reference to fig. 19 to 30, an outline of the operation of the takeout container 110 and the operation of the storage container 110 will be described. In fig. 19 to 30, for convenience of explanation, a cushioning holder 120 is illustratively used as a holder for holding a plurality of containers 110.

Fig. 19 is a plan view schematically showing an example in which grip portion 640 is lowered to the outside of cushioning holder 120 in a plan view. Fig. 20 and 21 are side views schematically showing an example in which grip portion 640 is lowered to the outside of cushioning holder 120 in a plan view.

In fig. 19 to 21, a container 110 to be taken out is referred to as a container T1. Hereinafter, the center positions of the grip 640 and the grip members 710 and 720 in a plan view are referred to as positions of the grip 640 and the grip members 710 and 720. In fig. 19, at the time of the removal operation of the container 110, the position at which the grip 640 is moved downward is indicated by a downward triangle, the direction at which the grip 640 is moved downward in the horizontal direction is indicated by a bold arrow, and the position at which the grip 640 holding the container 110 is moved upward is indicated by an upward triangle.

In the example shown in fig. 19 to 21, first, the lower end 640a of the grip 640 is positioned above the upper end of the container T1, and further, the grip 640 is positioned behind the center position of the container T1 and outside the buffer holder 120 in plan view. As a result, as shown in position M11 in the take-out operation of fig. 19 and 20, the grip 640 is positioned at position P101. Next, as shown in position M12 in the take-out operation of fig. 19 and 20, at position P101, the grip 640 moves downward.

Next, as shown in the position M13 at the time of the taking-out operation in fig. 19 and 21, the grip 640 is horizontally moved forward and positioned at a position P102 corresponding to the center position of the container T1. Next, as shown in fig. 19, at the position P102, the holding members 710 and 720 are closed, and the container T1 is held by the holding members 710 and 720. Then, as shown in fig. 19 and position M14 at the time of the taking-out operation of fig. 21, the holding members 710, 720 are moved upward so that the lower end 640a of the container T1 is positioned higher than the lid 113 of the other container 110 held by the buffer holder 120. Thus, the removal operation of the container T1 is completed.

When the container T1 gripped by the gripping portion 640 is accommodated in the hole 121 of the buffer holder 120, the operation is performed in reverse to the above-described removal operation. That is, the holding portion 640 holding the container T1 is positioned above the position P102. Then, the grip 640 is lowered, and the grip 640 is opened. Thereby, the container T1 is accommodated in the hole 121. Next, the grip 640 in the open state is positioned at a position P101 outside the cushioning holder 120 in a plan view. Then, the grip 640 moves upward. In this way, the storage operation of the container T1 is completed.

Fig. 22 is a plan view schematically showing an example in which the grip portion 640 is lowered to a position between two adjacent holes 121 in the cushioning pad 120.

In the buffer bracket 120 shown in fig. 22, since the interval between the holes in the front-rear direction is wider than that in fig. 19, the grip 640 may be lowered at a position P111 between two holes 121 adjacent in the front-rear direction on the buffer bracket 120 as shown in fig. 22 instead of being lowered on the outside of the buffer bracket 120 as shown in fig. 19 to 21 during the taking-out operation. In this case, the subsequent removal operation is also similar to that of fig. 19 to 21. When the container T1 is stored by the grip 640, the operation is reversed to the removal operation.

In the taking-out operation, the grip 640 is preferably lowered at a wider position among positions between two holes 121 adjacent in the front-rear direction on the cushioning holder 120.

Fig. 23 is a plan view schematically showing an example in which the grip portion 640 is lowered to a wider position among positions between two adjacent holes 121 on the cushioning holder 120.

The container T2 is held in the hole 121 at the rear of the container T1, and the container T3 is held in the hole 121 at the rear of the container T2. In the example shown in fig. 23, the distance between the hole 121 holding the container T1 and the hole 121 holding the container T2 is d1, whereas the distance between the hole 121 holding the container T2 and the hole 121 holding the container T3 is d2 larger than d 1. In this case, the grip 640 is not lowered at the position P121 between the hole 121 of the container T1 and the hole 121 of the container T2, but the grip 640 is lowered at the position P122 between the hole 121 of the container T2 and the hole 121 of the container T3. This allows the grip 640 to descend smoothly. In this case, the subsequent removal operation is also similar to that of fig. 19 to 21. When the container T1 is stored by the grip 640, the operation is reversed to the removal operation.

In addition, at the time of the taking-out operation, the position where the holding members 710, 720 are lowered may be a position where the hole 121 of the buffer holder 120 does not hold the container 110.

