JP2022032579A - Automatic analysis device - Google Patents

Abstract

To solve problems of delay in re-carry-in of a specimen into an automatic analysis device, lengthening of interruption time of analysis processing, and mismatching of specimen information because of occurrence of abnormality in a conveyance device.SOLUTION: An automatic analysis device control part 21 includes: a specimen information storage part 44 for storing specimen information; a notification reception part 41 for receiving carry-in schedule notification as a carry-in schedule for allowing a conveyance device to carry in specimens and for writing specimen information of a specimen notified by the carry-in schedule notification into the specimen information storage part 44; an operation instruction part 42 for issuing instructions for analyzing a specimen identified by specimen information written into the specimen information storage part 44 to a biochemical analysis unit 20; and a notification transmission part 43 for notifying a conveyance device of dispensation completion notification for showing completion of dispensation of a specimen. The operation instruction part 42 deletes specimen information of a specimen that has not arrived at a dispensation position yet from the specimen information storage part 44 when abnormality occurs in the conveyance device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

The present invention relates to, for example, an automated analyzer that analyzes various components contained in a patient's blood, urine, and the like.

Conventionally, an automatic analyzer capable of automatically analyzing various components contained in a patient's blood, urine, etc. is known. Such an automatic analyzer can inspect a large number of patient samples by various inspection items.

There are single type and multi-type automatic analyzers. The single-type automated analyzer has only one analysis module and the number of analysis items is limited, while the multi-type automated analyzer has multiple analysis modules for many analysis items of patient samples. It is possible to analyze. Further, in the multi-type automatic analyzer, it is possible to analyze a large number of patient samples at the same time by having a plurality of analysis modules in charge of analysis by the same analysis item.

In recent years, a transport device for transporting a large number of samples is often installed in an automated analyzer. However, since the transfer device and the automatic analyzer are different devices, it is necessary for the automatic analyzer to correctly grasp the state of the transfer device.

In Patent Document 1, the processing of the sample that has not reached the operating unit in which the abnormality is detected is interrupted, the operation in which the abnormality is detected is executed again, and the operating unit in which the abnormality is detected by executing the operation again. A sample processing device that controls a plurality of operating units is disclosed so as to restart the processing of the interrupted sample if no abnormal operation is detected.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2012-058132

Conventionally, the automatic analyzer has stopped operating when the transfer device notifies that an abnormality has occurred in the transfer device. For this reason, at the time when an abnormality occurs in the transport device, the processing of the sample that has not been analyzed by the automatic analyzer can be performed only after the automatic analyzer has obtained the analysis result of the other sample under analysis. In this case, after the automatic analyzer obtains the analysis result of the other sample under analysis, both the automatic analyzer and the transport device need to perform the initialization process accompanied by the restart, unless the initialization process is performed. It was not possible to transport the sample and reload the sample into the automated analyzer. When an abnormality occurs in the transfer device as described above, there is a problem that the interruption time required for restarting the analysis process performed by the transfer device and the automatic analyzer becomes long.

Further, if the automatic analyzer continues to hold the sample information of the sample that cannot be dispensed due to an abnormality in the transport device, the automatic analyzer will have the same sample information when the sample is reloaded. For this reason, there is a possibility that an inconsistency may occur between the sample carried into the transport device before the abnormality occurs and the sample carried in after the abnormality occurs and subjected to the analysis process.

The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and reduces the time until the sample is reloaded into the transport device due to the occurrence of an abnormality in the transport device, and the sample information possessed by the automatic analyzer can be obtained. The purpose is to prevent inconsistencies.

The present invention is an automatic analyzer that automatically analyzes a sample transported by a transport device.
This automatic analyzer has an analysis unit that analyzes the sample that arrives at the dispensing position of the transfer device, a sample information storage unit that stores sample information for each sample analyzed by the analysis unit, and the transfer device plans to carry in the sample. Analyzes the analysis of the sample specified by the notification receiving unit that receives the delivery schedule notification and writes the sample information of the sample notified in the delivery schedule notification to the sample information storage unit and the sample information written in the sample information storage unit. The operation instruction unit is provided with an operation instruction unit for instructing the unit and a notification transmission unit for notifying the transfer device of the completion of dispensing of the sample, and the operation instruction unit is provided when an abnormality occurs in the transfer device. The sample information of the sample that has not arrived at the dispensing position is deleted from the sample information storage unit.

According to the present invention, when an abnormality occurs in the transport device, the sample information of the sample that has not arrived at the dispensing position is deleted, and then the sample is reloaded into the transport device. Here, since the automatic analyzer is not restarted or initialized, the analysis process of the sample reloaded from the transport device can be restarted immediately, and the time until the sample is reloaded into the transport device is reduced. can do. In addition, inconsistency of sample information can be prevented.
Issues, configurations and effects other than those described above will be clarified by the following description of the embodiments.

It is a top view which shows the whole structure example of the automatic analysis system which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure example of the automatic analyzer which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the whole structure example of the automatic analysis system which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure example of the automatic analyzer which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the 1st internal structure example of the automatic analyzer control part which concerns on 1st and 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a sequence diagram which shows the process (1) of the conventional automatic analysis system. It is a sequence diagram which shows the process (1) of the automatic analysis system which concerns on 1st and 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the 2nd internal structure example of the automatic analyzer control part which concerns on 1st and 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a sequence diagram which shows the process (2) of the conventional automatic analysis system. It is a sequence diagram which shows the process (2) of the automatic analysis system which concerns on 1st and 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a sequence diagram which shows the process (3) of the conventional automatic analysis system. It is a sequence diagram which shows the process (3) of the automatic analysis system which concerns on 1st and 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the present specification and the drawings, components having substantially the same function or configuration are designated by the same reference numerals, and duplicate description will be omitted.

[First Embodiment]
First, a configuration example of the automated analysis system 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 1 is a top view showing an overall configuration example of the automated analysis system 1 according to the first embodiment.

The automatic analysis system 1 includes a transfer device 2, an automatic analysis device 3, and a PC 4. The PC 4 (an example of an information processing device) is connected to the automatic analyzer 3 so as to be able to communicate with each other. The automatic analyzer 3 is connected to the transport device 2 so as to be able to communicate with each other.

<Configuration example of transport device 2>
First, a configuration example of the transport device 2 will be described.
The transport device 2 includes a transport device control unit 11, a transport lane 12, and a barcode reader 13. In the transport lane 12, a sample rack 15 containing a plurality of sample containers 16 is transported. Here, it is assumed that a maximum of five sample containers 16 are housed in one sample rack 15. When the sample rack 15 containing the sample container 16 is carried into the transport lane 12 from the carry-in position 10, it is called "carry-in", and when the sample rack 15 is moved to the transport lane 12, it is called "transport". Further, the removal of the sample rack 15 in which the sample container 16 is housed from the carry-out position 17 of the transport lane 12 is referred to as “carry-out”.

