JP2012112912A - Automatic analyzer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automatic analyzer that is equipped with a mechanism capable of changing a transfer direction of a container.SOLUTION: A reagent holding part 10 of the automatic analyzer 1 includes a first reagent disk (holding means) 20 that holds reagent containers 12, a reagent information reading mechanism (an information reading mechanism) 21 that reads information attached to an RFID tag of each reagent container 12 on the first reagent disk 20, and a reagent discharge mechanism (a transfer direction changing mechanism) 23 that can change the transfer direction of the reagent container 12 when the reagent container 12 needs to be taken out after RFID tag information attached to the reagent container 12 is read by the reagent information reading mechanism 21. As a result, when abnormality or the like occurs in a reagent, its reagent container 12 can be excluded beforehand to enable quick analysis, and it can be avoided that a wrong analysis result due to the abnormal reagent is obtained, whereby analysis can be performed with high accuracy.

Description

  The present invention relates to an automatic analyzer for qualitative and quantitative analysis of various components contained in a biological sample such as blood and urine, and more particularly to an automatic analyzer capable of automatically carrying a reagent container and the like.

  In the field of automatic analysis, a random access type automatic analyzer that uses a plurality of reaction lines at random has been developed, and the processing capacity of analysis has been dramatically improved. Along with this, the speed of reagent consumption has increased, and the opportunities for reagent container switching work have increased. In Patent Document 1, the reagent is automatically replaced in order to reduce the burden on the operator (operator) due to operations such as reagent registration and reagent replacement, and to minimize the interruption of analysis without causing a shortage of reagents during analysis. An automatic analyzer having a reagent loading / unloading mechanism has been proposed.

JP-A-2005-37171

  The automatic analyzer disclosed in Patent Document 1 requires a mechanism for discharging the inserted reagent container when the reagent information of the loaded reagent container or the reagent container is incomplete or when it is desired to remove it for the convenience of the operator. It is.

  In other words, it has been desired to develop a mechanism that can change the transport direction of the container in a convenient direction in order to perform analysis quickly and with high accuracy.

  The objective of this invention is providing the automatic analyzer provided with the mechanism which can change the conveyance direction of a container.

  The above and other objects and novel features of the present invention will be apparent from the description of this specification and the accompanying drawings.

  Of the inventions disclosed in the present application, the outline of typical ones will be briefly described as follows.

  That is, the automatic analyzer of the present invention holds a plurality of sample containers and reagent containers in an automatic analyzer that dispenses and reacts samples and reagents in a plurality of reaction containers and measures the reacted liquid. Holding means, a container loading mechanism for loading the container into the holding means, an information reading mechanism for reading information attached to the container loaded on the holding means, and the information reading mechanism A transport direction changing mechanism that changes the transport direction of the container based on the information, the state of the container, or the intention of the operator.

  Among the inventions disclosed in the present application, effects obtained by typical ones will be briefly described as follows.

  According to the present invention, the automatic analyzer uses the transport direction changing mechanism to change the transport direction of the container based on the information attached to the container put into the container holding means by the container input mechanism, the state of the container, or the intention of the operator. Since the change is made, the conveyance direction of the container can be changed as necessary when there is any abnormality in the information about the container. Therefore, change the processing direction for analysis and the transport direction of the container for which analysis is to be interrupted in advance, omit unnecessary work such as processing even if the container is abnormal, or use an abnormal reagent. Accordingly, it is possible to avoid an erroneous analysis result from being obtained, and it is possible to perform analysis quickly and with high accuracy.

It is a schematic block diagram of the automatic analyzer of this invention. It is a block diagram of a reagent discharge | emission mechanism. It is an operation | movement figure of a reagent discharge | emission mechanism. It is an operation | movement figure of a reagent discharge | emission mechanism. It is an operation | movement figure of a reagent discharge | emission mechanism. It is an operation | movement figure of a reagent discharge | emission mechanism. It is an operation | movement figure of a reagent discharge | emission mechanism. (A)-(E) are operation | movement schematic diagrams of a reagent discharge | emission mechanism.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that components having the same function are denoted by the same reference symbols throughout the drawings for describing the embodiment, and the repetitive description thereof is omitted as much as possible.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an automatic analyzer according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the automatic analyzer 1 is mainly composed of a reagent holding unit 10 and an analysis unit 11, which are controlled by a control unit (not shown).

