JP2006052995A - Sample container rotating device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sample container rotating device capable of rotating a sample container without complicating a driving mechanism. <P>SOLUTION: This test tube rotating device 3 is equipped with a fixed member 34 fixed on a prescribed position, a driving roller 45 supported rotatably by the fixed member 34, a stepping motor 42 for driving the driving roller 45, two rollers 63 for sandwiching rotatably a test tube 100 wherein a blood specimen is stored together with the driving roller 45, and a moving member 37 for supporting rotatably the rollers 63. The moving member 37 is moved in the direction wherein the two rollers 63 sandwich the test tube 100 together with the driving roller 45 relative to the fixed member 34. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a sample container rotating device, and more particularly to a sample container rotating device for rotating a sample container containing a sample such as a blood sample or a urine sample.

  Conventionally, a barcode label as an identifier for identifying a sample stored in the sample container is attached to a sample container storing a sample such as a blood sample or a urine sample. Conventionally, a sample container rotating device that rotates a sample container for reading the code of the bar code label is known (for example, see Patent Document 1).

In Patent Document 1, an arm member that is movable in the vertical direction, a first moving member that is attached to the arm member so as to be capable of horizontal reciprocation, and that has one drive roller, is engaged with the first moving member. There is disclosed a sample container rotating device that uses a second moving member that is attached and has two rollers to rotate the sample container by sandwiching the sample container with one drive roller and two rollers. In the conventional sample container rotating apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, the rack is attached to each of the first moving member and the second moving member, and one pinion meshing with the two racks is used. The second moving member is moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the first moving member in conjunction with the operation of moving the first moving member. Further, in Patent Document 1, when the sample container is sandwiched between the driving roller and the two rollers, the arm member to which the first moving member is attached is moved in the vertical direction using an air cylinder. ing.
JP-A-7-55815

  However, in the conventional sample container rotating device disclosed in Patent Document 1, when the sample container is sandwiched between the driving roller and the two rollers, the first moving member and the second moving member are moved in conjunction with each other. In addition to the need for two racks and a pinion, in addition to the drive source (air cylinder) for driving the first moving member and the second moving member, the arm member to which the first moving member is attached is vertically moved. A drive source (air cylinder) is also required to move the actuator to the position, which complicates the drive mechanism.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a sample container rotating device capable of rotating a sample container without complicating a driving mechanism. .

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention

  To achieve the above object, a sample container rotating device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a first support member fixed at a predetermined position, a drive roller rotatably supported by the first support member, and a drive roller. At least two driven rollers for rotatably holding a sample container containing a sample by a first driving source and a driving roller, and a second support member for rotatably supporting the driven roller And. The second support member is movable relative to the fixed first support member in a direction in which the driven roller holds the sample container together with the drive roller.

  In the sample container rotating apparatus according to this aspect, as described above, the driving roller rotatably supported by the first supporting member fixed at a predetermined position, and the second support movable relative to the first supporting member. A second support for supporting the driven roller in a state in which the first support member for supporting the driving roller is fixed by being configured such that the sample container is rotatably held by the driven roller rotatably supported by the member. The sample container can be rotatably held only by moving the member in the direction in which the sample container is held. As a result, both the first support member and the second support member are moved in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction, and the drive mechanism can be simplified compared to the case where the sample container is sandwiched between the drive roller and the driven roller. Therefore, the sample container can be rotated without complicating the drive mechanism.

  In the sample container rotating device according to the above aspect, the drive roller and the driven roller preferably sandwich the body portion of the sample container. If comprised in this way, regardless of the shape of the front-end | tip part of a sample container, a sample container can be easily clamped with a drive roller and a driven roller.

  In the sample container rotating apparatus according to the above aspect, the drive roller is preferably made of a material that is more easily elastically deformed than the material of the driven roller. According to this structure, when the driving roller and the driven roller sandwich the sample container, the driving roller is more elastically deformed than the driven roller, so that the sample container can be moved toward the driving roller. As a result, the sample container with the barcode label attached to the outer peripheral surface is stored in the rack, and the sample is provided even when the notch portion that contacts the outer peripheral surface of the sample container is formed on the driven roller side of the rack. By moving the container to the drive roller side, it is possible to prevent the barcode label affixed to the sample container from coming into contact with the notch formed in the rack. Defective rotation and the like can be suppressed.

