JP2005345374A - Interface detector - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an interface detector capable of securing and maintaining high detection precision all the time, capable of ensuring reliability of a detected data, and capable of enhancing a processing capacity. <P>SOLUTION: An interface formed of a liquid stored in the container 100 is detected using a microwave. This detector is provided with a plurality of sensor units 11 of which each has an elevatable sensor head 12 for transmitting/receiving the microwave to/from the container 100, and arrayed along a prescribed direction, and a container arranging rack 13 constituted to allow the plurality of containers 100 to be arranged opposedly to the sensor units 11. A cross talk deterring means 35 is provided to deter a cross talk of the microwave at least between mutual adjacent sensor units. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an interface detection apparatus that measures the reflection intensity of microwaves to at least two types of liquids contained in a container, specifically serum in a blood collection tube, and typically detects the interface between the liquids. .

  When measuring the amount of serum in blood collected from a subject, the blood is first put in a container (collecting blood vessel) together with a separating agent. By subjecting the container to a centrifuge, the sample liquid in the container is separated into serum, a separating agent and a blood clot. And the quantity of the serum isolate | separated in this way is measured.

  As a method for measuring the amount of serum, conventionally, a side image of a blood collection tube is acquired using a CCD camera or the like, the image processing is performed to determine the interface of the serum, and the amount of serum is measured from the result. Alternatively, a method for observing the transmitted light intensity of a light beam with respect to a specimen liquid and measuring the amount of serum from the result is already known.

  Here, a paper with a barcode containing various information is attached to the blood collection tube. Due to the paper, in the image processing method using the above-described CCD camera or the like, the amount of serum is reduced. The image information necessary for estimation may not be obtained. Further, in the method using a light beam, the transmitted light intensity of the light beam is remarkably reduced, and it is substantially difficult to estimate the serum amount for these reasons.

  On the other hand, in this type of measurement or measurement apparatus, there is a method using microwaves. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a microwave liquid sensor in which a microwave oscillator is opposed to a tube to detect a liquid in the tube. Moreover, in the constant liquid level position measuring apparatus described in patent document 2, the microwave transmission antenna and the microwave reception antenna are opposingly arranged on both sides of the container to be measured, and the output of the microwave receiver connected to the reception antenna is used. The liquid level is calculated.

  According to such a microwave, since it passes through paper or the like, it is hardly affected by the barcode label or the like when measuring the serum amount described above. That is, the relative dielectric constant between the air layer and the serum layer in the blood collection tube or between the serum layer and the separating agent layer is remarkably different. Therefore, the microwaves are not reflected or attenuated in the air layer and the separating agent layer. It penetrates well. On the other hand, in the serum layer, the microwave is reflected and absorbed and is difficult to transmit. Therefore, the position of the serum layer can be detected by measuring the reflection intensity of the microwave.

JP 7-280627 A JP-A-8-313326

However, in the detection apparatus using this type of microwave, the microwave does not have directivity, and therefore, for example, when there are adjacent blood collection tubes, the reflected wave from them may be received by the receiving unit. In such a case, the received signal contains noise, and it becomes difficult to detect with high accuracy. For this reason, it has been substantially difficult to process a plurality of blood collection tubes at the same time. Therefore, a great deal of time has been required for processing.
In the reflection method using microwaves, it is desirable that the distance between the microwave transmitting / receiving unit and the container significantly affects the detection accuracy, that is, it is desirable to keep the distance between the two constant. In the apparatus described in Patent Document 2, there is no mention of making the distance between the microwave transmitting / receiving unit and the container appropriate. Further, there is no mention of efficiently detecting a predetermined liquid interface in each container for a plurality of containers.

  In view of such circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide an interface detection device that can always maintain and ensure high detection accuracy, guarantee the reliability of detection data, and improve processing performance.

  The interface detection apparatus according to the present invention is an interface detection apparatus that detects an interface formed by a liquid contained in a container using microwaves, and each of them can move up and down to transmit and receive microwaves to and from the container. A plurality of sensor units arranged in a predetermined direction, and a container arrangement rack configured to be capable of arranging the plurality of containers opposite to the sensor unit, Crosstalk suppression means for suppressing microwave crosstalk between at least adjacent sensor units is provided.

  In the interface detection device of the present invention, the container mounting rack includes a plurality of container holding portions formed at a predetermined pitch interval, and the sensor unit and the container holding portion are disposed when the sensor head is moved up and down. The distance from the container is set and held constant.