  The reagent holding unit 10 includes a first reagent disk (holding means) 20 that holds a reagent container (container) 12 containing a reagent. In the illustrated example, the reagent container 12 is a cassette-shaped container in which storage portions 12a and 12b for storing two types of reagents are formed, and are arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction. An RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tag (not shown) is affixed to the reagent container 12, and a reagent information reading mechanism (information reading mechanism) 21 for reading information attached to the RFID tag is provided on the first reagent disk 20. Is provided. At a place corresponding to the tag information reading position of the reagent information reading mechanism 21, a reagent loading mechanism 22 for pulling and loading the reagent container 12 into the first reagent disk 20 is provided. A reagent discharge mechanism (conveying direction changing mechanism) 23 capable of discharging the reagent container 12 out of the first reagent disk 20 is provided at a position corresponding to a position where one reagent container 12 is advanced from the reading position. Yes.

  In addition, the reagent container 12 is initially capped (not shown) in the storage portions 12a and 12b, and the reagent cap for opening the cap of the reagent container 12 on one stationary position of the first reagent disk 20 is provided. An opening mechanism 24 is provided. In the vicinity of the reagent cap opening mechanism 24, a reagent cap disposal box 25 for discarding the reagent cap is placed. At another stationary position of the first reagent disk 20, a reagent delivery mechanism 26 that delivers the reagent container 12 to the analysis unit 11 is provided so as to be extendable in the direction of the analysis unit 11.

  The analysis unit 11 has no reaction mechanism, and only holds a reagent used for the reaction replenished from the first reagent disk 20, and has a second reagent disk 27 having a diameter larger than that of the first reagent disk 20. As far as the reagent holding portion is concerned, a third reagent disk 29 having a substantially the same diameter as the second reagent disk 27 and having a reaction mechanism 28 on the outer peripheral portion is provided.

  The second reagent disk 27 is provided with a reagent rotating mechanism 30 adjacent thereto so that the reagent container 12 is delivered by the reagent rotating mechanism 30 via the reagent delivering mechanism 26 extended from the reagent holding unit 10. It has become. In the vicinity of the reagent rotating mechanism 30, a reagent container storage mechanism 31 that sequentially stores the used reagent containers 12 is provided. Between the second reagent disk 27 and the third reagent disk 29, a reagent transport mechanism 33 in which a reagent container installation mechanism 32 is slidably provided is installed. The reagent transport mechanism 33 accommodates the two reagent containers 12 in the illustrated example in the reagent container installation mechanism 32 and transports the reagent container 12 between the reagent inlets 34 and 35 and the reagent rotating mechanism 30 of each disk. It has become.

  A procedure for transporting the reagent container 12 in the automatic analyzer 1 will be described. First, the reagent container 12 drawn in from the reagent loading mechanism 22 is held on the first reagent disk 20 after the RFID tag information attached to the reagent container 12 is read by the reagent information reading mechanism 21. . If there is an abnormality in the information on the reagent container 12, the reagent container 12 is discharged from the reagent discharge mechanism 23.

  In response to a command from the control unit to replenish the second reagent disk 27 or the third reagent disk 29, the reagent container 12 rotates the first reagent disk 20 to the bottom of the reagent cap opening mechanism 24. The reagent cap opening mechanism 24 opens the reagent caps of the storage portions 12a and 12b of the reagent container 12. At this time, the reagent cap is discarded in the reagent cap disposal box 25. Further, the reagent container 12 is moved to the position of the reagent delivery mechanism 26 by the rotation of the first reagent disk 20, and the reagent delivery mechanism 26 is extended and pushed out to the reagent rotation mechanism 30. Here, when the reagent cap is not opened when the reagent cap is opened by the reagent cap opening mechanism 24, it is assumed that the reagent container 12 is defective, and the reagent container 12 is rotated to a position corresponding to the reagent discharge mechanism 23. Can be discharged. Even if the reagent container 12 is not defective, it can be similarly discharged by the reagent discharge mechanism 23 for the convenience of the operator (operator).

  The reagent rotating mechanism 30 rotates after detecting that the reagent container 12 has been received by a sensor (not shown). The reagent transport mechanism 33 moves the reagent container installation mechanism 32 onto the reagent rotation mechanism 30, and then holds the reagent container 12 on the reagent rotation mechanism 30 with the reagent container installation mechanism 32. The container 12 is conveyed. The reagent transport mechanism 33 moves the reagent container installation mechanism 32 in the Z direction (the vertical direction of the automatic analyzer 1) from the reagent inlet 34 or 35, and moves the reagent container 12 to the second reagent disk 27 or the third reagent. It is held in the disk 29. From the held reagent container 12, the reagent is dispensed into a plurality of reaction containers (not shown) arranged in the reaction mechanism 28, and the sample and the reagent are reacted in this reaction container and measured. The reagent container 12 that has been used by the reagent dispensing is lifted and removed from the second reagent disk 27 or the third reagent disk 29 by the reagent container installation mechanism 32, and the reagent container storage mechanism 31 is removed by the reagent transport mechanism 33. It is conveyed to.