  In this case, preferably, the driving roller is made of rubber, and the driven roller is made of resin. If comprised in this way, since a big frictional force will generate | occur | produce between the drive roller which consists of rubber | gum, and a sample container, a sample container can be rotated easily. Further, when the driving roller and the driven roller sandwich the sample container, the rubber driving roller is more elastically deformed than the resin driven roller, so that the sample container can be easily moved to the driving roller side. Can do.

  In the sample container rotating device according to the above aspect, the drive roller preferably has a diameter larger than the diameter of the sample container. If comprised in this way, since the outer periphery of a drive roller becomes longer than the outer periphery of a sample container, a sample container can be rotated 1 rotation or more during one rotation of a drive roller. Thereby, a sample container can be easily rotated at high speed. Even when a cap with a large diameter is attached to the tip of the sample container, if the diameter of the drive roller is large, the contact between the cap of the sample container and the rotation shaft of the drive roller can be suppressed. Therefore, the sample container can be easily rotated.

  In the sample container rotating device according to the above aspect, the first drive source preferably includes a stepping motor. If comprised in this way, the rotation speed and rotation direction of a drive roller can be set and changed easily with the stepping motor controlled by the control part.

  In the sample container rotating device according to the above aspect, the sample container is preferably provided at a predetermined position on the outer peripheral surface of the sample container and includes an identifier for specifying the sample accommodated in the sample container. If comprised in this way, the sample in a sample container can be easily specified with identifiers, such as a barcode label provided in the outer surface of the sample container.

  In this case, preferably, the drive roller can be controlled to a first rotation number when reading the identifier and a second rotation number when stirring the sample in the sample container. If comprised in this way, an identifier can be read and the sample in a sample container can be stirred only by changing the rotation speed of a drive roller. Thereby, it is not necessary to separately provide a mechanism for reading the identifier and a mechanism for stirring the sample in the sample container, so that the apparatus can be simplified.

  In the configuration including the identifier, the driven roller preferably includes a first roller and a second roller, and the first roller and the second roller are provided at an interval at which the identifier can be read. . If comprised in this way, even if it is provided in the position which the identifier shifted from the predetermined position which should be provided in the outer peripheral surface of a sample container, and contacts with a 1st roller and a 2nd roller, it is 2nd. The identifier can be easily read from the gap between the rollers.

  The sample container rotating device according to the above aspect preferably further includes detection means for detecting whether or not the sample container exists between the driving roller and the driven roller. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent the driving roller from being driven in a state where there is no sample container between the driving roller and the driven roller.

  In this case, preferably, the detection means includes a detection piece provided on the second support member, a first sensor provided on the first support member at a predetermined interval along a moving direction of the second support member, and A second sensor. If comprised in this way, while the 1st sensor detects a detection piece, while being able to detect that the driven roller supported by the 2nd supporting member left | separated from the sample container and returned to the initial position, it is 1st. By detecting the detection piece by the two sensors, it is possible to detect whether or not the sample container exists between the driving roller and the driven roller.

  The sample container rotating device according to the above aspect preferably further includes a second drive source for moving the second support member. If comprised in this way, a 2nd support member can be easily moved with a 2nd drive source.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  1 and 2 are diagrams showing the overall configuration of a blood analyzer and a transport device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 3 and 4 are views showing a rack storing test tubes to be transported by the transport apparatus according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 to 7 are views showing a test tube rotating device attached to the transport device according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 8-11 is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the test tube rotating apparatus by one Embodiment shown in FIG. 12 and 13 are views showing a state where the moving member is moved when there is no test tube in the test tube rotating apparatus according to the embodiment shown in FIG.

