JP2018040705A - Measurement device, inspection device, measurement method, and inspection method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a measurement device for measuring an amount of a liquid from captured image data of the liquid.SOLUTION: A measurement device 10 is configured to measure an amount of a water-containing liquid accommodated in a container 20 that is transmissive to a wavelength used for the measurement, and comprises an image capturing unit 11 configured to acquire image data of the liquid captured using near-infrared rays, and an image processing unit 12 configured to derive the amount of the liquid from brightness of the liquid represented by shading of the image data. The container 20 contains multiple portions of the liquid that has been dispensed, and the image processing unit 12 derives amounts of all the portions from the image data, where the image processing unit 12 converts brightness of liquid into an amount of liquid using reference information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to a technique for measuring or inspecting a liquid amount from image data obtained by photographing a liquid.

  Conventionally, a plate reader is used to measure a small amount of liquid dispensed into a container such as a microplate having a plurality of wells. The plate reader measures the absorbance of the liquid in the well using a spectroscopic instrument. The optical path length of the liquid can be calculated from Lambert Beer's law, and the liquid volume is calculated from the shape of the well and the optical path length of the liquid.

  Absorbance measurement using a plate reader must be performed by mixing the dye with the liquid, so it cannot be used to measure liquids such as chemicals and samples that do not want to be mixed with foreign substances. It was not possible to measure the amount of liquid.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a measurement device, an inspection device, a measurement method, and an inspection method for measuring a liquid amount from image data obtained by photographing a liquid.

  The present invention is a measuring device for measuring the amount of water-containing liquid contained in a container that is transparent to the wavelength used for measurement, and that captures image data obtained by photographing the liquid with near infrared rays. And an image processing unit for obtaining a liquid amount from the brightness of the liquid represented by the density of the image data.

  The measuring apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that even when a plurality of liquids are contained in the same container, all the liquid amounts are measured from the image data.

  The inspection apparatus according to the present invention includes the measurement device, and the image processing unit determines whether the liquid is in an appropriate amount using inspection information.

  The measuring method according to the present invention includes an imaging step of acquiring image data by photographing a liquid containing moisture in a near infrared ray in a container that is transparent to the wavelength used for measurement, and the density of the image data. The present invention is characterized by comprising: a numerical conversion step for changing the brightness of the liquid that appears to a numerical value; and a conversion step for converting the numerical value into a liquid amount using reference information.

  In addition to the measurement method, the inspection method of the present invention is characterized by including a determination step of determining whether the liquid is in an appropriate amount.

  According to the present invention, the liquid is imaged using the absorption wavelength of water in the near-infrared wavelength region, and the image data of the liquid is image-processed. The amount of liquid can be measured or inspected without mixing. Furthermore, as an increase in measurement speed, a plurality of liquids can be photographed and the respective liquid amounts can be measured or inspected.

  Conventional plate readers measure multiple liquids in the same container one by one, so it takes time to measure the entire container, but the present invention is manufactured by handling image data obtained by photographing multiple liquids. It can be used by being incorporated in a device or the like.

(A)-(d) is a figure for demonstrating the measuring device of 1st Embodiment of this invention. (A)-(c) is a figure which shows the structural example of the container handled with the measuring device of FIG. (A)-(c) is a figure which shows the structural example of the container handled with the measuring device of FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the measuring device of 1st Embodiment of this invention. (A) And (b) is a figure for demonstrating the image process part of 1st Embodiment of this invention. (A) And (b) is a figure for demonstrating the image process part of 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the image processing part of 1st Embodiment of this invention. (A) to (c) is a diagram for explaining the image processing unit of the first embodiment of the present invention. (A) to (d) are diagrams for explaining an image processing unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the measuring device of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the inspection apparatus of Example 1 of this invention. (A) And (b) is sectional drawing which shows the accommodating part before test | inspection of Example 1 of this invention. It is a fragmentary perspective view which shows the conveyance part of Example 1 of this invention. (A)-(c) is a figure for demonstrating conveyance of a microplate with the inspection apparatus of Example 1 of this invention. (A) And (b) is a figure for demonstrating conveyance of a microplate with the inspection apparatus of Example 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the inspection apparatus of Example 2 of this invention.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a measuring apparatus 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
The measuring device 10 photographs the liquid 1 placed in a container as shown in FIG. The liquid 1 contains water and is a solution or a liquid composed only of water, and its amount is, for example, several microliters to several tens of microliters. The liquid 1 has a granular shape as shown in FIG. 1A, a thin layer spread on the bottom of the container as shown in FIG. 1B, and from the bottom to the mouth as described later. It may be collected. In addition, the dashed-two dotted line of FIG. 1 represents the bottom of the container.