The transport device control unit 11 controls to move the sample rack 15 carried into the transport lane 12 to a predetermined position in the transport lane 12. A dispensing position 14 indicated by an alternate long and short dash line is provided in the middle of the transport lane 12. Then, the transport device control unit 11 moves and stops the sample rack 15 so that the sample container 16 stops at the dispensing position 14. When the sample contained in the sample container 16 is dispensed by the sample dispensing pipette 31 of the automatic analyzer 3, the sample rack 15 moves to a position where the sample contained in the next sample container 16 can be dispensed. .. When the sample is dispensed from all the sample containers 16 housed in the sample rack 15, the sample rack 15 is moved to the carry-out position. In the following description, the sample container 16 may be paraphrased as a sample to express a state in which the sample container 16 is transported.

The transport device 2 transports the sample to the dispensing position 14 of the automatic analyzer 3, and when the automatic analyzer 3 dispenses the sample arriving at the dispensing position 14, the transport device 2 carries out the sample. The transport device 2 notifies the automatic analyzer 3 of the sample to be transported to the dispensing position 14 before arrival.

<Configuration example of automatic analyzer 3>
Next, a configuration example of the automatic analyzer 3 will be described.
The automatic analyzer 3 is an example of a single type automatic analyzer that automatically analyzes a sample transported by the transport device 2. Since the automatic analyzer 3 receives the notification from the transport device 2 before the sample arrives at the dispensing position 14, the dispensing operation can be performed without delay after the sample arrives at the dispensing position 14. However, if the sample does not arrive at the dispensing position 14 as scheduled, the transport device 2 stops abnormally. Further, when an abnormality occurs in the transport device 2, the automatic analyzer 3 detects the occurrence of the abnormality and stops abnormally.

The automatic analyzer 3 includes a biochemical analysis unit 20, an automatic analyzer control unit 21, and a specific item analysis unit 22.
The biochemical analysis unit 20 dispenses the sample arriving at the dispensing position of the transport device 2 and analyzes the sample. The biochemical analysis unit 20 includes a sample turntable 23, a dilution turntable 24, a first reagent turntable 25, a second reagent turntable 26, a reaction turntable 27, and a measuring unit 28. Further, the biochemical analysis unit 20 includes a sample dispensing pipette 31, a diluted sample dispensing pipette 32, a first reagent pipette 33, and a second reagent pipette 34.

The automatic analyzer control unit 21 controls the operations of the biochemical analysis unit 20 and the specific item analysis unit 22. The items analyzed by the automatic analyzer 3 include biochemical items and specific items. The biochemical analysis unit 20 analyzes the biochemical items of the sample by performing sample dispensing, reagent dispensing, photometrics, etc. into the reaction vessel. Further, the specific item analysis unit 22 requested to be analyzed by the automatic analyzer control unit 21 analyzes the specific item of the sample. As a specific item, for example, there is an electrolyte item. The specific operation of the automated analyzer control unit 21 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 5 and 5.

The specific item analysis unit 22 analyzes a specific item of a sample in response to a request from the automatic analyzer control unit 21. Therefore, the specific item analysis unit 22 is a unit dedicated to the specific item. Then, the specific item analysis unit 22 outputs the analysis result of the specific item to the automatic analyzer control unit 21.

A plurality of sample containers are housed side by side in the circumferential direction of the sample turntable 23. The sample container contains, for example, a sample (patient sample or control sample). A plurality of dilution containers are housed side by side in the circumferential direction of the dilution turntable 24. A dilution turntable 24 that holds a dilution container for accommodating a sample diluted with the diluted solution is used as a diluted sample transport unit. A plurality of first reagent containers are housed side by side in the circumferential direction of the first reagent turntable 25. Further, a plurality of second reagent containers are housed side by side in the circumferential direction of the second reagent turntable 26.

The reaction turntable 27 is arranged between the dilution turntable 24 and the first reagent turntable 25 and the second reagent turntable 26. A plurality of reaction vessels are housed side by side in the circumferential direction of the reaction turntable 27.

The sample dispensing pipette 31 is arranged around the sample turntable 23 and the dilution turntable 24, and is supported so as to be movable in the axial direction (for example, in the vertical direction) of the sample turntable 23 and the dilution turntable 24. The sample dispensing pipette 31 sucks a predetermined amount of the sample contained in the sample container, and discharges the sucked sample and a predetermined amount of a diluted solution (for example, physiological saline) into the diluted container. As a result, the sample is diluted to a concentration of a predetermined multiple in the dilution container.

The diluted sample dispensing pipette 32 is arranged between the diluted sample turntable 24 and the reaction turntable 27, and can be moved and rotated in the axial direction (vertical direction) and the horizontal direction of the diluted sample turntable 24 by a drive mechanism (not shown). Is supported by. The diluted sample dispensing pipette 32 sucks a predetermined amount of diluted sample from the diluted container of the diluted turntable 24, and discharges the sucked diluted sample into the reaction container of the reaction turntable 27.

The first reagent pipette 33 is arranged between the reaction turntable 27 and the first reagent turntable 25, and is moved and rotated in the axial direction (vertical direction) and the horizontal direction of the reaction turntable 27 by a drive mechanism (not shown). It is supported as much as possible. The tip of the first reagent pipette 33 is inserted into the first reagent container of the first reagent turntable 25, a predetermined amount of the first reagent is sucked, and the sucked first reagent is sucked into the reaction container of the reaction turntable 27. Discharge to.

The second reagent pipette 34 is arranged between the reaction turntable 27 and the second reagent turntable 26, and is moved and rotated in the axial direction (vertical direction) and the horizontal direction of the reaction turntable 27 by a drive mechanism (not shown). It is supported as much as possible. The tip of the second reagent pipette 34 is inserted into the second reagent container of the second reagent turntable 26, a predetermined amount of the second reagent is sucked, and the sucked second reagent is sucked into the reaction container of the reaction turntable 27. Discharge to.

In the reaction vessel, the diluted sample, the first reagent, and the second reagent are stirred, and the measurement unit 28 performs optical measurement. The measuring unit 28 outputs the amounts of various components in the sample as numerical data called "absorbance", and detects the reaction state of the diluted sample.

<Configuration example of PC4>
The PC 4 displays the operating status of the transport device 2 and the automatic analyzer 3 through the display device. Further, the PC 4 receives an input operation from the user through, for example, a touch panel, a keyboard, a mouse, or the like, and gives an instruction to the automatic analyzer control unit 21.

<Example of internal configuration of automatic analyzer 3>
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the internal configuration of the automatic analyzer 3.

In addition to the parts shown in FIG. 1, the automatic analyzer 3 includes an automatic analyzer control unit 21 that controls an operation instructed by the user through the PC 4. The automatic analyzer control unit 21 can send and receive information including various notifications to and from the transfer device 2.

The automatic analyzer control unit 21 follows the instructions from the PC 4, and each unit in the automatic analyzer 3 (specific item analysis unit 22, sample turntable 23, dilution turntable 24, first reagent turntable 25, second reagent turntable). 26, the operation of the reaction turntable 27, the sample dispensing pipette 31, the diluted sample dispensing pipette 32, the first reagent pipette 33 and the second reagent pipette 34) is controlled.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, a configuration example and a processing example of the automatic analysis system according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.
FIG. 3 is a top view showing an overall configuration example of the automated analysis system 1A according to the second embodiment.