Fig. 24 is a plan view schematically showing an example in which the grip portion 640 is lowered to a position on the cushioning holder 120 where the hole 121 of the container 110 is not held.

In the example shown in fig. 24, the container 110 is not held in the hole 121 at the position P131, and the grip 640 is lowered at the position P131. In this case, since there is no container 110 at the position P131, the grip 640 can be smoothly lowered at the position P131. In this case, the subsequent removal operation is also similar to that of fig. 19 to 21. When the container T1 is stored by the grip 640, the operation is reversed to the removal operation.

In addition, in the storage operation of the container T1, as shown in fig. 22, when the holding portion 640 in the opened state moves horizontally to the position P111 after the container T1 is stored at the position P102 and moves upward at the position P111, a part of the container T1 may be caught on the holding members 710 and 720, and the container T1 may be accidentally taken out from the hole 121. In this case, the accidental removal of the container T1 can be suppressed by the lifting operation of the grip 640 in which the open state is changed as described below.

Fig. 25 to 27 are side views schematically showing examples in which the grip portion 640 is raised stepwise during storage.

In the example shown in fig. 25 to 27, the container 110 is of a type having a label 113a on the lid portion 113. As shown in a position M21 at the time of the storage operation of fig. 25, after the container T1 is stored in the hole 121, the grip 640 is opened. Next, as shown in position M22 at the time of the storage operation in fig. 25, the grip 640 moves between the adjacent holes 121. Then, as shown in a position M23 at the time of the storing operation in fig. 26, the grip 640 moves upward. At this time, the label 113a of the cover 113 may be caught by the openings 712 and 722 of the grip 640 (see fig. 12). In this state, when the grip 640 moves further upward, the container T1 is accidentally pulled out of the hole 121.

In contrast, in the embodiment, first, as shown in position M23 at the time of the storage operation in fig. 26, the container 110 is lifted by a distance d11 that is higher than the depth d12 of the hole 121. The distance d11 is, for example, about one third of the entire length of the container 110 in the height direction. Thus, when the label 113a of the container T1 is caught by the grip portion 640, the container T1 is lifted upward to such an extent that it is not pulled out.

Next, as shown in a position M24 at the time of the storing operation in fig. 26, the grip 640 slightly moves backward (in a direction away from the container T1). As a result, as indicated by the broken arrow, the container T1 is detached from the grip 640 and is stored in the original hole 121. Thereafter, as shown in a position M25 at the time of the storing operation in fig. 27, the grip 640 moves upward. In fig. 27, the locus of the lower end 640a of the grip 640 at the positions M21 to M25 during the storage operation is indicated by a broken line. Thus, by raising the grip portion 640 stepwise, the container T1 can be prevented from being removed accidentally.

The process of the taking-out operation and the process of the storing operation will be described with reference to fig. 28 to 30.

In the embodiment, the control unit 801 of the supply device 20 controls the container transfer mechanism 26 so as to take out and store the container 110. The control unit 811 of the sample rearranging device 40 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so as to take out and store the samples from and into the containers 110. The control unit 821 of the sample storage device 70 controls the container transfer mechanism 74 so as to take out and store the sample in the container 110.

Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the processing performed by the control unit 811 of the sample rearranging device 40 will be described, but the processing performed by the other control units 801 and 821 is also the same. The container 110 to be taken out and the container 110 to be stored are set as a container T1.

Fig. 28 is a flowchart showing a process of the extraction operation.

In step S11, the control unit 811 of the sample rearranging device 40 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the holding unit 640 is moved downward to a position lower than the head (the lid 113) of the container 110 in a position where the container 110 is not held in a plan view. Thus, for example, at the position P101 in fig. 19, the position P111 in fig. 22, the position P122 in fig. 23, and the position P131 in fig. 24, the grip 640 moves downward. In step S12, the control unit 811 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the opened gripping portion 640 moves horizontally toward the target container T1 on the buffer rack 120. Thus, for example, the grip 640 moves horizontally to the position P102 in fig. 19 and 22 to 24.

In step S13, the control unit 811 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the gripping unit 640 is closed with respect to the target container T1. Thereby, the holding portion 640 holds the container T1. In step S14, the control unit 811 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the holding portion 640 holding the container T1 in the closed state moves upward. Thus, the process of the take-out operation is ended.

Fig. 29 is a flowchart showing a process of the storing operation.

In step S21, the control unit 811 of the sample rearranging device 40 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the holding unit 640 holding the target container T1 moves downward toward the holding position on the buffer rack 120 of the storage container T1. Thus, for example, at the position P102 in fig. 19, 22 to 24, the holding portion 640 holding the container T1 moves downward. In step S12, the control unit 811 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the grip 640 is in an open state. Thereby, the container T1 is accommodated in the hole 121 to be formed.

