JP2009139238A - Liquid vessel, and automatic analyzer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid vessel capable of surely preventing a liquid from overflowing in cleaning; and an automatic analyzer equipped with the liquid vessel as a reaction vessel. <P>SOLUTION: This liquid vessel includes: a body part having a tubular shape having a sidewall and a bottom wall; and a division wall dividing the inside of the tubular shape of the body part into two regions. The bottom wall of the body part has one or more hole parts making one-side region of the two regions divided by the division wall communicate with the outside. It is further preferable that the volume of the region out of the two regions communicating with the outside through the hole part(s) is smaller than that of the other-side region. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid container that contains a liquid, and an automatic analyzer that includes the liquid container as a reaction container and analyzes components of a specimen.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an automatic analyzer that analyzes a component of a specimen by reacting a specimen with a reagent and optically measuring the reaction, various techniques for cleaning a reaction container are known. As one of such techniques, a liquid suction nozzle that sucks liquid in the reaction container, a cleaning liquid discharge nozzle that discharges the cleaning liquid to the reaction container, and a tip positioned above the tip of the liquid suction nozzle, the reaction container There is known a technique related to a cleaning apparatus including an overflow suction nozzle that prevents a liquid containing a cleaning liquid from overflowing from a reaction vessel by sucking a liquid containing a cleaning liquid during the cleaning (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this technology, in recent years, various nozzles have been reduced in diameter in order to cope with the downsizing of reaction vessels.

JP-A-6-265558

  However, the above-described prior art has a problem that the liquid suction nozzle and the overflow suction nozzle having a reduced diameter are likely to be clogged. In particular, when the overflow suction nozzle becomes clogged during the cleaning of the reaction container, the cleaning liquid discharged from the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle gradually accumulates in the reaction container, and eventually the liquid containing the cleaning liquid overflows from the reaction container. It was. If the liquid overflows from the reaction vessel, the overflowed liquid may enter the main body of the automatic analyzer and cause a failure. For this reason, there has been a demand for a technique that can reliably prevent the liquid from overflowing from the reaction vessel during cleaning.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and provides a liquid container capable of reliably preventing a liquid from overflowing during washing and an automatic analyzer equipped with the liquid container as a reaction container. With the goal.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, a liquid container according to the present invention has a cylindrical shape having a side wall and a bottom wall, and includes a main body portion that stores liquid and a cylindrical inner portion of the main body portion. A partition wall that divides into two regions, and the bottom wall of the main body has one or more holes that communicate one of the two regions divided by the partition wall with the outside. And

  Moreover, the liquid container according to the present invention is characterized in that, in the above-described invention, a region communicating with the outside through the hole portion of the two regions has a smaller volume than the other region.

  Moreover, the liquid container according to the present invention is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned invention, a portion of the outer surface of the bottom wall including the opening of the hole has a step with another portion of the outer surface.

  In the liquid container according to the present invention as set forth in the invention described above, the upper end surface of the dividing wall is a flat or curved surface that is inclined low toward the side of the two regions that communicates with the outside through the hole. It is characterized by that.

  Moreover, the liquid container according to the present invention is characterized in that, in the above invention, the main body and the dividing wall are integrated.

  An automatic analyzer according to the present invention is an automatic analyzer that analyzes a component of the specimen by reacting the specimen with a reagent and optically measuring the result of the reaction, and reacts the specimen with the reagent. Reaction having a plurality of liquid containers according to any one of the above inventions as reaction containers, a plurality of liquid containers, and a flow path for discharging liquid discharged through the holes of each liquid container to the outside A container holder is provided.

  Moreover, the automatic analyzer according to the present invention is characterized in that, in the above-mentioned invention, a storage tank for storing the liquid discharged from the flow path is further provided.

  The automatic analyzer according to the present invention is the automatic analyzer according to the present invention, wherein the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle that discharges the cleaning liquid to the liquid container, the tip is positioned above the tip of the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle, and the cleaning liquid is discharged from the liquid container. And a liquid suction nozzle that sucks the liquid to be contained, and the tip of the liquid suction nozzle when the cleaning part cleans the liquid container is positioned below the upper end of the dividing wall. It is characterized by.

