JP2010169468A - Automatic analyzer, photometric device, and photometric method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automatic analyzer, a photometric device and a photometric method capable of improving analysis accuracy by analyzing by irradiating measuring light which is a uniform parallel beam, vertically to a reaction vessel. <P>SOLUTION: The photometric device 17 of the automatic analyzer 1 includes a light source lens 17b for condensing the measuring light irradiated from a light source 17a, a condenser lens 17e for irradiating the measuring light condensed by the light source lens 17b onto the reaction vessel 36 as parallel light, a condenser diaphragm 17d for adjusting the amount of the measuring light to be irradiated, and a visual field diaphragm 17c for adjusting an irradiation range of the measuring light onto the reaction vessel 36. The light source 17a, the light source lens 17b, the visual field diaphragm 17c, the condenser diaphragm 17d, the condenser lens 17e and the reaction vessel 36 are arranged so as to form a Koehler illumination system. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an automatic analyzer that analyzes a reaction product between a specimen such as blood and a reagent, a photometric device used in the automatic analyzer, and a photometric method in the automatic analyzer.

  Conventionally, an automatic analyzer that optically analyzes a reaction product by reacting a specimen such as blood or urine with a reagent has been used. In such an autoanalyzer, the measurement light emitted from the light source is reacted in response to the demand for reducing the sample dispensing volume, miniaturizing the reaction container, and downsizing the autoanalyzer while maintaining the analysis accuracy. A photometric device using simple (critical) illumination that collects light at the center of the container and measures and analyzes the transmitted measurement light is employed (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). In addition, an automatic analyzer that irradiates parallel light having a light velocity larger than the width of the reaction vessel as measurement light has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 3).

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2-58587 JP 2007-218633 A JP 2007-17413 A

  By the way, in the photometric device using the critical illumination described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the condensing part is heated because the measurement light is condensed at the center of the reaction vessel, and the measurement result is determined by the temperature characteristics of the specimen and the reagent. The measurement result is also affected when fluctuations of the sample such as bubbles occur in the light collecting part. Furthermore, there is a problem that chromatic aberration occurs due to the refractive index of the liquid sample containing the reaction product of the specimen and the reagent, and the portion irradiated with light changes depending on the color. Furthermore, the absorbance determined by the amount of transmitted light is proportional to the optical path length of the measurement light traveling through the liquid sample, but the optical path length of the measurement light in the simple illumination system is treated as being equal to the depth of the reaction vessel. This is a cause of variation in analysis accuracy.

  In addition, in an apparatus using parallel light as disclosed in Patent Document 1 or 3, although there is no influence due to a change in the optical path length, there is a possibility that minute parallel light may be dispersed and the parallel light has a light quantity distribution. Therefore, it is difficult to perform an accurate analysis when the specimen in the reaction container is uneven.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an automatic analyzer that can improve the analysis accuracy by irradiating a reaction vessel with measurement light that is a vertical and uniform parallel light beam, and photometry An object is to provide an apparatus and a photometric method.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, an automatic analyzer according to the present invention irradiates a reaction container into which a sample and a reagent are injected with measurement light from a light source, and measures the amount of transmitted light with a light receiving unit. A light source lens for condensing the measurement light emitted from the light source, a condenser lens for irradiating the reaction vessel with the measurement light collected by the light source lens as parallel light, and a measurement light quantity for irradiation A photometric device having a condenser diaphragm for adjusting the field of view and a field diaphragm for adjusting the irradiation range of the measurement light to the reaction vessel, the light source, the light source lens, the field diaphragm, the condenser diaphragm, the condenser lens The reaction vessel is arranged to be a Kohler illumination system.

  The automatic analyzer according to the present invention further comprises a field stop variable mechanism for driving the field stop according to the above invention, wherein the field stop variable mechanism corresponds to the liquid surface height of the liquid sample in the reaction vessel. Is driven to vary the irradiation range of the measurement light to the reaction vessel.