  In the interface detection device of the present invention, a rack fixing mechanism that positions and fixes the container mounting rack so that the container held in the container holding portion of the container mounting rack is disposed corresponding to the sensor unit. A container fixing mechanism for positioning and fixing the container in the container holding part is provided.

  Further, in the interface detection device of the present invention, the container fixing mechanism includes a positioning block that positions and positions the container with respect to the sensor unit so as to be parallel to the moving direction of the sensor head, And a pressing mechanism for urging the container against the positioning block.

  Further, in the interface detection device of the present invention, the crosstalk suppression means includes a microwave shielding cover interposed between adjacent containers held by the container holding portion of the container mounting rack. And

  In the interface detection device of the present invention, the microwave shielding cover extends vertically along the longitudinal direction of the container and is supported so as to be able to advance and retreat with respect to the container and the sensor unit. And

  In the interface detection apparatus of the present invention, the microwave shielding cover is characterized in that an electromagnetic wave absorbing surface treatment is applied to the opposing surface side of the container and the sensor unit.

  In the interface detection apparatus of the present invention, the sensor units are spaced apart by a predetermined distance so that microwave crosstalk is suppressed between adjacent ones.

  In the interface detection device of the present invention, the sensor unit and the container arrangement rack are arranged in a straight line.

  In the interface detection device of the present invention, the sensor unit and the container mounting rack are arranged in a circumferential shape.

  According to the present invention, when a sensor unit is moved by scanning to detect an interface in a blood collection tube, which is a container, the blood collection tube is positioned and fixed with high accuracy by the rack fixing mechanism and the container fixing mechanism. The distance or interval between blood collection tubes is set and held constant. Further, crosstalk between the sensor units is suppressed by a microwave shielding cover as a crosstalk suppression means. Accordingly, the interface positions of a plurality of blood collection tubes can be accurately detected, and erroneous detection and the like can be effectively prevented to obtain highly reliable detection data. Therefore, by scanning a plurality of blood collection tubes substantially simultaneously, the processing capability of the apparatus can be significantly improved.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of an interface detection device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of the apparatus of the present invention in this embodiment. The interface detection apparatus 10 of the present invention detects an interface formed by a liquid contained in a container using a microwave. Typically, an interface between at least two kinds of liquids contained in a container is detected, and in this embodiment, an interface between liquids such as serum in a blood collection tube 100 as a container is detected.

  First, the blood collection tube 100 is an elongated cylindrical container with a closed lower end, and is formed of a material that can transmit microwaves, for example, colorless and transparent glass or synthetic resin. In this embodiment, in the blood collection tube 100, as shown in FIG. 3, three types of centrifuged liquids, ie, a serum 101, a separating agent 102, and a blood clot 103 are accommodated vertically. The upper part of the serum 101 is filled with air 104, and the upper end of the blood collection tube 100 is blocked by a cap 105. In this way, the three types of liquid are clearly separated in the upper and lower sides in the blood collection tube 100, and therefore, the interface position between these liquids can be detected.

  A translucent label 106 made of a material such as paper or synthetic resin may be attached to the outer peripheral surface of the blood collection tube 100, and information such as characters, symbols or barcodes is printed on the label 106 as necessary. It is added by handwriting. The material of the label 106 is not particularly limited as long as it can transmit microwaves.

  Now, in FIG. 1, the interface detection apparatus 10 of the present invention has a sensor head 12 that can move up and down to transmit and receive microwaves to and from a blood collection tube 100, and a plurality of sensor units 11 arranged in a line along a predetermined direction. And a container disposition rack 13 configured to be able to dispose a plurality of blood collection tubes 100 to the sensor unit 11. As described above, the plurality of sensor units 11 are provided, and the interfaces of the plurality of blood collection tubes 100 are substantially collectively detected. In this embodiment, a plurality of sensor units 11 are linearly arranged.

  Since a plurality of sensor units 11 are arranged as described above, microwave crosstalk transmitted and received by each sensor unit 11 may occur as it is. In view of this, in the present invention, in particular, a crosstalk suppression means to be described later is provided to suppress microwave crosstalk between at least adjacent sensor units 11.