  First, with reference to FIGS. 1-4, the whole structure of the blood analyzer 1 and the conveying apparatus 2 by this embodiment is demonstrated. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a transport device 2 is installed on the front side of the blood analyzer 1. A test tube rotating device 3 is attached to the transport device 2. Further, the test tube 100 shown in FIG. 4 is made of plastic. The test tube 100 is sealed with a rubber stopper 101 with a blood sample contained therein. A barcode label 102 is attached to the outer peripheral surface of the test tube 100. On this barcode label 102, barcode information corresponding to the blood sample stored in the test tube 100 is written. The test tube 100 used in the present embodiment is a test tube 100 (height is about 85 mm and diameter is about 13 mm) for accommodating a blood sample. As the test tube 100, in addition to the test tube 100 for storing the blood sample used in the blood analyzer 1 of the present embodiment, the test tube 100 (having a height) for storing the urine sample used in the urine analyzer. The test tube rotating device 3 according to the present embodiment is also compatible with the test tube 100 for accommodating a urine sample.

  The rack 110 also includes a storage unit 111 for storing a plurality of (in this embodiment, 10) test tubes 100 storing blood samples, and a barcode label of the test tubes 100 stored in the storage unit 111. And a notch 112 for exposing 102 to the outside of the rack 110. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, a holder 113 having an inner diameter corresponding to the outer diameter of the test tube 100 to be stored is fitted into the upper end of the storage portion 111 of the rack 110. By changing the holder 113 in accordance with the diameter of the test tube 100, the test tube 100 having various diameters including the test tube 100 for the urine sample described above can be stored in the storage unit 111. .

  The blood analyzer 1 is a device that automatically analyzes a blood sample stored in a test tube 100. The blood analyzer 1 includes a hand member 1a as shown in FIGS. The hand member 1a is provided to stir the blood sample accommodated in the test tube 100 (tumbling stirring). Further, the blood analyzer 1 has a bar at a position spaced from the gripping position by the hand member 1a of the blood analyzer 1 in a direction opposite to the transport direction of the transport device 2 (direction of arrow A in FIG. 2). A code reader 4 is attached. The barcode reader 4 is installed to read the barcode information of the barcode label 102 attached to the test tube 100 shown in FIG. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the test tube rotating device 3 described above is installed at the position of the transport device 2 facing the barcode reader 4.

  The transport device 2 is a device that automatically supplies the blood sample stored in the test tube 100 to the blood analyzer 1. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the transport device 2 includes a control unit 21 and a transport unit 22. The control unit 21 has a function of performing operation control of the transport device 2 and the test tube rotating device 3, and includes a CPU, ROM, RAM, and the like. The transport unit 22 is provided for transporting the rack 110 in which the test tube 100 is stored. As shown in FIG. 3, the transport unit 22 includes a transport path 23 for guiding the rack 110, a transport belt 24 for transporting the rack 110, and a stopper member 25 that contacts the rack 110. As shown in FIG. 3, the stopper member 25 moves in the transport direction (arrow A direction) by an interval L (about 20 mm in this embodiment) between two adjacent test tubes 100 housed in the rack 110. By doing so, the rack 110 on the conveyor belt 24 is provided for lateral feeding.

  Next, the structure of the test tube rotating device 3 according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1, 4 to 8, and FIGS. 10 to 13. The test tube rotating device 3 according to the present embodiment has a test tube 100 accommodated in a rack 110 so that the bar code reader 4 can read a bar code label 102 (see FIG. 4) affixed to the test tube 100. It is provided for rotating. As shown in FIG. 5, the test tube rotating device 3 includes a column 31, an attachment member 32, and a rotating mechanism unit 33. The column 31 is provided to attach the test tube rotating device 3 to the transport device 2 (see FIG. 1) and to support the rotating mechanism unit 33 via the mounting member 32. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the support column 31 has two upper screw holes 31a and two lower screw holes 31b. The attachment member 32 is also formed with a screw hole (not shown). When the column 31 and the mounting member 32 are fixed by screwing, the rotation with respect to the test tube 100 stored in the rack 110 depends on which of the upper screw hole 31a and the lower screw hole 31b of the column 31 is used. It is possible to change the vertical (height) position of the mechanism unit 33. Thus, the test tube rotating device 3 is configured to be compatible with both the test tube 100 for a urine sample having a high holding position and the test tube 100 for a blood sample having a low holding position. In the present embodiment, since the test tube 100 for a blood sample having a low holding position is used, it is screwed to the support column 31 using the lower screw hole 31b. The rotation mechanism 33 is provided to rotate the test tube 100 stored in the rack 110 while holding it.

