JP2005227240A - Interface detection device, interface detection method, volume measuring device and volume measuring method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a volume measuring device and a volume measuring method capable of detecting accurately the interface position of a specific liquid in a specimen liquid in a container, and measuring accurately the volume of the specific liquid in the specimen liquid. <P>SOLUTION: This volume measuring device 1 measures the volume of the specific liquid in the specimen liquid 8 constituted of at least two kinds of liquids having different specific gravities stored in the container 6. The volume measuring device 1 is equipped with a transmission/reception means 2 for transmitting/receiving a microwave relative to the specimen liquid 8, a moving means 13 for moving the container relatively in the vertical direction relative to the transmission/reception means 2, a detection means 17 for detecting the interface position of the specific liquid in the specimen liquid 8 by a signal generated by operation of the transmission/reception means 2, and a measuring means 21 for measuring the volume of the specific liquid in the specimen liquid 8 based on the interface position detected by the operation of the detection means 17. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an interface detection device, an interface detection method, a volume measurement device, and a volume measurement method.

  Conventionally, the following method has been proposed as a method for measuring the amount of serum in blood collected from a subject. That is, first, the collected blood is put in a container (collecting blood vessel) together with a separating agent to form a sample solution. Next, the sample liquid is centrifuged together with the container and centrifuged to separate the sample liquid into three kinds of liquids, serum, separating agent, and blood clot. Thereafter, the amount of serum in the sample liquid is measured.

  Furthermore, as a method for measuring the amount of serum, more specifically, an image of the sample liquid is obtained from the side of the container using a CCD camera or the like, and the amount of serum in the sample liquid is measured by performing image processing. Measure the capacitance of the sample liquid in the container using a capacitance sensor, detect the interface position in the sample liquid based on the change in the capacitance, and measure the amount of serum using this interface position Various methods such as a method have been proposed (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).

  However, among the various measurement methods as described above, in the method of acquiring an image using a CCD camera or the like, when a label with various information is attached to the surface of the container, The label is in the way, and a clear image of the sample liquid in the container cannot be obtained. For this reason, it becomes difficult to accurately measure the amount of serum in the sample liquid in the container.

  In the method of measuring using a capacitance sensor, the measurement accuracy is not affected by the label on the surface of the container as in the case of using a CCD camera or the like. Since the output signal of the capacitance sensor varies greatly depending on the distance between the sensor and the container, it is necessary to control the distance between the capacitance sensor and the container with high accuracy, which complicates the overall structure and increases the price of the device. May increase. Furthermore, when serum is attached to the wall surface of the container, there is a problem in that the serum interface cannot be accurately detected and the measurement accuracy of the amount of serum is lowered.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-37845 JP 2001-108506 A

  An object of the present invention is to provide an interface detection device and an interface detection method capable of accurately detecting an interface position of a specific liquid of a sample liquid in a container.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a volume measuring device and a volume measuring method capable of accurately measuring the volume of a specific liquid of a sample liquid.

Such an object is achieved by the present inventions (1) to (14) below.
(1) An interface detection device for detecting an interface position of a specific liquid in a sample liquid composed of at least two types of liquids having different specific gravities contained in a container,
Transmitting and receiving means for transmitting and receiving microwaves to and from the sample liquid;
Moving means for moving the container in a vertical direction relative to the transmitting / receiving means;
An interface detection apparatus comprising: a detection unit configured to detect an interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid based on a signal generated by the operation of the transmission / reception unit.

(2) The transmission / reception means includes a microwave sensor including a transmission unit that transmits the microwave and a reception unit that receives the transmitted microwave,
The interface detection apparatus according to (1), wherein the detection unit operates to detect an interface position of the specific liquid by processing an output signal from a reception unit of the microwave sensor.

  (3) An interface detection method, wherein the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid is detected using the interface detection apparatus according to (1) or (2).