  Moreover, the automatic analyzer according to the present invention further includes an overflow suction nozzle, the tip of which is positioned above the tip of the liquid suction nozzle, and sucks the liquid containing the cleaning liquid from the liquid container. The tip of the liquid suction nozzle when the cleaning unit cleans the liquid container is located below the upper end of the dividing wall.

  According to the present invention, a cylindrical body having a side wall and a bottom wall is provided, and includes a main body portion that stores a liquid, and a dividing wall that divides the cylindrical interior of the main body portion into two regions. Since the wall has one or a plurality of holes that communicate one of the two regions divided by the dividing wall with the outside, the bottom of the wall does not overflow even when the liquid level rises. It can be discharged to the outside through the hole in the wall. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the liquid from overflowing during cleaning.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter referred to as “embodiment”) will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the drawings referred to in the following description are schematic, and when the same object is shown in different drawings, dimensions, scales, and the like may be different.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an automatic analyzer according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The automatic analyzer 1 shown in FIG. 1 dispenses a specimen (sample) and a reagent into a reaction container, and optically measures a reaction occurring in the reaction container, and an automatic analysis including the measurement unit 101. And a data processing unit 201 that controls the apparatus 1 and analyzes the measurement result in the measurement unit 101, and the two units cooperate to automatically and biochemically analyze the components of a plurality of specimens. It is a continuous device.

  The measurement unit 101 includes a specimen container holder 4 that houses a plurality of racks 3 on which specimen containers 2 that contain specimens are mounted, a reagent container holder 6 that holds a reagent container 5, and a reaction container that reacts the specimen and the reagent. A reaction container holder 8 that holds the sample container 7, a sample dispensing unit 9 that dispenses a sample contained in the sample container 2 held by the sample container holder 4 into the reaction container 7, and a reagent container 5 that is held by the reagent container holder 6. Reagent dispensing unit 10 that dispenses the reagent to be contained in reaction container 7, a stirring unit 11 that stirs the liquid inside reaction container 7, and analysis light that has been irradiated from a light source and passed through reaction container 7 is received and predetermined. A photometric unit 12 for measuring the intensity of the wavelength component, and a cleaning unit 13 for cleaning the reaction vessel 7.

  The data processing unit 201 includes a keyboard, a mouse, and the like. The data processing unit 201 includes an input unit 14 for inputting information necessary for sample analysis and operation information of the automatic analyzer 1, a display and a printer, and information on sample analysis. And the like, and the absorbance of the liquid in the reaction vessel 7 is calculated based on the measurement result in the measurement unit 101, and the reaction is performed using the absorbance calculation result and various information such as a calibration curve and analysis parameters. A data generation unit 16 that calculates the components of the liquid inside the container 7, a control unit 17 that controls the automatic analyzer 1, and a storage unit 18 that stores various types of information including information related to the analysis of the specimen. . The data processing unit 201 is realized by a computer including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a configuration of the reaction container 7 which is a liquid container according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a plan view in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. The reaction vessel 7 shown in FIGS. 2 to 4 has a bottomed substantially rectangular tube shape, is provided in a cylindrical portion of the main body portion 71 and the main body portion 71 for storing the liquid, and excludes the vicinity of the opening of the main body portion 71. A plate-shaped dividing wall 72 that divides the cylindrical interior into two regions.

  The main body 71 has a pair of side walls 71a facing each other in parallel, a pair of side walls 71b facing each other in parallel and connected to the dividing wall 72, and a bottom wall 71c. The pair of side walls 71b has a function as a window that transmits the analysis light emitted from the light source of the photometry unit 12.

  Of the two regions divided by the dividing wall 72 inside the cylindrical portion of the main body 71, the region with the larger volume is a liquid storage portion 74 that stores the liquid. In the liquid storage part 74, the specimen dispensing part 9, the reagent dispensing part 10, and the washing part 13 dispense the specimen, reagent, and cleaning liquid, respectively. On the other hand, the region having the smaller volume of the two regions is a liquid guide portion 75 that guides the liquid overflowing from the liquid storage portion 74. The “liquid” referred to here includes a small amount of solid components (impurities, detergents, etc.).

  The bottom wall 71c of the main body 71 is located below the thin portion 711c located below the liquid storage portion 74 and below the liquid guide portion 75, is thicker than the thin portion 711c, and has an outer surface that is thinner than the thin portion 711c. Also has a protruding thick part 712c. The thick part 712c is provided with a plurality of holes (five in the case of FIG. 3) for communicating the outside of the reaction vessel 7 with the liquid guide part 75.