  Here, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the rotation mechanism unit 33 includes a fixing member 34 attached to the attachment member 32, a bracket 35 attached to the fixing member 34, and a linear motion guide. And a moving member 37 movably attached to the fixed member 34 via 36. A stepping motor 42 is attached to the fixing member 34 via a motor bracket 41. A pulley 43a is attached to the drive shaft 42a of the stepping motor 42 shown in FIG. A pulley 43b is attached to the fixing member 34 with a predetermined distance from the pulley 43a. A driving belt 44 is attached to the pulley 43a and the pulley 43b, and a driving roller 45 is detachably attached to the pulley 43b. The stepping motor 42 is configured to be able to change the rotation speed and the rotation direction by the control unit 21 (see FIG. 1).

  In the present embodiment, the drive roller 45 is made of silicon rubber and is disposed at a position (height) that can contact the outer peripheral surface of the test tube 100 housed in the rack 110 (see FIG. 4). ing. By forming the driving roller 45 with silicon rubber, it is possible to sufficiently ensure the frictional force of the driving roller 45 against the plastic test tube 100. Silicone rubber has a greater releasability than the plastic with respect to the adhesive material smeared on the back surface of the bar code label 102. Thereby, even if the end part of the barcode label 102 affixed to the test tube 100 is coming off from the test tube 100, the barcode label 102 is further prevented from being peeled off from the test tube 100 by the driving roller 45. It is possible. The drive roller 45 has a diameter that is approximately 2.5 times the diameter of the test tube 100. Thereby, it is possible to rotate the test tube 100 at high speed. Further, by configuring the drive roller 45 to be detachable from the pulley 43b, it is possible to mount the drive roller 45 having a different diameter on the pulley 43b. As a result, according to the diameter of the test tube 100, if the drive roller 45 having a diameter capable of coming into contact with the test tube 100 having the diameter is mounted, the test tube 100 having various diameters can be handled. It becomes possible.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, an air cylinder 51 having a piston rod 51 a and two light transmission sensors 52 and 53 are attached to the bracket 35. The piston rod 51a of the air cylinder 51 protrudes through a through hole 35a (see FIG. 6) formed in the bracket 35. The piston rod 51 a is attached to the moving member 37 via a connecting member 54. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the bracket 35 is formed with an opening 35b. The opening 35 b has a function as an escape portion when a detection piece 61 a of the plate member 61 described later moves along with the moving member 37. The two sensors 52 and 53 are arranged at a predetermined interval along the moving direction of the moving member 37 (Q direction in FIG. 5). The linear motion guide 36 is provided to move the moving member 37 with respect to the fixed member 34. The linear guide 36 includes a slider 36 a attached to the fixed member 34 and a rail 36 b attached to the moving member 37.

  A plate member 61 having a detection piece 61 a is attached to the moving member 37. Further, two rollers 63 made of resin (in this embodiment, polyacetal resin) are rotatably attached to the moving member 37 via a roller attachment member 62. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the detection piece 61 a of the plate member 61 is detected by the sensor 52 so that the moving member 37 is detected to be located at the initial position. Further, as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, when the detection piece 61 a is detected by the sensor 53, it is detected that the test tube 100 does not exist between the driving roller 45 and the two rollers 63. It is configured as follows. That is, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 10, when the test tube 100 exists between the driving roller 45 and the two rollers 63, the detection piece 61 a is not detected by either of the two sensors 52 and 53. It is configured as follows.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the two rollers 63 are attached to the roller attachment member 62 with an interval at which the barcode reader 4 (see FIG. 10) can read the barcode label 102 attached to the test tube 100. It has been. As shown in FIG. 10, the two rollers 63 are configured to be able to contact the outer peripheral surface of the test tube 100. Further, by forming the two rollers 63 from polyacetal resin, it is possible to sufficiently ensure the frictional force of the rollers 63 against the plastic test tube 100. Further, the polyacetal resin has a greater releasability than the plastic with respect to the adhesive material smeared on the back surface of the barcode label 102. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the barcode label 102 that has been peeled off from the test tube 100 by the resin roller 63 from being further peeled off from the test tube 100. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the roller mounting member 62 is formed with a notch 62 a between the positions where the two rollers 63 are mounted. The notch 62 a has a function as an escape portion for preventing the rubber stopper 101 attached to the test tube 100 from contacting the roller mounting member 62 when the two rollers 63 contact the test tube 100. is doing.