(4) A volume measuring device that measures the volume of a specific liquid in a sample liquid composed of at least two kinds of liquids having different specific gravities contained in a container,
Transmitting and receiving means for transmitting and receiving microwaves to and from the sample liquid;
Moving means for moving the container in a vertical direction relative to the transmitting / receiving means;
Detection means for detecting an interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid based on a signal generated by the operation of the transmission / reception means;
A volume measuring apparatus comprising: a measuring unit that measures the volume of the specific liquid of the sample liquid based on the interface position detected by the operation of the detecting unit.

(5) The transmission / reception means includes a microwave sensor including a transmission unit that transmits the microwave and a reception unit that receives the transmitted microwave,
The volume measuring device according to (4), wherein the detection unit operates to detect an interface position of the specific liquid by processing an output signal from a receiving unit of the microwave sensor.

  (6) The transmission unit and the reception unit of the microwave sensor are arranged opposite to the container, and the microwave reflected from the sample liquid in the container is transmitted from the transmission unit toward the container. The volume measuring device according to (5), configured to be received by a receiving unit.

  (7) A microwave transmitted from the transmitting unit toward the container, the transmitting unit and the receiving unit of the microwave sensor being disposed opposite to each other, the container being installed between the transmitting unit and the receiving unit. Among these, the volume measuring device according to (5), configured to receive the microwave transmitted through the sample liquid in the container by the receiving unit.

  (8) The volume measuring device according to any one of (4) to (7), wherein the container has a known cross-sectional area of the lumen.

  (9) The volume measuring device according to any one of (4) to (8), wherein at least two types of liquids of the sample liquid are accommodated in the container in a state where they are separated in the vertical direction.

  (10) The volume measuring device according to any one of (4) to (9), wherein a label made of paper or resin is attached to a surface of the container.

  (11) A volume measuring method, wherein the volume of the specific liquid of the sample liquid is measured using the volume measuring apparatus according to any one of (4) to (10).

(12) A method for measuring a volume of a specific liquid of the sample liquid using the volume measuring device according to any one of (5), (6), (8) to (10),
The microwave is transmitted from the transmission unit of the microwave sensor toward the container by the operation of the transmission / reception unit while moving the container in the vertical direction relative to the transmission / reception unit. Microwaves reflected by the sample liquid in the container among the waves are received by the receiving unit,
Next, by the operation of the detection means, the output signal from the receiving unit is processed to detect the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid,
Then, based on the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid, the volume of the specific liquid of the sample liquid is measured by the operation of the measuring means.

(13) A method for measuring a volume of a specific liquid of the sample liquid using the volume measuring device according to any one of (5), (7) to (10),
The microwave is transmitted from the transmission unit of the microwave sensor toward the container by the operation of the transmission / reception unit while moving the container in the vertical direction relative to the transmission / reception unit. The microwave that has passed through the sample liquid in the container among the waves is received by the receiving unit,
Next, by the operation of the detection means, the output signal from the receiving unit is processed to detect the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid,
Then, based on the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid, the volume of the specific liquid of the sample liquid is measured by the operation of the measuring means.

  (14) An upper interface and a lower interface of the specific liquid of the sample liquid are detected, respectively, and the difference in height between these interfaces and the known cross-sectional area of the container are integrated to calculate the sample liquid The volume measuring method according to any one of (11) to (13), wherein the volume of the specific liquid is calculated.

  According to the present invention, since the microwave is used to detect the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid in the container, the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid in the container can be detected with high accuracy.

Thereby, the volume of the specific liquid of the sample liquid can be accurately measured.
Moreover, when a microwave sensor is used for the transmission / reception means, the price of the volume measuring device can be kept low.