The automatic analysis system 1A includes a PC 4, a transfer device 5, and an automatic analysis device 6. The PC 4 is connected to the automatic analyzer 6 so as to be able to communicate with each other. The automatic analyzer 6 is connected to the transport device 5 so as to be able to communicate with each other. The automatic analysis system 1A includes a transfer device 5, an automatic analyzer 6, and a diluted sample transfer unit 9. The automatic analyzer 6 includes a sample dilution unit 7 and biochemical analysis units 8A and 8B.

<Structure example of transport device 5>
First, a configuration example of the transport device 5 will be described.
The transport device 5 includes a transport device control unit 61, a transport lane 62, and a barcode reader 63. A sample rack 65 containing a plurality of sample containers 66 is transported to the transport lane 62. Here, it is assumed that a maximum of five sample containers 66 are housed in one sample rack 65. Dispensing positions 64a, 64b, 64c indicated by the alternate long and short dash line are provided in the middle of the transport lane 62.

The transport device control unit 61 moves the sample rack 65 carried in from the carry-in position 60 of the transport lane 62 along the transport lane 62. The bar code reader 63 reads the bar code attached to the sample container 66 housed in the sample rack 65, and outputs the sample information to the transport device control unit 61.

The transport device control unit 61 moves the sample rack 65 to any of the dispensing positions 64a, 64b, and 64c so that the desired sample container 66 stops. When the sample contained in the sample container 66 is dispensed by the sample dispensing pipette 74 of the automatic analyzer 6, the sample rack 65 moves from the next sample container 66 to a position where the sample can be dispensed. When the sample is dispensed from all the sample containers 66 housed in the sample rack 65, the sample rack 65 is carried out from the carry-out position 67 of the transport lane 62.

The transport device 5 transports the sample to the dispensing positions 64a, 64b, 64c of the automatic analyzer 6, and when the automatic analyzer 6 dispenses the arrived sample, the transport device 5 carries out the sample. The transport device 5 notifies the automatic analyzer 6 of the sample to be transported to the dispensing positions 64a, 64b, 64c before arriving at each dispensing position.

<Configuration example of automatic analyzer>
Next, a configuration example of the automatic analyzer 6 will be described.
The automatic analyzer 6 is shown as an example of a multi-type automatic analyzer for performing various analyzes such as biochemistry, immunity, and urine. The automatic analyzer 6 automatically analyzes the sample transported by the transport device 5. The automatic analyzer 6 includes a sample dilution unit 7, biochemical analysis units 8A and 8B, and a diluted sample transfer unit 9 (an example of a transfer device). In the following description, an embodiment in which the automatic analyzer 6 is provided with two biochemical analysis units 8A and 8B will be shown, but the number of biochemical analysis units may be increased or decreased to one or three or more. ..

The automated analyzer 6 has a specific item analysis unit 72a to 72c in the sample dilution unit 7. In the transport device 5, there are a plurality of sample dispensing positions for specific item dispensing and biochemical item. Further, the transfer device 5 and the automatic analyzer 6 have a communication path for each dispensing position. Then, the transfer device 5 and the automatic analyzer 6 transmit and receive the delivery schedule notification only in the communication path for the biochemical item, and also communicate the dispensing position where the transported sample should be stopped. The delivery position arrival notification and the next sample arrival confirmation notification, which will be described later, are communicated as necessary on all communication routes.

(Structure example of biochemical analysis unit)
The sample dilution unit 7 includes an automatic analyzer control unit 71, specific item analysis units 72a to 72c, sample dispensing pipettes 73 and 74, and a sample turntable 75.
The specific item analysis units 72a to 72c have a function of analyzing different specific items of the sample. For example, the specific item analysis unit 72a can measure the electrolyte in the sample.

The sample dispensing pipette 73 sucks the sample from the sample container 66 conveyed to the dispensing position 64a or 64b. The sample sucked by the sample dispensing pipette 73 is discharged to either the sample container arranged on the sample turntable 75 or the specific item analysis units 72a to 72c.

The sample dispensing pipette 74 sucks the sample from the sample container 66 conveyed to the dispensing position 64c. The sample sucked by the sample dispensing pipette 74 is discharged to the dilution container 92 transported by the diluted sample transfer unit 9. Further, the sample discharged to the sample container of the sample turntable 75 by the sample dispensing pipette 73 is sucked by the sample dispensing pipette 74 and discharged to the diluting container 92 together with the diluted solution.

The diluted sample transfer unit 9 includes a diluted sample transfer lane 91 and a dilution container 92.
The diluted sample transport lane 91 is configured to be capable of transporting the diluted container 92 to the biochemical analysis units 8A and 8B.

The dilution container 92 accommodates the diluted sample dispensed by the sample dispensing pipette 74 of the automatic analyzer 6. The dilution container 92 is transported to any of the dispensing positions of the biochemical analysis units 8A and 8B through the dilution sample transport lane 91. The diluted sample contained in the dilution container 92 is used for biochemical analysis by the biochemical analysis units 8A and 8B.

(Structure example of biochemical analysis unit)
The biochemical analysis unit 8A analyzes the sample arriving at the dispensing position of the diluted sample transport unit 9. The biochemical analysis unit 8A includes a first reagent pipette 81, a second reagent pipette 82, a first reagent turntable 83, a second reagent turntable 84, a reaction turntable 85, and a diluted sample dispensing pipette 86. And.

The diluted sample dispensing pipette 86 is arranged between the reaction turntable 85 and the diluted sample transfer unit 9. The diluted sample dispensing pipette 86 sucks the diluted sample from the diluted container 92 conveyed to the dispensing position of the diluted sample, and discharges the sucked diluted sample into the reaction container of the reaction turntable 85.

The first reagent pipette 81 is arranged between the reaction turntable 85 and the first reagent turntable 83, and is moved and rotated in the axial direction (vertical direction) and the horizontal direction of the reaction turntable 85 by a drive mechanism (not shown). It is supported as much as possible. The tip of the first reagent pipette 81 is inserted into the first reagent container of the first reagent turntable 83, a predetermined amount of the first reagent is sucked, and the sucked first reagent is sucked into the reaction container of the reaction turntable 85. Discharge to.

The second reagent pipette 82 is arranged between the reaction turntable 85 and the second reagent turntable 84, and is moved and rotated in the axial direction (vertical direction) and the horizontal direction of the reaction turntable 85 by a drive mechanism (not shown). It is supported as much as possible. The tip of the second reagent pipette 82 is inserted into the second reagent container of the second reagent turntable 84, a predetermined amount of the second reagent is sucked, and the sucked second reagent is sucked into the reaction container of the reaction turntable 85. Discharge to.
In the reaction vessel, the diluted sample, the first reagent, and the second reagent are stirred, and optical measurement is performed by a measuring unit (not shown).

Since the biochemical analysis unit 8B has the same configuration as the biochemical analysis unit 8A, detailed description of the biochemical analysis unit 8B will be omitted.

The automated analysis system 1A according to the second embodiment operates in the same manner as the automated analysis system 1 according to the first embodiment. Further, when the automatic analysis system 1A detects an abnormality in any communication path or dispensing position, the dispensing operation at the other dispensing position is also stopped in the same manner. In this automatic analysis system 1A, the automatic analyzer 6 side does not need to restart or reset, and the automatic analyzer 6 can restart the analysis of the sample only by the operation such as reset to the transfer device 5.