  In the automatic analyzer according to the present invention as set forth in the invention described above, the irradiation shape of the measurement light that is varied by the field stop varying mechanism is circular or rectangular.

  In the automatic analyzer according to the present invention, in the above invention, the condenser aperture is stored in the storage unit and a storage unit that stores a sample dispensing amount and a reagent dispensing amount required for analysis of each analysis item. A calculating unit that calculates a liquid level in the reaction container from the sample dispensing amount and the reagent dispensing amount.

  Further, the photometric device of the present invention irradiates measurement light from a light source, condenses the measurement light by a light source lens, and converts the condensed measurement light into parallel light by a condenser lens, thereby reacting a reaction product between a specimen and a reagent. A condenser aperture that adjusts the amount of light to be radiated in a photometric device of an automatic analyzer that irradiates a reaction vessel containing a liquid sample and that measures the amount of light transmitted from the reaction vessel by a light receiving unit and analyzes the liquid sample And a field stop for adjusting the irradiation range of the measurement light to the reaction container, and a field stop variable mechanism for driving the field stop, the light source, the light source lens, the condenser lens, the reaction container, The condenser diaphragm and the field diaphragm are arranged to be a Koehler illumination system, and the field diaphragm variable mechanism is arranged according to the liquid level of the liquid sample in the reaction vessel. Characterized in that varying the light flux shape to be irradiated to the reaction container unit.

  Further, the photometric method of the present invention is a photometric method for an automatic analyzer that irradiates a reaction container into which a sample and a reagent are injected from a light source, and measures the amount of transmitted light by a light receiving unit to analyze the liquid sample. The extraction step for extracting the sample dispensing amount and the reagent dispensing amount required for the analysis of each analysis item from the storage unit, and the liquid in the reaction container from the sample dispensing amount and the reagent dispensing amount extracted by the extraction step A calculation step of calculating a surface height, an adjustment step of adjusting a field stop to adjust the irradiation range of the measurement light to the reaction vessel based on the liquid level height calculated in the calculation step, and the adjustment step. Irradiating the adjusted measurement light to the reaction container, measuring the amount of transmitted light, and calculating the absorbance.

  Further, the photometric method of the present invention includes a blank photometric step of measuring a water blank for each measurement light irradiation range by adjusting the aperture of the field stop in the above invention, and the measuring step is measured in the blank photometric step. It is characterized by calculating a calibrated absorbance based on a water blank.

  According to the automatic analyzer, the photometric device, and the photometric method of the present invention, it is possible to irradiate the reaction container with a vertical and uniform parallel light beam as the measurement light. Stable analysis results can be obtained without being affected by fluctuations such as

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of an automatic analyzer according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments. In the description of the drawings, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of an automatic analyzer 1 according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the automatic analyzer 1 dispenses a sample and a reagent to be analyzed into a reaction vessel 36 and optically measures a reaction occurring in the dispensed reaction vessel 36. And a control mechanism 21 that controls the entire automatic analyzer 1 including the measurement mechanism 11 and analyzes the measurement result in the measurement mechanism 11. The automatic analyzer 1 automatically performs biochemical, immunological or genetic analysis of a plurality of specimens by cooperation of these two mechanisms.

  The measurement mechanism 11 is roughly divided into a sample container transfer unit 12, a first reagent container 13a, a second reagent container 13b, a reaction table 14, a sample dispensing device 15, a first reagent dispensing device 16a, A second reagent dispensing device 16b, a photometric device 17, a cleaning mechanism 18, and a stirring device 19 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the sample container transfer unit 12 transfers the plurality of arranged racks 32 while stepping one by one along the arrow direction. The rack 32 holds a plurality of specimen containers 31 that contain specimens. Here, the sample container 31 is attached with an information recording medium (not shown) on which information on the contained sample is recorded, and each time the step of the rack 32 transferred by the sample container transfer mechanism 12 stops, The sample is dispensed into each reaction container 36 by the pouring device 15. The sample dispensing device 15 is provided with a dispensing probe that rotates in a horizontal plane and dispenses a reagent to an arm 15a that is moved up and down. Here, in the vicinity of the rack, a reading device 10 c that reads the sample information and the container information of the sample container 31 recorded on the information recording medium attached to the sample container 31 and outputs the information to the control unit 22 is installed. .