  Hereinafter, an interface detection device, an interface detection method, a volume measurement device, and a volume measurement method of the present invention will be described in detail based on preferred embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. Hereinafter, the case where the interface detecting device of the present invention is applied to the volume measuring device of the present invention will be described.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a container containing a sample liquid, FIG. 2 is a block diagram schematically showing the main part of the volume measuring apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a volume shown in FIG. It is the schematic which shows the detection result of the interface position detected by the measuring device. In the following, for convenience of explanation, the upper side in FIGS. 1 to 3 is referred to as “upper” and the lower side is referred to as “lower”.

  The volume measuring apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 2 is a specific liquid (serum 11, separating agent 10 or blood clot 9) in the sample liquid 8 composed of at least two kinds (three kinds in this embodiment) of liquids having different specific gravities. It is effective for measuring the volume.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the volume measuring apparatus 1 specifies the sample liquid 8 by a transmission / reception unit 2 that transmits and receives microwaves, a moving unit 13 that moves the container 6, and a signal generated by the operation of the transmission / reception unit 2. Detection means 17 for detecting the interface position of the liquid and measurement means 21 for measuring the volume of the specific liquid in the sample liquid 8 based on the interface position detected by the operation of the detection means 17 are provided.

  Here, before describing the configuration of each part, the container 6 installed in the volume measuring apparatus 1 and the sample liquid 8 stored in the container 6 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the container 6 has a cylindrical shape with a closed lower end such as a test tube and is supported by a moving means 13 described later so as to be movable in the vertical direction. The container 6 is made of a material that can transmit microwaves, such as colorless and transparent glass, resin, and the like.

  Further, a translucent label 7 made of paper, resin or the like is affixed to the surface of the container 6, and information such as characters, symbols and barcodes is attached to the label 7 by printing or handwriting as necessary. Has been. The material of the label 7 is not particularly limited as long as it can transmit microwaves.

  By attaching such a label 7 to the container 6, information about the container 6 can be described in the label 7, so that the container 6 can be distinguished from other containers.

  The sample liquid 8 is composed of at least two types of liquids having different specific gravities, and in this embodiment, the sample liquid 8 is composed of blood collected from the subject and the separating agent 10. .

  The sample liquid 8 is stored in the container 6 and centrifuged in a centrifuge (not shown), so that the clot 9, the separating agent 10, The serum 11 is separated into three types of liquids. The upper portion of the serum 11 is filled with a predetermined amount of air 12.

  As described above, the various liquids are separated in the vertical direction, whereby the interface position of each liquid can be detected more easily.

  Next, the structure of each part in the volume measuring device 1 will be described. Hereinafter, serum 11 is a specific liquid.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the transmission / reception means 2 includes a microwave sensor 3 including a transmission unit 4 that transmits a microwave and a reception unit 5 that receives the microwave transmitted from the transmission unit 4. ing. The transmission unit 4 and the reception unit 5 of the microwave sensor 3 are disposed to face the container 6 at a predetermined interval.

  The microwave transmitted from the transmission unit 4 of the microwave sensor 3 is incident on the container 6 from the horizontal direction (left direction in FIG. 2) and passes through the sample liquid 8 in the container 6. And microwaves that are reflected by the sample liquid 8 inside and incident on the receiving unit 5.

  That is, since the dielectric constant of the container 6, the label 7 on the surface of the container 6, the air 12 in the container 6, and the separating agent 10 is small, when microwaves transmitted from the transmission unit 4 enter them, they are reflected and absorbed. Penetrate them without. On the other hand, since serum 11 is an aqueous solution and has a large dielectric constant, microwaves are reflected and absorbed better than the above substances. Therefore, by utilizing this property, the interface position of the specific liquid (serum 11) of the sample liquid 8 can be detected (see FIG. 3). The relative dielectric constant is about 80 for water, about 3 or less for many organic substances, and about 5 or less for inorganic substances when the vacuum is 1.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the detection unit 17 is connected to the microwave sensor 3 (reception unit 5), and a signal received by the reception unit 5 is sent to the detection unit 17. The detection means 17 includes an amplification circuit 19 that amplifies the signal from the reception unit 5, and a comparator circuit 20 that compares the signal from the amplification circuit 19 with a predetermined threshold and outputs a comparison result signal.