In step S23, the control unit 811 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the open-state grip portion 640 moves in the horizontal direction toward the position where the container 110 is not held. Thus, for example, at the position P101 in fig. 19, the position P111 in fig. 22, the position P122 in fig. 23, and the position P131 in fig. 24, the grip 640 moves in the horizontal direction. In step S24, the control unit 811 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the grip 640 moves in the upward direction. Thus, the process of the storing operation is completed.

In addition, although the grip 640 moves in the horizontal direction in the device in the raised state before and after the operation of fig. 28 and 29, the grip 640 is controlled so that the speed at which the grip 640 moves in the horizontal direction in the raised state is faster than the speed at which the grip 640 moves in the horizontal direction in the lowered state during the taking-out operation and the storing operation.

As described with reference to fig. 25 to 27, in the storage operation, when the grip 640 is lifted from between the adjacent holes 121, the grip 640 is preferably lifted stepwise. The processing in this case will be described with reference to fig. 30.

Fig. 30 is a flowchart showing a process of moving the grip 640 in the upward direction during the storing operation.

In step S101, the control unit 811 of the sample rearranging device 40 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the holding unit 640 that holds the container T1 and is in the open state moves between the adjacent holes 121. As a result, for example, as shown in position M22 at the time of the storage operation in fig. 25, the grip 640 moves in the horizontal direction. In step S102, the control unit 811 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 such that the lower end 640a of the grip 640 is higher than the upper end of the container 110 and the grip 640 is moved upward by a distance d11 smaller than the depth d12 of the hole 121. Thereby, for example, as shown in position M23 at the time of the storing operation in fig. 26, the grip 640 is lifted.

In step S103, the control unit 811 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the grip 640 moves a predetermined distance in the horizontal direction. As a result, for example, as shown in position M24 at the time of the storage operation in fig. 26, the grip 640 moves rearward (in a direction away from the container T1). In step S104, the control unit 811 controls the container transfer mechanism 45 so that the grip 640 moves in the upward direction. As a result, for example, as shown in position M25 at the time of the storing operation in fig. 27, the grip 640 moves upward.

Next, with reference to fig. 31 to 34, the operation of the grip portion 640 actually performed in the supply device 20, the sample rearranging device 40, and the sample storage device 70 will be described.

In the same manner as in fig. 31 to 34, the position at which the grip 640 is moved downward is a downward triangular position, the direction at which the grip 640 is moved downward in the horizontal direction is a thick arrow direction, and the position at which the grip 640 holding the container 110 is moved upward is an upward triangular position during the taking-out operation. In the storage operation, the position where the grip portion 640 gripping the container 110 is moved downward is an upward triangular position, the direction where the grip portion 640 is moved downward in the horizontal direction after storage is the opposite direction of the thick arrow, and the position where the grip portion 640 is moved upward is a downward triangular position.

The removal operation is performed according to fig. 28. The storing operation is performed according to fig. 29. The process of fig. 30 is performed in the storage operation of the sample rearranging device 40.

Fig. 31 is a diagram schematically showing a transfer operation of the container 110 performed between the heating unit 22 and the holder 100 at the transfer position 223 in the supply device 20.

In the heating portion 22, the interval of the holes 22a at the center position P201 in the front-rear direction of the heating portion 22 is wider than the other intervals of the holes 22 a. Therefore, at the time of the removal operation of the container 110 held by the heating unit 22, the grip 640 moves downward at the center position P201. Thereafter, the holding part 640 horizontally moves to the target container 110, and the container 110 is taken out in an upward direction.

In the removal operation of the container 110 of the rack 100 held at the transfer position 223, the grip 640 moves downward at the position P211 behind the rack 100. Thereafter, the holding portion 640 is horizontally moved forward to the target container 110, and the container 110 is taken out in the upward direction.

Fig. 32 is a diagram schematically showing a transfer operation of the container 110 performed on the cleaning liquid holder 24 and the accuracy control sample holder 25 in the supply device 20.

In the cleaning liquid holder 24, the interval between the holes 24a at the center position P221 in the front-rear direction is wider than the other intervals between the holes 24a, and a wider space exists at the front position P222 of the cleaning liquid holder 24. Therefore, at the time of the removal operation of the container 110 held by the cleaning liquid holder 24, the grip 640 moves downward at the center position P221 when the target container 110 is located at the rear side of the cleaning liquid holder 24, and the grip 640 moves downward at the front position P222 when the target container 110 is located at the front side of the cleaning liquid holder 24. Thereafter, the holding part 640 horizontally moves to the target container 110, and the container 110 is taken out in an upward direction.