<Example of internal configuration of automatic analyzer 6>
Next, an example of the internal configuration of the automatic analyzer 6 will be described.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the internal configuration of the automatic analyzer 6.

The automatic analyzer control unit 71 follows the instructions from the PC4 and describes each part (sample dilution unit 7, biochemical analysis unit 8A, 8B, diluted sample transfer unit 9, and specific item analysis unit 72a to 72c) in the automatic analyzer 6. Control the operation.

<First internal configuration example of the automated analyzer control unit>
FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a first internal configuration example of the automatic analyzer control units 21 and 71.
The automatic analyzer control units 21 and 71 include a notification receiving unit 41, an operation instruction unit 42, a notification transmitting unit 43, and a sample information storage unit 44. Here, the functions of each unit included in the automatic analyzer control unit 21 will be described. The functions of the respective parts included in the automatic analyzer control unit 71 are the same as the functions of the respective parts included in the automatic analyzer control unit 21.

The notification receiving unit 41 receives the delivery schedule notification that the sample is scheduled to be carried in by the transport device 2, and writes the sample information of the sample notified by the delivery schedule notification in the sample information storage unit 44.

The operation instruction unit 42 instructs the biochemical analysis unit 20 to analyze the sample specified by the sample information written in the sample information storage unit 44. For example, the operation instruction unit 42 gives an operation instruction in each unit of the automatic analyzer 3 based on various notifications received by the notification reception unit 41. Further, when an abnormality occurs in the transport device 2, the operation instruction unit 42 deletes the sample information of the sample that has not arrived at the dispensing position from the sample information storage unit 44.

The notification transmission unit 43 notifies the transport device 2 of the dispensing completion notification indicating that the dispensing of the sample has been completed. Further, the notification transmission unit 43 transmits the operation result to the PC 4.

The sample information storage unit 44 stores sample information for each sample analyzed by the biochemical analysis unit 20.

Here, a hardware configuration example of the automatic analyzer control units 21 and 71 will be described. The automatic analyzer control units 21 and 71 are composed of a computer having a communication interface (I / F) 50, a CPU 51, a ROM 52, and an HDD 53.

For the communication interface 50, for example, a NIC (Network Interface Card) or the like is used, and various data are transmitted to the transport device 2 or the PC 4 via a LAN (Local Area Network) connected to a terminal of the NIC, a dedicated line, or the like. It is possible to send and receive between. The information received by the communication interface 50 from the transport device 2 or the PC 4 is output to the notification receiving unit 41. Further, the communication interface 50 transmits the information output by the notification transmission unit 43 to the transport device 2 or the PC 4.

The CPU 51 reads the program code of the software that realizes each function according to the present embodiment from the ROM 52, loads it into the RAM, and executes it. The CPU 51 realizes the functions of the notification receiving unit 41, the operation instruction unit 42, and the notification transmitting unit 43 by executing the program code. Variables and parameters generated during the arithmetic processing of the CPU 51 are temporarily written in the RAM (not shown), and these variables and parameters are appropriately read by the CPU 51.

In the HDD 53, in addition to the OS (Operating System) and various parameters, a program for operating the computer is recorded. Further, the ROM 52 and the HDD 53 record programs, data, and the like necessary for the CPU 51 to operate, and are used as an example of a computer-readable non-transient storage medium that stores a program executed by a computer. .. The HDD 53 realizes the function of the sample information storage unit 44. The function of the sample information storage unit 44 may be realized by RAM. Further, instead of the HDD 53, an SSD (Solid State Drive), a non-volatile memory, or the like may be used.

<Example of processing in which the transport device itself sends a notification of the occurrence of a transport error to the automatic analyzer>
Next, the information transfer and behavior of the transfer device and the automatic analyzer performed by the conventional automatic analysis system and the automatic analysis system according to the first and second embodiments of the present invention, and the flow from the occurrence of an abnormality to the restart. , FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 will be described by comparing the process (1). In both of the processes (1) shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, when an abnormality occurs in the transport device, the transport device itself performs a process of notifying the automatic analyzer of the occurrence of the transport abnormality. In the figure below, the automated analyzer is abbreviated as "analyzer". Further, a sample for which a predetermined item is analyzed by an automatic analyzer is identified by adding a reference numeral such as sample A and sample B in the order of transporting the sample.

<Processing of conventional automatic analysis system (1)>
FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing the process (1) of the conventional automatic analysis system. The conventional automatic analysis system described below is also configured to include a transfer device and an automatic analysis device.

First, the transport device transmits a carry-in schedule notification for notifying the carry-in schedule of the sample A to the automatic analyzer (S101). Next, the transfer device transmits a notification of the delivery schedule of the sample B to the automatic analyzer (S102).

Next, the transport device transmits a dispensing position arrival notification for notifying the automatic analyzer that the sample A has arrived at the dispensing position 14 (S103). Upon receiving the notification of arrival of the dispensing position of the sample A, the automatic analyzer starts the dispensing operation of the sample A (S104). Then, when the dispensing operation of the sample A is completed, the automatic analyzer sends a dispensing completion notification to notify the transporting device that the dispensing of the sample A is completed (S105).

Next, the transfer device transmits a notification of the delivery schedule of the sample C to the automatic analyzer (S106). Next, the transport device transmits a notification of arrival of the dispensing position of the sample B to the automated analyzer (S107).

Upon receiving the notification of arrival of the dispensing position of the sample B, the automatic analyzer starts the dispensing operation of the sample B (S108). Then, when the dispensing operation of the sample B is completed, the automatic analyzer sends a notification of the completion of the dispensing of the sample B to the transporting device (S109).

Here, it is assumed that an abnormality in transporting the sample has occurred in the transport device (S110). The transport device transmits a transport abnormality occurrence notification for notifying the automatic analyzer that a transport abnormality has occurred in the sample C (S111). However, the sample in which the transport abnormality has occurred is not limited to the sample C, and other samples are also assumed.

Since the sample transfer abnormality has occurred in the transfer device, the transfer device does not send the sample C dispensing position arrival notification to the automatic analyzer. Then, the automatic analyzer that has received the notification of the occurrence of the transport abnormality stops the dispensing of the sample C (S112).

The automatic analyzer waits until the result of the sample dispensed immediately before the stop of dispensing is obtained (S113). Normally, a waiting time of about 10 minutes is required. In addition, the transport device waits for the same amount of time as the standby time of the automatic analyzer.

After the waiting time has elapsed, the automatic analyzer is restarted (S114). Similarly, after the waiting time has elapsed, the transport device is restarted (S115). After the restart of the transport device is completed, the sample delivery to the transport device is restarted (S116).

As described above, conventionally, since the transfer device and the automatic analyzer are restarted, it takes time for the automatic analyzer to restart the analysis process. In addition, the automatic analyzer has the sample information of the sample received from the transport device before the dispensing is stopped. Therefore, when the automatic analyzer receives the sample information of the sample re-imported after the transport device is restarted, the automatic analyzer has the same sample information, which may cause inconsistency.

<Processing of the automated analysis system according to the first and second embodiments (1)>
FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram showing the process (1) of the automated analysis system according to the first and second embodiments. The process (1) is an example of an analysis process corresponding to the automatic analyzer 3 when an abnormality occurs in the transfer device 2. Here, the process (1) of the automated analysis system 1 according to the first embodiment will be described, but the same process (1) will be performed for the automated analysis system 1A according to the second embodiment. do.