  Based on the output signal from the comparator circuit 20, the interface position of the serum 11 (the interface position between the serum 11 and the air 12 and the interface position between the serum 11 and the separating agent 10) is detected.

  With the detection means 17 having such a configuration, it is possible to more easily detect the interface position in the serum 11.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the measuring means 21 is connected to the detecting means 17. By the operation of the measuring means 21, the output signal from the detecting means 17 (the interface position of the serum 11), the cross-sectional area (inner diameter dimension) of the lumen portion of the container 6 that is measured in advance (known), etc. The amount (volume) of serum 11 is measured. That is, the volume of serum 11 is obtained by integrating the height difference between the upper interface and the lower interface of serum 11 and the cross-sectional area of the lumen of container 6. Thereby, the volume of serum 11 can be easily obtained (measured).

  As shown in FIG. 2, the moving means 13 supports the container 6, supports the support 14 so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and sets a fixed interval between the support 14 and the microwave sensor 3. And a vertical movement mechanism (not shown) for moving the support portion 14 in the vertical direction with respect to the microwave sensor 3 (transmission / reception means 2).

  The support portion 14 has a substantially L-shaped plate shape that includes a substrate 15 and a back plate 16 that stands upright at one end of the substrate 15. The support portion 14 is formed by the substrate 15 and the back plate 16. The container 6 is vertically supported by the inner part. In addition, it is preferable to form the support part 14 with the material which can permeate | transmit a microwave.

  The vertical movement mechanism is not particularly limited as long as it has a function of moving the support portion 14 in the vertical direction. For example, a commercially available linear guide, linear motor, or the like can be used.

  Next, a method for measuring the volume of the serum 11 using the volume measuring device 1 (volume measuring method (interface detection method)) will be described.

  First, the blood collected from the subject and the separating agent 10 are accommodated in the container 6 as the sample liquid 8, and the container 6 containing the sample liquid 8 is integrated and centrifuged in a centrifuge. By this centrifugal separation, as shown in FIG. 1, the sample liquid 8 in the container 6 is separated into three types of liquids: serum 11, separating agent 10, and clot 9.

  Next, the container 6 is supported on the support portion 14 of the moving means 13. Thereafter, the transmission / reception means 2 is operated while the container 6 is translated in the vertical direction with respect to the transmission / reception means 2 by the operation of the movement means 13. At this time, the transmission / reception means 2 transmits the microwave from the transmission unit 4 of the microwave sensor 3 toward the container 6 and receives the microwave reflected by the sample liquid 8 in the container 6 among the transmitted microwaves. Operates to receive in part 5. That is, the transmission / reception means 2 (moving means 13) operates to cause the microwave sensor 3 to scan the entire sample liquid 8 in the container 6.

  Next, the signal (output signal) received by the receiving unit 5 of the microwave sensor 3 is processed by the cooperation of the amplifier circuit 19 and the comparator circuit 20 of the detection means 17, so that as shown in FIG. An output result corresponding to the air 12, the serum 11, the separating agent 10, and the blood clot 9 is obtained. At this time, as described above, since the serum 11 has a larger dielectric constant than the air 12 and the separating agent 10, the signal level at the position of the serum 11 is larger than the signal level at the position of the air 12 and the separating agent 10. Become. Moreover, although the obtained signal waveform changes gently at the interface portion, the interface position or height of the serum 11 (distance between the interface positions) can be detected by setting an appropriate threshold value. .

  Next, the interface position of the serum 11 detected by the operation of the detecting means 17 is sent (transmitted) to the measuring means 21, and the interface position and the cross-sectional area of the lumen portion of the container 6 that has been measured in advance (known). The volume of serum 11 can be measured by (inner diameter dimension) or the like. That is, the volume of serum 11 is obtained by integrating the height difference between the upper interface and the lower interface of serum 11 and the cross-sectional area of the lumen of container 6. Thereby, the volume of serum 11 can be easily obtained (measured).