  The main body 71 and the dividing wall 72 are integrally formed using the same material. As this material, a material capable of transmitting the analysis light emitted from the light source of the photometry unit 12, for example, a synthetic resin such as glass cyclic olefin containing heat-resistant glass or polystyrene is used.

  FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the manner in which the reaction vessel 7 is attached to the reaction vessel holder 8 and the internal structure of the reaction vessel holder 8. The cut surface in FIG. 5 is a curved surface that passes through the reaction vessel 7 and extends along a circumference concentric with the outer circumference of the reaction vessel holder 8. The reaction vessel holder 8 is provided with a plurality of holding hole portions 81 for holding the reaction vessel 7 along the circumference. The holding hole portion 81 is positioned below the large diameter portion 81a and a large diameter portion 81a in which a portion other than the thick portion 712c of the bottom wall 71c of the main body portion 71 of the reaction vessel 7 can be fitted. And a small-diameter portion 81b into which the thick portion 712c of 71c can be fitted. The small-diameter portion 81 b extends below the lower end of the hole 76.

  The reaction container holder 8 has a flow path for discharging the liquid discharged from the hole 76 of the reaction container 7 held by the holding hole 81 to the outside. Specifically, the reaction vessel holder 8 communicates with the small-diameter portion 81b as the above-described channel, and communicates with the annular main channel 82, the main channel 82, and the discharge channel extending below the main channel 82. And a flow path 83. The lower end of the discharge channel 83 is connected to the liquid discharge unit 19 that discharges the liquid to the outside.

  In the reaction vessel 7, since the lower end of the hole 76 is located at a position lower than the outer bottom surface of the thin wall portion 711c of the bottom wall 71c, the liquid overflows from the liquid storage portion 74 and causes the liquid guide portion 75 and the hole portion 76 to flow. When discharged to the outside, there is no risk that the liquid leaks to the boundary between the reaction vessel 7 and the reaction vessel holder 8 (the holding hole portion 81).

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of the cleaning unit 13. The cleaning unit 13 shown in the figure includes a plurality of nozzle groups 21 that discharge the cleaning liquid to the reaction container 7 to be cleaned and suck the liquid contained in the reaction container 7, and repeatedly perform cleaning with the plurality of nozzle groups 21. A cleaning liquid suction nozzle 22 for sucking the cleaning liquid remaining in the subsequent reaction container 7, a drying nozzle 23 for drying the reaction container 7 after the cleaning liquid suction nozzle 22 sucks the cleaning liquid, a plurality of nozzle groups 21, and a cleaning liquid suction nozzle 22. And a plate-like holding member 24 that holds the drying nozzle 23, and a holding member drive unit 25 that drives the holding member 24 up and down. The plurality of nozzle groups 21, the cleaning liquid suction nozzle 22 and the drying nozzle 23 are arranged along a circumference corresponding to the arrangement of the reaction container 7 held by the reaction container holder 8.

  The nozzle group 21 is composed of a set of three metal nozzles having different functions. Specifically, the nozzle group 21 includes a cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 211 that discharges the cleaning liquid to the reaction container 7, and a liquid whose tip is located below the front end of the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 211 and that sucks the liquid stored in the reaction container 7. A suction nozzle 212 and an overflow suction nozzle 213 whose tip is located above the tip of the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 211 and capable of sucking the liquid sucked by the reaction vessel 7 are provided. The three nozzles are collectively held by the cover 214 in the vicinity of the base end, and extend in parallel from each other at least from the portion held by the cover 214 to the tip. The diameters of the three nozzles are equal to each other. The tip of the liquid suction nozzle 212 is positioned at the same height as the tips of the cleaning liquid suction nozzle 22 and the drying nozzle 23.

  The cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 211 is connected to the terminal 27 via a tube 26 that forms a flow path for the cleaning liquid. The terminal 27 is connected to a cleaning liquid supply pump 29 that supplies a cleaning liquid via a tube 28. The cleaning liquid supply pump 29 is connected via a tube 30 to a cleaning liquid tank 31 that stores the cleaning liquid. The cleaning liquid is sucked from the cleaning liquid tank 31 by the cleaning liquid supply pump 29 and sent to the terminal 27. The terminal 27 has a function of branching the cleaning liquid sent from the cleaning liquid supply pump 29 and supplying the branched liquid to the plurality of cleaning liquid discharge nozzles 211.

