JP2005241551A - Accessory item and analysis system using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an attachment which can expands functions. <P>SOLUTION: The attachment 26 which is freely detachable from a body 20 of an analytical apparatus 18 and in which a part of component member 24 of the analytical apparatus 18 is made up, has an attachment recognizing tag 12 which is disposed near an optical path 28 in the attachment 26 so as to be, corresponding to an optical path 30 in the analytical apparatus body 20 and stores attachment information for recognizing the kind of the attachment 26. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an accessory and an analysis apparatus using the accessory, and more particularly to an accessory recognition mechanism.

In an analyzer such as FTIR, various measurement methods can be selected in accordance with the form of the sample, the purpose of measurement, and the like (Patent Document 1, etc.) For example, in FTIR, in order to easily change the measurement method, constituent members between the interferometer and the detector are unitized, and this is an accessory that can be attached to and detached from the sample chamber of the analyzer main body. By selecting such accessories according to the sample form and measurement purpose and providing them in the main body of the analyzer, it is possible to easily cope with various measurement methods.
By the way, when the number of accessories increases, it may become difficult to know what accessories are attached to the analyzer main body.
For this reason, it is conceivable to provide an accessory recognition function in an analyzer in which various accessories are detachably attached to the main body. Conventionally, for example, the accessory is recognized at a specific position of the analyzer main body (such as the back of the sample chamber) and an accessory corresponding to the specific position of the analyzer main body (such as the corner of the accessory). It is conceivable to provide an accessory recognition mechanism such as an electrical contact for performing.
JP 2001-183294 A

However, if the conventional accessory recognition mechanism is used, only the accessory in the shape of the sample chamber of the analyzer body, that is, the dedicated accessory for the body can be recognized. There was room for improvement.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems of the prior art, and an object thereof is to provide an accessory capable of achieving functional expandability and an analyzer using the accessory.

In order to achieve the above object, the accessory according to the present invention is detachable from the main body of the analyzer, and the accessory is provided with at least a part of the optical system components of the analyzer. It is characterized by having a tag.
Here, the accessory recognition tag is provided near the optical path in the accessory corresponding to the optical path in the analyzer main body, and is an accessory for identifying the type of the accessory. Store product information.
The accessory information here is specific to each accessory, for example. More specifically, what kind of function does the accessory have when the accessory is set in the analyzer body for analysis? It means something that can be understood. As an example, information on the types of optical system components provided in the accessories, the arrangement of the optical system components, sample forms, measurement conditions, measurement methods, and the like can be given.

In order to achieve the above object, an analyzer according to the present invention is an analyzer including a main body on which the accessory is detachably provided, and includes a reading unit and a management unit. The management means recognizes whether an accessory is attached to the analyzer body based on accessory information of the accessory recognition tag from the reading means, and if the accessory is attached, It is characterized by recognizing what kind of accessory it is.
Here, the reading means is provided near the optical path of the analyzer main body corresponding to the position of the accessory recognition tag provided on the accessory, and reads the accessory information of the accessory recognition tag. Shall be.

The management means is for obtaining accessory information of the accessory recognition tag via the reading means.
Here, “provided near the optical path” does not mean that the optical path is interrupted.
In the present invention, the accessory is detachably provided in the sample chamber of the analyzer main body, and is provided with a sample cell selected from the group consisting of transmission measurement and reflection measurement. The reading means is preferably provided in the vicinity of the optical path in the sample chamber of the analyzer main body.

In the present invention, the accessory recognition tag is a type that can further write the accessory information. The reading means can further write accessory information to the accessory recognition tag. The management means reads or writes accessory information for the accessory recognition tag via the reading means in a state where the accessory provided with the accessory recognition tag is set in the main body of the analyzer. It is preferred to do so.
Furthermore, in the present invention, it is preferable to provide a write restriction means for providing a certain restriction when writing accessory information to the accessory recognition tag.

According to the accessory according to the present invention, accessory information for identifying the type of the accessory is provided near the optical path in the accessory corresponding to the optical path in the analyzer main body. Since the accessory recognition tag to be stored is provided, the analyzer main body can be recognized not only for the dedicated accessory but also for other accessories, and the expandability of the analyzer is improved.
In the analyzer according to the present invention, reading means for reading accessory information of the accessory recognition tag is provided near the optical path of the main body corresponding to the position of the accessory recognition tag of the accessory. Therefore, the expandability of the analyzer is improved.