  The measuring device 10 measures the amount of the liquid 1 (hereinafter, liquid amount) from the image data. A still image using near infrared rays is used as image data. (C) and (d) in FIG. 1 are schematic diagrams for explaining the characteristics of near-infrared water, and FIG. 1 (c) shows a state in which water is accumulated in a concave portion deepening from the left side to the right side. FIG. 1 (d) schematically shows a near-infrared image obtained by photographing (c) from above, and the brightness changes gradually from a shallow portion to a deep portion, and the brightness changes.

  The measuring device 10 obtains the liquid amount by quantifying the brightness appearing in the area of the liquid 1 in the image data represented by such gray scales.

(container)
2 and 3 are views showing a microplate 20 as a configuration example of the container. In each figure, (a) is a front view of the microplate 20, (b) is a plan view, and (c) is a cross-sectional view of the microplate 20 along the line AA or BB in (b). Embodiments will be described below using the microplate 20 shown in these drawings.

  The microplate 20 is configured to be transparent by molding a resin such as polycarbonate, and is provided with wells 200 each having a mouth opened upward and horizontally. Each well 200 is configured in the same shape, and includes a cylindrical side surface portion 210 extending downward and a bottom portion 220 forming the deepest portion.

  In the microplate 20 shown in FIG. 2, the mouth of the well 200 is formed in a circular shape, and the bottom 220 is formed in a U-shaped bottom that swells downward in a hemispherical shape. In addition, a total of 96 wells 200 are provided by arranging eight wells 200 vertically and twelve wells 200 horizontally. Around the mouth of the well 200 is formed as a flat surface. The well 200 is connected to the adjacent well 200 through the flat portion to constitute the plate upper surface portion 21. The plate upper surface portion 21 is formed in a rectangular outline in plan view, the plate side surface portion 22 extends downward from the periphery of the plate upper surface portion 21, and the lower end side of the plate side surface portion 22 is a landing portion 23 that protrudes sideways. It is configured.

  In the microplate 20 shown in FIG. 3, the mouth of the well 200 is formed in a rectangular shape, and the bottom 220 is formed flat. In this microplate 20, wells 200 are formed by partition portions extending vertically and horizontally, and each well 200 is adjacent to each other via a partition also serving as a side surface portion 210, and has 12 vertically and 16 horizontally. A total of 192 wells 200 are provided with wells 200 arranged at predetermined intervals.

  Hereinafter, when distinguishing the microplate 20 shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the microplate 20 of FIG. 2 is called a 96-well microplate 20, and the microplate 20 of FIG. 3 is called a 192-well microplate 20.

  Further, the 192-well microplate 20 is set so that the vertical and horizontal dimensions of the well 200 are smaller than those of the 96-well microplate 20. The 192-well microplate 20 also has a plate side surface portion 22 formed in a rectangular outline on the plate upper surface portion 21 and extending downward from the periphery thereof, and the lower end side of the plate side surface portion 22 is located outside as a landing portion 23. It protrudes. The 192-well microplate 20 is formed such that the dimension of the long side along the array of 16 rows of wells 200 is substantially equal to the dimension of the short side of the 96-well microplate 20.

(Measurement device)
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the measuring apparatus 10. The measuring device 10 includes an imaging unit 11 that images the liquid 1 and an image processing unit 12 that measures a liquid amount from image data.

(Imaging part)
The imaging unit 11 photographs the microplate 20 containing the liquid 1 from above, and obtains a planar image of the microplate 20. The imaging unit 11 is a near-infrared camera, and acquires the liquid 1 placed in the microplate 20 as image data having light and shade brightness, for example, in a gray scale of 256 gradations. The imaging unit 11 captures the microplate 20 and captures the entire liquid 1 as an image from above the liquid 1 and includes the outline of the well 200 containing the liquid 1.

(Image processing unit)
The image processing unit 12 includes a liquid region extraction unit 12A that identifies the region of the liquid 1 from the image data, a numerical unit 12B that converts the region of the liquid 1 into a numerical value, and a conversion unit 12C that calculates the liquid amount based on the numerical value. And.

