JP2003075452A - Biochemical analyzer and specimen adaptor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable preferential implementing of serum filter processing or the like of specimens while performing specimen suction controls normally by setting information of the specimens and specimen containers accurately and simply on the apparatus to be obtained thereby. SOLUTION: The apparatus is provided with a circular sampler tray 2 carrying the specimen container 11 and a dry type analysis element 12 necessary for the measurement therefor, a spot nozzle unit 6 which sucks the specimens with a spot nozzle 75 to be spotted onto the dry type analysis element 12, and incubators 4 and 5 for thermostatically holding the dry type analysis element 12 after the spotting. The carrying of the specimen container 11 housing the specimens on the sampler tray 2 is accomplished individually using specimen adaptors 18 each with an identifying part 18c that allows to carry out setting corresponding to the information of the specimens and the specimen container 11 to obtain information on the specimen container and treatment early in analysis.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention spots a sample such as blood or urine on a colorimetric type dry analytical element or an electrolyte type dry analytical element by a spotting nozzle unit to obtain a predetermined biochemistry in the specimen. The present invention relates to a biochemical analyzer for obtaining a substance concentration, an ion activity, etc. of a substance and a sample adapter used when mounting a sample container containing a sample.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a colorimetric dry analytical element or a dry color analytical element capable of quantitatively analyzing a specific chemical component or a formed component contained in a sample by simply spot-feeding a small sample An electrolyte type dry analytical element capable of measuring the ion activity of a specific ion contained in a sample has been developed and put into practical use. A biochemical analyzer using these dry analytical elements can analyze a sample easily and quickly, and is therefore preferably used in medical institutions, laboratories and the like.

In the colorimetric measurement method using a colorimetric dry analytical element, a sample is spotted on the dry analytical element, and then this is kept at a constant temperature in an incubator for a predetermined time to cause a color reaction (dye formation reaction). Then, the optical density of the dry analytical element is measured by irradiating the dry analytical element with irradiation light for measurement containing a wavelength preselected by a combination of a predetermined biochemical substance in the sample and a reagent contained in the dry analytical element, From this optical density,
The concentration of the biochemical substance is obtained by using a calibration curve that shows the correspondence between the optical density and the substance concentration of the predetermined biochemical substance that have been obtained in advance.

On the other hand, in the potentiometric method using an electrolyte type dry analytical element, instead of measuring the above optical density, a specimen spotted on a pair of dry ion selective electrodes of the same kind is spotted. The activity of the specific ion contained in
It is determined by quantitative analysis by potentiometry using a reference solution.

In any of the above methods, a liquid sample is placed in a sample container (such as a blood collection tube) and set in the device, and a dry analysis element required for the measurement is mounted in the device.
The dry analytical element is conveyed from the mounting position to the spotting part and the incubator, while the sample is sucked from the sample container by the spotting nozzle and supplied to the spotting part for discharge spotting.

When the sample is sucked and held from the sample container by the spotting nozzle, it is necessary to insert a predetermined amount of the tip of the spotting nozzle (nozzle tip) into the sample container.
When performing multiple types of measurement for one sample, it is necessary to perform spotting a plurality of times in succession, and if the sample is repeatedly sucked, the amount of movement of the spotting nozzle will decrease depending on the drop in the liquid level. Need to control. Further, there is a limit suction height depending on the size of the sample container, the amount of the sample stored, and the like, and it is necessary to control so as not to suck the sample more than that.

At this time, there are a plurality of sizes (diameter, length, etc.) of the sample container for containing the sample, and in order to calculate the liquid level lowering amount and the limit suction height as described above, Information such as container size must be entered for each sample.

Depending on the measurement item of the sample, there is a case where plasma is separated from whole blood by filtration to obtain a sample to be spotted, or a dilution process is performed to dilute the concentration of the sample. The information on the treatment of 1 must also be input for each sample.

Conventionally, the information on the sample and the sample container as described above is previously obtained by the input means of the apparatus, or the plate to which the information is given is attached near the sample and detected by the detector. .

[0010]

As described above, in the case of inputting the information of the sample and the sample container to the biochemical analyzer by the operation of the input means, it is changed and input every time the size of the sample container is changed. It is necessary and troublesome, and the operator's operation is complicated. In addition, the plate for sample information is separate from the sample container, which is apt to be mistaken.

In particular, when a sample (whole blood) is subjected to plasma filtration treatment, if the sample is left in the device for a long period of time, the plasma may not be satisfactorily filtered due to sedimentation of blood. The samples that require plasma filtration must be controlled so that they can be preferentially filtered.