  Next, with reference to FIGS. 1-3 and FIGS. 6-10, the holding | maintenance operation | movement with respect to the test tube 100 of the test tube rotation apparatus 3 by this embodiment and rotation operation are demonstrated. The operation of the test tube rotating device 3 is controlled by the control unit 21.

  First, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the rack 110 in which the test tube 100 is housed is transported in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 2 by the transport belt 24 installed in the transport unit 22 of the transport device 2. . Then, the rack 110 transported by the transport belt 24 comes into contact with the stopper member 25 (see FIG. 3) that has been waiting at a predetermined position, thereby stopping the transport. At this time, among the plurality of test tubes 100 stored in the rack 110, the test tube 100 located at the end in the transport direction (the direction of arrow A in FIG. 2) is connected to the barcode reader 4 installed in the blood analyzer 1. , And stops at the position of the transport path 23 corresponding to the test tube rotating device 3 attached to the transport device 2. At this stop position, the test tube 100 is in contact with the drive roller 45 as shown in FIGS.

  From this state, the air cylinder 51 shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 is driven, whereby the driving force of the air cylinder 51 is transmitted to the moving member 37 via the piston rod 51 a and the connecting member 54. As a result, the moving member 37 is moved in the direction of arrow B with respect to the fixed member 34, so that the drive roller 45 attached to the fixed member 34 and the moving member 37 are attached as shown in FIGS. 8 to 11. The test tube 100 is sandwiched between the two rollers 63. In this case, as shown in FIG. 10, since the detection piece 61a of the plate member 61 attached to the moving member 37 is not detected by any of the sensors 52 and 53, the controller 21 of the transport device 2 It is recognized that the test tube 100 exists between the two rollers 63. Then, the stepping motor 42 is driven by the control unit 21. As a result, the driving force of the stepping motor 42 is transmitted to the driving roller 45 via the driving shaft 42a (see FIG. 7), the pulley 43a, the driving belt 44, and the pulley 43b. It is rotationally driven in the direction.

  Thereby, the test tube 100 is rotationally driven in the arrow D direction. At this time, the driving roller 45 is made of silicon rubber, and the two rollers 63 are made of polyacetal resin which is less elastically deformed than silicon rubber, so that the test tube sandwiched between the driving roller 45 and the two rollers 63 is used. As shown in FIG. 9, 100 slightly moves toward the drive roller 45. This makes it difficult for the barcode label 102 attached to the outer peripheral surface of the test tube 100 to be caught in the notch 112 of the rack 110 in which the test tube 100 is accommodated. Can be suppressed. Further, the stepping motor 42 is controlled by the control unit 21 so as to drive the driving roller 45 by rotating once or twice per second when the barcode label 102 attached to the test tube 100 is read by the barcode reader 4. Has been. The blood sample in the test tube 100 is agitated by the drive roller 45 by controlling the stepping motor 42 to rotate 10 to 12 times per second and switching the rotation direction of the stepping motor 42 intermittently. Is also possible. Further, since the driving roller 45 has a diameter about 2.5 times the diameter of the test tube 100, the test tube 100 can be rotated at a higher speed than when the driving roller 45 has a small diameter. It is possible to improve the efficiency of stirring.