(Liquid region extraction unit)
The liquid region extraction unit 12A identifies the shape of the liquid 1 in the bottom 220 of the well 200. The liquid region extraction unit 12A detects a boundary that defines the region of the liquid 1 from the image data. In the 96-well microplate 20, for example, when the volume and the bottom area of the well 200 are larger than the dispensed amount, the liquid 1 forms a granular shape at the bottom 220, and the liquid as shown in FIG. One image occupies a part of the bottom 220 and appears. Note that the image of the liquid 1 is created by using luminance values in the entire 256 gradation range or a partial range thereof (for example, Na to Nb). The liquid region extraction unit 12A detects the periphery of the liquid 1 as shown in FIG. The liquid region extraction unit 12A binarizes the image data from the imaging unit 11, detects the boundary, specifies the boundary by pattern recognition, and scans and specifies the image data.

  In the 192-well microplate 20 in which the vertical and horizontal dimensions of the well 200 are set smaller than those of the 96-well microplate 20, the dispensed liquid 1 spreads over the entire bottom portion 220 or has a desired height from the bottom portion 220. When accumulated and appearing in the image data, the gap between the spread edge of the liquid 1 and the side surface of the well 200 appears thin, and the edge of the liquid 1 is detected. After detection, the region of liquid 1 is labeled.

  When the well 200 is surface-treated in the 96-well microplate 20 and has wettability, and the liquid 1 spreads over the entire bottom portion 220 and becomes thin, the periphery of the layered liquid 1 is detected.

(Numericalization Department)
The digitizing unit 12B digitizes the brightness of the area of the liquid 1 that appears in shading. For example, from the average of the coordinates (x, y) of each pixel in the labeled area, the coordinates (xc, yc) of the center of gravity are obtained as shown in FIG. The measurement region R is a plurality of pixels included in a predetermined range from the center C, and covers, for example, a range having a shape similar to the shape of the bottom 220 of the well 200 in plan view. In the case of the 96-well microplate 20, the circle indicated by the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 6A represents a position 10.5 pixels away from the center C, and is provided inside the circle. Are treated as measurement targets. In the case of the 192-well microplate 20, pixels within a rectangular area of 3 pixels are to be measured. The average of the brightness (luminance value) of the pixels in the measurement region is obtained, and this is used as the measured brightness (luminance information Iv) of the liquid 1.

(Conversion unit)
The conversion unit 12C obtains the liquid amount V from the luminance information Iv of the liquid 1 and the reference information 13 for measurement. The image processing unit 12 includes reference information 13 related to the liquid 1 dispensed to the microplate 20, and the reference information 13 calculates the liquid volume V from the luminance information Iv of the liquid 1 put in the well 200. It is used to convert and is configured as a primary expression f (x) shown in FIG. This formula is created in accordance with the amount of liquid, components such as drugs contained therein, and the shape of the well 200. For example, the reference information 13 used differs between the 96-well microplate 20 and the 192-well microplate 20.

  Using reference information 13 so as to convert the amount of liquid 1 dispensed to each well 200, the same component (medicine) and the same amount of liquid 1 dispensed to all wells 200 When 20 is targeted, common reference information 13 is used. Further, in the well 200 into which the liquid 1 having a different component (medicine) or amount contained in the liquid 1 is dispensed, reference information 13 different from the other wells 200 is created to convert the liquid amount. Such reference information 13 is stored in the image processing unit 12 in advance.

(Compensation of liquid volume)
The image processing unit 12 may include a correction unit that corrects the liquid amount V obtained by the conversion unit 12C.
The correction unit corrects the liquid amount V based on the image data. First, an average height is obtained from the height of each part corresponding to the region of the liquid 1 in the image data. For example, when the liquid 1 to be measured is accumulated from the deepest part of the well 200 to a predetermined height and the liquid level facing the imaging unit 11 is inclined and spread as shown in FIG. The average height hav of the liquid level is obtained as the average value of the luminance values. Further, even when the liquid 1 to be measured is granular, the average height hav of the surface of the liquid 1 facing the imaging unit 11 is obtained. In addition, the broken line shown to (a) and (b) of FIG. 8 represents the average height hav. Next, a coefficient a corresponding to the average height hav is obtained from the primary expression g (x) shown in FIG. 8C, and this is multiplied by the liquid amount V obtained by the conversion unit 12C to obtain a correction value Va. be able to. Thereby, the liquid amount Va can be obtained according to the form of the liquid 1 which is increased or decreased, and the range of expansion or the like varies.