First, when the transport device 2 transports the sample carried into the transport lane 12, the barcode reader 13 installed in front of the dispensing position 14 reads the information on the sample container and the sample transport container to be transported. Then, the transport device 2 sequentially transmits the carry-in schedule notification and the sample information to the automatic analyzer 3 for each sample based on the information read by the barcode reader 13.

Here, the transport device 2 transmits the carry-in schedule notification (sample A carry-in schedule notification) and the sample information for notifying the carry-in schedule of the sample A to the automatic analyzer 3 (S1). The timing at which the delivery schedule notification is transmitted from the transport device 2 to the automatic analyzer 3 is when the bar code reader 13 reads the bar code of the sample container 16 housed in the sample rack 15. Upon receiving the notification of the delivery schedule of the sample A and the sample information, the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 writes the undispensed transport sample information of the sample A in the sample information storage unit 44.

Next, through the same process as in step S1, the transport device 2 transmits a delivery schedule notification of the sample B (sample B delivery schedule notification) to the automatic analyzer 3 (S2). Upon receiving the notification of the delivery schedule of the sample B and the sample information, the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 writes the undispensed transport sample information of the sample B in the sample information storage unit 44.

The automatic analyzer 3 acquires the analysis content based on the settings of the automatic analyzer 3 itself and the inquiry to the PC 4 based on the sample information acquired from the transport device 2 together with the delivery schedule notification. Then, the automatic analyzer 3 notifies the transfer device 2 whether or not the automatic analyzer 3 needs to dispense the sample. Each sample described below is a sample determined by the automated analyzer 3 to require dispensing.

When the sample A is transported to the dispensing position 14, the transport device 2 transmits a dispensing position arrival notification of the sample A for notifying that the sample A arrives at the dispensing position 14 (S3). The timing at which the dispensing position arrival notification is transmitted is when the sample container 16 housed in the sample rack 15 arrives at the dispensing position 14.

After that, the operation instruction unit 42 of the automatic analyzer 3 instructs the start of the dispensing operation of the sample A (S4). After the sample A is dispensed by the sample dispensing pipette, the operation instruction unit 42 writes the dispensed information in the undispensed transport sample information of the sample A. Further, when the analysis of the sample A is completed, the operation instruction unit 42 writes the analysis result in the storage area of the sample A provided in the sample information storage unit 44.

When the dispensing operation of the sample A (suction and ejection of the sample) by the automatic analyzer 3 is completed, the notification transmission unit 43 notifies the transport device 2 that the dispensing of the sample A is completed. Note Send a completion notification (S5). Upon receiving the dispensing completion notification, the transport device 2 carries out the sample (for example, sample A) for which dispensing has been completed from the dispensing position 14, and transports the next sample (for example, sample B) to the dispensing position 14. It works as it should.

Next, the transport device 2 transmits the delivery schedule notification of the sample C and the sample information to the automatic analyzer 3 (S6). Upon receiving the notification of the delivery schedule of the sample C and the sample information, the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 writes the undispensed transport sample information of the sample C in the sample information storage unit 44.

Next, the transport device 2 transmits a dispensing position arrival notification of the sample B to the automatic analyzer 3 (S7). When the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 receives the notification of the arrival of the dispensing position of the sample B, the operation instruction unit 42 instructs the start of the dispensing operation of the sample B (S8). After the sample B is dispensed by the sample dispensing pipette, the operation instruction unit 42 writes the dispensed information in the undispensed transport sample information of the sample B. Further, when the analysis of the sample B is completed, the operation instruction unit 42 writes the analysis result in the storage area of the sample B provided in the sample information storage unit 44. When the dispensing operation of the sample B is completed, the notification transmitting unit 43 transmits the dispensing completion notification of the sample B to the transport device 2 (S9).

Here, it is assumed that an abnormality in transporting the sample has occurred in the transport device 2 (S10). The transport device 2 transmits a transport abnormality occurrence notification indicating that a transport abnormality has occurred in the sample C to the automatic analyzer 3 (S11). However, the sample in which the transport abnormality has occurred is not limited to the sample C, and other samples are also assumed.

When the notification receiving unit 41 receives the abnormality occurrence notification from the transport device 2, the operation instruction unit 42 deletes the sample information of the sample that has not been analyzed by the biochemical analysis unit 20 from the sample information storage unit 44. For example, the operation instruction unit 42 deletes the undispensed transport sample information of the sample C stored in the sample information storage unit 44 (S12). By the process of step S12, the sample information scheduled to arrive at the dispensing position received by the notification receiving unit 41 from the transport device 2 is deleted, so that the control associated with the dispensing of the sample C is also canceled. Therefore, the sample C is not dispensed. Moreover, the automatic analyzer 3 is not restarted.

On the other hand, the operation instruction unit 42 causes the biochemical analysis unit 20 to continue the analysis operation for the samples A and B that have already been dispensed. Further, the operation instruction unit 42 does not notify the specific item analysis unit 22 that has already performed the analysis operation of the occurrence of an abnormality in the transport device 2 or interrupts the analysis operation, and the analysis operation is performed until the analysis operation is completed normally. To continue.

Further, when a sample transport abnormality occurs in step S10, the transport device 2 immediately starts restarting after transmitting the transport abnormality occurrence notification in step S11 (S13). After the restart of the transport device 2 is completed, the sample delivery to the transport device 2 is restarted (referred to as "sample re-carry-in") (S14). Here, the transport device 2 is controlled so that the sample that has been sent the delivery schedule notification and the dispensing position arrival notification to the automatic analyzer 3 but has not been dispensed by the automatic analyzer 3 can be re-transported. At this time, the transport device 2 performs the initialization process by itself, for example. In addition, the transport device 2 can automatically carry in and out the sample by itself. The operator may manually carry out the sample staying in the transport lane 12 when the dispensing is stopped from the transport device 2, or carry in the sample to be transported to the dispensing position 14 again.

After that, the transport device 2 transmits the delivery schedule notification of the sample C and the sample information to the automatic analyzer 3 (S15). Upon receiving the notification of the delivery schedule of the sample C and the sample information, the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 writes the undispensed transport sample information of the sample C in the sample information storage unit 44.

Next, when the sample C is transported to the dispensing position 14, the transport device 2 transmits a notification of arrival of the sample C at the dispensing position to the automatic analyzer 3 (S16). When the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 receives the notification of the arrival of the dispensing position of the sample C, the operation instruction unit 42 instructs the start of the dispensing operation of the sample C (S17). After dispensing the sample C, the operation instruction unit 42 writes the dispensed information in the undispensed transport sample information of the sample C, and when the analysis of the sample C is completed, the sample C provided in the sample information storage unit 44 Write the analysis result to the storage area of.

When the dispensing operation of the sample C is completed, the notification transmitting unit 43 transmits the dispensing completion notification of the sample C to the transporting device 2 (S18). Upon receiving the dispensing completion notification, the transport device 2 operates to carry out the sample C for which dispensing has been completed from the dispensing position 14 and transport the next sample D to the dispensing position 14. The sample D is also processed in the same manner as the samples A, B, and C.