  Then, after the barcode label 102 affixed to the test tube 100 is read by the barcode reader 4, the rotation of the driving roller 45 by the stepping motor 42 is stopped. The moving member 37 is moved in the direction of arrow E in FIGS. 8 and 10 by the driving force of the air cylinder 51, the two rollers 63 are separated from the outer peripheral surface of the test tube 100, and the moving member 37 is in FIG. Return to the initial position shown in FIG. At this time, when the sensor 52 detects the detection piece 61 a of the plate member 61 attached to the moving member 37, the moving member 37 is moved to the initial position (see FIGS. 6 and 7) by the control unit 21 of the transport device 2. It is recognized that As a result, the controller 21 moves the stopper member 25 of the transport apparatus 2 in the transport direction (arrow A direction) by an interval L (about 20 mm) in FIG. Then, the second test tube 100 moves from the end of the test tube 100 stored in the rack 110 in the transport direction (the direction of arrow A in FIG. 3) to the position of the transport unit 22 corresponding to the barcode reader 4. The barcode label 102 of the second test tube 100 is read by the barcode reader 4 by performing the holding operation and the rotating operation by the test tube rotating device 3 described above.

  On the other hand, among the test tubes 100 stored in the rack 110, the test tube 100 at the end in the transport direction (the direction of arrow A in FIG. 3) is moved by the stopper member 25 from the reading position of the barcode label 102 by the barcode reader 4. After being taken out from the rack 110 by the hand member 1a (see FIG. 1) at the position where it is laterally fed twice in the conveying direction, it is stirred by overturning. Then, after the blood sample in the test tube 100 is aspirated by the aspiration unit (not shown) of the blood analyzer 1, analysis is performed. As described above, the ten test tubes 100 accommodated in the rack 110 are sequentially rotated by the test tube rotating device 3, whereby the barcode label 102 attached to the test tube 100 is read by the barcode reader 4. After that, the blood analyzer 1 sequentially performs analysis.

  In the present embodiment, as described above, the driving roller 45 that is rotatably supported by the fixing member 34 via the pulley 43b and the moving member 37 that is movable with respect to the fixing member 34 are rotatably supported by the driving roller 45. Since the test tube 100 is configured to be rotatably held by the two rollers 63, the moving member 37 supporting the two rollers 63 is only moved while the fixing member 34 supporting the driving roller 45 is fixed. Thus, the test tube 100 can be rotatably held. As a result, both the fixed member 34 and the moving member 37 are moved in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction, and the driving mechanism is simplified as compared with the case where the test tube 100 is sandwiched between the driving roller 45 and the two rollers 63. Therefore, the test tube 100 can be rotated without complicating the drive mechanism.

  Further, in the present embodiment, as described above, the driving roller 45 is rotated at the number of rotations (1 to 2 rotations per second) when the barcode information of the barcode label 102 is read by the control unit 21 of the transport device 2. By controlling the number of revolutions of the blood sample in the test tube 100 to 10 to 12 revolutions per second (10 to 12 revolutions per second), the barcode of the barcode label 102 can be changed only by changing the number of revolutions of the driving roller 45. Information can be read and the blood sample in the test tube 100 can be agitated. This eliminates the need to separately provide a mechanism for reading the barcode information on the barcode label 102 and a mechanism for stirring the blood sample in the test tube 100, thereby simplifying the apparatus. .

  Further, in the present embodiment, as described above, the two rollers 63 are provided on the roller mounting member 62 with an interval at which the bar code label 4 affixed to the test tube 100 can be read by the bar code reader 4. Thus, even if the barcode label 102 is provided at a position in contact with the two rollers 63 by deviating from a predetermined position on the outer peripheral surface of the test tube 100, the barcode reader 4 is provided with the two rollers 63. The barcode label 102 can be easily read from the gap between the two.

  The embodiment disclosed this time should be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is shown not by the above description of the embodiments but by the scope of claims for patent, and further includes all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the scope of claims for patent.

  In the above embodiment, the example in which the sample container rotating device of the present invention is applied to the blood analyzer as an example of the analyzer has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the sample container rotating device of the present invention is used as the analyzer. You may apply to the urine analyzer as an example. In this case, since the test tube for the urine sample having a larger height than the test tube for the blood sample used in the above embodiment is used as the test tube for storing the sample, the rotation mechanism shown in FIG. The attachment member 32 that supports the portion 33 is screwed to the column 31 using the upper screw hole 31a. Thereby, it is possible to change the position (height) of the sample container rotating device with respect to the transport device for the urine sample. In addition, since the test tube for urine specimen has a larger diameter than the test tube for blood specimen, when the sample container rotating device of the present invention is applied to the urine analyzer, the above embodiment is used. It is preferable to change to a driving roller having a smaller diameter than the driving roller used in FIG.