In addition, the correction unit corrects the liquid amount V so that the amount of liquid that should originally be obtained can be obtained by separating the non-liquid region (hereinafter referred to as a non-liquid region) from the true liquid region.
9A is a schematic diagram of a planar image of the well 200, and FIG. 9B is a schematic diagram of an image obtained by binarizing (a). (B) includes a bright blank area (hereinafter referred to as a blank area) in the liquid 1 area. 9A, the entire area captured as the liquid 1 in FIG. 9A, that is, the area S1 inside the periphery is compared with the area S2 of the area of the liquid 1 appearing in black excluding the blank area in FIG. 9B. It is determined whether the difference is a predetermined value or more. When the difference is large, the average of the luminance values is obtained excluding the blank area. Using this average value as luminance information (Iv), the liquid amount V is calculated again from the reference information 13 for measurement. Thereby, the liquid amount V of the liquid 1 containing bubbles can be obtained.

  9C is a schematic diagram of a planar image of the well 200, and FIG. 9D is a schematic diagram of an image obtained by binarizing (c). (D) represents a binarized image excluding a pixel area larger than a predetermined luminance value (hereinafter referred to as a dense area). Compared to the total area S3 of the region regarded as the liquid 1 in FIG. 9C and the area S4 of the region of the liquid 1 appearing in black excluding the dense region in FIG. 9D, the difference is a predetermined value. When it is above, the average of the luminance values is obtained excluding the dense region. Using this average value as luminance information (Iv), the liquid amount V is calculated again from the reference information 13. Thereby, it is possible to deal with image data in which the shadow of the container and the like are combined with the liquid 1.

(Well area)
The image processing unit 12 may specify the region of the well 200 before specifying the region of the liquid 1.
The well region extraction unit detects the outline of the mouth of the well 200 that appears in the image data. The well region extraction unit specifies a circular outline in the case of the 96-well microplate 20 and specifies a rectangular outline in the case of the 196-well microplate 20. The well region extraction unit binarizes the image data to detect the boundary, detects the boundary by pattern recognition (matching), and specifies the well 200 in the image. The image data shows a plurality of wells 200, and the wells 200 are individually specified. Label individual well 200 regions in the image.

  Further, the image processing unit 12 may perform preprocessing such as noise removal before specifying the liquid 1 region and the well 200 region.

  An electronic computer such as a computer functions as an image processing unit by executing a program recorded on a hard disk or the like, and temporarily stores image data acquired from the imaging unit in a memory or the like, or stores the image data in a storage device Save and perform image processing.

  In the measuring apparatus 10 configured as described above, first, the imaging unit 11 images the microplate 20 in which the liquid 1 is dispensed into all the wells 200, and obtains planar image data (still image) of the microplate 20. get. Next, the image processing unit 12 individually identifies the shape of the liquid 1 in all the wells 200 from the image data. At that time, the center C of each liquid 1 region is obtained, and the measurement region R of each well 200 is specified. The average value of the luminance values of the pixels in each measurement region R is obtained, and the liquid amount in each well 200 is calculated from the conversion formula.

  According to the measurement apparatus 10 of the first embodiment, by using a near-infrared image, the dispensed liquid 1 is not destroyed as compared with the measurement by the conventional plate reader, that is, the same as when dispensed into a container. The amount of liquid can be measured with In addition, the measuring device 10 can efficiently measure all the liquids 1 (hereinafter referred to as the total amount) using an image, as compared with the case where the conventional plate reader measures the liquids 1 individually. Thereby, the measuring device 10 can also be used by being incorporated in a manufacturing apparatus or the like by handling image data obtained by photographing a plurality of liquids 1.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a measuring apparatus 10A according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
Compared with the measurement apparatus 10 of the first embodiment, the measurement apparatus 10A of the second embodiment includes a determination unit 12D that determines whether or not the liquid amount is appropriate, and is configured as an inspection apparatus. The same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

(Judgment part)
The determination unit 12D uses the inspection information 14 such as a preset threshold value to determine whether it is greater than or equal to a predetermined amount, for example, or within a predetermined range. The determination unit 12D determines the liquid 1 in all the wells 200.

  In the measurement apparatus 10 </ b> A of the second embodiment, the imaging unit 11 captures the microplate 20 in which the liquid 1 is dispensed into all the wells 200, and acquires planar image data (still image) of the microplate 20. The image processing unit 12 individually identifies the shape of the liquid 1 in all the wells 200 from the image data. At that time, the center C of each liquid 1 region is obtained, and the measurement region R of each well 200 is specified. The average value of the luminance values of the pixels in each measurement region R is obtained, and the liquid amount in each well 200 is calculated from the conversion formula. Further, the measuring apparatus 10A determines whether the liquid 1 dispensed to each well 200 is an appropriate amount using the inspection information 14 corresponding to the liquid 1 in each well 200.