  The liquid suction nozzle 212 is connected to the terminal 33 via the tube 32. The terminal 33 is also connected to the cleaning liquid suction nozzle 22 and the drying nozzle 23 via tubes 34 and 35, respectively. The terminal 33 is connected via a tube 37 to a waste liquid tank 36 that stores liquid sucked from the reaction vessel 7. The waste liquid tank 36 is connected to an exhaust pump 39 via a tube 38. The exhaust pump 39 generates a suction pressure (negative pressure) for the liquid suction nozzle 212, the cleaning liquid suction nozzle 22 and the drying nozzle 23 to suck liquid. Therefore, the liquids sucked by the plurality of liquid suction nozzles 212, the cleaning liquid suction nozzles 22 and the drying nozzles 23 are collected together at the terminal 33 and sent to the waste liquid tank 36.

  The overflow suction nozzle 213 is connected to the terminal 41 through the tube 40. The terminal 41 is connected via a tube 43 to a waste liquid tank 42 that stores the liquid sucked from the reaction vessel 7. The waste liquid tank 42 is connected via a tube 45 to an exhaust pump 44 that generates suction pressure for the overflow suction nozzle 213 to suck liquid. The liquids sucked by the plurality of overflow suction nozzles 213 are collected together at the terminal 41 and sent to the waste liquid tank 42.

  The cleaning liquid supply pump 29 and the exhaust pumps 39 and 44 are driven based on the control of the cleaning control unit 46 that controls the driving of the cleaning unit 13. The cleaning control unit 46 controls the operation of the cleaning unit 13 in cooperation with the control unit 17 of the data processing unit 201.

FIG. 7 shows that when the cleaning unit 13 cleans the reaction vessel 7, the tip of the three nozzles constituting the nozzle group 21 enters the liquid storage unit 74 of the reaction vessel 7 and stops when the holding member 24 moves down. It is a figure which shows the state which carried out. In FIG. 7, the tip (lower end) of the liquid suction nozzle 212 is positioned higher than the inner surface of the thin portion 711 c by h ₁ , and the tip of the overflow suction nozzle 213 is lower than the upper end of the dividing wall 72 by h _2. positioned. It should be noted that the tip of the overflow suction nozzle 213 when cleaning the reaction vessel 7 may be positioned at least at a height equal to or lower than the upper end of the dividing wall 72.

  In order to improve the cleaning efficiency of the reaction container 7 by the nozzle group 21, it is desirable that the cleaning liquid reaches the upper part of the reaction container 7. In this sense, it is more preferable that the tip position of the overflow suction nozzle 213 in the state shown in FIG. 7 is closer to the opening of the reaction vessel 7.

  When the cleaning unit 13 performs cleaning, the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 211 performs an operation of discharging the cleaning liquid, and the overflow suction nozzle 213 performs a suction operation of the liquid containing the cleaning liquid. When the liquid level of the liquid including the cleaning liquid discharged from the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 211 and the residual liquid in the liquid storage unit 74 is positioned below the tip of the overflow suction nozzle 213, the liquid is sucked by the overflow suction nozzle 213. Because there is no, the liquid level rises gradually. At this time, the liquid inside the liquid container 74 is agitated inside the reaction container 7 by the discharge pressure of the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 211, and the components of the liquid adhering to the side and bottom surfaces of the liquid container 74 are washed away.

  Thereafter, when the liquid level of the liquid L reaches the tip position of the overflow suction nozzle 213, the overflow suction nozzle 213 sucks the liquid L as shown in FIG. 8, and the liquid level does not rise further. . Therefore, the liquid L does not overflow from the liquid storage portion 74 while the overflow suction nozzle 213 is normally performing the suction operation.

  In contrast, when the overflow suction nozzle 213 is clogged, the liquid level of the liquid L rises from the tip of the overflow suction nozzle 213. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a situation where the overflow suction nozzle 213 is clogged. In the case shown in FIG. 9, the liquid level of the liquid L rises from the tip of the overflow suction nozzle 213, but eventually the liquid level reaches the upper end of the dividing wall 72. When the cleaning liquid is further injected into the liquid storage portion 74, the liquid L overflows from the liquid storage portion 74 and flows into the liquid guide portion 75 and is discharged to the outside of the reaction vessel 7 through the hole 76. Therefore, even if the overflow suction nozzle 213 is clogged when the cleaning unit 13 cleans the reaction container 7, the liquid does not overflow from the reaction container 7.