  Moreover, although the example which uses an air cylinder as a drive source which moves a moving member was shown in the said embodiment, this invention is not limited to this, You may use drive sources, such as solenoids other than an air cylinder.

  In the above embodiment, an example in which the test tube is sandwiched between the drive roller 45 and the two rollers 63 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the test tube is provided with the drive roller 45 and three or more rollers. It may be clamped by.

  In the above embodiment, an example in which a driving roller formed of silicon rubber is used has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a driving roller made of Teflon resin other than silicon rubber or fluorine rubber is used. Also good. A driving roller made of chloroprene rubber, EPDM (ethylene propylene rubber), urethane, or the like can also be used. In addition, when the attracting force with respect to the test tube of the driving roller is too strong, it is preferable to adjust the attracting force by forming the outer peripheral surface of the driving roller in an uneven shape.

It is the perspective view which showed the whole structure of the blood analyzer by one Embodiment of this invention, and a conveying apparatus. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the blood analyzer and the transfer device according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 1. It is the perspective view which showed the rack which accommodated the test tube conveyed by the conveying apparatus by one Embodiment shown in FIG. It is the perspective view which looked at the rack which accommodated the test tube shown in FIG. 3 from the arrow P direction. It is the perspective view which showed the test tube rotation apparatus attached to the conveying apparatus by one Embodiment shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a top view of the test tube rotating device according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 5. It is a right view of the test tube rotating apparatus by one Embodiment shown in FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the test tube rotating apparatus by one Embodiment shown in FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the test tube rotating apparatus by one Embodiment shown in FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the test tube rotating apparatus by one Embodiment shown in FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the test tube rotating apparatus by one Embodiment shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a top view showing a state in which a moving member is moved when there is no test tube in the test tube rotating apparatus according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 5. It is a right view of the test tube rotating apparatus by one Embodiment shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

3 Test tube rotating device (sample container rotating device)
34 Fixing member (first support member)
37 Moving member (second support member)
42 Stepping motor (first drive source)
45 Drive roller 51 Air cylinder (second drive source)
52, 53 sensors (detection means, first sensor, second sensor)
63 rollers (driven roller, first roller, second roller)
100 test tubes (sample containers)
102 Barcode label (identifier)

Claims (12)

A first support member fixed in place;
A drive roller rotatably supported by the first support member;
A first drive source for driving the drive roller;
At least two driven rollers for rotatably holding a sample container containing a sample by the drive roller;
A second support member for rotatably supporting the driven roller;
The sample container rotating device, wherein the second support member is movable with respect to the fixed first support member in a direction in which the driven roller holds the sample container together with the drive roller.   The sample container rotating device according to claim 1, wherein the driving roller and the driven roller sandwich a body portion of the sample container.   The sample container rotating device according to claim 1, wherein the driving roller is formed of a material that is more easily elastically deformed than a material of the driven roller. The drive roller is made of rubber,
The sample container rotating device according to claim 3, wherein the driven roller is made of resin.   The sample container rotating device according to claim 1, wherein the driving roller has a diameter larger than a diameter of the sample container.   The sample container rotating device according to claim 1, wherein the first drive source includes a stepping motor.   The said sample container is provided in the predetermined position of the outer peripheral surface of the said sample container, The identifier for specifying the said sample accommodated in the said sample container is included, The any one of Claims 1-6 Sample container rotating device.   The sample container rotating device according to claim 7, wherein the driving roller is controllable to a first rotation number when reading the identifier and a second rotation number when stirring the sample in the sample container. The driven roller includes a first roller and a second roller,
9. The sample container rotating device according to claim 7, wherein the first roller and the second roller are provided at an interval at which the identifier can be read.   The sample container rotating device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, further comprising detection means for detecting whether or not the sample container exists between the drive roller and the driven roller. The detection means includes
A detection piece provided on the second support member;
The sample container rotation device according to claim 10, comprising a first sensor and a second sensor provided on the first support member at a predetermined interval along a moving direction of the second support member.   The sample container rotating device according to claim 1, further comprising a second drive source for moving the second support member.

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