  According to the measuring apparatus 10A, image data obtained by photographing the microplate 20 is processed, all liquids 1 (total amount) dispensed on the microplate 20 are inspected, and the quality of the photographed microplate 20 is determined. Can do.

Example 1
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating the inspection apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
The inspection apparatus 100 is an apparatus that inspects the entire amount of the microplate 20 corresponding to the above-described measurement apparatus 10A. The inspection apparatus 100 handles a plurality of microplates 20 as inspection targets, and automatically separates good and defective microplates 20. It is configured as follows. In the following description, the description is made on the assumption that the 96-well microplate 20 is handled. However, the microplate 20 may be configured for the 192-well microplate 20.

  The inspection apparatus 100 includes a pre-inspection storage unit 111A for storing a plurality of microplates 20 to be inspected, a good product storage unit 111B for storing a microplate 20 determined to be an appropriate amount after the inspection, and a microplate 20 determined to be not an appropriate amount. A defective product storage unit 111C, a transport unit 120 that transports the microplate 20 from the pre-inspection storage unit 111A to the non-defective product storage unit 111B or the defective product storage unit 111C, and an illumination unit 130 that illuminates the moving microplate 20; An imaging unit 140 that images the moving microplate 20 and a control unit 150 that controls the imaging unit 140 and the conveyance unit 120 and processes image data to determine whether the liquid amount is appropriate or not are provided.

(Container before inspection)
FIGS. 12A and 12B are cross-sectional views showing the pre-inspection accommodating portion 111A of the first embodiment. The pre-inspection accommodating portion 111A is configured so that the microplate 20 can be stacked and accommodated. The pre-inspection storage portion 111A is formed in a cylindrical shape with openings (hereinafter referred to as openings 115A) at the upper and lower ends, and a storage main body portion in which the 96-well microplate 20 can be placed in the inner space. 115 and a mounting piece 116 provided in the opening 115A at the lower end of the housing main body 115.

  The housing main body 115 guides the vertical movement of the microplate 20. The mounting piece 116 supports the microplate 20 positioned at the bottom of the microplates 20 stacked in the housing main body 115 from below. Two mounting pieces 116 are provided at a distance in the longitudinal direction of the microplate 20 so as to support the short-side landing portions 23 of the plate side surface portions 22, respectively. A surface on which the microplate 20 is placed is provided and protrudes to the inside of the housing main body 115.

  The mounting piece 116 is provided so as to be rotatable around an axis along the short side of the microplate 20 and is held in a state of extending horizontally against the stopper 115B as shown in FIG. Can be placed on the upper surface. Thereby, the mounting piece 116 restricts the microplate 20 from passing through the opening 115A. As shown in FIG. 12B, when the mounting piece 116 is rotated and the opening 115A is largely opened, the microplate 20 can come out of the pre-inspection accommodating portion 111A.

(Non-defective part and defective part)
The non-defective product accommodating portion 111B and the defective product accommodating portion 111C are configured in the same manner as the pre-inspection accommodating portion 111A, and include an accommodating main body portion 115 and a pair of placement pieces 116 provided on the lower opening 115A side. I have. When inserting the microplate 20 from below the opening 115A, an operation opposite to the above-described operation of taking the microplate 20 out is performed. First, the mounting piece 116 changes from a horizontally tilted state to a standing posture, and the microplate 20 can enter the inside of the housing main body 115. Then, the placement piece 116 returns to a state of extending horizontally under the microplate 20, and the microplate 20 is placed on the placement piece 116. This completes accommodation.

  The pre-inspection storage unit 111A, the non-defective product storage unit 111B, and the defective product storage unit 111C are arranged side by side at a distance. In the following description, the pre-inspection storage unit 111A, the non-defective product storage unit 111B, and the defective product storage unit 111C may be collectively referred to as the accommodating portion 110.

(Transport section)
FIG. 13 is a partial perspective view illustrating the conveyance unit 120 according to the first embodiment. The conveyance unit 120 moves the microplate 20 in the horizontal direction at a position away from the storage unit 110, and moves the microplate 20 in the vertical direction between the storage unit 110 and the horizontal slide unit 121. And an elevating part 122 to be operated.

(Horizontal slide part)
The lateral slide part 121 includes rail parts 121A and 121B on which the landing part 23 on the long side of the plate side face part 22 of the microplate 20 is placed. Each rail part 121A, 121B extends linearly so as to transport the microplate 20 from the pre-inspection storage part 111A side to the non-defective product storage part 111B or defective product storage part 111C side, and has a stepped shape in which the outside is high and the inside is low. The landing portion 23 of the microplate 20 is placed on the inner flat portion 121C.