  As shown in FIG. 5, each sensor unit 11 has an elevating mechanism 14 that elevates and lowers the sensor head 12 along the longitudinal direction (that is, the vertical direction) of the blood collection tube 100. Note that a detection processing unit (described later) configured to detect the interface position of the liquid based on the output signal of the sensor head 12 is provided.

  The sensor head 12 is supported by the elevating mechanism 14 so as to be movable up and down by a predetermined stroke. The elevating mechanism 14 has, for example, a guide (guide shaft or drive shaft 16) suspended vertically on a base (device frame) 15 and moves the sensor unit 11 along this guide. . A so-called LM (linear motion) guide or the like can be used as a guide for the lifting mechanism 12.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 5, an actuator 17 is provided at an appropriate position (upper end portion or the like) of the lifting mechanism 14, and the sensor head 12 can be moved up and down along the guide shaft 16 by the operation of the actuator 17. Note that a pulse motor can be used as the actuator 17, and in this case, the vertical position and the amount of movement of the sensor head 12 can be grasped by counting the drive pulse (number) for the actuator 17. .

  Here, as shown in FIG. 3, the sensor unit 11 transmits a microwave as a transmission / reception means in the sensor head 12, and is transmitted from the transmission unit 18 and reflected by the sample liquid in the blood collection tube 100. It has the receiving part 19 which receives a microwave. The transmission unit 18 and the reception unit 19 are arranged adjacent to each other in an integrated manner, and are arranged at a predetermined interval with respect to the blood collection tube 100.

  The microwave transmitted from the transmission unit 18 of the sensor head 12 enters the side surface of the blood collection tube 100 at a right angle and transmits the sample liquid in the blood collection tube 100 or is reflected by the sample liquid in the blood collection tube 100. That is, the microwave is transmitted or reflected in accordance with the material to which the microwave is to be incident or the material property / property of the material, particularly the relative dielectric constant.

  In general, the relative dielectric constant of many organic substances is 3 or less, and that of inorganic substances is 5 or less. As a material according to the present embodiment, paper, glass, plastic or the like is 5 or less, and air is about 1. Also, the separating agent 102 is relatively small at 5 or less. On the other hand, the serum 101 and the blood clot 103 have a relatively large relative dielectric constant of about 50.

  For this reason, the microwave which entered with respect to the blood collection tube 100 itself, the label 106 stuck on the side surface, the air 104 and the separating agent 102 is transmitted without being reflected and absorbed by them. On the other hand, in the serum 101 (and the blood clot 103), the reflection and absorption of microwaves are remarkably large. Therefore, by using the reflection / transmission characteristics of microwaves, the microwaves received by the receiving unit 19 are used. From the reflection intensity, the interface position of the liquid stored in the blood collection tube 100 can be detected.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2, the container mounting rack 13 is transported on a transport rail (or line) 20 that is laid in parallel with the direction in which the sensor units 11 are arranged. It has become. The transport mechanism transports the container mounting rack 13 to a position in parallel with the sensor unit 11 and stops at the position. The container mounting rack 13 has a plurality of container holding portions 21 formed at a predetermined pitch interval.

  As shown in FIG. 5, a rack fixing mechanism 22 that positions and fixes the container mounting rack 13 is provided so that the blood collection tube 100 held in the container holding unit 21 is arranged corresponding to the sensor unit 11. The rack fixing mechanism 22 includes a pressing member 24 that presses, for example, the vicinity of the lower portion of the container-arranged rack 13 against a stopper 23 attached to the transport rail 20. As shown in FIG. 6, the pressing member 24 is configured to be able to advance and retreat by an actuator 25, and an elastic unit such as a spring 26 is interposed between the pressing member 24 and the actuator 25.

  The container holding portions 21 are recessed in a vertical hole shape from the upper surface of the container mounting rack 13 and are arranged at the same pitch as the arrangement pitch of the sensor units 11. In the present invention, a container fixing mechanism 27 for positioning and fixing the blood collection tube 100 in the container holding unit 21 is provided, and when the sensor head 12 moves up and down, the distance between the sensor unit 11 and the blood collection tube 100 in the container holding unit 21 is constant. To keep the setting.

  In the container fixing mechanism 27, as shown in FIG. 7 or FIG. 8, gaps 28 and openings 29 are provided on both sides of the container holding part 21 in the direction facing the sensor head 12, and the gaps 28 and openings 29 are positioned. A block 30 and a pressing mechanism 31 are arranged and configured. The positioning block 30 positions the blood collection tube 100 with respect to the sensor unit 11 so as to be parallel to the moving direction (vertical direction) of the sensor head 12, and the pressing mechanism 31 positions the blood collection tube 100. The block 30 is biased.