  Next, the configuration and operation of the reagent discharge mechanism 23 will be described. FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the reagent discharging mechanism.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the reagent discharging mechanism 23 includes a motor 36, a pair of pulleys 37 a and 37 b, and a belt 38 installed on the pulleys 37 a and 37 b, and the belt 38 is driven by the driving force of the motor 36. Reciprocates between the pulleys 37a and 37b. A claw 39 and a reagent container extruding member (container extruding member) 40 are attached to the belt 38. The reagent discharge mechanism 23 includes a linear guide 41, and the reagent container pushing member 40 moves along the linear guide 41. As for the nail | claw 39, the advancing direction side of the linear guide 41 protrudes upwards rather than the near side. The reagent container extruding member 40 is integrally formed with the claw 39, and the side portion opposite to the claw 39 side protrudes while bending inward with respect to the traveling direction of the linear guide 41. That is, the reagent container 12 that has entered the reagent discharging mechanism 23 is pushed along the linear guide 41 by the claw 39 and the protruding portion of the reagent container pushing member 40.

  On the other hand, the reagent discharge mechanism 23 includes a reagent container transfer member (container transfer member) 42 that is a member that can be engaged with the claw 39 and the reagent container push-out member 40 via the reagent container 12 that has entered the mechanism. The reagent container transfer member 42 is provided with connecting portions 43a and 43b extending in the horizontal direction at the upper and lower ends, and a pin 44 capable of contacting the reagent container extruding member 40 is attached to the connecting portion 43b on the lower end side. It has been. The coupling portions 43a and 43b are provided with bearings 45a and 45b, respectively, and a shaft 46 is provided through the bearing 45a on the lower end side from the bearing 45a on the upper end side of the mechanism. That is, the reagent container transfer member 42 is configured to be rotatable about the shaft 46 by the bearings 45a and 45b.

  An outline of movement of the reagent container 12 by the reagent discharge mechanism 23 will be described. 3 to 7 are operation diagrams, and FIGS. 8A to 8E are operation overview diagrams. In FIG. 8, the reagent container extruding member 40 schematically shows a side portion protruding along the traveling direction of the linear guide 41, and the reagent container transferring member 42 schematically shows a connecting portion 43b. In addition, for the sake of convenience, portions that are not originally visible are drawn with solid lines.

  In FIG. 8, the reagent container 12 moves linearly from (A) to (B), and from (B) to (D), the reagent container 12 rests on the reagent container transfer member 42 and rotates around the shaft 46. From (D) to (E), the linear movement is again performed.

  The initial state of the reagent discharge mechanism 23 is the state of FIG. 8A, and specifically the state of FIG. The claw 39 and the reagent container extruding member 40 are linearly moved along the linear guide 41 via the belt 38 by the driving force of a motor (not shown in FIG. 3 and thereafter). The claw 39 enters the mechanism, pushes the reagent container 12 to be discharged, and places it on the reagent container transfer member 42.

  Next, the state shown in FIG. 8B, specifically, the state shown in FIG. 4 is obtained. This is a state in which the claw 39 further pushes the reagent container 12 into the reagent container transfer member 42 from the state of FIG. 3 (FIG. 8A). Here, the reagent container pushing member 40 comes into contact with the pin 44.

  Next, the state sequentially shifts to the states of FIGS. 8C and 8D, specifically, to the states of FIGS. The pin 44 is pushed by the reagent container pushing member 40, and the reagent container transfer member 42 rotates around the shaft 46. At this time, since the reagent container 12 is placed on the reagent container transfer member 42, the reagent container 12 rotates together with the reagent container transfer member 42.