  Further, the lateral slide portion 121 includes an arm portion 121D extending in a lateral direction (direction in which the rail portions 121B are arranged side by side) perpendicular to the traveling direction of the microplate 20 from one rail portion 121A side, and an end portion 121E of the arm portion 121D. And a driving unit such as a motor (not shown) that rotates the belt unit 121F. The arm portion 121D moves with the rotation of the belt portion 121F, and the plate side surface portion 22 on the short side of the microplate 20 is pushed at that time. Thereby, the microplate 20 moves downstream.

  The lateral slide portion 121 is not limited to the configuration in which the microplate 20 is pushed and slid laterally by the pair of arm portions 121D and the belt portion 121F over the entire length of the rail portions 121A and 121B, but also along the rail portions 121A and 121B. For example, two sets of the arm portion 121D and the belt portion 121F may be provided by dividing the range of the horizontal slide.

  Below the pre-inspection storage unit 111A, the non-defective product storage unit 111B, and the defective product storage unit 111C, the two rail parts 121A and 121B are separated, and the space between them is configured as, for example, an opening or a hole 121G. Yes. In addition, the rail parts 121A and 121B may be connected by connecting intermediate parts of the longitudinal direction.

(Elevating part)
The elevating part 122 includes a stage 122A that moves up and down between the two rail parts 121A and 121B (hole 121G), a shaft 122B that has this stage 122A attached to the upper end, and the longitudinal direction of the shaft 122B in the vertical direction. And a drive unit 122C such as a motor that moves in the longitudinal direction of the motor. The elevating unit 122 is provided below the pre-inspection storage unit 111A, the non-defective product storage unit 111B, and the defective product storage unit 111C.

  FIGS. 14A to 14C are views for explaining the movement of the microplate 20 from the rail portions 121A and 121B to the non-defective product containing portion 111B or the defective product containing portion 111C by the elevating unit 122. FIG. The stage 122A is configured to support the bottom surface of the microplate 20 on the top surface, and the stage 122A is disposed below the rail portions 121A and 121B as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 14B, the stage 122A is lifted by the drive unit 122C and hits the bottom surface of the microplate 20, and the stage 122A is further lifted, so that the microplate 20 is railed as shown in FIG. It leaves | separates from part 121A, 121B. After the microplate 20 is raised and accommodated in the non-defective product accommodating portion 111B or the defective product accommodating portion 111C, the stage 122A is returned to the original position. In contrast to the above-described housing operation, the microplate 20 can be moved from the pre-test housing portion 111A to the rail portions 121A and 121B.

  The raising / lowering part 122 is preferably configured to raise the placement piece 116 when the microplate 20 is taken out of or put into the accommodating part 110. FIG. 15A is a view for explaining the elevating part 122, and is a view seen from the direction of the arrow D in FIG. In addition to the above configuration, the elevating part 122 includes a claw part 122D for rotating the placing piece 116, a claw attachment part 122E to which the claw part 122D is fixed, and a shaft 122F extending downward from the claw attachment part 122E. It is equipped with. In FIG. 13, the claw portion 122D and the like are omitted.

  A pair of claw portions 122D are provided at a distance so as to contact the pair of placement pieces 116 provided in the opening 115A of the accommodating portion 110, respectively. These claw portions 122D preferably protrude upward from the stage 122A and the microplate 20 placed on the stage 122A so as to come into contact with the accommodating portion 110.

  The shaft 122F can be moved up and down by the driving unit 122C, and is provided outside the stage 122A with the center aligned with the shaft 122B. Further, the shaft 122B moves upward from the shaft 122F so that the stage 122A is held at a position higher than the claw portion 122D. Here, FIG. 15B is a diagram illustrating a state in which the elevating unit 122 has entered the pre-inspection storage unit 111A, and the lower part of the pre-inspection storage unit 111A is represented by a cross section and the microplate 20 is represented by a one-dot chain line. ing. As shown in this figure, when the stage 122A is lowered while the microplate 20 is placed on the stage 122A and the placing piece 116 is raised by the claw portion 122D, the microplate 20 can be taken out. Furthermore, the microplate 20 can be moved to the rail portions 121A and 121B by lowering the microplate 20 on the stage 122A.