Here, several aspects of the positioning block 30 are shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8A, the positioning block 30 has a V-shaped cross-sectional shape. In this example, the blood collection tube 100 is in line contact at two locations corresponding to the two sides of the V shape. Further, the positioning block 30 configured to be divided into two as shown in FIG. 8B has a deformed V-shaped cross-sectional shape. Furthermore, the positioning block 30 divided into two parts as shown in FIG. 8C has a rectangular cross-sectional shape. Further, as shown in FIG. 8D, it has an R surface or a curved surface with an appropriate curvature, and in either case, the blood collection tube 100 can be positioned and fixed appropriately and accurately in cooperation with the pressing mechanism 31. .
In the above case, in the positioning block 30 having the shape as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8D, a portion corresponding to the vertical movement range of the sensor head 12 is cut out in the vertical direction to form a cutout portion 30a. The Thus, by providing the notch 30a, the microwave can be directly irradiated from the sensor unit 11 to the blood collection tube 100. In this case, the material for forming the positioning block 30 is preferably made to transmit microwaves, but may be a material that does not transmit microwaves. In addition, when notch part 30a is not provided, it forms with the material which permeate | transmits a microwave.
In the positioning block 30 divided into two parts as shown in FIG. 8B or FIG. 8C, the microwave is directly applied to the blood collection tube 100 from the sensor head 12 through the gap at the center. Can be irradiated.

  Further, the pressing piece 32 of the pressing mechanism 31 is configured to be able to advance and retract with respect to the blood collection tube 100 through the opening 29. In this case, an elastic means such as a spring 34 is interposed between the pressing piece 32 and the actuator 33 so that the pressing piece 32 comes into elastic contact with the outer peripheral surface of the blood collection tube 100. By interposing the spring 34 and the like in this way, the urging load on the blood collection tube 100 generated by the actuator 33 can be regulated within a certain limit. As the actuator 33, an air pressure type air cylinder or the like can be used.

  Next, a microwave shielding cover 35 (FIGS. 1 and 2) interposed between adjacent blood collection tubes 100 held by the container holding portion 21 of the container placement rack 13 is provided as a crosstalk suppressing means. The microwave shielding cover 35 extends vertically along the longitudinal direction of the blood collection tube 100 and is supported so as to advance and retreat with respect to the blood collection tube 100 and the sensor unit 11.

  In this example, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, a plurality of microwave shielding covers 35 provided for a plurality of blood collection tubes 100 are configured so as to be integrated, and are simultaneously advanced and retracted by an actuator (not shown). It has become. A slit 36 is formed between the adjacent container holding portions 21 so that the microwave shielding cover 35 can enter.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the microwave shielding cover 35 can move forward toward the blood collection tube 100 and cover the blood collection tube 100 and the sensor unit 11 completely. Further, a surface treatment capable of absorbing electromagnetic waves is performed on the side of the microwave shielding cover 35 facing the blood collection tube 100 and the sensor unit 11.

  In the above case, a detection processing unit that detects and processes the interface position of the liquid based on the output signal of the sensor unit 11 is provided. As shown in FIG. 3, the detection processing unit 37 is connected to the receiving unit 19 of the sensor unit 11, and a signal received by the receiving unit 19 is sent to the detection processing unit 37. In the detection processing unit 37, the detection circuit 38 for detecting the signal from the reception unit 19, the amplification circuit 39 for amplifying the signal from the detection circuit 38, and the signal from the amplification circuit 39 are compared with a predetermined threshold and compared. And a comparator circuit 40 for outputting a result signal.

  Based on the output signal from the comparator circuit 40, for example, the interface position of the serum 101 (the interface position of the serum 101 and the air 104 or the interface position of the serum 101 and the separating agent 102) of the blood collection tube 100 is detected.

  Note that a measuring means 41 is connected to the detection processing section 37, and an output signal (for example, an interface position of the serum 101) from the detection processing section 37 and a cross-sectional area of the blood collection tube 100 measured in advance by the operation of the measuring means 41. The volume of the serum 101 is calculated by (inner diameter) or the like. That is, the volume of the serum 101 can be obtained from the distance between the upper interface position and the lower interface position of the serum 101 and the cross-sectional area of the blood collection tube 100.