The transport device 2 transmits the delivery schedule notification of the sample D and the sample information to the automatic analyzer 3 (S19). Upon receiving the notification of the delivery schedule of the sample D and the sample information, the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 writes the undispensed transport sample information of the sample D in the sample information storage unit 44.

Next, when the sample D is transported to the dispensing position 14, the transporting device 2 transmits a dispensing position arrival notification of the sample D to the automatic analyzer 3 (S20). When the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 receives the notification of the arrival of the dispensing position of the sample D, the operation instruction unit 42 instructs the start of the dispensing operation of the sample D (S21). When the dispensing operation of the sample D is completed, the automatic analyzer 3 transmits a dispensing completion notification of the sample D to the transporting device 2 (S22). Further, the operation instruction unit 42 is provided in the sample information storage unit 44 when the sample D is dispensed, the dispensed information is written in the undispensed transport sample information of the sample D, and the analysis of the sample D is completed. The analysis result is written in the storage area of the sample D.

In the process (1) performed by the automated analysis system according to the first and second embodiments described above, when an abnormality occurs in the transport device, a transport abnormality occurrence notification is transmitted to the automated analyzer. Also, the transport device is restarted immediately. On the other hand, the automatic analyzer does not stop as an error even if an abnormality occurs in the status of the transport device.

Therefore, when the automatic analyzer receives the notification of the occurrence of the transport abnormality from the transport device, the automatic analyzer deletes the undispensed transport sample information. Therefore, the automatic analyzer can cancel the process of performing the dispensing operation for the undispensed sample. Further, the automatic analyzer does not need to wait until the result of the sample dispensed immediately before is obtained as in the conventional case, and the automatic analyzer itself does not have to restart. Then, when the sample is reloaded after the transport device is restarted, the processing required for the dispensing operation for the reloaded sample can be resumed immediately. As described above, the automatic analyzer only initializes the transport device after restarting only the transport device for the recovery work when an abnormality occurs in the transport device, so that the analysis can be resumed promptly.

<Configuration example of an automated analysis system to which a notification of confirmation of arrival of the next sample is transmitted>
Next, a configuration example of the automatic analysis system when the notification of confirmation of arrival of the next sample is transmitted will be described with reference to FIG. The next sample arrival confirmation notification is used to control the automatic analyzer that receives this notification to start the operation of the sample dispensing pipette before the sample arrives at the dispensing position.

<Second internal configuration example of the automated analyzer control unit>
FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a second internal configuration example of the automatic analyzer control units 21 and 71.

The automatic analyzer control units 21 and 71 include a notification receiving unit 41, an operation instruction unit 42, a notification transmitting unit 43, and a sample information storage unit 44. The functions of the notification receiving unit 41, the operation instruction unit 42, the notification transmitting unit 43, and the sample information storage unit 44 are the same as those of the automatic analyzer control units 21 and 71 shown in FIG. However, the point that the operation instruction unit 42 according to the first embodiment gives an operation instruction to the biochemical analysis unit 20 and the specific item analysis unit 22, and the operation instruction unit 42 according to the second embodiment , Biochemical analysis units 8A and 8B, and specific item analysis units 72a to 72c are different in that operation instructions are given.

Here, the transport devices 2 and 5 transmit to the automatic analyzers 3 and 6, respectively, a notification of confirmation of arrival of the next sample indicating that the arrival of the next sample at the dispensing position has been confirmed. Here, in the first and second embodiments, the sample arriving at the dispensing position after the notification of confirmation of arrival of the next sample is referred to as the next sample.

Upon receiving the notification of confirmation of arrival of the next sample, the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzers 3 and 6 instructs the sample dispensing pipette to start the dispensing operation. Therefore, the sample dispensing pipette starts to move before the transfer device 2 and 5 transmit the notification of the arrival of the next sample at the dispensing position. Then, when the notification of the arrival of the next sample at the dispensing position is transmitted from the transfer devices 2 and 5, the sample dispensing pipette moves to almost the vicinity of the dispensing position. Therefore, the sample dispensing pipette can dispense the sample as soon as the sample arrives at the dispensing position. The reason why the sample dispensing pipette is controlled by using the notification of the arrival of the dispensing position of the next sample in this way is to reduce the time required for sample dispensing.

Since the hardware configuration examples of the automated analyzer control units 21 and 71 have already been described with reference to FIG. 5, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

<Example of processing in which the transport device sends the next sample arrival confirmation notification to the automatic analyzer>
Next, the information transfer and behavior of the transfer device and the automatic analyzer performed by the conventional automatic analysis system and the automatic analysis system according to the first and second embodiments of the present invention, and the flow from the occurrence of an abnormality to the restart. , FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 will be compared and described. The processing examples shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 both represent the behavior of the automatic analysis system when an abnormality occurs in a situation where the next sample arrival confirmation notification is transmitted from the transport device.

<Processing of conventional automatic analysis system (2)>
FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram showing the process (2) of the conventional automatic analysis system. Since the processes of steps S101 to S109 of FIG. 9 are the same as those of FIG. 6, the processes after step S121 will be described.

In step S108, while the dispensing operation of the sample B is being performed, the transfer device sends a notification of confirmation of the arrival of the next sample to the automated analyzer (S121). Upon receiving the notification of confirmation of arrival of the next sample, the automatic analyzer starts the dispensing operation of the sample C, which is the next sample of the sample B (S122). At this time, the operation of the sample dispensing pipette is started in order to dispense the sample C.

Here, it is assumed that a delay in transporting the sample occurs after the notification of the completion of dispensing of the sample B in step S109 is given by the transport device (S123). In this case, the transport device itself does not recognize that an abnormality has occurred. However, the sample C does not arrive at the dispensing position 14 within the specified time specified by the automatic analyzer. Therefore, the automatic analyzer detects that the sample has not arrived (S124).

Therefore, the automatic analyzer waits until the analysis result of the sample dispensed immediately before is obtained (S125), and usually requires a waiting time of about 10 minutes. However, even if there is no sample being measured, for example, if the automatic analyzer is in the dispensing operation of the electrolyte item, the electrolyte analysis unit, which is one of the specific item analysis units, becomes a measurement abnormality. Therefore, it is necessary to initialize the electrolyte analysis unit.

Therefore, after the waiting time has elapsed, the automatic analyzer is restarted (S126). Further, the transfer device waits for the same time as the standby time of the automatic analyzer, and restarts after the waiting time elapses (S127). After the restart of the transport device is completed, the sample delivery to the transport device is restarted (S128).

As described in the process (1) of the automatic analysis system, the conventional automatic analyzer stops abnormally when an abnormality occurs in the transport device. Further, since the automatic analyzer performs a preparatory operation for sample analysis based on the information received from the transport device, the automatic analyzer stops abnormally if the sample does not arrive as scheduled. In addition, a specific item analysis unit such as an electrolyte analyzer included in the automatic analyzer may also perform a preparatory operation, and if the sample does not arrive as scheduled, an error will occur and this analysis unit will stop abnormally.