In the taking-out operation of the container 110 held by the precision management sample holder 25, the grip 640 moves downward at the rear position P231 of the precision management sample holder 25. Thereafter, the holding portion 640 is horizontally moved forward to the target container 110, and the container 110 is taken out in the upward direction.

Fig. 33 is a diagram schematically showing a transfer operation of the container 110 between the buffer rack 120 and the rack 100 at the lifting position P15 in the sample rearranging device 40.

When the positions where the holes 121 are arranged in the left-right direction are referred to as rows, the interval between the holes 121 at the positions P241 between the second row and the third row from the rear and the positions P242 between the second row and the third row from the front in the cushioning holder 120 is wider than the other intervals of the holes 121. Therefore, in the case where the container 110 held by the buffer rack 120 is positioned on the rear side of the buffer rack 120 during the removal operation, the grip 640 moves downward at the position P241, and in the case where the container 110 is positioned on the front side of the buffer rack 120, the grip 640 moves downward at the position P242. Thereafter, the holding part 640 horizontally moves to the target container 110, and the container 110 is taken out in an upward direction.

In the removal operation of the container 110 of the rack 100 held at the lifting position P15, the grip 640 moves downward at the position P251 rearward of the rack 100. Thereafter, the holding portion 640 is horizontally moved forward to the target container 110, and the container 110 is taken out in the upward direction.

In fig. 33, in the storage operation of storing the container 110 in the buffer rack 120, the grip portion 640 that grips the container 110 moves downward at the storage position, and stores the container 110. Thereafter, as shown in fig. 25 to 27, the grip 640 is moved. That is, the grip 640 moves between the holes 121 located at the rear of the storage position, and the grip 640 moves stepwise toward the rear. Only when the container 110 is stored in the rearmost row, the grip 640 moves stepwise toward the front side. In this way, when it is difficult to move the grip 640 because of the presence of other mechanisms around the bracket, the direction in which the grip 640 is moved in the horizontal direction is appropriately changed.

Fig. 34 is a diagram schematically showing a transfer operation of the container 110 between the rack 100 and the filing rack 130 at the lifting position P25 in the sample storage device 70.

In the removal operation of the container 110 held by the holder 100, the grip 640 moves downward at the position P261 behind the holder 100. Thereafter, the holding portion 640 is horizontally moved forward to the target container 110, and the container 110 is taken out in the upward direction.

In the removal operation of the container 110 held by the rearmost filing holder 130, the grip 640 moves downward at the rear position P271 of the rearmost filing holder 130. In the removal operation of the container 110 held by the other filing holder 130, the grip 640 moves downward at a position P272 between the filing holder 130 and the filing holder 130 adjacent to the rear of the filing holder. Thereafter, the holding portion 640 is horizontally moved forward to the target container 110, and the container 110 is taken out in the upward direction.

< effects of embodiments >

In the following explanation of the effects, the heating unit 22, the cleaning liquid holder 24, the accuracy control sample holder 25, the holder 100, the buffer holder 120, and the buffer holder 120 in the filing holder 130 (container holding unit) are explained as an example of the container holding unit. The same effect is also exhibited for the container holding portion other than the buffer bracket 120.

As described with reference to fig. 28, in step S11, the grip 640 is moved downward to a position lower than the lid 113 (head) of the container 110 at a position where the container 110 is not held in a plan view. In step S12, the opened grip portion 640 moves in the horizontal direction toward the container 110 to be held on the buffer holder 120 (container holding portion). In step S13, the grip 640 is closed with respect to the target container 110. In step S14, the grip 640 in the closed state is moved upward.

According to this control, when the target container 110 is taken out of the buffer rack 120, the grip 640 is temporarily lowered toward the position where the container 110 is not present. Accordingly, when the grip 640 is lowered, the grip 640 can be prevented from colliding with the target container 110 or another container 110. Further, since the grip portion in the opened state moves toward the target container 110 after the descent, even if another container 110 is present on the moving path, the grip portion 640 moves toward the target container 110 through the side surface of the other container 110, and thus smoothly reaches the target container 110. Then, the holding portion 640 is closed, so that the container 110 to be held by the holding portion 640. Further, by moving the closed grip 640 upward, the target container 110 is pulled out of the buffer holder 120. Therefore, even when the plurality of containers 110 are closely arranged to the buffer rack 120, the target container 110 can be smoothly taken out.