  The reaction vessel 7 moves in position with the intermittent rotation of the reaction vessel holder 8. While the reaction vessel holder 8 is stationary, the nozzle group 21 enters the reaction vessel 7 located immediately below by the lowering of the holding member 24, and discharges the cleaning liquid and sucks the liquid containing the cleaning liquid (see FIG. 8 and the like). reference). Since the cleaning unit 13 has a plurality of nozzle groups 21, a plurality of nozzles 21 are moved with respect to one reaction vessel 7 by the position movement of the reaction vessel 7 and the vertical movement of the holding member 24 as the reaction vessel holder 8 rotates. The discharge of the cleaning liquid and the suction of the liquid by the nozzle group 21 are repeatedly performed. As a result of this repetition, the reaction liquid of the sample and the reagent measured by the photometry unit 12 is gradually sucked and removed from the liquid storage part 74 of the reaction container 7, and the remaining liquid is almost only the cleaning liquid.

  After the discharge of the cleaning liquid and the suction of the liquid by the plurality of nozzle groups 21 are completed, the reaction container 7 moves to a position immediately below the cleaning liquid suction nozzle 22 and the cleaning liquid suction nozzle 22 sucks the remaining cleaning liquid. Thereafter, the reaction vessel 7 moves to a position immediately below the drying nozzle 23. The drying nozzle 23 absorbs the cleaning liquid adhering to the inner wall of the reaction vessel 7 with a resin prismatic chip, and dries the reaction vessel 7.

  It should be noted that the reaction container 7 also causes the sample or reagent to overflow even when the sample dispensing unit 9 or the reagent dispensing unit 10 dispenses a sample or reagent more than a predetermined amount. Can be prevented.

  Up to this point, the case where the nozzle group 21 of the cleaning unit 13 has three nozzles has been described. However, as shown in FIG. 10, the cleaning unit may be configured using a nozzle group 210 having two nozzles. Good. The nozzle group 210 includes a cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 211, a liquid suction nozzle 212, and a cover 215 that collectively holds these two nozzles, and the overflow suction nozzle 213 is removed from the nozzle group 21 of the cleaning unit 13. have. When the cleaning unit is configured by using the nozzle group 210, the liquid guide unit 75 of the reaction vessel 7 functions as an overflow suction nozzle.

  According to Embodiment 1 of the present invention described above, a cylindrical body having a side wall and a bottom wall is formed, and a main body portion that stores liquid, and a dividing wall that divides the cylindrical interior of the main body portion into two regions. The bottom wall of the main body has one or more holes that communicate one of the two regions divided by the dividing wall with the outside, so that even if the liquid level rises The liquid can be discharged outside through the hole in the bottom wall without overflowing the liquid. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the liquid from overflowing during cleaning.

  In addition, according to the first embodiment, since the reaction vessel itself has a function of preventing overflow of the liquid, components for detecting clogging in the nozzle that sucks the liquid in the vessel in the cleaning unit (sensor, etc.) There is no need to provide. Therefore, the number of parts can be reduced and the cost can be reduced.

  In the first embodiment, it is possible to change the shape of the upper end surface of the dividing wall provided in the reaction vessel. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the configuration of the main part of the reaction vessel according to the first modification of the first embodiment, and is a diagram showing the configuration near the upper end surface of the dividing wall. In the reaction vessel 50 shown in the figure, the upper end surface of the dividing wall 51 forms a flat surface (slope) that inclines toward the liquid guide portion 52 side. The configuration of the reaction vessel 50 excluding this point is the same as the configuration of the reaction vessel 7 described above.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a main part of the reaction vessel according to the second modification of the first embodiment, and is a diagram illustrating a configuration in the vicinity of the upper end surface of the dividing wall as in FIG. 11. In the reaction vessel 53 shown in the figure, a portion of the inner surface of the side wall 54 a of the main body 54 that faces the upper end surface of the dividing wall 51 has a slope shape symmetrical to the dividing wall 51 via the liquid guide portion 55. Yes.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the configuration of the main part of the reaction container according to the third modification of the first embodiment, and is a diagram showing the configuration near the upper end surface of the dividing wall. The reaction vessel 56 shown in the figure is a curved surface in which the opposing portions of the dividing wall 58 and the side wall 59a of the main body 59 are inclined downward toward the liquid guide 57. Note that the shape of the curved surface formed by the upper end surface of the dividing wall is not limited to the shape shown in FIG.