The sample dispensing apparatus 15 includes an arm 15a that freely moves up and down in the vertical direction and rotates around a vertical line passing through the base end of the sample dispensing apparatus 15 as a central axis. A probe (not shown) for aspirating and discharging the specimen is attached to the tip of the arm 20a. The sample dispensing device 15 includes an intake / exhaust mechanism using an unillustrated intake / exhaust syringe or piezoelectric element. The sample dispensing device 15 sucks a sample from a sample container 31 that has been transferred to a dispensing position by a sample container transfer unit 12 to be described later with a probe, rotates the arm 15a counterclockwise in the drawing, and discharges the sample. perform dispensing by discharging the sample into the reaction vessel 36 of P _1. A cleaning tank 15d for cleaning the probe (not shown) with cleaning water is installed on the rotation trajectory of the probe.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the first reagent storage 13a, a plurality of reagent containers 34 containing the first reagent are arranged in the circumferential direction, and rotated by driving means (not shown) to convey the reagent containers 34 in the circumferential direction. To do. Each of the plurality of reagent containers 34 is filled with a reagent corresponding to the inspection item, and an information recording medium (not shown) on which information such as the type, lot, and expiration date of the stored reagent is recorded is attached to the outer surface. . Here, a reading device 10 a that reads the reagent information recorded on the information recording medium attached to the reagent container 34 and outputs it to the control unit 22 is installed on the outer periphery of the first reagent storage 13 a. An openable and closable lid (not shown) is provided above the first reagent storage 13a to prevent evaporation and denaturation of the reagent, and a thermostat bath for cooling the reagent is provided below the first reagent storage 13a. (Not shown) is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the second reagent container 13b includes a plurality of reagent containers 34 that store the second reagent in the circumferential direction, and is rotated by a driving means (not shown) in the same manner as the first reagent container 13a. Then, the reagent container 34 is conveyed in the circumferential direction. Each of the plurality of reagent containers 34 is filled with a reagent corresponding to the inspection item, and an information recording medium (not shown) on which information such as the type, lot, and expiration date of the stored reagent is recorded is attached to the outer surface. . Here, a reading device 10b that reads the reagent information recorded on the information recording medium attached to the reagent container 34 and outputs it to the control unit 22 is installed on the outer periphery of the second reagent storage 13b. An openable and closable lid (not shown) is provided above the second reagent storage 13b in order to suppress evaporation and denaturation of the reagent, and a thermostat bath for reagent cooling is provided below the second reagent storage 13b. (Not shown) is provided.

The first reagent dispensing device 16a includes an arm 16f that freely moves up and down in the vertical direction and rotates around a vertical line passing through the base end of the first reagent. A probe (not shown) for aspirating and discharging the sample is attached to the tip of the arm 16f. The first reagent dispensing device 16a includes an intake / exhaust mechanism using an unillustrated intake / exhaust syringe or a piezoelectric element. The first reagent dispensing device 16a sucks the first reagent from the reagent container 34 transferred to the predetermined position on the first reagent storage 13a described above by the probe, and rotates the arm 16f clockwise in the figure. the first reaction vessel 36 of the reagent discharge position P ₂ by ejecting first reagent perform dispensing. A cleaning tank 16d for cleaning the probe (not shown) with cleaning water is installed on the rotation trajectory of the probe.