Fig. 35 is a schematic diagram for explaining the effect of the embodiment in more detail. Fig. 35 is a side view illustrating the buffer bracket 120 in a state where the container 110 is held in the hole 121. In fig. 35, the dimensions shown in the drawing are different from the actual dimensions for easy understanding.

As described above, the size, particularly the thickness, of the container 110 varies depending on the type of container. The diameter of the hole 121 of the buffer bracket 120 is formed to be larger than that of the general container 110 so as to be able to accommodate different kinds of containers. Therefore, when the container 110 is accommodated in the hole 121, the container 110 may be accommodated not in an upright state but in an inclined state as shown by a broken line in fig. 35. In fig. 35, a width in which the lid 113 can be positioned due to tilting of the container 110 is denoted as D1. The web D1 is larger by d2×2 than the width of the aperture 121.

As in the prior art, when the holding portion 640 in the open state is lowered from directly above the container 110, the gap between the holding members 710 and 720 in the open state needs to be larger than the width D1 so that the distal ends of the holding members 710 and 720 do not collide with the lid portion 113 from above. Therefore, in the prior art, a gap D3 for the grip portion 640 to enter is required between the width D1 centered on one container 110 and the width D1 centered on the other adjacent container 110. It is necessary to enlarge the distance D4 between the adjacent holes 121, and there is a limit in miniaturization of the buffer bracket 120.

The upper diagram of fig. 36 is a side view illustrating the effects of the above embodiment. The lower view of fig. 36 is a plan view illustrating the effects of the above embodiment. Fig. 36 is a side view of the state of the position M12 at the time of the take-out operation of fig. 20 viewed from the front. Fig. 36 is a side view and a plan view showing a state in which the distal end of the grip 640 is lowered to a position lower than the lid 113 of the container 110.

When the grip 640 moves horizontally forward from the state shown in the side view of fig. 36, the tips of the grip members 710 and 720 come into contact with the lid 113, and when the grip 640 moves further forward, the grip members 710 and 720 enter between the lids 113 of the two adjacent containers 110. At this time, as shown in the plan view of fig. 36, the container 110 moves in the horizontal direction or slightly rotates, and a gap into which the holding members 710 and 720 enter is formed. The container 110 is generally cylindrical in shape, and a gap exists between the hole 121 and the container 110, so that the container 110 is easily moved within the hole 121 when a force is applied in the horizontal direction. Therefore, unlike the case where the grip 640 is lowered from above as in the conventional technique, the grip 640 can be positioned between adjacent containers 110 without colliding with the containers 110.

When the grip 640 is moved by the method of the embodiment, it is not necessary to provide a gap D3 between the widths D1 of two adjacent containers 110 (see fig. 35). Therefore, adjacent holes 121 can be arranged in close proximity, and the device can be miniaturized.

As shown in fig. 29, in step S21, the holding portion 640 holding the container 110 moves downward toward the holding position on the buffer holder 120 (container holding portion). In step S22, the grip 640 is opened. In step S23, the grip 640 in the opened state is moved in the horizontal direction toward the position where the container 110 is not held. In step S24, the grip 640 moves in the upward direction.

According to this control, after the container 110 is stored in the holding position, the grip 640 moves in the horizontal direction toward the position where the container 110 is not present in the open state, and moves in the upward direction from the position. Thus, even if another container 110 is present on the horizontal movement path, the grip 640 moves to a position where no container 110 is present through the side surface of the other container 110. Then, since the grip portion 640 moves upward at a position where the container 110 does not exist, the container 110 can be prevented from being accidentally detached from the buffer bracket 120 due to the grip portion 640 being caught on the container 110.

The container 110 is held in a hole 121 formed in the buffer holder 120 (container holding portion). This makes it possible to reliably hold the container 110 with a simple structure.

As shown in fig. 22 and 23, in the removal operation of the container 110, the grip portion 640 is lowered between two adjacent holes 121 in the buffer holder 120 (container holding portion). According to this control, since there is no container between the adjacent two holes 121, the grip 640 can be prevented from colliding with the container 110 when the grip 640 is lowered.

As shown in fig. 23, the grip 640 is lowered to a position (position P122) at a second interval wider than the first interval, among positions between two adjacent holes 121. According to this control, in the case where the interval between the adjacent holes 121 is narrow, the grip 640 is lowered to a position at a wider interval, so that the grip 640 can be prevented from colliding with the container 110 more reliably.

As shown in fig. 19, in the removal operation of the container 110, the grip 640 is lowered toward the position P101 outside the buffer holder 120 (container holding portion) in a plan view. According to this control, since the container 110 is not provided on the outer side of the buffer bracket 120 in a plan view, collision between the grip 640 and the container 110 can be reliably avoided.