  Further, the sensor head 12, the detection processing unit 37, the measuring means 41, and the like are connected to a control unit 42, and the operation is controlled by the control unit 42. Each circuit of the detection processing unit 37 may be provided in the control unit 42.

In the above configuration, the case where the interface of the serum 101 of the blood collection tube 100 is detected by the interface detection apparatus 10 of the present invention and the volume thereof is further calculated will be described.
The blood collected from the subject is preliminarily centrifuged and separated into serum 101, separating agent 102, and blood clot 103 as the sample liquid in the blood collection tube 100 as shown in FIG.

  The blood collection tube 100 that has been subjected to the centrifugal separation is previously placed in the container holding portion 21 of the container placement rack 13. The container mounting rack 13 is transported along the transport rail 20 to a position parallel to the sensor unit 11 by the transport mechanism. Next, the rack fixing mechanism 22 is actuated to position and fix the container mounting rack 13 so that the blood collection tube 100 held in the container holding portion 21 is disposed corresponding to the sensor unit 11.

  Next, scanning is performed in each sensor unit 11 to detect the interface of the blood collection tube 100. By the way, in the case of detecting an interface in the microwave reflection method, it is desirable to keep the distance between the microwave transmission / reception unit (sensor unit 11) and the blood collection tube 100 constant.

  That is, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, in the reflection method, the reflection intensity of each specimen fluid varies depending on the distance between the microwave transmission / reception unit and the blood collection tube. Such fluctuations in the reflection intensity are due to the fact that the microwave transmission wave and the reflected wave resonate or cancel each other due to the distance from the blood collection tube. Therefore, in order to accurately detect the interface position of the specimen liquid, it is indispensable to ensure and maintain this constant so that the distance between the microwave transmitting / receiving unit and the blood collection tube does not vary.

  In the present invention, the distance or interval between the sensor unit 11 and the blood collection tube 100 can be set and held constant by the container fixing mechanism 27. In this case, by actuating the actuator 33, the pressing piece 32 enters from the opening 29 as shown in FIG. As a result, the blood collection tube 100 is pressed against the positioning block 30 disposed on the side opposite to the pressing piece 32.

  The outer peripheral surface of the blood collection tube 100 comes into contact with the positioning block 30, and the blood collection tube 100 can be properly supported while ensuring high parallelism between the movement directions of the blood collection tube 100 and the sensor unit 11. Accordingly, the distance between the blood collection tube 100 and the sensor unit 11 is ensured and maintained constant without variation.

  When the blood collection tube 100 is urged against the positioning block 30 by the pressing piece 32 as described above, a spring 34 or the like is interposed between the pressing piece 32 and the actuator 33. As a result, an overload is not applied to the blood collection tube 100, and the blood collection tube 100 can always be positioned and fixed with an appropriate load.

  In the container arrangement rack 13, a plurality of blood collection tubes 100 are arranged at predetermined pitch intervals via the container holding part 21. Next, the microwave shielding cover 35 is advanced to the blood collection tube 100 side and inserted between the adjacent blood collection tubes 100. As a result, the blood collection tube 100 and the sensor unit 11 are each completely covered by the microwave shielding cover 35, and when the interface is detected by scanning the sensor head 12, the crosstalk between the sensor units 11 is reliably suppressed. be able to. In this case, the electromagnetic wave absorption process performed on the inner surface of the microwave shielding cover 35 functions effectively.

  The plurality of blood collection tubes 100 are appropriately positioned and fixed on the container mounting rack 13 as described above, and crosstalk between the sensor units 11 is suppressed. In this state, the plurality of blood collection tubes 100 are scanned by the sensor unit 11. The The sensor head 12 of the sensor unit 11 is moved along the guide shaft 16 by the lifting mechanism 14. At the same time, the microwave is transmitted from the transmission unit 18 of the sensor unit 11 toward the blood collection tube 100. Among the transmitted microwaves, the microwave reflected by the sample liquid in the blood collection tube 100 is received by the receiving unit 19 of the sensor unit 11.