  According to the reaction container according to the first to third modifications of the first embodiment described above, the liquid overflowing from the liquid storage unit can be more reliably flowed into the liquid guide unit.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a main part of the automatic analyzer according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The automatic analyzer shown in the figure includes a reaction container holder that holds a plurality of reaction containers 7. The reaction vessel holder 61 is provided with a plurality of holding hole portions 611 for holding the reaction vessel 7 along the circumference. The holding hole 611 is positioned below the large-diameter portion 611a and a large-diameter portion 611a into which the portion other than the thick-walled portion 712c of the bottom wall 71c of the main body portion 71 of the reaction vessel 7 can be fitted. And a small-diameter portion 611b into which the thick portion 712c of 71c can be fitted. The small diameter portion 611 b extends below the lower end of the hole 76.

  The reaction container holder 61 has a flow path for discharging the liquid discharged from the hole 76 of the reaction container 7 held by the holding hole 611 to the outside. Specifically, the reaction vessel holder 61 communicates with the small-diameter portion 611b as the above-described channel, and communicates with the annular main channel 612, the main channel 612, and the discharge channel extending downward from the main channel 612. And a flow path 613.

  A tank holding unit 614 that holds a storage tank 62 that temporarily stores liquid is provided at the lower end of the discharge channel 613. The storage tank 62 attached to the tank holding part 614 has a connection port 621 connected to the discharge flow path 613.

  The automatic analyzer according to the second embodiment has the same configuration as the automatic analyzer 1 according to the first embodiment except for the points described above.

  According to the second embodiment of the present invention described above, in addition to being able to reliably prevent the liquid from overflowing during cleaning, the liquid discharged during cleaning is not discharged to the outside. Therefore, it is possible to realize appropriate waste liquid treatment even in the case of performing analysis in which waste liquid processing becomes a problem, for example, in the case of performing immunological analysis of a specimen. .

  In the second embodiment, a heater for warming the storage tank may be provided. In this case, it is preferable to provide an exhaust mechanism in the storage tank and the reaction vessel holder for exhausting the liquid component evaporated in the storage tank to the outside by heating with a heater. By adding such a configuration, the amount of waste in the storage tank can be reduced, and disposal processing becomes easy.

(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 15 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a reaction container which is a liquid container according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of main parts of the reaction container and the automatic analyzer according to the third embodiment. A reaction vessel 91 shown in these drawings has a bottomed substantially rectangular tube shape, and is provided in a cylindrical portion of the main body portion 911 and a main body portion 911 that contains a liquid, except for the vicinity of the opening of the main body portion 911. And a plate-shaped dividing wall 912 that divides the interior into two regions.

  The main body portion 911 includes a pair of side walls 911a that face each other in parallel, a pair of side walls 911b that face each other in parallel and are connected to the dividing wall 912, and a bottom wall 911c.

  Of the two regions divided by the dividing wall 912 inside the cylindrical portion of the main body portion 911, the region with the larger volume is the liquid storage portion 913 that stores the liquid. On the other hand, the region having the smaller volume of the two regions is a liquid guide portion 914 that guides the liquid overflowing from the liquid storage portion 913.

  The bottom wall 911 c of the main body 911 has a bowl shape, and the portion facing the liquid storage portion 913 is located farther from the opening of the reaction vessel 91 than the portion facing the liquid guide portion 914. For this reason, in the reaction vessel 91, the depth of the liquid storage portion 913 is deeper than the depth of the liquid guide portion 914. One or a plurality of holes 915 that communicate the outside of the reaction vessel 91 and the liquid guide portion 914 are provided in a portion of the bottom wall 911 c that faces the liquid guide portion 914.