As described with reference to fig. 22 and 23, in the storage operation of the container 110, after the container 110 is stored, the grip portion 640 moves horizontally between the adjacent two holes 121 in the buffer bracket 120 (container holding portion), and then rises. According to this control, since there is no container 110 between the adjacent two holes 121, the grip 640 can be prevented from being caught on the container 110 when the grip 640 is lifted.

As described with reference to fig. 23, the grip 640 is lifted from a position (position P122) at a second interval wider than the first interval, among positions between two adjacent holes 121. According to this control, when the interval between the adjacent holes 121 is narrow, the grip 640 is lifted from the position of the wider interval, so that the grip 640 can be more reliably prevented from being caught on the container 110.

As shown in fig. 30, in the storage operation of the container 110, after the container 110 is stored, the grip 640 moves between the adjacent holes 121 in step S101. In step S102, the grip 640 is moved upward by a distance d11 that is higher than the container 110 and smaller than the depth d12 of the hole 121. In step S103, the grip 640 is moved a predetermined distance in the horizontal direction. In step S104, the grip 640 moves in the upward direction.

When the grip portion 640 is lifted up between the adjacent holes 121, as shown in the position M23 at the time of the storing operation in fig. 26, the label 113a of the lid portion 113 of the container 110 may be caught on the grip portion 640, and the container 110 may be lifted up. In the above control, in the case where such a situation is assumed, the jamming is eliminated by the subsequent horizontal movement of the grip 640, and the container 110 falls into the hole 121. Therefore, the container 110 can be prevented from falling out of the hole 121 by the lifting of the grip 640. Further, since the grip 640 is further raised thereafter, the subsequent horizontal movement of the grip 640 can be smoothly performed.

As described with reference to fig. 19, in the storage operation of the container 110, after the container 110 is stored, the grip 640 moves horizontally to the outside of the buffer bracket 120 (container holding portion) in a plan view, and then rises. According to this control, since the container 110 is not provided on the outer side of the buffer bracket 120 in a plan view, the holding portion 640 can be reliably prevented from being caught by the container 110.

The speed at which the grip 640 moves in the horizontal direction in the raised state is faster than the speed at which the grip 640 moves in the horizontal direction in the lowered state. When the grip 640 moves in the horizontal direction in the raised state, unlike when the grip 640 moves in the horizontal direction in the lowered state, excessive collision between the grip 640 and the container 110 does not occur, and therefore, the moving speed of the grip 640 can be increased. This enables the container 110 to be transferred quickly.

The grip 640 includes two grip members 710 and 720 disposed opposite to each other and capable of approaching and separating from each other. With this configuration, the gripping members 710 and 720 can be stably gripped, and the gripping portion can be realized with a simple configuration.

As shown in fig. 14, the holding portion 640 holds the container 110 at 3 positions in a state of holding the container 110. With this configuration, the holding portion 640 can hold the container 110 stably, and thus, the container 110 can be prevented from falling down during movement.

As shown in fig. 14, in a plan view, a portion (portion at a position P31) of one holding member 710 that contacts the container 110 is positioned on a straight line that is 2 equal to a straight line connecting two portions (portions at a position P32) of the other holding member 720 that contact the container 110. By providing three portions in this way, the container 110 can be held stably.

As shown in fig. 12, two protrusions 724 are formed on the inner surface of the other grip member 710, and are arranged in a direction (front-rear direction) perpendicular to the grip direction (left-right direction) of the grip 640 in a plan view. The two protrusions 724 support the container 110 at two positions from the other gripping member 720 side.

As shown in fig. 13, a flat surface 714 is formed on the inner surface of one of the holding members 710. The container 110 can be supported at one location from the one holding member 710 side by the one flat surface portion 714.

As shown in fig. 13, a stepped portion 716 extending in the outward direction is formed at the upper end of the planar portion 714. According to this structure, as shown in fig. 15, even when the container 110 is configured such that the outer diameter of the container 110 gradually decreases as it goes downward, the container 110 is supported at 3 points at both the boundary portion between the flat surface portion 714 and the step portion 716 and at two locations on the other gripping member 720 side. This enables the container 110 to be held stably.

As shown in fig. 15, the step 716 is located between the upper end (position P32 a) and the lower end (position P32 b) of the two protrusions 724 formed on the other grip member 720 in side view. According to this structure, the container 110 can be prevented from rotating about the axis parallel to the horizontal direction.