In the present invention, since the accessory recognition tag is of a type that can be written, and the accessory information is written in the accessory recognition tag by the management means, it is possible to more easily deal with other accessories. The extensibility of is improved.
In the present invention, the reliability of the accessory information can be maintained by providing the write restriction means for providing a certain restriction when writing the accessory information to the accessory recognition tag. The improvement of extensibility is improved.

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of an accessory having an accessory recognition mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention and an analyzer using the accessory.
In this embodiment, the accessory recognition mechanism is used for a Fourier transform infrared spectrophotometer (FTIR), and whether or not the accessory is attached to the sample chamber of the FTIR main body is attached. Then, the example which recognizes what kind of accessory is demonstrated.

The accessory recognition mechanism 10 shown in FIG. 1 includes an accessory recognition tag 12, a reading unit 14, and a computer (management unit) 16. The accessory recognition mechanism 10 is detachable from the sample chamber 22 of the main body 20 of the FTIR (analyzer) 18 and is used for recognizing the type of the accessory 26 provided with the sample cell (component member) 24 of the FTIR 18. It is done.
Here, the accessory recognition tag 12 stores information for identifying the type of the accessory 26 to be recognized (installed).
What is characteristic in the present embodiment is that the accessory recognition tag 12 is created independently of the accessory. Further, in the present embodiment, the accessory is located near the optical path 28 in the accessory 26, for example, approximately at the center of the bottom surface of the accessory 26 that is located directly below the optical path 28 in the accessory 26. A recognition tag 12 is provided.

The reading means 14 is provided near the optical path 30 of the FTIR body 20 corresponding to the position of the accessory recognition tag 12 of the accessory, for example, directly below the optical path 30 in the FTIR body 20. Assume that the accessory information of the product recognition tag 12 is read.
Whether the computer 16 is an FTIR 18 computer or the like and whether the accessory 26 is attached to the sample chamber 22 of the FTIR body 20 based on the accessory information of the accessory recognition tag 12 obtained through the reading means 14. Is automatically recognized. If the accessory 26 is attached, it automatically recognizes what kind of accessory it is.

  Thus, in this embodiment, the accessory recognition tag 12 is created independently of the accessory. By simply providing the accessory recognition tag 12 near the optical path 28 in the accessory 26 to be recognized, the sample chamber 22 of the FTIR body 20 recognizes not only a dedicated accessory but also other accessories. Can also be supported. In this embodiment, the reading means 14 for reading the accessory information of the accessory recognition tag 12 is provided near the optical path 30 of the sample chamber 22 of the FTIR main body 20 so that other accessories can be recognized. Yes. Thereby, in this embodiment, the expansibility of FTIR is improved as compared with the one using the conventional accessory recognition mechanism.

Next, the accessory and the analyzer 18 according to the present embodiment will be described in more detail.
The FTIR main body 20 further includes a light emitting means 36 including a light source 32, an interferometer 34, and the like, and a detector 38. The FTIR body 20 and the computer 16 are connected via an AD converter 40. The computer 16 controls the operation of the FTIR 18 equipment (light emitting means 36, detector 38, etc.) and its peripheral equipment. The computer 16 performs various data processing including Fourier transform of data from the detector 38 to obtain an infrared spectrum.
The accessory 26 of the FTIR 18 is detachably provided in the sample chamber 22 of the FTIR main body 20, and is provided with at least a sample cell selected from the group consisting of transmission measurement and reflection measurement. In this embodiment, A sample cell 24 for transmission measurement is provided.

Next, the periphery of the reading unit 14 (main body side) will be specifically described.
In this embodiment, the sample chamber 22 of the FTIR main body 20 is provided with a main body side base 42, and the accessory 26 is placed on the main body side base 42.
2A is a longitudinal sectional view of the main body side base 42, and FIG. 2B is a view of the same main body side base 42 as viewed from above.