  The reaction vessel holder 92 has a holding hole 921 that holds the reaction vessel 91. The reaction container holder 92 has a diameter larger than the diameter of the hole 915 as a flow path for discharging the liquid discharged from the hole 915 of the reaction container 91 held by the holding hole 921 to the outside. A discharge channel 922 that communicates with the portion 915, a main channel 923 that communicates with the discharge channel 922, and an annular main channel 923 that communicates with the main channel 923 and extends downward. And a flow path 924. The lower end of the discharge channel 924 is connected to the liquid discharge unit 19 that discharges the liquid to the outside.

  In Embodiment 3, the lower end of the hole 915 of the reaction vessel 91 is located above the outer surface of the portion of the bottom wall 71c facing the liquid storage portion 913, and the hole 915 Is smaller than the diameter of the discharge channel 922 of the reaction vessel holder 92. Therefore, when the liquid overflows from the liquid storage portion 913 and is discharged to the outside via the liquid guide portion 914 and the hole portion 915, the liquid is present at the boundary between the reaction vessel 91 and the reaction vessel holder 92 (the holding hole portion 921). There is no risk of leakage.

  According to the third embodiment of the present invention described above, as in the first and second embodiments, it is possible to reliably prevent the liquid from overflowing during cleaning.

(Other embodiments)
So far, the first to third embodiments have been described in detail as the best mode for carrying out the present invention, but the present invention should not be limited by these embodiments. FIG. 17 is a plan view showing a configuration of a reaction vessel that is a liquid vessel according to another embodiment of the present invention. The reaction container 93 shown in the figure includes a main body 931 and a dividing wall 932 in the same manner as the reaction container described above. The dividing wall 932 divides the cylindrical interior of the main body portion 931 into two regions of a liquid storage portion 933 and a liquid guide portion 934 by connecting two side walls 931 a and 931 b orthogonal to each other in the main body portion 931. . Of these two regions, the volume of the region is small, and a plurality of hole portions 935 (two in FIG. 17) penetrating to the outside are provided on the bottom surface of the liquid guide portion 934 that forms a triangle. Of the outer surface of the bottom wall of the reaction vessel 93, the portion including the opening of the hole 935 has a step with the other portion of the outer surface as in the first to third embodiments.

  FIG. 18 is a plan view showing a configuration of a reaction vessel which is a liquid vessel according to still another embodiment of the present invention. The reaction vessel 94 shown in the figure includes a main body portion 941 and a dividing wall 942, similarly to the reaction vessel described above. The dividing wall 942 has a bowl shape. By connecting two side walls 941a and 941b orthogonal to each other in the main body portion 941, the cylindrical interior of the main body portion 941 is connected to two liquid storage portions 943 and a liquid guide portion 944. It is divided into two areas. Among these two regions, a plurality of hole portions 945 (two in FIG. 18) penetrating to the outside are provided on the bottom surface of the liquid guide portion 944 having a small volume and a rectangular shape. Of the outer surface of the bottom wall of the reaction vessel 94, the portion including the opening of the hole 945 has a step difference from the other portions of the outer surface as in the case of the reaction vessel 93.

  In the liquid container according to the present invention, the main body portion and the dividing wall may be separate members. In this case, what is necessary is just to give the process for liquid leakage prevention between a main-body part and a division | segmentation part.

  The outer surface of the bottom wall of the liquid container according to the present invention may be a flat surface.

  Furthermore, the liquid container according to the present invention can be applied to uses other than the reaction container of the automatic analyzer.