As shown in fig. 12 and 15, notches 713 and 717 are formed at the end portion of one grip member 710 and notches 723, 726, and 727 are formed at the end portion of the other grip member 720. With this configuration, excessive collision between the holding members 710 and 720 and the container 110 can be avoided when the holding portion 640 moves downward.

As shown in fig. 15, the two holding members 710 and 720 have openings 712 and 722 penetrating in the holding direction (left-right direction) at positions above the position where the container 110 is held. According to this structure, a part of the lid portion 113 provided above the container 110 enters the two openings 712, 722 from the inside, and therefore, the distance between the outside of the thin plate portion 711 and the outside of the thin plate portion 721 can be reduced. That is, the outer shape of the grip 640 of the grip portion can be reduced. In this way, when the grip 640 is moved in the horizontal direction in the lowered state, the grip 640 can be smoothly moved in the horizontal direction between the containers 110.

< other modifications >

In the embodiment, the gripping direction of the gripping portion 640 is the left-right direction, and the gripping portion 640 moves downward in the front-rear direction during the removal operation of the container 110. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the gripping direction of the gripping portion 640 and the direction in which the gripping portion 640 moves downward may be inclined with respect to the front-rear-left-right direction.

Fig. 37 is a plan view schematically showing the operation of the grip 640 in this case.

In fig. 37, the gripping direction of the gripping portion 640 and the direction in which the gripping portion 640 moves downward are parallel to the horizontal plane, and inclined at 45 ° with respect to the front-rear-left-right direction. The angle formed by the gripping direction of the gripping portion 640 and the direction in which the gripping portion 640 moves downward is 90 °. In the example shown in fig. 37, at the position P141 on the outer side of the buffer holder 120, the grip 640 moves downward and moves in the oblique direction to the position P142 of the container T1. Then, at the position P142, the grip 640 is closed, the grip 640 moves upward, and the container T1 is taken out.

In this case, at the time of the removal operation of the container T1, the grip 640 in the opened state after the descent is also moved toward the container T1, and therefore, the grip 640 smoothly reaches the container T1. In addition, during the storage operation of the container T1, an operation opposite to the removal operation is performed. As a result, the container 110 to be taken out and stored can be smoothly taken in as in the embodiment.

In the embodiment, as shown in fig. 14, the holding part 640 holds the container 110 at 3 positions in a state of holding the container 110, but may hold the container 110 at 4 or more positions.

Fig. 38 is a plan view schematically showing a structure of the grip portion 640 for gripping the container 110 at 4 positions.

The grip 640 in fig. 38 includes a pair of support members 730 and 740 arranged in the left-right direction. The support member 730 includes a pair of gripping members 731 movable in an inward direction and an outward direction with respect to the support member 730, and the support member 740 includes a pair of gripping members 741 movable in the inward direction and the outward direction with respect to the support member 740. The gripping members 731 and 741 are rod-shaped members. As shown by the thick arrow in fig. 38, the moving direction of the gripping members 731, 741 is inclined 45 ° with respect to the front-rear-left-right direction. When the holding portion 640 holds the container 110, the holding members 731 and 741 move inward. Thereby, the distal ends of the gripping members 731 and 741 contact the body 111 of the container 110, and the container 110 is gripped at 4 positions by the gripping members 731 and 741.

In this case, the transfer operation of the container 110 is also performed in the same manner as in fig. 28 to 30. The movement direction of the lower portion of the grip 640 is the front-rear direction as in the embodiment. As a result, the container 110 to be taken out and stored can be smoothly taken in as in the embodiment.

In the embodiment, as shown in fig. 13, the flat surface 714 is formed in the holding member 710, but instead of the above configuration, a protrusion protruding in the inward direction may be formed. In this case, the holding portion 640 can stably hold the container 110 at 3 positions.

In the embodiment, the cutouts 713, 717, 724, 726 are formed in a planar shape as shown in fig. 12, 13, 15, but may be formed in a curved shape.

In the embodiment, the container transfer mechanisms 26, 45, and 74 are disposed in the supply device 20, the sample rearranging device 40, and the sample storage device 70, respectively, and the container transfer mechanisms 26, 45, and 74 are controlled as shown in fig. 28 to 30. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a container transfer mechanism provided in a device for transferring containers containing various liquids may be configured in the same manner as the container transfer mechanism described above and controlled in the same manner as described above.

The embodiments of the present invention can be modified in various ways within the scope of the technical idea shown in the claims.