In the main body side base 42 shown in the figure, a hole 44 for providing the reading means 14 is provided near the optical path 30 of the sample chamber of the FTIR main body. The opening size of the hole 44 is larger than the size of the external shape of the accessory recognition tag in order to enhance the expandability when the accessory is set in the sample chamber. For this reason, when the accessory is set in the sample chamber, the accessory recognition tag is firmly placed in the hole 44 of the main body base 42 even if the position of the reading means 14 and the position of the accessory recognition tag are slightly shifted. enter.
In the present embodiment, the main body side base 42 is positioned near the optical path 30 of the sample chamber of the FTIR main body so that any shape accessory can be easily positioned on the optical path 30 of the sample chamber of the FTIR main body. Pins 46a and 46b are provided.

Next, the periphery of the accessory recognition tag 12 will be specifically described.
FIG. 3A is a longitudinal sectional view of the accessory 26 provided with the accessory recognition tag 12, and FIG. 3B is a view of the accessory-side base as viewed from above.
The accessory recognition tag 12 shown in the figure includes a memory 50 and an interface 52, and is on the optical path 28 in the accessory 26 corresponding to the position of the hole 44 of the main body side base 42 shown in FIG. Near the center of the accessory side base 48, for example.
The memory 50 is formed of, for example, an IC memory, and stores information on the type of the accessory 26 provided with the accessory recognition tag 12.
The interface 52 is made of, for example, an electrical contact or the like, and is used for connecting the memory 50 of the accessory recognition tag 12 to the FTIR main body via the reading means.

In addition, positioning holes 54a and 54b are provided in the lower part of the accessory side base 48 at positions corresponding to the positioning pins of the main body side base as described above.
For this reason, in the present embodiment, the accessory 26 can be recognized in any form by simply setting the accessory 26 in the sample chamber 22 of the FTIR body 20, and the accessory 26 is attached to the sample chamber 22. It is possible to reliably arrange on the predetermined optical path 30.

FIG. 4 shows a state in which the accessory according to this embodiment is installed on the main body side base. 2A is a longitudinal sectional view, and FIG. 2B is a view of the accessory side base, the main body side base and the like as viewed from above.
That is, as shown in the figure, only by aligning the positioning holes 54a, 54b of the accessory 26 with the positioning pins 46a, 46b of the main body side base 42, the predetermined optical path 28 of the accessory 26 and the predetermined of the FTIR main body. The optical path 30 matches. For this reason, any shape accessory can be reliably positioned on the predetermined optical path 30 of the FTIR body.
In addition, as described above, the accessory recognition tag 12 is always positioned on the reading means 14 by setting the accessory in the sample chamber of the FTIR main body, and any type of accessory. For this reason, any type of accessory can be reliably recognized.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the computer 16 accesses the memory 50 of the accessory recognition tag 12 through the reading means 14 and the interface 52 of the accessory recognition tag 12, and the memory 16 of the accessory recognition tag 12. Acquire accessory information such as accessory model, serial number, and measurement conditions. Based on the read accessory information, the computer 16 automatically recognizes whether or not the accessory 26 is attached to the FTIR main body 20 based on the presence or absence of a reception signal from the reading means 14 in particular. Furthermore, if the accessory 26 is attached, the computer 16 automatically recognizes what kind of accessory it is based on the contents of accessory information included in the received signal from the reading means 14.

Improvement of the functional expandability of the apparatus as described above is obtained for the first time by the configuration of the present invention, and it is difficult to use the conventional accessory recognition mechanism.
That is, conventionally, it is conceivable to provide electrical contacts for recognizing accessories at the back of the sample chamber of the apparatus main body and the corners of the accessories. However, since only the recognition of dedicated accessories has been considered in the past, using accessories other than dedicated accessories in order to enhance the functional expandability of the device, the recognition of the accessories and the attachment of the accessories to the device body Both optical positioning and reliable positioning may not be performed.

For example, in order to recognize the accessory, it is necessary to bring the electrical contact on the accessory side into contact with the electrical contact on the sample chamber side of the instrument body. If the shape of the accessory set on the instrument body is smaller than that of the dedicated accessory, it is necessary to place the accessory in the farthest part of the sample chamber. Analysis may not be possible because the optical path may be shifted more than the predetermined optical path of the apparatus main body.
In addition, if an accessory smaller than the dedicated accessory is placed on the specified optical path of the device body, the electrical contact between the sample chamber side and the accessory side of the device body may not be able to contact each other. Accessories may not be recognized automatically.