The second reagent dispensing device 16b includes an arm 16g that freely moves up and down in the vertical direction and rotates around the vertical line passing through the base end of the second reagent. A probe (not shown) for aspirating and discharging the sample is attached to the tip of the arm 16g. The second reagent dispensing device 16b includes an intake / exhaust mechanism using an unillustrated intake / exhaust syringe or piezoelectric element. The second reagent dispensing device 16b sucks the second reagent from the reagent container 34 transferred to a predetermined position on the second reagent storage 13b described above by the probe, and rotates the arm 16g counterclockwise in the drawing. , the reaction vessel 36 of the second reagent discharge position P ₃ by ejecting second reagent perform dispensing. A cleaning tank 16e for cleaning the probe with cleaning water is installed on the probe trajectory.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the reaction table 14 has a plurality of reaction vessels 36 arranged in the circumferential direction, and is different from the drive means for driving the first and second reagent storages 13a and 13b (FIG. The reaction vessel 36 is moved in the circumferential direction by being rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow. The reaction table 14 is disposed between the light source unit 17m and the light receiving unit 17n of the photometric device 17 (see FIG. 2). The reaction table 14 includes a holding portion 14a (see FIG. 2) that holds the reaction vessel 36, and has a guide hole 14b (see FIG. 3) that is an opening for guiding the light beam emitted from the light source 17a to the grating mirror 17g. The holding portions are arranged on the outer periphery of the reaction table 14 at predetermined intervals along the circumferential direction, and an opening extending in the radial direction is formed on the inner peripheral side of the holding portion 14a. An openable / closable lid (not shown) is provided above the reaction table 14, and a thermostat (not shown) for heating to a temperature that promotes the reaction between the specimen and the reagent is provided below the reaction table 14.

  The reaction vessel 36 is an optically transparent material that transmits 80% or more of the light contained in the analysis light (340 to 800 nm) emitted from the photometry device 17, such as glass containing heat-resistant glass, cyclic olefin, polystyrene, and the like. It is a container called a cuvette formed into a square cylinder shape.

  The first stirrer 19 stirs the dispensed specimen and reagent with a stir bar to make the reaction uniform.

  The cleaning mechanism 18 includes a plurality of cleaning nozzles, and sucks and discharges the reaction liquid in the reaction container 36 that has been measured by the photometry device 17 by the suction nozzle, and injects a cleaning liquid such as detergent or cleaning water by the discharge nozzle. And washing by drying. A detailed configuration will be described later. The washed reaction vessel 36 is reused.

  FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing the arrangement of the photometric device and the reaction table in the automatic analyzer of FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the photometric device 17 includes a light source 17a constituting a light source unit 17m, a light source lens 17b, a field stop 17c, a condenser aperture 17d, a condenser lens 17e, and a light collecting unit constituting a light receiving unit 17n. A lens 17f, a grating mirror 17g, and a photodiode array 17h are provided. The light source lens 17b condenses the measurement light emitted from the light source 17a. The field stop 17c adjusts the irradiation range of the measurement light collected by the condenser lens 17f to the reaction vessel 36. The condenser diaphragm 17d adjusts the amount of measurement light irradiated to the reaction vessel 36. The condenser lens 17e irradiates the reaction vessel 36 with the measurement light collected by the light source lens 17b as parallel light. The condensing lens 17f condenses the measurement light transmitted from the reaction vessel 36, and the grating mirror 17g separates the collected measurement light. The photodiode array 17h is provided at the focal position of each wavelength of the measurement light dispersed by the grating mirror 17g, and detects the light intensity at each wavelength.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the light source 17a, the light source lens 17b, the field stop 17c, the condenser stop 17d, the condenser lens 17e, and the reaction vessel 36 are arranged to be a Kohler illumination system. That is, the image is formed so that the image of the light source 17a is formed at the position of the condenser diaphragm 17d, which is the front focal point of the condenser lens 17e, and the image of the field diaphragm 17c is formed on the surface of the reaction vessel 36. When the arrangement of the Koehler illumination system is used, the measurement light is not collected in the reaction vessel 36. Therefore, when the temperature effect due to the measurement light irradiation or fluctuations due to bubbles of the reaction liquid occur in the light collection portion. The influence of can also be reduced. Further, since the measurement light is incident on the reaction vessel 36 in parallel by the condenser lens 17e, the change in the optical path length due to the refractive index of the reaction solution is eliminated, and the analysis accuracy can be improved.