(Lighting part)
The illumination unit 130 is provided below the transport unit 120 and emits light having a wavelength in the near infrared region toward the microplate 20 on the rail units 121A and 121B. In this example, the light emitted from the infrared LED bar 131 is configured to illuminate the microplate 20 from below via the cylindrical lens 132 and the surface reflection mirror 133.

(Imaging part)
The imaging unit 140 corresponds to the imaging unit 11 described above, and includes a line sensor 141 and a telecentric lens 142. The imaging unit 140 captures the moving microplate 20 with the transport unit 120 and acquires an image transmitted through the microplate 20 with near-infrared light from the illumination unit 130.

  Note that the imaging unit 140 may use another imaging element such as a two-dimensional sensor instead of the line sensor 141, or may divide the microplate 20 for imaging. For example, two sets of the imaging unit 140 and the illumination unit 130 are used, one of which captures the half of the microplate 20, the other captures the rest, and the region of each liquid 1 from the images acquired by the respective imaging units 140. Can also be specified. Alternatively, the illumination unit 130 may illuminate the microplate 20 from above the lateral slide unit 121, and the imaging unit 140 may receive the reflected light and acquire an image of the microplate 20.

  Also, in the figure, reference numeral 143A is a Z stage, 143B is a θ stage, and 143C is a gonio stage. The position can be changed for focus adjustment, and the imaging unit 140 is held by an arm 143D extending from the gonio stage 143C. Yes.

(Control part)
The control unit 150 includes an image processing unit 12 that processes image data acquired by the imaging unit 140 in addition to the control main body unit 151 that controls the transport unit 120, the imaging unit 140, and the illumination unit 130. The image processing unit 12 measures the amount of all liquids on the microplate 20 from the image data. The image processing unit 12 measures an amount of 0.5 to 50 microliters from image data expressed in 256 shades of black and white. Further, the image processing unit 12 determines whether the dispensed liquid 1 is an appropriate amount based on the inspection information 14. Furthermore, the control main body 151 controls the transport unit 120 so as to move the microplate 20 to a desired accommodation destination based on the result of determining the quality of the entire amount.

  The inspection apparatus 100 configured as described above moves the microplate 20 from the pre-inspection accommodating portion 111A to the rail portions 121A and 121B, and then slides the microplate 20 on the rail portions 121A and 121B. Thus, image data of the microplate 20 is created. The image processing unit 12 inspects the entire amount from the image data. If the inspection result is good, the microplate 20 is lifted by the elevating unit 122 disposed below the non-defective product storage unit 111B and stored in the non-defective product storage unit 111B. The microplate 20 having an inappropriate amount of liquid is lifted by the elevating unit 122 disposed below the defective product storage unit 111C and stored in the defective product storage unit 111C. The plurality of microplates 20 in the pre-inspection storage unit 111A are sequentially conveyed by the conveyance unit 120, individually inspected, and automatically divided into non-defective products and defective products.

  According to the inspection apparatus 100, the entire amount of the plurality of microplates 20 can be automatically inspected.

(Example 2)
FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an inspection apparatus 100A according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The inspection apparatus 100A is configured to handle a 96-well microplate 20 and a 192-well microplate 20 as inspection objects. The same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

  The inspection apparatus 100A includes a pre-inspection storage unit 111A, a non-defective product storage unit 111B, and a defective product storage unit 111C for each microplate 20 having a different number of wells 200. Similarly to the inspection apparatus 100 described above, the elevating part 122 is provided below the accommodating part 111. Since the dimension of the long side of the 192-well microplate 20 is substantially equal to the dimension of the short side of the 96-well microplate 20, the lateral slide part 121 is configured so that the two types of microplates 20 are respectively connected to the rail parts 121A and 121B. Can be placed and slid.

  As the operator operates a selection unit such as a touch panel or a switch (not shown) to select one of the two types of microplates 20, the control unit 150 inspects the selected microplate 20. Each configuration (conveyance unit 120, imaging unit 140, etc.) is controlled.

  As in the first embodiment, the control unit 150 uses the reference information 13 and the inspection information 14 related to the selected microplate 20 to measure the amount of liquid in each well 200 during the movement by the transport unit 120, and further performs the separation. The microplate 20 is divided into a non-defective product containing portion 111B and a non-defective product containing portion 111C.

  According to the inspection apparatus 100A, it is possible to inspect microplates 20 having different numbers and shapes of wells.