In view of the above points, the present invention enables accurate and simple setting and input of information on a sample and a sample container, enables aspiration control to be performed with high accuracy, and allows sample filtration processing and the like to be preferentially performed. An object of the present invention is to provide a sample adapter used when mounting the biochemical analyzer and the sample container containing the sample.

[0013]

A biochemical analyzer according to the present invention comprises a circular sampler tray on which a sample and a dry analytical element necessary for its measurement are mounted, and a sample mounted on the sampler tray is sucked by a spotting nozzle. In the biochemical analyzer including a spotting nozzle unit for spotting on the dry analytical element, and an incubator for keeping the dry analytical element on which the sample is spotted at a constant temperature, the sample container containing the sample to the sampler tray It is characterized in that mounting is carried out by using individual sample adapters, and the sample adapters are provided with an identification unit for making settings corresponding to the information of the sample and the sample container.

It is preferable that the sample adapter holding the sample container is mounted on the sampler tray, and the sampler tray is rotated at the beginning of the analysis to acquire the setting information of the identification section of the sample adapter.

Further, the sample adapter of the present invention is a sample adapter to be used individually when mounting a sample container containing a sample on a sampler tray of a biochemical analyzer, and the sample adapter has information on the sample and the sample container. It is characterized in that it is provided with an identification section for performing corresponding settings.

It is preferable that the identification section is provided so that a plurality of identification pins are selectively attached.

The information set in the identification part of the sample adapter includes processing information such as plasma filtration of the sample and type information such as the size of the sample container.

[0018]

According to the present invention as described above, the sample adapters used individually when mounting the sample container containing the sample on the sampler tray are set corresponding to the information of the sample and the sample container. By providing the identification unit, the information can be accurately and easily acquired by the device, and the operator's operation becomes easy.

Further, when the sampler tray equipped with the sample adapter is rotated at the initial stage of the analysis and the setting information of the identification part of the sample adapter is acquired in advance, the process control can be performed accordingly, and the plasma filtration process is required. It is possible to perform favorable plasma filtration without being affected by sedimentation by preferentially treating various samples.

[0020]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a partial sectional front view showing a schematic mechanism of an example biochemical analyzer, FIG. 2 is a plan view of a main mechanism of the biochemical analyzer except a spotting nozzle unit, and FIG. 4 is a sectional front view of the reference liquid mounting portion, FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view of the element transport mechanism, and FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing a sample adapter according to one embodiment.

The biochemical analyzer 1 comprises a sampler tray 2,
The spotting unit 3, the first incubator 4, the second incubator 5, the spotting nozzle unit 6, the element transport mechanism 7, the transfer mechanism 8, the chip disposal unit 9, the element disposal mechanism 10, and the like are provided.

The sampler tray 2 is circular and has a sample container 11 containing a sample and an unused dry analytical element 12 (colorimetric dry analytical element and electrolyte type dry analytical element).
An element cartridge 13 containing the above, and consumables (nozzle tip 14, diluting liquid container 15, mixing cup 16, and reference liquid container 17) are mounted. The sample container 11 is mounted by using a sample adapter 18 as shown in FIG. 6, as will be described later, and a large number of nozzle chips 14 are housed and mounted in a chip rack 19.

The spotting part 3 is arranged on an extension of the center line of the sampler tray 2 and is used for spotting samples such as plasma, whole blood, serum and urine on the transported dry analysis element 12. The spotting nozzle unit 6 spots a sample on the colorimetric measurement type dry analysis element 12, and spots the sample and the reference liquid on the electrolyte type dry analysis element 12. Following this spotting section 3, a tip discarding section 9 in which the nozzle tips 14 are discarded is arranged.

The first incubator 4 has a circular shape and is arranged at an extended position of the chip discarding unit 9 and accommodates a colorimetric type dry analysis element 12 and keeps it at a constant temperature for a predetermined time to perform colorimetric measurement. The second incubator 5 (see FIG. 2) has a spotting part 3
The electrolyte-type dry analytical element 12 is placed adjacent to each other in the lateral direction, and is kept at a constant temperature for a predetermined time to measure the potential difference.

The element transfer mechanism 7 (see FIG. 5) is disposed inside the sampler tray 2 and the sampler tray 2 is provided.
Of the dry analytical element 12 from the sampler tray 2 along the linear element transport path R (FIG. 2) that connects the center of the first incubator 4 to the center of the first incubator 4 and passes through the spotting section 3 and the chip disposal section 9. It is conveyed to the spotting section 3 and further to the first incubator 4. The transfer mechanism 8 is installed also as the spotting unit 3, and the element transporting route R is provided from the spotting unit 3 to the second incubator 5.
The electrolyte-type dry analytical element 12 is transported in a direction orthogonal to the direction.