  Next, the control mechanism 21 will be described. The control mechanism 21 includes a control unit 22, an input unit 23, an output unit 24, a storage unit 15, and an analysis unit 27. The control unit 22 is connected to each unit included in the measurement mechanism 11 and the control mechanism 21. In order to control the operation of these units, a microcomputer or the like is used for the control unit 22. The control unit 22 performs predetermined input / output control on information input / output to / from each of these components, and performs predetermined information processing on the information. The control unit 22 controls the operation of each unit of the automatic analyzer 1, and based on the information read from the information recording medium, the automatic analyzer stops the analysis work when the expiration date of the reagent is out of the installation range. Control 1 or issue a warning to the operator. The control unit 22 also has a function as a transport control unit that controls the operation of the sample container transfer unit 12.

  The input unit 23 is configured using a keyboard, a mouse, and the like, and acquires various information necessary for analyzing the sample, instruction information for the analysis operation, and the like from the outside. The output unit 24 is configured using a printer, a communication mechanism, and the like, and outputs various information including the analysis result of the sample to notify the user. The storage unit 25 is configured using a hard disk that magnetically stores information and a memory that loads various programs related to the process from the hard disk and electrically stores them when the automatic analyzer 1 executes the process. Various information including the analysis result of the specimen is stored. The storage unit 25 may include an auxiliary storage device that can read information stored in a storage medium such as a CD-ROM, a DVD-ROM, or a PC card. The analysis unit 27 calculates the absorbance and the like based on the measurement result acquired from the photometry device 17, and performs component analysis of the specimen.

  In the automatic analyzer 1 configured as described above, the first reagent dispensing device 16a dispenses the first reagent in the reagent container 34 to the plurality of reaction containers 36 that are sequentially conveyed in a row. Thereafter, the sample dispensing device 15 dispenses the sample in the sample container 31, the second reagent dispensing device 16b dispenses the second reagent in the reagent container 34, and the photometric device 17 uses the sample and the reagent. The spectroscopic intensity measurement is performed on the sample in a state of reacting, and the analysis result is analyzed by the analysis unit 27, so that the component analysis of the specimen is automatically performed. Moreover, after the measurement by the photometric device 17 is completed by the cleaning mechanism 18, the reaction container 36 is cleaned while being transported, so that a series of analysis operations are continuously repeated.

(Embodiment 2)
The second embodiment includes a field stop variable mechanism 17i that drives the field stop 17c, and the field stop variable mechanism 17i drives the field stop 17c to adjust the opening according to the liquid level in the reaction vessel 36 that performs photometry. This is different from the first embodiment in that the irradiation range of the measurement light irradiated to the reaction vessel 36 can be changed. In the second embodiment, since the irradiation range of the measurement light can be changed according to the liquid level in the reaction vessel 36, more stable analysis results can be obtained when the amount of liquid is large.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of the automatic analyzer 1A according to the second embodiment. The storage unit 25A of the automatic analyzer 1A stores the sample dispensing amount and the reagent dispensing amount required for the analysis of each analysis item. The calculating unit 26 is based on the dimensions of the reaction container 36 and the sample dispensing amount and reagent dispensing amount injected into the reaction container 36 extracted from the storage unit 25A, and the reaction liquid of the sample and the reagent in the reaction container 36. The liquid level is calculated.

  5 and 6 are diagrams schematically showing the configuration of the photometric device 17A shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the photometric device 17A according to the second embodiment includes a field stop variable mechanism 17i that drives the field stop 17c. The field stop variable mechanism 17i opens and closes the opening by driving the field stop 17c. The aperture of the field stop 17c may be a generally used circle or a rectangle. Since the reaction vessel 36 that irradiates the measurement light is a rectangular column and has a small volume, the opening of the field stop 17c according to the second embodiment can easily change the irradiation range in accordance with the liquid level. A rectangle is preferred. As shown in FIG. 5, when the field stop 17c is driven and the opening increases, the irradiation range of the measurement light to the reaction vessel 36 increases. When the irradiation range of the measurement light is increased, a stable measurement result can be obtained even when fluctuations such as bubbles occur in a part of the reaction solution irradiated with the measurement light. When the amount of the reaction liquid is small, as shown in FIG. 6, the field stop 17c is narrowed to reduce the irradiation range of the measurement light to the reaction vessel 36. If the irradiation range is small, the measurement result may be blurred due to the generation of bubbles in the reaction solution, but by changing the irradiation range of the measurement light according to the amount of the reaction solution, the stability of the measurement result is overall It can be improved.