  In this way, the sensor head 12 is operated while the sensor unit 11 is moved by scanning, whereby data from the site along the longitudinal direction of the blood collection tube 100 is obtained every moment. The signal received by the receiving unit 19 is sent to the detection processing unit 37 (FIG. 3), and further, the detection processing unit 37 performs signal processing by the detection circuit 38, the amplification circuit 39, and the comparator circuit 40. As a result, an output result corresponding to the air 104, serum 101, separating agent 102, and blood clot 103 in the blood collection tube 100 is obtained.

  In this case, since the serum 101 has a dielectric constant larger than that of the air 104 and the separating agent 102 as described above, the signal level of the portion corresponding to the serum 101 is higher than the signal level of the portion corresponding to the air 104 and the separating agent 102. . In addition, since the obtained signal waveform changes gently at the interface portion, the interface position or height of the serum 101 can be detected by setting a predetermined threshold value.

  Furthermore, the volume of the serum 101 can be calculated from the output signal (that is, the interface position of the serum 101) from the detection processing unit 37 and the inner diameter of the blood collection tube 100 measured in advance in the measuring means 41.

  When the sensor head 12 is scanned and moved to detect the interface in the blood collection tube 100 as described above, the blood collection tube 100 is positioned and fixed with high accuracy by the rack fixing mechanism 22 and the container fixing mechanism 27, and the sensor is used during the scanning operation. The distance or interval between the unit 11 and the blood collection tube 100 is set and held constant. Moreover, the crosstalk between the sensor units 11 can be suppressed by the microwave shielding cover 35, whereby the interface positions of the plurality of blood collection tubes 100 can be accurately detected, and erroneous detection is effectively prevented and reliable. Highly sensitive detection data can be obtained. Thus, by scanning the plurality of blood collection tubes 100 substantially simultaneously, the processing capability of the apparatus can be significantly improved.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment of the interface detection method and the interface detection apparatus according to the present invention will be described. In addition, the same code | symbol shall be used for the same or corresponding member as 1st Embodiment mentioned above.
FIG. 9 shows a schematic configuration of the apparatus of the present invention according to the second embodiment. Also in the second embodiment, the interface detection of the plurality of blood collection tubes 100 is performed, but a plurality of sensor units 11 that can be scanned up and down along the longitudinal direction of the blood collection tubes 100 are arranged in a circle.

  As shown in FIG. 9 in the second embodiment, a plurality of blood collection tubes 100 can be disposed opposite to the container transport rack 43 that holds the plurality of centrifuged blood collection tubes 100 and the sensor unit 11. The constructed container disposition rack 44 and a transfer mechanism 45 for transferring the blood collection tube 100 held in the container transport rack 43 to the container disposition rack 44 are provided.

  A plurality of container storage portions 46 are formed at predetermined pitch intervals in the container transport rack 43, and the blood collection tubes 100 that have been subjected to the centrifugal separation process in the previous process are stored in the respective container storage portions 46. The container transport rack 43 is transported on the transport rail 20 to a position facing the sensor unit 11 by a transport mechanism.

  In this example, the container arrangement rack 44 is formed in a circular shape or a disk shape, and is arranged inside the sensor unit 11 row. A plurality of container holding portions 47 formed at predetermined pitch intervals are provided along the periphery of the container mounting rack 44. The container holding part 47 is recessed from the upper surface of the container arrangement rack 44 in a vertical hole shape. Also in this embodiment, a container fixing mechanism 27 for positioning and fixing the blood collection tube 100 in the container holding portion 47 is provided in substantially the same manner as in the first embodiment. When the sensor head 12 moves up and down, the sensor unit 11 and the container The distance from the blood collection tube 100 in the holding unit 47 is set and held constant.

In the container fixing mechanism 27, as shown in FIG. 10, gaps 28 and openings 29 are provided on both sides of the container holding part 47 in the direction facing the sensor head 12 (diameter direction of the container mounting rack 44). In addition, a positioning block 30 and a pressing mechanism 31 are arranged in the opening 29. The positioning block 30 positions the blood collection tube 100 with respect to the sensor unit 11 so as to be parallel to the moving direction (vertical direction) of the sensor head 12, and the pressing mechanism 31 positions the blood collection tube 100. The block 30 is biased.
In the above case, the positioning block 30 has a notch 30a formed by notching a portion corresponding to the vertical movement range of the sensor head 12 in the vertical direction. Thus, by providing the notch 30a, the microwave can be directly irradiated from the sensor unit 11 to the blood collection tube 100. In this case, the material for forming the positioning block 30 is preferably made to transmit microwaves, but may be a material that does not transmit microwaves. In addition, when notch part 30a is not provided, it forms with the material which permeate | transmits a microwave.