The spotting nozzle unit 6 is arranged on the upper part,
The spotting nozzle 75 moves on the same straight line as the above-described element transporting route R, spotting the sample and the reference liquid, and diluting and mixing the sample with the diluent. The spotting nozzle 75 mounts the nozzle tip 14 on the tip, and sucks and discharges the sample, the reference liquid, and the like into the nozzle tip 14, and a syringe means (not shown) for performing the suction and discharge is attached, and after use Nozzle tip 14
Are removed by the chip disposal unit 9 and dropped and discarded.

The element discarding mechanism 10 (see FIG. 2) is attached to the first incubator 4, and the colorimetric dry analytical element 12 after measurement is pushed out to the center of the first incubator 4 and dropped. It should be noted that the element transfer mechanism 7 can also dispose of it. Further, the electrolyte-type dry analytical element 12 after being measured by the second incubator 5 is
The transfer mechanism 8 discards the waste in the disposal hole 69.

A blood filtration unit (not shown) for separating plasma from blood is installed near the sampler tray 2.

Next, the structure of each part will be specifically described. First, the sampler tray 2 has a disk-shaped rotating disk 21 that is rotationally driven in the forward rotation direction and the reverse rotation direction, and a disk-shaped non-rotating portion 22 at the center thereof.

As shown in FIG. 2, the rotating disk 21 has five sample mounting portions 23 of A to E for holding the sample containers 11 such as blood collection tubes containing the respective samples through the sample adapter 18, and An unused dry analytical element 12 which is usually required to be adjacent to a plurality of types corresponding to the measurement items of each sample
5 element mounting portions 24 for holding the element cartridges 13 housed in a stacked state, and a large number of nozzle chips 1
The two chip mounting parts 25 for holding the chip racks 19 accommodating 4 arranged in the holding holes, the diluting liquid mounting part 26 for holding the three diluting liquid containers 15 accommodating the diluting liquid, the diluting liquid and the sample A cup mounting portion 27 that holds a mixing cup 16 (a molded product in which a large number of cup-shaped concave portions are arranged) for mixing is arranged in an arc shape.

As shown in FIG. 6, each of the sample adapters 18 used individually when mounting the sample container 11 on the sample mounting portion 23 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the sample container 11 is inserted from the upper end opening thereof. To be done.

A flange portion 1 is provided on the outer circumference of the sample adapter 18.
8a is formed so as to project, and the sample mounting portion 2 of the rotary disk 21
The flange portion 18a is locked and held on the upper surface of the rotary disk 21 when it is inserted into the third hole. This flange part 1
A convex portion 18b is formed on the front surface of the tubular portion below 8a,
The insertion direction into the hole of the sample mounting portion 23 formed in the same shape is regulated.

Further, the sample adapter 18 has the convex portion 18
An identification part 18c having four holes is provided on the lower front surface of b, and an identification pin 18d is provided in each hole of the identification part 18c. The type of sample (processing information) and the type of sample container 11 (size such as diameter and length). , Shape), etc., and is selectively attached.

An identification sensor 30 (FIG. 2) is arranged on the outer peripheral portion of the sampler tray 2, the rotating disk 21 is rotated once at the initial stage of analysis, and the information set in the identification portion by the identification sensor 30 is displayed. For example, the presence / absence of dilution of the sample, the presence / absence of plasma filtration, etc. are acquired by the reflection signal, and the liquid level variation amount due to the size and shape of the sample container 11 is calculated, and the processing control is performed accordingly. Particularly, the plasma filtration is preferentially performed on the sample container 11 containing the sample requiring the plasma filtration process.

A height adjusting member 51 is inserted into the inner bottom of the adapter 18 so that the height of the bottom can be adjusted according to the length of the sample container 11. For the sample container 11 that requires plasma filtration, the sample container 11 is inserted into the adapter 18, and a holder 52 equipped with a filtration filter is mounted via a spacer 53.

Next, the non-rotating portion 2 of the sampler tray 2
2 is provided with a cylindrical reference liquid mounting portion 28 for holding the reference liquid container 17 containing the reference liquid in the moving range of the spotting nozzle 75 on the extension line of the element transporting route R.
8 is provided with an evaporation prevention lid 35 (see FIG. 4) that opens and closes the opening of the reference liquid container 17.