  Next, the sample measurement according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 9 are flowcharts of sample measurement. In the second embodiment, since the diaphragm height of the field diaphragm 17c is changed by driving the field diaphragm variable mechanism 17i, a water blank photometry process is performed in which the water blank is metered at the diaphragm diaphragm height assumed in advance ( As shown in FIG. 7, step S101), after that, the field stop variable mechanism 17i drives the field stop 17c in accordance with the amount of liquid in the reaction vessel 36 to adjust the aperture, and the photometric process is performed to correct the data measured by the water blank. (Step S102).

  In the water blank measurement process, first, the user sets a water blank measurement range (see FIG. 8, step S201). Although the liquid level of the reaction liquid in the reaction container 36 can be calculated from the dimensions of the reaction container 36 and the amount of sample and reagent required for analysis of the analysis item targeted by the automatic analyzer 1A, the maximum liquid level and the minimum liquid level can be calculated. Assuming the surface height, the liquid level for measuring the water blank is set. After setting the water blank measurement range, the field stop variable mechanism 17i drives the field stop 17c to adjust the opening of the field stop 17c within the set range (step S202). When the irradiation shape of the measurement light is rectangular and only the rectangular height which is the irradiation shape is changed by driving the field stop 17c, the height is changed to measure the water blank. After adjusting the opening, the amount of light transmitted through the water blank is measured (step S203), and the measurement result is stored in the storage unit 25A. Thereafter, it is confirmed whether or not the water blank measurement has been completed in the set aperture ranges of all the field stops 17c (step S204). If not completed (step S204, No), the process is repeated from step S202. If the measurement has been completed (step S204, Yes), the water blank measurement process is terminated and the photometric process is performed.

  In the photometric process, first, the sample dispensed amount and reagent dispensed amount required for analysis of the analysis item to be subjected to the photometric process are extracted from the storage unit 25A (step S301), and the extracted sample dispensed amount, reagent dispensed amount, and reaction are extracted. Based on the dimensions of the container 36, the calculation unit 26 calculates the liquid level of the reactant in the reaction container 36 (step S302). In accordance with the calculated liquid level, the field stop variable mechanism 17i drives the field stop 17c to adjust the opening (step S303), and the reactant in the reaction vessel 36 is irradiated with measurement light to analyze the amount of transmitted light. (Step S304). The obtained photometric result is corrected with the water blank value stored in the storage unit 25A to obtain the absorbance (step S305). Thereafter, it is confirmed whether or not all analyzes have been completed (step S306). If not completed (No in step S306), the process is repeated from step S301. If the measurement has been completed (step S306, Yes), the photometry process is completed.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of the automatic analyzer concerning Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is the top view which showed typically arrangement | positioning of the photometry apparatus and reaction table in the automatic analyzer of FIG. It is the XX sectional view taken on the line in FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of an automatic analyzer according to a second embodiment. It is the figure which showed typically the structure of 17 A of photometry apparatuses shown in FIG. It is the figure which showed typically the structure of 17 A of photometry apparatuses shown in FIG. 10 is a flowchart of sample measurement according to the second embodiment. It is a flowchart of the water blank measurement process of FIG. It is a flowchart of the photometry process of FIG.