In addition to the above, the present invention can be used. In addition to the microplate of the illustrated example, the present invention can be applied to ones configured in different shapes such as the number, shape, dimensions, and intervals of the wells 200, Not only those provided with wells, it is also possible to measure or inspect the granular liquid 1 on the bottom of a petri dish or the like, or the liquid 1 accumulated on the bottom.
In addition, as a container that is transparent to near-infrared rays, for example, when it is intended for a liquid that changes when exposed to natural light, it is configured to be light-shielding against light other than the wavelength used for measuring and inspecting the liquid volume. The liquid volume can be measured and inspected using the prepared container.
The liquid to be measured is not limited to the above volume, and can be measured by changing the range by adjusting the amount of light from the light source. For example, the measuring device is a liquid that extends from the bottom of the well to the mouth with a microplate. The amount may be configured as a measurement range, or the upper limit may be changed to 100 microliters, 150 microliters, 200 microliters, or the like.

  The transport unit is not limited to the above configuration, and a microplate may be placed on a stage that moves laterally, and the moving part may be imaged to perform measurement or inspection. It is also possible to place a microplate on a fixed table and perform measurement and inspection from the captured image data.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Liquid 10, 10A Measuring device 11 Imaging part 12 Image processing part 12A Liquid area extraction part 12B Digitization part 12C Conversion part 12D Determination part 13 Reference information 14 Information for inspection 20 Microplate 21 Plate upper surface part 22 Plate side surface part 23 Landing part 200 Well 210 Side surface portion 220 Bottom portion 100, 100A Inspection device 110 Storage portion 111A Pre-inspection storage portion 111B Non-defective product storage portion 111C Defective product storage portion 115 Storage body portion 115A Opening portion 116 Placement piece 120 Transport portion 121 Horizontal slide portions 121A, 121B Rail part 121D Arm part 121F Belt part 121G Hole 122 Lifting part 122A Stage 122B Shaft 122C Drive part 122D Claw part 130 Illumination part 140 Imaging part 150 Control part 151 Control body part

Claims (14)

A measuring device that measures the amount of liquid containing moisture (hereinafter referred to as liquid amount) placed in a container that is transparent to the wavelength used for measurement,
An imaging unit for acquiring image data obtained by photographing the liquid with near infrared;
An image processing unit comprising: an image processing unit that obtains the liquid amount from the brightness of the liquid that is expressed by the density of the image data.   2. The container according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the liquids are dispensed in the container, and the image processing unit obtains all the liquid amounts (hereinafter referred to as total amounts) from the image data. Measuring device.   The measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image processing unit converts the brightness of the liquid into the liquid amount using reference information.   The measuring apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an illumination unit that irradiates the container with near-infrared light. A transport unit for transporting the container;
The measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the imaging unit images the container being transported from above.   6. The measuring apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a telecentric lens. Comprising the measuring device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The inspection apparatus, wherein the image processing unit determines whether the liquid amount is an appropriate amount using inspection information. An inspection device comprising the measuring device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 and inspecting the liquid amount,
A pre-inspection storage unit for storing the container before inspection, a non-defective product storage unit for storing the container determined to be an appropriate amount in the inspection, a defective product storage unit for storing the container determined to be inadequate in the inspection, and the pre-inspection A transport unit that transports the container from the storage unit to the non-defective product storage unit or the defective product storage unit,
The image processing unit uses the inspection information to determine whether the liquid is in an appropriate amount,
The inspection apparatus, wherein the container is sent to the non-defective product storage unit or the defective product storage unit by the transport unit based on the determination in the image processing unit. An illumination unit that irradiates the container with near-infrared light,
The transport unit includes a pair of rails that slide sideways while supporting the opposing edges of the container, and above the illumination unit.
The inspection apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the imaging unit receives the light transmitted through the container through the rail unit and acquires the image data. An imaging process for capturing image data by photographing a liquid containing moisture in a container having transparency with respect to a wavelength used for measurement with near-infrared rays, and
A numerical conversion step of changing the brightness of the liquid represented by the density of the image data into a numerical value (hereinafter referred to as luminance information);
A measurement method comprising: a conversion step of converting the luminance information into a liquid amount using reference information.   11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the imaging step images a plurality of liquids dispensed into the container, the numericalization step obtains luminance information of each of the liquids, and the conversion step obtains a total amount. The measurement method described. Comprising a conveying step for conveying the container,
The measurement method according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the containers sequentially sent in the imaging step are photographed.   An inspection method comprising a determination step of determining whether the liquid amount is an appropriate amount in addition to the measurement method according to any one of claims 10 to 12. Comprising a selection step of selecting a target from the containers having different configurations;
The inspection method according to claim 13, wherein the selected container is inspected.