The rotating disk 21 is supported at its three outer peripheral portions by supporting rollers 31, and its central portion is rotatably held on the outer periphery of a supporting shaft 32 (see FIG. 4). Further, a timing belt (not shown) is wound around the outer circumference of the rotary disk 21 and is rotationally driven by the drive motor in the forward rotation direction or the reverse rotation direction. A lower end portion of the support shaft 32 is fixedly held by a support frame 33, and a central portion of a disk-shaped non-rotating portion 22 is non-rotatably attached to an upper end portion of the support shaft 32.

As shown in FIG. 4, the evaporation preventing lid 35 is provided with a swing member 37 in which a lid member 36 which is brought into pressure contact with the opening of the reference liquid container 17 is provided, and the lower end of this swing member 37 is a pin. It is pivotally supported by the non-rotating portion 22 by 38 and is biased in the closing direction by a torsion spring 39. The evaporation prevention lid 35 is opened / closed in association with the movement of the spotting nozzle unit 6, and the locking portion 37a formed on the upper end of the swinging member 37 to project is a moving frame of the spotting nozzle unit 6. The lower end corner 72a of 72 can be contacted.

When the moving frame 72 is moved closer to suck the reference liquid by the spotting nozzle 75, the lower end corner 72a of the moving frame 72 is locked by the locking portion 37 of the evaporation preventing lid 35.
a, the swinging member 37 is swung in the opening direction as shown by the chain line, the lid member 36 moves upward, and the reference liquid container 17
Is opened, and the reference liquid can be aspirated. Moving frame 72
When is moved toward the spotting portion 3, the swinging member 37 is swung in the closing direction by the torsion spring 39, and the lid member 36 closes the opening of the reference liquid container 17 to evaporate the reference liquid. Prevent,
The decrease in measurement accuracy due to the change in concentration is prevented.

The element transfer mechanism 7 is installed on the support frame 33 inside the sampler tray 2. As shown in FIG. 5, the element transporting mechanism 7 is an element transporting member 41 arranged so as to be slidable in the radial direction of the sampler tray 2 toward the center position of the first incubator 4.
(Transportation bar) is provided, and the dry analysis element 12 is pushed out from the element cartridge 13 of the element mounting portion 24 by the forward movement control of the element transportation member 41, and the spotting portion 3
The transport distance is set so that the dry analytical element 12 after being transported to the first incubator 4 is transported to the first incubator 4.

In addition to the element mounting portion 24, the rotary disk 21 of the sampler tray 2 has an insertion hole 29 (see FIG. 2) at a position below the cup mounting portion 27 so that the element carrying member 41 can pass therethrough. A path is provided so that the element transporting member 41 can be moved forward without transporting the dry analytical element 12 when necessary such as when the dry analytical element 12 is clogged.

A slider 43 is fixed to the rear end portion of the element transport member 41 from below, and the slider 43 is slidably supported by a guide rod 44 installed in the support frame 33 in parallel with the element transport path R. At the same time, a part of the belt 48 wound around the guide pulley 45, the drive pulley 46 driven by the conveyance motor 49, and the tension pulley 47 arranged before and after the support frame 33 is fixed. The drive pulley 46 is rotationally driven by the transport motor 49, and the element transport member 41 is moved in the front-rear direction in accordance with the movement of the slider 43. Further, the backward movement of the element transport member 41 is positionally regulated by the guide member 42, and the front end portion is inserted into the guide hole 34a (see FIG. 3) of the vertical plate 34.
Slide a.

As shown in FIG. 3, the element cartridge 13 is provided in the shape of a box with its upper and side portions open, and a plurality of unused dry analytical elements 12 are usually stacked and held from above in a mixed state. It The element cartridge 13 loaded in the element mounting portion 24 of the sampler tray 2 is held by the bottom wall 24a of the element mounting portion 24, and the dry analysis element 12 at the lowermost end is located at the same height as the carrying surface. The front side of the part has an opening 13 through which only one dry analytical element 12 can pass.
a is formed, and an opening 13b through which the element carrying member 41 can be inserted is formed on the rear surface side.

The sample container 11 and the element cartridge 13 as described above can be arbitrarily loaded in the mounting portions 23 and 24 of A to E of the rotating disk 21, and can be replaced before measurement.
The sample of the emergency interruption can be measured immediately.