  Finally, the state of FIG. 8 (E), specifically, the state of FIG. 7 is obtained. After the reagent container pushing member 40 finishes pushing the pin 44 (see FIGS. 6 and 8D), the claw 39 pushes the reagent container 12 further in the linear direction and feeds it to a position where the reagent container 12 can be discharged.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 8, the reagent container 12 is linearly moved by the reagent discharging mechanism 23 until the reagent container extruding member tip 40a, which is the protruding tip of the reagent container extruding member 40, contacts the pin 44 (FIG. 8). 8 (A) to (B)). Then, the reagent container 12 rotates and moves until the pin 44 is pushed by the reagent container extruding member 40 and reaches the reagent container extruding member bending portion 40b that becomes the protruding proximal end of the reagent container extruding member 40 ((B in FIG. 8). ) To (D)). Thereafter, the pin 44 only slides in contact with the reagent container extruding member 40, and the reagent container 12 is not rotated and moved linearly until reaching the reagent container extruding member end 40 c that is the discharge position of the reagent container 12. This is performed ((D) to (E) in FIG. 8). With such a method, linear movement and rotational movement are possible with one drive system.

  Thus, since the automatic analyzer 1 of the present invention is provided with the reagent discharging mechanism 23, when there is an abnormality in the reagent or the reagent container 12, the reagent container 12 can be quickly discharged. As a result, the reagent container 12 having an abnormality before the pretreatment for analysis or analysis is eliminated, and the analysis can be performed quickly. At the same time, analysis based on an abnormal reagent can be prevented, so that an erroneous analysis result can be avoided due to this, and analysis can be performed with high accuracy.

  In addition, since the reagent discharge mechanism 23 is configured to be capable of linear movement and rotational movement with a single drive system, the direction of the reagent container 12 can be changed in a direction that is easy for the operator to take out in a compact and inexpensive manner. it can.

  As mentioned above, the invention made by the present inventor has been specifically described based on the embodiment. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Needless to say.

  For example, the reagent discharge mechanism 23 is a sample rack (holding means) holding mechanism for holding a plurality of sample containers. When the sample container is provided with an information reading mechanism and the sample is abnormal, It can also be applied as a sample discharge mechanism that discharges a sample rack in which is held from the transport mechanism.

  Further, the present invention can be applied as a transport direction changing mechanism that simply changes the transport direction of the container without discharging the container. In this case, since the part which forms a conveyance path | route linearly can be shortened, it can contribute to the compactization of an apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Automatic analyzer 10 Reagent holding part 11 Analytical part 12 Reagent container (container)
12a storage unit 12b storage unit 20 first reagent disk (holding means)
21 Reagent information reading mechanism (information reading mechanism)
22 Reagent input mechanism 23 Reagent discharge mechanism (conveyance direction changing mechanism)
24 Reagent cap opening mechanism 25 Reagent cap disposal box 26 Reagent delivery mechanism 27 Second reagent disk 28 Reaction mechanism 29 Third reagent disk 30 Reagent rotation mechanism 31 Reagent container storage mechanism 32 Reagent container installation mechanism 33 Reagent transport mechanism 34 Reagent Input port 35 Reagent input port 36 Motor 37a Pulley 37b Pulley 38 Belt 39 Claw 40 Reagent container extruding member (container extruding member)
40a Reagent container extruding member tip 40b Reagent container extruding member bent part 40c Reagent container extruding member end 41 Linear guide 42 Reagent container transporting member (container transporting member)
43a connecting portion 43b connecting portion 44 pin 45a bearing 45b bearing 46 shaft

Claims (4)

In an automatic analyzer that dispenses and reacts samples and reagents in multiple reaction vessels and measures the reacted liquid,
A holding means for holding a plurality of sample containers and reagent containers, a container loading mechanism for loading the container into the holding means, and information attached to the container loaded on the holding means An automatic information reading mechanism, and a transport direction changing mechanism that changes the transport direction of the container based on the information read by the information reading mechanism, the state of the container, or the intention of an operator. Analysis equipment.   2. The automatic analyzer according to claim 1, wherein the container is a reagent container, and the transport direction changing mechanism functions as a reagent discharge mechanism for discharging the reagent container from the holding means.   3. The automatic analyzer according to claim 1, wherein the transport direction changing mechanism performs two types of movements of linear movement and rotational movement with a single drive system on the container that has entered the transport direction changing mechanism. An automatic analyzer characterized in that   The automatic analyzer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the transport direction changing mechanism includes a linear guide and the container that moves along the linear guide and enters the transport direction changing mechanism. A container extruding member that linearly moves the container by pushing, a container transfer member that extrudes the container from the container extruding member, a pin that the container extruding member contacts when the container is extruded to the container conveying member, An automatic analyzer comprising: a shaft that rotates the container by rotating the container transfer member by contact of the pin.

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