  By such a method, the interface position of the serum 11 of the sample liquid 8 in the container 6 can be detected with high accuracy, and thus the volume of the serum 11 can be accurately measured.

  In the volume measuring apparatus 1, since the microwave sensor 3 is used for the transmission / reception means 2, even if the label 7 is on the surface of the container 6, the transmission / reception of the microwave is affected by the label 7. Therefore, the interface position of the serum 11 in the container 6 can be detected with high accuracy, and the volume of the serum 11 can be measured with high accuracy by the detected interface position.

  Further, even if the serum 11 or the like is attached to the inner wall surface of the container 6, the detection of the interface position of the serum 11 is not affected. The volume of serum 11 can be measured with high accuracy.

  Further, the volume of the serum 11 can be measured with high accuracy even when the container 6 is not opened.

  Further, the microwave sensor 3 of the transmission / reception means 2 is disposed opposite to the container 6, the container 6 is supported by the support part 14 of the moving means 13, and the support part 14 is translated with respect to the container 6 by the moving mechanism. It is configured. Thereby, the structure of the volume measuring device 1 is simplified, the price of the entire device can be kept low, and an inexpensive device can be provided.

Second Embodiment
FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically showing the main part of the volume measuring device according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing the detection result of the interface position detected by the volume measuring device shown in FIG. It is. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the upper side in FIGS. 4 and 5 is referred to as “upper” and the lower side is referred to as “lower”.

  Hereinafter, the second embodiment of the volume measuring device (interface detecting device) and the volume measuring method (interface detecting method) of the present invention will be described with reference to these drawings, but the differences from the above-described first embodiment are described. The description will be made mainly, and the description of the same matters will be omitted.

  The present embodiment is the same as the first embodiment except that the configurations of the transmission / reception means and the detection means are different.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the transmission unit 4 and the reception unit 5 of the microwave sensor 3 are arranged to face each other, and a container 6 is installed between the transmission unit 4 and the reception unit 5. That is, the transmission unit 4 of the microwave sensor 3 is installed so as to face the reception unit 5 through the container 6. With such a configuration (arrangement), among the microwaves transmitted from the transmission unit 4 toward the container 6, the microwaves transmitted through the sample liquid 8 in the container 6 can be received by the reception unit 5.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the detection unit 17 </ b> A includes a detection circuit 18, an amplification circuit 19, and a comparator circuit 20.

  Next, a method (volume measuring method) for measuring the volume of the serum 11 using the volume measuring device 1 of the present embodiment will be described.

  First, the container 6 containing the sample liquid 8 is supported by the support portion 14 of the moving means 13. At this time, the sample liquid 8 in the container 6 is separated into three types of liquids: serum 11, separating agent 10, and blood clot 9.

  Next, the transmission / reception unit 2 is operated while the container 6 is translated in the vertical direction with respect to the transmission / reception unit 2 by the operation of the movement unit 13. At this time, the transmission / reception means 2 transmits the microwave from the transmission unit 4 of the microwave sensor 3 toward the container 6 and receives the microwave transmitted through the sample liquid 8 in the container 6 among the transmitted microwaves. Operates to receive in part 5. That is, the transmission / reception means 2 (moving means 13) operates to cause the microwave sensor 3 to scan the entire sample liquid 8 in the container 6.

  Next, the signal (output signal) received by the receiving unit 5 of the microwave sensor 3 is processed by the cooperation of the amplifier circuit 19 and the comparator circuit 20 of the detection means 17A, so that as shown in FIG. An output result corresponding to the air 12, the serum 11, the separating agent 10, and the blood clot 9 is obtained. At this time, as described above, since the serum 11 has a dielectric constant larger than that of the air 12 and the separating agent 10, the signal level at the position of the serum 11 is smaller than the signal level at the position of the air 12 and the separating agent 10. Become. Moreover, although the obtained signal waveform changes gently at the interface portion, the interface position or height of the serum 11 (distance between the interface positions) can be detected by setting an appropriate threshold value. .