Now, the dry analytical element 12 loaded in the element cartridge 13 will be described. The colorimetric type dry analytical element 12 used for measuring the degree of coloration of a specimen has a reagent layer disposed in a rectangular mount,
A spotting hole is formed in the center of the mount, and the sample is spotted in the spotting hole. The electrolyte-type dry analytical element 12 used for measuring the ionic activity of the sample has two liquid supply holes. A sample is spotted on one of the liquid supply holes, and a reference liquid having a known ion activity is spotted on the other liquid supply hole. Further, three pairs of ion selective electrodes electrically connected to the potential measuring probe of the potential difference measuring means for measuring the ion activity are formed. A bar code (not shown) on which information for specifying inspection items and the like is recorded is attached to the back surface of both dry analysis elements 12.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the spotting unit 3 and the transfer mechanism 8 have a long support base 61 between the sampler tray 2 and the first incubator 4 in the direction orthogonal to the element transport path R. A sliding frame 62 is movably provided on the sliding frame 62. The sliding frame 62 has a spot wearing opening 63a.
A main element retainer 63 and an auxiliary element retainer 64, on which (FIG. 3) is formed, are adjacently mounted so as to be integrally movable. The main element retainer 63 (similarly to the auxiliary element retainer 64) is the support base 6
The bottom surface facing 1 has a concave portion 63b in which the dry analytical element 12 is conveyed along the element movement path R, and the dry analytical element 12 slides on the support 61. Further, one end of the sliding frame 62 is guided by the guide bar 65, the pin 66 is engaged with the long groove 62a on the other end side, and the sliding frame 62 is movable in the direction orthogonal to the element transporting route R. The rack gear 62b
The drive gear 67 is engaged with the drive gear 67, and the drive gear 67 is driven by the drive motor 68 to control the movement of the sliding frame 62.

On the support base 61, a second incubator 5 is installed at a position lateral to the spotting part 3 (spotting position) (forward in the moving direction of the sliding frame 62) and further laterally. A disposal hole 69 is opened in the.

In the normal state of FIG. 2, the main frame retainer 63 is located in the spotting section 3 at the stop position of the sliding frame 62, and the dry analytical element 12 conveyed from the sampler tray 2 is spotted. , Colorimetric dry analysis element 12 after spotting
Is extruded by the element transport member 41 and transferred to the first incubator 4. When the electrolyte-type dry analysis element 12 is spotted, the sliding frame 62 is moved so that the dry analysis element 12 after spotting slides on the support base 61 while being held by the main element retainer 63. Second incubator 5
And the potential difference is measured. At that time, the auxiliary element retainer 64 of the sliding frame 62 moves to the spotting portion 3 (spotting position), and is then conveyed to the colorimetric dry analytical element 1
It is possible to deposit a sample on 2 and transport it to the first incubator 4. When the measurement in the second incubator 5 is completed, the sliding frame 62 is further moved and the dry analytical element 12 after the measurement is transferred to the disposal hole 69 and dropped and discarded.

The spotting nozzle unit 6 (FIG. 1) is provided with a movable frame 72 which is horizontally movably held on a horizontal guide rail 71 (parallel to the element transport path R) of a fixed frame 70. Two nozzle fixing bases 74 are held on both sides of a vertical guide rail 73 provided at the center of the frame 72 so as to be vertically movable. The upper ends of rod-shaped spotting nozzles 75 are vertically attached to the two nozzle fixing bases 74, respectively.

A connecting shaft 76 extending upward is fixed to the nozzle fixing base 74, and an upper portion of the connecting shaft 76 is inserted into the drive transmitting member 77 to connect the nozzle fixing base 74 and the drive transmitting member 77. A compression spring 80 is compressed around the outer circumference of 76. As a result, the nozzle fixing base 74 can move up and down integrally with the drive transmission member 77, and when the nozzle tip 14 is attached to the tip of the spotting nozzle 75, the compression spring 80 is compressed and the nozzle fixing base 74 is moved. On the other hand, the drive transmission member 77 can be moved downward, and the mounting force of the nozzle tip 14 is obtained.

The drive transmission member 77 is used for the upper and lower pulleys 7.
The belt 79 is fixed to a belt 79 stretched and is moved up and down according to the running of the belt 79 by a motor (not shown). The balance weight 99 is provided on the outer side of the belt 79.
Is attached, and the downward movement of the spotting nozzle 75 when not driven is prevented.

Further, the moving frame 72 is laterally driven by a belt drive mechanism (not shown), and the two nozzle fixing bases 74 are controlled so that their horizontal and vertical movements are independently moved up and down. The arrival nozzles 75, 75 are
While linearly moving laterally on the element transport path R,
It is designed to move up and down independently. For example, one spotting nozzle 75 is for a sample and the other spotting nozzle 75
Are for diluent and reference.