1, 1A automatic analyzer 10a, 10b, 10c
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Measurement mechanism 12 Sample container transfer part 13a 1st reagent storage 13b 2nd reagent storage 14 Reaction table 14a Holding part 14b Guide hole 15 Sample dispensing apparatus 15a, 16f, 16g Arm 15d, 16d, 16e Washing tank 16a 1st reagent Injection device 16b Second reagent dispensing device 17, 17A Photometric device 17a Light source 17b Light source lens 17c Field diaphragm 17d Condenser diaphragm 17e Condenser lens 17f Condensing lens 17g Grating mirror 17h Photodiode array 17i Field diaphragm variable mechanism 17m Light source section 17n Light receiving section 18 Cleaning mechanism
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 19 Stirring device 21, 21A Control mechanism 22 Control part 23 Input part 24 Output part 25, 25A Storage part 26 Calculation part 27 Analysis part 31 Sample container 32 Rack 34 Reagent container 36 Reaction container

Claims (7)

In an automatic analyzer that irradiates measurement light from a light source to a reaction container into which a specimen and a reagent are injected, and measures the amount of transmitted light by a light receiving unit,
A light source lens for condensing measurement light emitted from a light source;
A condenser lens that irradiates the reaction vessel with the measurement light collected by the light source lens as parallel light;
A condenser aperture that adjusts the amount of light to be irradiated;
A field stop for adjusting the irradiation range of the measurement light to the reaction vessel;
An automatic analyzer comprising: a photometric device including: the light source, the light source lens, the field stop, the condenser stop, the condenser lens, and the reaction vessel arranged to form a Kohler illumination system.   A field stop variable mechanism for driving the field stop is provided, and the field stop variable mechanism drives the field stop according to the liquid surface height of the liquid sample in the reaction container to irradiate the measurement container with the measurement light. The automatic analyzer according to claim 1, characterized in that:   3. The automatic analyzer according to claim 2, wherein the irradiation shape of the measurement light that is varied by the field stop varying mechanism is circular or rectangular. A storage unit for storing a sample dispensing amount and a reagent dispensing amount required for analysis of each analysis item;
A calculation unit for calculating the liquid level in the reaction container from the sample dispensing amount and the reagent dispensing amount stored in the storage unit;
The automatic analyzer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising: Irradiating measurement light from a light source, condensing the measurement light by a light source lens, and converting the collected measurement light into parallel light by a condenser lens in a reaction container containing a liquid sample containing a reaction product of a specimen and a reagent In the photometric device of the automatic analyzer that irradiates and analyzes the liquid sample by measuring the amount of light transmitted from the reaction vessel by the light receiving unit,
A condenser aperture that adjusts the amount of light to be irradiated;
A field stop for adjusting the irradiation range of the measurement light to the reaction vessel;
A field stop variable mechanism for driving the field stop, and the light source, the light source lens, the condenser lens, the reaction vessel, the condenser stop, and the field stop are arranged to be a Kohler illumination system, and The field stop variable mechanism varies the shape of a light beam irradiated to the reaction container according to the liquid level of the liquid sample in the reaction container. In a photometric method of an automatic analyzer that irradiates measurement light from a light source to a reaction container into which a specimen and a reagent are injected, and measures the amount of transmitted light by a light receiving unit to analyze the liquid sample,
An extraction step for extracting the sample dispensing amount and the reagent dispensing amount required for the analysis of each analysis item from the storage unit;
A calculation step of calculating the liquid level in the reaction container from the sample dispensing amount and the reagent dispensing amount extracted by the extraction step;
An adjustment step of adjusting the field stop to adjust the irradiation range of the measurement light to the reaction vessel based on the liquid level calculated by the calculation step;
A measurement step of irradiating the reaction vessel with the measurement light adjusted in the adjustment step, measuring the amount of transmitted light, and calculating the absorbance;
A photometric method for an automatic analyzer characterized by comprising:   It includes a blank photometry step for measuring a water blank for each irradiation range of the measurement light by adjusting the aperture of the field stop, and the measurement step calculates an absorbance measured based on the water blank measured in the blank photometry step. The photometric method for an automatic analyzer according to claim 6.

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