On the other hand, in the present invention, in order to reliably perform both the recognition of the accessory and the optical positioning of the accessory with respect to the apparatus main body, the following points are focused.
That is, the accessory may be of any shape as long as it is mounted on the main body side base, but the accessory must be positioned on the optical path 30 of the apparatus main body. On the other hand, any type of accessory must always be present near the optical path 30 of the apparatus body.

  For this reason, in the present embodiment, the reading means 14 is provided near the optical path 30 in the sample chamber of the FTIR main body, and close to the optical path 28 in the accessory 26 corresponding to the position of the reading means 14. By providing the accessory recognition tag 12, when the accessory is set in the sample chamber 22 of the FTIR body 20, the accessory recognition tag 12 is always positioned on the reading means 14 regardless of the shape of the accessory. Therefore, in this embodiment, with any type of accessory, which has been extremely difficult in the past, both the recognition of the accessory and the arrangement of the apparatus main body on the predetermined optical path can be reliably performed.

As the memory of the memory accessory recognition tag 12, various types of memory are conceivable, but in the present embodiment, a type that can be written is particularly preferable in order to improve expandability.
In other words, it is possible to create a ROM (accessory recognition tag) that can usually only read accessory information together with the accessory (integrated), but write new or changed accessory information. In this case, it is troublesome because the accessories must be pulled in from the site to the factory and the ROM must be replaced.
On the other hand, in this embodiment, the accessory recognition tag 12 is created independently of the accessory 26, and the accessory recognition tag 12 is a type that can read or write accessory information. .

The reading unit 14 can read or write accessory information to the accessory recognition tag 12.
The computer 16 preferably writes accessory information to the accessory recognition tag 12 via the reading means 14 in a state where the accessory 26 provided with the accessory recognition tag 12 is set in the FTIR body 20. is there.

  For this reason, in this embodiment, simply by setting the accessory 26 in the sample chamber of the FTIR main body 20, as shown in FIG. 5, the reading means 14 on the main body 20 side and the accessory 26 side accessory from the computer 16. The memory 50 of the accessory recognition tag 12 can be accessed via the interface 52 of the item recognition tag 12. Therefore, information necessary for recognition of the accessory 26 is edited on the computer 16, for example, the computer main body 62 is accessed from the input device 60, and information necessary for recognition of the accessory 26 is edited while viewing the display 64. After editing, this can be transferred to the accessory recognition tag 12. Therefore, in the present embodiment, since accessory information can be written on site, it is easier to handle other accessories as compared to those using a ROM or the like created together with the accessory. It is done.

Write restricted Also by providing the writing limiting means providing certain limitations on the writing of accessory information to accessory identification tags, it is possible to keep reliability of the accessory information.
In other words, in this embodiment, the use of a writable type memory makes it easier to handle other accessories, but if anyone rewrites the accessory information, the wrong attachment The reliability of accessory information may be impaired due to the input of product information.
Therefore, in the present embodiment, when the memory 50 that can also write to the accessory recognition tag 12 is used, a certain amount of writing of accessory information to the memory 50 is required to improve the reliability of the accessory information. It is preferable to provide a write restriction means 66 for providing a restriction.

Here, the write restriction means 66 is for providing a certain restriction on the writing of accessory information to the accessory recognition tag 12.
As described above, in the present embodiment, by providing the write restriction means 66 for providing a certain restriction on writing of accessory information to the memory 50, the user can illegally rewrite the accessory information of the memory 50. Can not. For this reason, since the reliability of the accessory information of the accessory recognition tag 12 can be kept constant even if the write-type memory 50 is used, the expandability can be further improved.

As a method for restricting writing, for example, ID, write protection, or the like can be used.
As a method of using the ID, an ID for permitting access to the memory 50 is set in the computer main body 62 in advance. Then, the write restricting means 66 of the computer main body 62 requests the user who tries to access the memory 50 to input the ID from the input device 60, whereby the user who accesses with the ID can be identified. Then, the write restriction unit 66 of the computer main body 62 performs management for restricting accessible users to specific users and the like by permitting access to the memory 50 only for persons having specific IDs.
As the write protection, a hardware method (such as a switch on a tag that only a specific worker knows) or a software method (identifying a user who accesses by the above-described ID and having a specific ID) Write to the memory 50 other than the user is prohibited).