  As is apparent from the above description, the present invention can include various embodiments and the like not described herein, and within the scope not departing from the technical idea specified by the claims. Various design changes and the like can be made.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the principal part of the automatic analyzer which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the reaction container which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a top view of the arrow A direction of FIG. FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 3. It is sectional drawing which shows the attachment aspect to the reaction container holder of the automatic analyzer of the reaction container which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention, and shows the internal structure of a reaction container holder. It is a figure which shows the structure of the washing | cleaning part of the automatic analyzer which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the state which the nozzle group approached into the liquid storage part of the reaction container, and stopped. In the automatic analyzer which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention, while a washing | cleaning liquid discharge nozzle discharges a washing | cleaning liquid to a reaction container, it is a figure which shows the state in which the overflow suction nozzle is sucking the liquid. In the automatic analyzer according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle discharges the cleaning liquid to the reaction vessel, while the overflow suction nozzle is clogged and the liquid is flowing into the liquid guide portion. is there. In the automatic analyzer according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, it is a diagram showing a case where the liquid guide part has a function of sucking the liquid in the liquid storage part. It is a figure which shows the structure of the principal part of the reaction container which concerns on the 1st modification of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the principal part of the reaction container which concerns on the 2nd modification of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the principal part of the reaction container which concerns on the 3rd modification of Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the principal part of the automatic analyzer which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the reaction container which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the principal part of the reaction container and automatic analyzer which concern on Embodiment 3 of this invention. It is a top view which shows the structure of the reaction container which concerns on another embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the structure of the reaction container which concerns on another embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Automatic analyzer 2 Sample container 3 Rack 4 Sample container holder 5 Reagent container 6 Reagent container holder 7, 50, 53, 56, 91, 93, 94 Reaction container 8, 61, 92 Reaction container holder 9 Sample dispensing part 10 Reagent Dispensing unit 11 Stirring unit 12 Photometric unit 13 Washing unit 14 Input unit 15 Output unit 16 Data generation unit 17 Control unit 18 Storage unit 19 Liquid discharge unit 21, 210 Nozzle group 22 Cleaning liquid suction nozzle 23 Drying nozzle 24 Holding member 25 Holding member Drive unit 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 35, 37, 38, 40, 43, 45 Tube 27, 33, 41, 48 Terminal 29 Cleaning liquid supply pump 31 Cleaning liquid tank 36, 42 Waste liquid tank 39, 44 Exhaust pump 46 Cleaning control unit 51, 58, 72, 912, 932, 942 Partition wall 52, 55, 57, 75, 9 14, 934, 944 Liquid guide part 54, 59, 71, 911, 931, 941 Main body part 54a, 59a, 71a, 71b, 911a, 911b, 931a, 941a Side wall 62 Storage tank 71c, 911c Bottom wall 73 Projection part 74, 913, 933, 943 Liquid storage part 76, 915, 921, 935, 945 Hole part 81, 611 Holding hole part 81a, 611a Large diameter part 81b, 611b Small diameter part 82, 612, 923 Main flow path 83, 613, 922, 924 Discharge flow path 101 Measurement unit 201 Data processing unit 211 Cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 212 Liquid suction nozzle 213 Overflow suction nozzle 214, 215 Cover 614 Tank holding part 621 Connection port 711c Thin part 712c Thick part L Liquid

Claims (9)

A cylindrical body having a side wall and a bottom wall, and a main body for storing liquid;
A dividing wall that divides the cylindrical interior of the main body into two regions;
With
The liquid container according to claim 1, wherein the bottom wall of the main body has one or a plurality of holes that communicate one of the two regions divided by the dividing wall with the outside.   2. The liquid container according to claim 1, wherein an area of the two areas communicating with the outside via the hole has a smaller volume than the other area.   The liquid container according to claim 1, wherein a portion of the outer surface of the bottom wall including the opening of the hole has a step with another portion of the outer surface.   The upper end surface of the dividing wall is a flat surface or a curved surface that is inclined low toward the region communicating with the outside through the hole portion of the two regions. The liquid container according to item.   The liquid container according to claim 1, wherein the main body and the dividing wall are integrated. An automatic analyzer that analyzes a component of the specimen by reacting the specimen with a reagent and optically measuring a result of the reaction,
While providing a plurality of liquid containers according to any one of claims 1 to 5 as a reaction container for reacting a specimen and a reagent,
An automatic analyzer comprising a reaction container holder having a flow path for holding a plurality of liquid containers and discharging the liquid discharged through the holes of each liquid container to the outside.   The automatic analyzer according to claim 6, further comprising a storage tank that stores the liquid discharged from the flow path. A cleaning liquid discharge nozzle for discharging a cleaning liquid to the liquid container;
A liquid suction nozzle that has a tip positioned above the tip of the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle and sucks the liquid containing the cleaning liquid from the liquid container;
Further comprising a cleaning section having
The automatic analyzer according to claim 6 or 7, wherein a tip of the liquid suction nozzle when the cleaning unit cleans the liquid container is positioned below an upper end of the dividing wall. A tip is located above the tip of the liquid suction nozzle, further comprising an overflow suction nozzle for sucking the liquid containing the cleaning liquid from the liquid container;
The automatic analyzer according to claim 8, wherein a tip of the liquid suction nozzle when the cleaning unit cleans the liquid container is positioned below an upper end of the dividing wall.

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