Next, the interface position of the serum 11 detected by the operation of the detection means 17A is sent (transmitted) to the measurement means 21, and the cross-sectional area of the lumen portion of the container 6 that has been previously measured (known) as the interface position. The volume of serum 11 can be measured by (inner diameter dimension) or the like. That is, the volume of serum 11 is obtained by integrating the height difference between the upper interface and the lower interface of serum 11 and the cross-sectional area of the lumen of container 6. Thereby, the volume of serum 11 can be easily obtained (measured).
By such a method, the same effect as described above can be obtained.

<Third Embodiment>
FIG. 6 is a schematic view showing a third embodiment of the volume measuring apparatus of the present invention. Further, in the following, for convenience of explanation, the upper side in FIG. 6 is referred to as “upper” and the lower side is referred to as “lower”.

  Hereinafter, the third embodiment of the volume measuring device (interface detecting device) of the present invention will be described with reference to this figure. However, the difference from the first embodiment will be mainly described, and the same matters will be described. Description is omitted.

  The present embodiment is the same as the first embodiment except that the configuration / shape of the moving means is different.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in the volume measuring device 1 of the present embodiment, the support portion 14 of the moving means 13 is of a type in which the upper end portion of the container 6 is sandwiched by a pair of claws 22, 22, and the moving mechanism 23 is a type in which the support portion 14 is moved in two directions, ie, a vertical direction (up and down direction) and a horizontal direction. Thereby, the container 6 can be moved not only in the vertical direction but also in the horizontal direction.

  Further, a V-shaped guide plate 26 is provided to face the microwave sensor 3 of the transmission / reception means 2. By bringing the side surface of the container 6 into contact with the guide plate 26, the container 6 can be guided vertically when the container 6 moves in the vertical direction, and the distance between the container 6 and the microwave sensor 3. Can be kept constant.

  Further, a supply station 27 that can accommodate a plurality of containers 6 is provided in the vicinity of the moving mechanism 23. By storing a plurality of containers 6 in the supply station 27 at a time, the volume of the serum 11 in each container 6 can be measured more efficiently.

  As mentioned above, although the volume measuring device and the volume measuring method of the present invention have been described with respect to the illustrated embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this, and each part constituting the volume measuring device exhibits the same function. It can be replaced with any configuration obtained. Moreover, arbitrary components may be added.

  The volume measuring device of the present invention may be a combination of any two or more configurations (features) of the above embodiments.

  Further, the volume measuring device of the present invention is not limited to the configuration in which the microwave sensor is fixed and the container is translated in the vertical direction with respect to the microwave sensor. The sensor may be configured to translate in the vertical direction with respect to the container.

It is the schematic which shows the container containing the sample liquid. It is a block diagram showing roughly the principal part of the volume measuring device in a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is the schematic which shows the detection result of the interface position detected by the volume measuring apparatus shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows roughly the principal part of the volume measuring apparatus in 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the detection result of the interface position detected by the volume measuring apparatus shown in FIG. It is the schematic which shows 3rd Embodiment of the volume measuring apparatus of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Volume measuring device 2 Transmission / reception means 3 Microwave sensor 4 Transmission part 5 Reception part 6 Container 7 Label 8 Specimen liquid 9 Blood clot 10 Separation agent 11 Serum 12 Air 13 Moving means 14 Support part 15 Board | substrate 16 Backplate 17, 17A Detection means DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 18 Detection circuit 19 Amplification circuit 20 Comparator circuit 21 Measuring means 22 Claw 23 Moving mechanism 26 Guide plate 27 Supply station

Claims (14)