The both spotting nozzles 75 are formed in a rod shape, an air passage extending in the axial direction is provided inside, and a pipette-shaped nozzle tip 14 is fitted in a sealed state at the lower end. An air tube connected to a syringe pump or the like (not shown) is connected to each of the spotting nozzles 75, and suction / discharge pressure is supplied. The nozzle tip 14 after use is removed by the tip discarding section 9 and dropped and discarded.

The vertical movement of the spotting nozzle 75 is based on the size information of the sample container 11 acquired from the identification section 18c of the sample adapter 18 described above, and the sample is fed from the sample container 11 by the nozzle tip 14 of the spotting nozzle 75. When sucking and holding the liquid, the liquid level height and the limit suction height are calculated, and the spotting nozzle 7 is attached to the sample container 11 accordingly.
It is controlled so that the tip of the nozzle 5 (nozzle tip 14) is inserted by a predetermined amount and sucked.

The chip discarding section 9 is provided at a position following the spotting section 3 in the element transporting route R so as to cross the transporting surface of the dry analytical element 12 in the vertical direction, and includes an upper member 81 and a lower member 82. . The support base 61 of the chip discarding unit 9 is provided with a drop opening 83 having an oval shape. The upper member 81 is fixed to the upper surface of the support base 61, an engaging notch 84 is provided at a position directly above the drop opening 83, and the lower member 82 is cylindrical in the lower surface of the support base 61 so as to surround the lower side of the drop opening 83. And is designed to guide the falling nozzle tip 14.

Then, the spotting nozzle 75, to which the nozzle tip 14 is mounted, is lowered into the upper member 81 and then moved laterally, and the nozzle tip 1 is fitted into the engaging notch 84.
After engaging the upper ends of the nozzles 4, the spotting nozzle 75 is moved upward to extract the nozzle tip 14, and the detached nozzle tip 14 is dropped and discarded through the drop port 83.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the first incubator 4 for colorimetric measurement is provided with an annular rotating member 87 on the outer peripheral portion, and the rotating member 87 is fixed to the lower inner peripheral portion. The tilted rotary cylinder 88 is supported by a lower bearing 89 and is rotatable. The upper member 9 is provided on the rotating member 87.
0 is integrally rotatably arranged. The bottom surface of the upper member 90 is flat, and a plurality of (13 in the case of FIG. 1) recesses are formed on the circumference of the upper surface of the rotating member 87 at predetermined intervals to form a slit-shaped space between the two members 87 and 90. Element room 91
The height of the bottom surface of the element chamber 91 is the same as the height of the transport surface. Further, the inner hole of the inclined rotary cylinder 88 is formed in the disposal hole 92 of the dry analysis element 12 after the measurement, and the central portion of the element chamber 91 communicates with the disposal hole 92, and the dry analysis element 12 of the element chamber 91 is connected. Is moved to the center side as it is, dropped and discarded.

The upper member 90 is provided with a heating means (not shown), and the temperature of the dry analysis element 12 in the element chamber 91 is kept constant by adjusting the temperature thereof. Also, the upper member 90
A pressing member 93 is provided corresponding to the element chamber 91 to prevent the evaporation of the sample by pressing the mount of the dry analysis element 12 from above. A heat insulating cover 94 is provided on the upper surface of the upper member 90.
On the other hand, the entire first incubator 4 is covered with a light shielding cover 95.

Further, the dry analytical element 12 of the rotating member 87
In the center of the bottom surface of each element chamber 91 for accommodating
1a is formed, and the dry analytical element 12 is formed by the photometric head 96 arranged at the position shown in FIG. 1 through the opening 91a.
The reflection optical density of the is measured. The rotating member 87
A density reference plate (not shown) is installed in a part of the.

In the rotational driving of the first incubator 4, a timing belt (not shown) is wound around the outer peripheral portion of the inclined rotary cylinder 88 which supports the rotary member 87, and this timing belt is driven by a drive pulley (both not shown) of the drive motor. ), And the reciprocating rotational drive of the rotating member 87 is performed by the forward / reverse rotational drive of the drive motor. Then, the rotation operation of the first incubator 4 is
The photometric head 96 disposed below the predetermined rotation position is first calibrated by detecting the densities of the black and white density reference plates, and then the dry analytical elements 12 sequentially inserted into the element chamber 91. The optical density of the color reaction is measured, and after this series of measurements, reverse rotation is performed to return to the reference position, and control is performed to perform reciprocal rotation drive within a predetermined angle range so that the next measurement is performed. To be done.