To restore the automated analyzer and specific item analysis unit, after the automated analyzer obtains the analysis result of the sample being analyzed, both the automated analyzer and the transport device perform initialization processing and transport the unanalyzed sample. It will be carried in again from. This restoration work took, for example, about 15 minutes, so it took time to resume the analysis. Therefore, the process (2) for the purpose of shortening the time until the automatic analyzer restarts the once interrupted analysis will be described below.

<Processing of the automated analysis system according to the first and second embodiments (2)>
FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram showing the process (2) of the automated analysis system according to the first and second embodiments. Here, the process (2) of the automated analysis system 1 according to the first embodiment will be described, but the same process is applied to the automated analysis system 1A according to the second embodiment. Further, in the process (2), detailed description of the same parts as in the process (1) may be omitted.

Since the processes of steps S1 to S9 in FIG. 10 are the same as those in FIG. 7, the processes after step S31 will be described.
In the process (2), the transport device 2 transmits the notification of the arrival of the dispensing position of the sample B in step S7, and then sends the notification of the arrival of the next sample of the sample C, which is the next sample (S31). When the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 receives the notification of confirmation of arrival of the next sample, the operation instruction unit 42 starts the dispensing operation of the sample C (S32). Here, the operation instruction unit 42 instructs the electrolyte analysis unit, which is one of the specific item analysis units, to perform an analysis operation.

Here, it is assumed that the transport device 2 has a delay in transporting the sample (S33). Since it is a transport delay, information regarding the transport delay is not transmitted from the transport device 2 to the automated analyzer 3. However, the automated analyzer 3 has already received the notification of confirmation of the arrival of the next sample of the sample C. Therefore, the operation instruction unit 42 of the automatic analyzer 3 cannot instruct the sample dispensing pipette to dispense the sample C unless the sample C arrives at the dispensing position 14 within the specified time.

Therefore, the operation instruction unit 42 determines that the sample has not arrived at the dispensing position by the timing scheduled by the arrival confirmation notification even though the notification reception unit 41 has received the arrival confirmation notification from the transport device 2. , It is determined that the transfer of the transfer device 2 has been delayed. Then, the operation instruction unit 42 deletes the sample information of the sample that has not been analyzed by the biochemical analysis unit 20 from the sample information storage unit 44.

The operation instruction unit 42 was started by the biochemical analysis unit 20 in order to dispense the sample specified by the arrival confirmation notification received by the notification receiving unit 41 when it was determined that the transportation of the transport device 2 was delayed. Cancel the operation. For example, the operation instruction unit 42 cancels the dispensing operation of the sample C (S34). Therefore, when the automatic analyzer 3 operates the sample dispensing pipette and starts the dispensing operation, the dispensing operation is stopped. When the dispensing operation of the sample C is canceled, the dispensing pipette once swings to the dispensing position, but does not descend to the sample and moves to return to the position at the start of the dispensing operation. Then, the operation instruction unit 42 maintains a state in which the biochemical analysis unit 20 can normally resume the dispensing operation when the sample transported after step S34 arrives at the dispensing position.

Then, the operation instruction unit 42 deletes the undispensed transport sample information of the sample C stored in the sample information storage unit 44 (S35). The operation instruction unit 42 does not notify the biochemical analysis unit 20 that has already performed the analysis operation of the occurrence of an abnormality in the transport device 2 or interrupts the analysis operation, and analyzes until the analysis operation is completed normally. Continue operation.

Therefore, the operation instruction unit 42 normally analyzes the sample already dispensed into the sample dispensing pipette by, for example, the electrolyte analysis unit, which is one of the specific item analysis units 22 (S36). In this way, when the operation instruction unit 42 determines that the transfer of the transfer device 2 is delayed, the operation instruction unit 42 continues the process by the electrolyte analysis unit. However, the operation instruction unit 42 adds error information to the analysis result by the electrolyte analysis unit. In this way, the operation instruction unit 42 processes the analysis result of the specific item acquired from the specific item analysis unit 22 to clarify that the analysis result is abnormal data.

Further, the operation instruction unit 42 requests the transport device 2 to reset, and causes the biochemical analysis unit 20 to analyze the sample that is reloaded after the transport device 2 is reset. For example, the operation instruction unit 42 deletes the undistributed transport sample information of the sample C in step S35, and then causes the transport device 2 to transmit a transport reset request through the notification transmission unit 43 (S37). The transfer reset request is a message instructing the operation instruction unit 42 to redo the transfer of the sample to the transfer device 5.

Upon receiving the transfer reset request, the transfer device 2 immediately starts restarting (S38). After the restart of the transport device 2 is completed, the sample reloading is started (S39).

After that, the transport device 2 transmits the delivery schedule notification of the sample C and the sample information to the automatic analyzer 3 (S40). Upon receiving the notification of the delivery schedule of the sample C and the sample information, the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 writes the undispensed transport sample information of the sample C in the sample information storage unit 44.

Next, when the transport device 2 transports the sample C to the dispensing position 14, the transport device 2 transmits a notification of the arrival of the sample C at the dispensing position to the automatic analyzer 3 (S41). When the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 receives the notification of the arrival of the dispensing position of the sample C, the operation instruction unit 42 instructs the sample dispensing pipette to start the dispensing operation of the sample C (S42). After dispensing the sample C, the operation instruction unit 42 writes the dispensed information in the undispensed transport sample information of the sample C. Further, when the analysis of the sample C is completed, the operation instruction unit 42 writes the analysis result in the storage area of the sample C provided in the sample information storage unit 44.

When the dispensing operation of the sample C is completed, the notification transmitting unit 43 transmits the dispensing completion notification of the sample C to the transporting device 2 (S43). Upon receiving the dispensing completion notification, the transport device 2 operates to carry out the sample C for which dispensing has been completed from the dispensing position 14 and transport the next sample D to the dispensing position 14. The sample D is also processed in the same manner as the sample C.

Therefore, the transport device 2 transmits the delivery schedule notification of the sample D and the sample information to the automatic analyzer 3 (S44). Upon receiving the notification of the delivery schedule of the sample D and the sample information, the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 writes the undispensed transport sample information of the sample D in the sample information storage unit 44.

Next, when the sample D is transported to the dispensing position 14, the transporting device 2 transmits a dispensing position arrival notification of the sample D to the automatic analyzer 3 (S45). When the notification receiving unit 41 of the automatic analyzer 3 receives the notification of the arrival of the dispensing position of the sample D, the operation instruction unit 42 instructs the sample dispensing pipette to start the dispensing operation of the sample D (S46). After dispensing the sample D, the operation instruction unit 42 writes the dispensed information in the undispensed transport sample information of the sample D. Further, when the analysis of the sample D is completed, the operation instruction unit 42 writes the analysis result in the storage area of the sample D provided in the sample information storage unit 44. When the dispensing operation of the sample D is completed, the notification transmitting unit 43 transmits the dispensing completion notification of the sample D to the transport device 2 (S47).

In the process (2) performed by the automatic analysis system according to the first and second embodiments described above, when a transfer delay occurs in the transfer device, it is automatically performed even if the transfer device does not send a notification of the occurrence of an abnormality. Cancel the dispensing operation that was started by the analyzer. Therefore, even after an abnormality occurs in the transport device, the automatic analyzer side does not need to perform an operation such as restarting or resetting, and the analysis can be restarted only by an operation such as reset on the transport device side.