  Further, as a crosstalk suppressing means, there is a microwave shielding cover 48 inserted between adjacent blood collection tubes 100 held by the container holding portion 47 of the container arrangement rack 44. The microwave shielding cover 48 extends vertically along the longitudinal direction of the blood collection tube 100 and is radially disposed on the container mounting rack 44.

  The microwave shielding cover 48 is configured to partition adjacent blood collection tubes 100 and sensor units 11 from each other. As illustrated, the microwave shielding cover 48 can completely cover the blood collection tube 100 and the sensor unit 11. Further, a surface treatment capable of absorbing electromagnetic waves is performed on the side of the microwave shielding cover 48 facing the blood collection tube 100 and the sensor unit 11.

  In addition, the blood collection tube 100 can be transferred via the transfer mechanism 45 that can move in the X, Y, and Z-axis coordinate system. The transfer mechanism 45 has an XY axis drive mechanism 49 for conveying and guiding in the X and Y axis directions, and a Z axis drive mechanism 50 for conveying and guiding in the Z axis direction (vertical direction). The blood collection tube 100 can be transferred appropriately and smoothly in cooperation. A pulse motor or a servo motor (not shown) may be used as an actuator for operating the XY axis drive mechanism 49 and the Z axis drive mechanism 50.

  Further, a pickup head 51 that carries the blood collection tube 100 is attached to the lower end of the Z-axis drive mechanism 50. The pick-up head 51 has a manipulator 52, the upper portion of the blood collection tube 100 is gripped by the manipulator 52, and can be detached from the manipulator 52 when the blood collection tube 100 is transferred to the container holding portion 47.

  In the second embodiment, the container transport rack 43 storing a plurality of blood collection tubes 100 is transported to a position facing the sensor unit 11 by the transport mechanism as shown in FIG. Next, the blood collection tube 100 is transferred to the container mounting rack 44 by the transfer mechanism 45.

  In this case, first, the pickup head 51 is moved to the container transport rack 43 via the XY axis drive mechanism 49, the pickup head 51 is lowered by the Z axis drive mechanism 50, and the blood collection tube 100 is gripped by the manipulator 52. Further, the grasped blood collection tube 100 is moved by the transfer mechanism 45 to a position above the predetermined container holding portion 47. The pickup head 51 is lowered by the Z-axis drive mechanism 50, and the blood collection tube 100 is transferred to the container holding portion 47 of the container transport rack 43. By repeating this operation, the blood collection tubes 100 are transferred to all the container holding portions 47 of the container mounting rack 44.

  Next, when each blood collection tube 100 is scanned by the sensor unit 11, the distance or interval between the sensor unit 11 and the blood collection tube 100 is set and held constant by the container fixing mechanism 27 as in the first embodiment. Subsequently, when the sensor head 12 is scanned to detect the interface, the microwave shielding cover 48 is interposed between the adjacent blood collection tubes 100 in the container mounting rack 44. In this case as well, the sensor units 11 are mutually connected. It is possible to reliably suppress crosstalk between the two.

  Also in the second embodiment, when the sensor unit 11 is moved by scanning to detect the interface in the blood collection tube 100, the blood collection tube 100 is positioned and fixed with high accuracy with respect to the sensor unit 11, and the microwave shielding cover 48 is used. Thus, crosstalk between the sensor units 11 is suppressed. Therefore, it is possible to accurately detect the interface positions of the plurality of blood collection tubes 100, and it is possible to effectively prevent erroneous detection and obtain highly reliable detection data.

  Here, in the modified example of the present invention, when the plurality of sensor units 11 are moved by scanning, the movement timing of each sensor unit 11 is appropriately shifted in order to reduce crosstalk between the sensor units 11. By shifting the movement timing, it is possible to secure the distance between the sensor units 11 in particular in the vertical direction during the scanning movement and effectively suppress the occurrence of crosstalk. Even when the movement timing is shifted as described above, the plurality of sensor units 11 scan substantially simultaneously.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 11, the sensor units 11 are spaced apart by a predetermined distance. That is, by reducing the number of sensor units 11 arranged in a row and increasing the distance between them, microwave crosstalk can be reduced between adjacent ones. For example, the sensor unit 11 may be arranged corresponding to every other blood collection tube 100 held in the container transport rack 13.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated with various embodiment, this invention is not limited only to these embodiment, A change etc. are possible within the scope of the present invention.
For example, the number or the like of the container holding portions 21 and 47 of the container mounting racks 13 and 44 can be appropriately increased or decreased as necessary in addition to the illustrated example.