The disposal mechanism 10 (FIG. 1) attached to the first incubator 4 has the element chamber 91 extending from the outer peripheral side toward the center.
It has a disposal bar 101 that moves back and forth. This waste bar 101 has a belt 10 whose rear end runs horizontally.
Belt 1 fixed to 2 and driven by drive motor 103
In accordance with the traveling of 02, the dry analysis element 12 after the measurement is pushed out from the element chamber 91 and discarded. A collection box for collecting the dry analytical element 12 after measurement is disposed below the disposal hole 92.

In the second incubator 5 for measuring the ion activity, the main element retainer 63 of the sliding frame 62 described above serves as an upper member, and the recess 63b forms an element between the main element retainer 63 and the upper surface of the measurement main body 97. A chamber is formed. The second incubator 5 is provided with a heating means (not shown),
By adjusting the temperature, the portion of the dry analytical element 12 for measuring the ion activity is heated to a predetermined temperature. Furthermore, three pairs of potential measuring probes 98 for measuring the ion activity are provided on the sides of the measuring body 97 so as to come in contact with the ion selective electrode of the dry analysis element 12. Then, in the dry analysis element 12 in which the sample is spotted in one liquid supply hole and the reference liquid is spotted in the other liquid supply hole, the ion activity of the ion activity between the reference liquid and the sample is respectively between the ion selective electrode pairs. Since a potential difference corresponding to the difference is generated, each ion activity in the sample can be measured by measuring the potential difference generated from each ion selective electrode pair by the potential measurement probe 98.

The plasma filtration unit (not shown) includes the holder 52 having a filter made of glass fiber, which is inserted into the sample container 11 (blood collection tube) held on the sampler tray 2 and attached to the upper end opening. The plasma is separated and sucked from the blood via the cup, and the filtered plasma is held in the cup portion at the upper end of the holder 52.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. First, before performing the analysis, the sample container 11 containing each sample is used in each of the mounting parts 23 to 28 of the sampler tray 2 using the sample adapter 18 in which the identification part 18c is set according to the sample and the container size. In addition, the dry analysis element 12 of a type corresponding to the measurement item is mounted at a position corresponding to the sample container 11 for measurement, and the nozzle tip 14 which is a consumable item is accommodated. The chip rack 19, the mixing cup 16, the diluting liquid container 15 and the reference liquid container 17 are mounted to prepare for measurement.

After that, the analysis process is started. At the initial stage, the rotating disk 21 of the sampler tray 2 is rotated once, the setting of the identification section 18c of the sample adapter 18 is read by the identification sensor 30, and the presence or absence of dilution of each mounted sample, the presence or absence of plasma filtration, etc. are determined. .

First, in the case of a sample requiring plasma filtration,
Preferentially, the blood filtration unit and the holder 52 filter the whole blood in the sample container 11 to obtain a plasma component. next,
The element cartridge 13 (element mounting portion 24) of the sample to be measured by rotating the rotating disk 21 is stopped at a position corresponding to the spotting portion 3. The element-conveying member 41 conveys the dry analytical element 12 from the element cartridge 13 to the spotting section 3. The barcode provided on the dry analysis element 12 is read during the transportation, and the inspection items of the dry analysis element 12 are detected. If the read inspection item is an ion activity measurement, or if it is a dilution request item, different processing is performed.

When the read inspection item is colorimetric measurement, the sampler tray 2 is rotated to move the nozzle tip 14 below the spotting nozzle 75, and the nozzle tip 14 is mounted on the spotting nozzle 75. Then, the sample container 11 is moved and the spotting nozzle 7
5, the sample is sucked into the nozzle tip 14, the spotting nozzle 75 is moved to the spotting section 3, and the sample is spotted on the dry analytical element 12.

Then, the colorimetric type dry analytical element 12 on which the sample is spotted is inserted into the first incubator 4. Next, the element chamber 91 of the first incubator 4 is rotated to sequentially insert the inserted dry analytical elements 12 into the photometric head 9
Move to a position facing 6. Then, the photometric head 96
The measurement of the reflection optical density of the dry analytical element 12 is carried out. After the measurement is completed, the dry analytical element 12 that has been measured is pushed to the center side and discarded. The measurement result is output, and the used nozzle tip 14 is removed from the spotting nozzle 75 in the tip discarding unit 9 and dropped and discarded, and the processing is ended.