In addition, when the sample does not arrive, the automatic analyzer sends a reset request communication to the transport device. Therefore, the transport device in which the sample transport delay occurs is immediately restarted. On the other hand, the automatic analyzer does not stop as an error even if an abnormality occurs in the status of the transport device. The automatic analyzer does not need to wait until the result of the sample dispensed immediately before is obtained as in the conventional case, and the automatic analyzer does not need to be restarted. Then, when the sample is reloaded after the transport device is restarted, the processing required for the dispensing operation for the reloaded sample can be resumed immediately. As described above, since the automatic analyzer only initializes the recovery work when an abnormality occurs in the transport device after restarting only the transport device, the analysis can be resumed promptly.

In addition, the automatic analyzer causes the electrolyte analysis unit that has already been analyzed to be analyzed normally as it is, but error information is added to the analysis result. Then, the electrolyte analysis unit possessed by the automatic analyzer is made to operate normally. By adding error information indicating that the dispensing operation has been canceled in the middle of the obtained analysis result, the electrolyte analysis unit can be continuously used without being initialized. Therefore, looking at the analysis results, it becomes clear that the electrolyte items were analyzed when the transport delay occurred.

<Modified example of processing of the automatic analysis system when the next sample arrival confirmation notification is sent>
Next, the information transfer and behavior of the transfer device and the automatic analyzer performed by the conventional automatic analysis system and the automatic analysis system according to the first and second embodiments of the present invention, and the flow from the occurrence of an abnormality to the restart. , FIG. 11 and FIG. 12 will be compared and described. The processing examples shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 both represent the behavior of the automatic analysis system when an abnormality occurs in a situation where the next sample arrival confirmation notification is transmitted from the transport device. However, in the treatment (3), the treatment of causing the electrolyte analysis unit shown in the treatment (2) to analyze the sample is excluded. The process (3) shown in FIG. 11 is substantially the same as the process (2) shown in FIG. 9, and the process (3) shown in FIG. 12 is substantially the same as the process (2) shown in FIG. Therefore, only the differences will be explained.

<Processing of conventional automatic analysis system (3)>
FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing the process (3) of the conventional automatic analysis system.
In FIG. 9, it has been explained that the electrolyte analysis unit needs to be initialized in step S125, but the process of step S125 shown in FIG. 11 does not require the initialization of the electrolyte analysis unit. Therefore, the automatic analyzer waits until the analysis result of the sample dispensed immediately before is obtained, and then the automatic analyzer restarts. As described above, in the conventional automatic analysis system, it is necessary to restart the automatic analyzer when the transfer delay of the transfer device occurs.

<Processing of the automated analysis system according to the first and second embodiments (3)>
FIG. 12 is a sequence diagram showing the process (3) of the automated analysis system according to the first and second embodiments.
In FIG. 10, in step S36, the operation instruction unit 42 normally analyzes the sample already dispensed into the sample dispensing pipette by, for example, the electrolyte analysis unit, which is one of the specific item analysis units. went. However, in the process (3) shown in FIG. 12, the process of this step S36 is unnecessary.

Therefore, in step S37, after the operation instruction unit 42 transmits the transfer reset request to the transfer device 2 through the notification transmission unit 43, it is only necessary to wait for the transfer device 2 to be restarted and the sample to be re-imported. You do not have to wait for the processing of the electrolyte analysis unit. Therefore, the automatic analyzer 3 can restore the analysis operation in a shorter time than in the case where the treatment of the electrolyte analysis unit is performed by the treatment shown in FIG.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and it goes without saying that various other application examples and modifications can be taken as long as they do not deviate from the gist of the present invention described in the claims.
For example, each of the above-described embodiments describes in detail and concretely the configurations of the apparatus and the system in order to explain the present invention in an easy-to-understand manner, and is not necessarily limited to those including all the described configurations. Further, it is possible to replace a part of the configuration of the embodiment described here with the configuration of another embodiment, and further, it is possible to add the configuration of another embodiment to the configuration of one embodiment. It is possible. Further, it is also possible to add, delete, or replace a part of the configuration of each embodiment with another configuration.
In addition, the control lines and information lines indicate those that are considered necessary for explanation, and do not necessarily indicate all the control lines and information lines in the product. In practice, it can be considered that almost all configurations are interconnected.

1,1A ... Automatic analysis system, 2,5 ... Transfer device, 3,6 ... Automatic analyzer, 7,8A, 8B ... Biochemical analysis unit, 9 ... Diluted sample transfer unit, 11 ... Transfer device control unit, 21 ... Automatic analyzer control unit, 22 ... Specific item analysis unit, 41 ... Notification receiving unit, 42 ... Operation instruction unit, 43 ... Notification transmission unit, 44 ... Specimen information storage unit, 61 ... Transport device control unit, 71 ... Automatic analyzer Control unit, 72a to 72c ... Specific item analysis unit

Claims (6)

In an automated analyzer that automatically analyzes the sample transported by the transport device
The automatic analyzer is
An analysis unit that analyzes the sample that has arrived at the dispensing position of the transfer device, and
A sample information storage unit that stores sample information for each sample analyzed by the analysis unit,
A notification receiving unit in which the transport device receives a delivery schedule notification in which the sample is scheduled to be carried in, and writes the sample information of the sample notified in the carry-in schedule notification to the sample information storage unit.
An operation instruction unit that instructs the analysis unit to analyze the sample specified by the sample information written in the sample information storage unit, and an operation instruction unit.
A notification transmission unit for notifying the transport device of the completion of dispensing, indicating that the dispensing of the sample has been completed, is provided.
The operation instruction unit is an automatic analyzer that deletes the sample information of the sample that has not arrived at the dispensing position from the sample information storage unit when an abnormality occurs in the transport device. The notification receiving unit receives an abnormality occurrence notification indicating that an abnormality has occurred in the transport device, and receives an abnormality occurrence notification.
When the notification receiving unit receives the abnormality occurrence notification from the transport device, the operation instruction unit deletes the sample information of the sample that has not been analyzed by the analysis unit from the sample information storage unit. Item 1. The automatic analyzer according to item 1. The notification receiving unit receives an arrival confirmation notification indicating that the sample has been confirmed to arrive at the dispensing position.
In the operation instruction unit, although the notification receiving unit has received the arrival confirmation notification from the transport device, the sample has not arrived at the dispensing position by the timing scheduled by the arrival confirmation notification. The automatic analyzer according to claim 1, wherein it is determined that the transport of the transport device has been delayed, and the sample information of the sample that has not been analyzed by the analysis unit is deleted from the sample information storage unit. The operation instruction unit was started by the analysis unit to dispense the sample specified by the arrival confirmation notification received by the notification receiving unit when it was determined that the transportation of the transport device was delayed. The automatic analyzer according to claim 3, wherein the operation is canceled. The automatic analyzer according to claim 4, wherein the operation instruction unit requests the transfer device to reset, and causes the analysis unit to analyze the sample that is reloaded after the transfer device is reset. .. Further, it has a specific item analysis unit that analyzes a specific item of the sample.
The claim that the operation instruction unit continues the processing by the specific item analysis unit and adds error information to the analysis result by the specific item analysis unit when it is determined that the transportation of the transfer device is delayed. 5. The automatic analyzer according to 5.

Images