In addition, this invention is not limited to said each structure, A various deformation | transformation is possible within the range of the summary of invention.
For example, the setting means 68 of the computer 16 has the setting information of the optimal analyzer for each accessory in advance, and when the accessory is recognized, the setting information of the analyzer that is optimal for the analysis with the recognized accessory is obtained. It is also preferable to select from the setting information of the optimal analyzer for each accessory obtained in advance, and this is set for the main body of FTIR and its peripheral devices. The setting means 68 can also display on the display 64 measurement conditions recommended for analysis with the recognized accessory. As a result, in this embodiment, the setting operation is simplified and efficient, and anyone can easily perform the measurement operation. Therefore, even if the expandability is improved, the analysis can be performed more easily.

In addition, it is particularly preferable to use the accessory recognition mechanism for an analyzer such as FTIR, but it can also be applied to devices other than the analyzer, and can be applied to all devices in which accessories can be attached to and detached from the device body. is there.
An accessory is not limited to the said structure, A various accessory can be used. For example, in FTIR, sample forms include solid (powder, lump, film, etc.), liquid, gas, and the like. As a measuring method, there are a micro infrared method, a total reflection absorption measurement method (ATR), a highly sensitive reflection method, a diffuse reflection method, a regular reflection method, a KBr tablet method, a supercritical measurement method and the like in addition to the transmission method. For this reason, various sample forms, sample cells (including general containers such as sample holders) for measuring samples using measurement methods, optical system components such as mirrors and lenses, and components such as thermostats are included as accessories. It can be provided on the side base. Further, as a measuring method, there is also background measurement in a state where nothing is put in the sample chamber, and an accessory in which no component is provided on the accessory side base can be used as an accessory.

As an accessory, it is particularly preferable to provide a corresponding component in the sample chamber. However, other components such as a light emitting means or a detector are provided as accessories and are detachably provided at corresponding positions in the apparatus body. You can also.
In the above-described configuration, the example in which the contact method using the interface of the accessory recognition tag as the electrical contact is used for reading the accessory information is described. This is preferable in that the degree of freedom in installing the accessory recognition tag is improved. For example, the interface of the accessory recognition tag and the reading means (main body side) can be used as a radio signal transmitting / receiving antenna, and a signal including accessory information can be transmitted and received wirelessly.

It is explanatory drawing of schematic structure of the accessory using the accessory recognition mechanism concerning one Embodiment of this invention, and an analyzer. It is explanatory drawing of the reading means (analyzer main body side) periphery shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the periphery of the accessory recognition tag shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the state which installed the accessory in the analyzer main body in FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the periphery of the computer shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Accessory recognition mechanism 12 Accessory recognition tag 14 Reading means 16 Computer (management means)
22 Main body sample chamber 26 Accessories 28 Optical path (accessory side)
30 optical path (analyzer side)

Claims (5)

In an accessory that is detachable with respect to the main body of the analyzer and is provided with at least a part of the optical system component of the analyzer,
An accessory recognition tag provided on the optical path in the accessory corresponding to the optical path in the analyzer main body and storing accessory information for identifying the type of the accessory. Accessories characterized by having. In an analyzer comprising a main body in which the accessory according to claim 1 is detachably provided,
Reading means for reading the accessory information of the accessory recognition tag provided near the optical path in the analyzer main body corresponding to the position of the accessory recognition tag provided on the accessory;
Management means for obtaining accessory information of the accessory recognition tag via the reading means;
The management means recognizes whether an accessory is attached to the analyzer main body based on accessory information of an accessory recognition tag from the reading means, and the accessory is attached. Then, an analyzer characterized by recognizing what kind of accessory it is. The analyzer according to claim 2, wherein
The accessory is detachably provided in the sample chamber of the analyzer body, and is provided with a sample cell selected from the group consisting of transmission measurement and reflection measurement,
The analyzer according to claim 1, wherein the reading means is provided in the vicinity of the optical path in the sample chamber of the analyzer main body. The analyzer according to claim 2 or 3,
The accessory recognition tag is a type that can further write the accessory information,
The reading means can further write accessory information to the accessory recognition tag,
The management means reads or writes accessory information for the accessory recognition tag via the reading means in a state where the accessory provided with the accessory recognition tag is set in the main body of the analyzer. An analyzer characterized in that it performs. The analyzer according to claim 4, wherein
An analyzer comprising a writing restriction means for providing a certain restriction when writing accessory information to the accessory recognition tag.

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