Next, if the inspection item is a dilution request item,
For example, when the blood concentration is too high to perform an accurate test, the sampler tray 2 is moved and the nozzle tip 14 is attached to the spotting nozzle 75. Next, the sampler tray 2 is moved, the spotting nozzle 75 is lowered on the sample, and the sample is sucked into the nozzle tip 14. After moving the sampler tray 2 and aspirating the sample into the mixing cup 16 from the nozzle tip 14, the used nozzle tip 1
Remove 4. Then, a new nozzle tip 14 is attached to the spotting nozzle 75, and the nozzle tip 14 is removed from the diluent container 15.
Aspirate the diluent. Nozzle tip 1 with aspirated diluent
4 to the mixing cup 16. Then, the nozzle tip 14 is inserted into the mixing cup 16, and suction and discharge are repeated to perform stirring. After stirring, the diluted sample is sucked into the nozzle tip 14, the spotting nozzle 75 is moved to the spotting section 3, and the sample is spotted on the dry analysis element 12.
Similarly, photometry, element discarding, result output, and chip discarding are performed, and the processing ends.

Next, the case where the inspection item is measurement of ion activity will be described. In the case of measuring the ion activity, the electrolyte type dry analytical element 12 is transported. First, the nozzle tip 14 is attached to one of the spotting nozzles 75, and the sample is sucked. Next, the nozzle tip 14 is attached to the other spotting nozzle 75, and the reference liquid is sucked from the reference liquid container 17. Then, one of the spotting nozzles 75 spots the sample on one of the liquid supply holes of the dry analytical element 12, and further,
The reference liquid is applied to the dry analysis element 12 by the other spotting nozzle 75.
On the other liquid supply hole.

Then, the dry analytical element 12 on which the sample and the reference liquid are spotted is transferred to the second incubator 5 by the movement of the sliding frame 62 from the spotting part 3. When the dry analytical element 12 is inserted into the second incubator 5,
The ion activity is measured by the potential difference measuring probe 98. After the measurement is completed, the dry analytical element 12 after the measurement is transferred to the disposal hole 69 by the movement of the sliding frame 62 and discarded. Then, the measurement result is output, both used nozzle tips 14 are removed from both the spotting nozzles 75 and discarded, and the processing ends.

In the embodiment as described above, the sample disc 11 containing the sample is used for the rotating disk 21 of the sampler tray 2, and the individual sample adapter 18 in which the sample information and the sample container information are set in the identifying portion 18c is used. It is mounted on the device and the information is acquired by rotating the rotary disk 21 in the initial stage of analysis, so that the device can accurately and easily acquire the information, which facilitates the operator's operation and suction control. Can be performed normally, and the plasma filtration process and the like can be preferentially performed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional front view showing a schematic configuration of a biochemical analyzer according to one embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a main part mechanism of the biochemical analysis device excluding a spotting nozzle unit.

FIG. 3 is a sectional front view of a transport path portion of the dry analysis element.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a reference liquid mounting portion.

FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view of an element transfer mechanism.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing a sample adapter of one embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Biochemical analyzer 2 Sampler tray 3 points 4 First Incubator 5 Second incubator 6-point landing nozzle unit 7 element transport mechanism 11 Sample container 12 Dry analysis element 13 element cartridge 14 nozzle tip 18 Sample adapter 18c Identification part 18d identification pin 21 rotating disc 22 Non-rotating part 23-28 mounting part 30 identification sensor 51 Height adjustment member 52 holder 53 Spacer 75 spot nozzle

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    F term (reference) 2G045 AA13 AA15 BB05 BB41 CA25                       CA26 CB03 FA11 FB19 GC12                       JA07                 2G058 BB02 BB11 CA01 CB03 CE07                       GC04 GC05 GC06 GE03 GE04

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A circular sampler tray on which a sample and a dry analysis element necessary for its measurement are mounted, and a spotting nozzle unit which sucks the sample mounted on the sampler tray with a spotting nozzle and spots it on the dry analysis element. In a biochemical analyzer equipped with an incubator that holds a dry analytical element on which a sample is spotted at a constant temperature, mounting of a sample container containing a sample on the sampler tray is performed by individually using a sample adapter, The biochemical analyzer, wherein the sample adapter includes an identification unit that performs settings corresponding to the information of the sample and the sample container. 2. The sample adapter holding the sample container is mounted on the sampler tray, and the sampler tray is rotated at the initial stage of analysis to acquire the setting information of the identification unit of the sample adapter. The biochemical analyzer according to claim 1. 3. A sample adapter, which is used individually when a sample container containing a sample is mounted on a sampler tray of a biochemical analyzer, and in which the setting corresponding to the information of the sample and the sample container is performed. A sample adapter having a section.