  Further, in the second embodiment, when the blood collection tube 100 is transferred from the container transport rack 43 to the container placement rack 44, the container placement rack 44 is configured to be rotatable, and the pickup head 51 is moved to a fixed position. Then, transfer from the position to the container holding unit 47 side. By intermittently rotating the container mounting rack 44, the blood collection tubes 100 can be transferred to all the container holding portions 47. On the contrary, the container mounting rack 44 may be fixed, and the transfer head 45 may be moved sequentially to the positions of the plurality of container holding portions 47 by the transfer mechanism 45 and transferred.

It is a perspective view which shows schematic structure of the interface detection apparatus in embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows schematic structure of the interface detection apparatus in embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the signal processing part of the interface detection apparatus in embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the relationship between the distance between a microwave transmission-and-reception part and a blood collection tube in a reflection system, and reflection intensity. It is a perspective view which shows the principal part structure of the interface detection apparatus in embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the principal part structure of the interface detection apparatus in embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the example of the container arrangement | positioning rack, etc. which concern on the interface detection apparatus of this invention. It is the top view and perspective view which show the example of the positioning block and press piece which concern on the interface detection apparatus of this invention, respectively. It is a perspective view which shows schematic structure of the interface detection apparatus in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the example of the positioning block and press piece which concern on the interface detection apparatus of the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the modification of the interface detection apparatus of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Interface detection apparatus 11 Sensor unit 12 Sensor head 13 Container arrangement rack 14 Lifting mechanism 16 Guide 18 Transmission part 19 Reception part 20 Transport rail 21 Container holding part 22 Rack fixing mechanism 24 Pushing member 27 Container fixing mechanism 30 Positioning block 31 Press mechanism 35 Microwave shielding cover 37 Detection processing unit 38 Detection circuit 39 Amplification circuit 40 Comparator circuit 42 Control unit 100 Blood collection tube 101 Serum 102 Separating agent 103 Clot 104 Air

Claims (10)

An interface detection device that detects an interface formed by a liquid contained in a container using a microwave,
Each has a sensor head that can be moved up and down to transmit and receive microwaves to and from the container, and a plurality of sensor units arranged in a predetermined direction, and the plurality of containers are arranged to face the sensor unit. A container arrangement rack configured to obtain,
An interface detection apparatus comprising: a crosstalk suppression means for suppressing microwave crosstalk between at least adjacent sensor units.   The container mounting rack has a plurality of container holding portions formed at a predetermined pitch interval, and when the sensor head moves up and down, the distance between the sensor unit and the container in the container holding portion is set constant. The interface detection device according to claim 1, wherein the interface detection device is held.   A rack fixing mechanism for positioning and fixing the container arrangement rack so that the container held in the container holding section of the container arrangement rack is arranged corresponding to the sensor unit; and positioning the container in the container holding section The interface detection device according to claim 1, further comprising a container fixing mechanism for fixing.   The container fixing mechanism includes a positioning block that positions the container with respect to the sensor unit so as to be parallel to the moving direction of the sensor head, and the container is attached to the positioning block. The interface detection device according to claim 1, further comprising a pressing mechanism that urges.   5. The microwave shielding cover according to claim 1, further comprising: a microwave shielding cover interposed between adjacent containers held by the container holding portion of the container arranging rack as the crosstalk suppressing means. The interface detection apparatus according to item 1.   The interface detection according to claim 5, wherein the microwave shielding cover extends vertically along the longitudinal direction of the container and is supported so as to be able to advance and retreat with respect to the container and the sensor unit. apparatus.   The interface detection apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the microwave shielding cover is subjected to an electromagnetic wave absorption surface treatment on a facing surface side of the container and the sensor unit.   5. The interface detection according to claim 1, wherein the sensor units are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance so as to suppress microwave crosstalk between adjacent ones. apparatus.   The interface detection device according to claim 1, wherein the sensor unit and the container mounting rack are linearly arranged.   The interface detection device according to claim 1, wherein the sensor unit and the container mounting rack are arranged in a circumferential shape.

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