Claims

1. A container transfer method for moving a container from a container holding section capable of holding a plurality of containers by using a holding section capable of opening and closing, moving in a vertical direction, and moving in a horizontal direction,

the holding part is moved downward to a position lower than the head of the container at a position where the container is not held in a plan view,

the holding portion in the opened state is moved in the horizontal direction toward the object container on the container holding portion,

after moving in the horizontal direction with respect to the object container, the holding portion is brought into a closed state with respect to the object container,

the holding part in the closed state is moved upward.

2. The method for transferring a container according to claim 1, wherein,

the holding portion holding the container is moved downward toward a holding position on the container holding portion,

the holding part is brought into an open state,

moving the holding portion of the opened state in a horizontal direction toward a position where the container is not held,

the holding part is moved in an upward direction.

3. The container transfer method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein,

the container is held in a hole formed in the container holding portion.

4. The container transfer method according to claim 3, wherein,

in the container removing operation, the grip portion is lowered toward between two adjacent holes in the container holding portion.

5. The method for transferring a container according to claim 4, wherein,

the grip portion is lowered to a position of a second interval wider than the first interval among positions between two adjacent holes.

6. The container transfer method according to claim 3, wherein,

in the container removing operation, the holding portion is lowered toward the outside of the container holding portion in a plan view.

7. The method for transferring a container according to any one of claim 3 to 6, wherein,

in the container storing operation, after the container is stored, the grip portion moves horizontally between two adjacent holes in the container holding portion, and then rises.

8. The method for transferring a container according to claim 7, wherein,

the grip portion is raised from a position of a second interval wider than the first interval among positions between the adjacent two holes.

9. The method for transferring a container according to claim 7 or 8, wherein,

in the container storing operation, after the container is stored, the grip portion moves between the adjacent holes, then rises by a distance higher than the container and smaller than the depth of the hole, then moves in the horizontal direction by a predetermined distance, and then moves in the upward direction.

10. The container transfer method according to claim 3, wherein,

in the container storing operation, after the container is stored, the grip portion moves horizontally outward of the container holding portion in a plan view and then rises.

11. The method for transferring a container according to any one of claim 1 to 10, wherein,

the speed at which the grip portion moves in the horizontal direction in the raised state is faster than the speed at which the grip portion moves in the horizontal direction in the lowered state.

12. A container transfer method for moving a container to a holding position of a container holding part capable of holding a plurality of containers by using a holding part capable of opening and closing, moving in a vertical direction, and moving in a horizontal direction,

the holding portion holding the object container is moved downward toward the holding position on the container holding portion holding the object container,

the holding part is brought into an open state,

the holding part is moved in an upward direction.

13. A container transfer device for moving a container from a container holding portion capable of holding a plurality of containers, the container transfer device comprising:

A grip portion that can be opened and closed;

a moving mechanism section that moves the grip section in a vertical direction and a horizontal direction; and

a control unit that controls operations of the gripping unit and the movement mechanism unit,

the control unit controls the gripping unit and the movement mechanism unit to:

the holding portion is moved downward to a position lower than the head of the container toward a position where the container is not held in a plan view,

the holding part in the closed state is moved upward.

14. The container transfer device according to claim 13, wherein,

the control unit further controls the gripping unit and the movement mechanism unit to:

the holding part is brought into an open state,

The holding part is moved in an upward direction.

15. The container transfer device according to claim 13 or 14, wherein,

the grip portion includes two grip members disposed opposite each other and capable of approaching and separating from each other.

16. The container transfer device according to claim 15, wherein,

the holding portion holds the container at 3 positions in a state of holding the container.

17. The container transfer device according to claim 16, wherein,

the holding portion holds the container by one of the holding members contacting the container at one location and the other holding member contacting the container at two locations.

18. The container transfer device according to claim 17, wherein,

in a plan view, a portion of one of the holding members that contacts the container is positioned on a straight line that is 2 equal parts of a straight line connecting two portions of the other holding member that contact the container.

19. The container transfer device according to claim 17 or 18, wherein,

two protrusions arranged in a direction perpendicular to a gripping direction of the gripping portion in a plan view are formed on an inner side surface of the other gripping member.

20. The container transfer device according to any one of claims 17 to 19, wherein,

a flat portion is formed on an inner surface of one of the holding members.

21. The container transfer device according to claim 20, wherein,

a stepped portion extending in an outward direction is formed at an upper end of the planar portion.

22. The container transfer device according to claim 21, wherein,

the step portion is located between an upper end and a lower end of two protruding portions formed on the other gripping member in a side view.

23. The container transfer device according to any one of claims 15 to 21, wherein,

cut-outs with corners cut off are formed at the end portions of the two grip members.

24. The container transfer device according to any one of claims 15 to 23, wherein,

the two holding members each have an opening penetrating in the holding direction above a portion holding the container.