An interface detection device for detecting an interface position of a specific liquid in a sample liquid composed of at least two types of liquids having different specific gravities contained in a container,
Transmitting and receiving means for transmitting and receiving microwaves to and from the sample liquid;
Moving means for moving the container in a vertical direction relative to the transmitting / receiving means;
An interface detection apparatus comprising: a detection unit configured to detect an interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid based on a signal generated by the operation of the transmission / reception unit. The transmission / reception means includes a microwave sensor including a transmission unit that transmits the microwave and a reception unit that receives the transmitted microwave,
The interface detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit operates to detect an interface position of the specific liquid by processing an output signal from a reception unit of the microwave sensor.   An interface detection method, wherein the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid is detected using the interface detection apparatus according to claim 1. A volume measuring device for measuring a volume of a specific liquid in a sample liquid composed of at least two kinds of liquids having different specific gravities contained in a container,
Transmitting and receiving means for transmitting and receiving microwaves to and from the sample liquid;
Moving means for moving the container in a vertical direction relative to the transmitting / receiving means;
Detection means for detecting an interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid based on a signal generated by the operation of the transmission / reception means;
A volume measuring apparatus comprising: a measuring unit that measures the volume of the specific liquid of the sample liquid based on the interface position detected by the operation of the detecting unit. The transmission / reception means includes a microwave sensor including a transmission unit that transmits the microwave and a reception unit that receives the transmitted microwave,
The volume measuring device according to claim 4, wherein the detection unit operates to detect an interface position of the specific liquid by processing an output signal from a receiving unit of the microwave sensor.   Of the microwaves transmitted from the transmitter to the container, the microwave reflected by the sample liquid in the container is received by the receiver. The volume measuring device according to claim 5 configured to receive.   While placing the transmitter and the receiver of the microwave sensor facing each other, installing the container between the transmitter and the receiver, among the microwaves transmitted from the transmitter to the container, The volume measuring apparatus according to claim 5, configured to receive the microwave transmitted through the sample liquid in the container by the receiving unit.   The volume measuring device according to any one of claims 4 to 7, wherein the container has a known cross-sectional area of a lumen portion thereof.   The volume measuring device according to any one of claims 4 to 8, wherein at least two kinds of liquids of the specimen liquid are accommodated in the container in a state of being separated in a vertical direction.   The volume measuring apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a label made of paper or resin is attached to a surface of the container.   A volume measuring method, comprising: measuring a volume of a specific liquid of the sample liquid using the volume measuring apparatus according to claim 4. A method for measuring the volume of a specific liquid of the sample liquid using the volume measuring device according to any one of claims 5, 6, 8 to 10,
The microwave is transmitted from the transmission unit of the microwave sensor toward the container by the operation of the transmission / reception unit while moving the container in the vertical direction relative to the transmission / reception unit. Microwaves reflected by the sample liquid in the container among the waves are received by the receiving unit,
Next, by the operation of the detection means, the output signal from the receiving unit is processed to detect the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid,
Then, based on the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid, the volume of the specific liquid of the sample liquid is measured by the operation of the measuring means. A method for measuring the volume of a specific liquid of the sample liquid using the volume measuring apparatus according to claim 5,
The microwave is transmitted from the transmission unit of the microwave sensor toward the container by the operation of the transmission / reception unit while moving the container in the vertical direction relative to the transmission / reception unit. The microwave that has passed through the sample liquid in the container among the waves is received by the receiving unit,
Next, by the operation of the detection means, the output signal from the receiving unit is processed to detect the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid,
Then, based on the interface position of the specific liquid of the sample liquid, the volume of the specific liquid of the sample liquid is measured by the operation of the measuring means.   The upper interface and the lower interface of the specific liquid of the sample liquid are detected, respectively, and the difference in height between these interfaces and the known cross-sectional area of the container are integrated to identify the specific liquid of the sample liquid The volume measurement method according to claim 11, wherein the volume is calculated.

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