JP5532912B2 - Liquid container and automatic dispensing device using the same - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid container mounted on an automatic analyzer for measuring a trace component in a biological sample such as blood and an automatic dispensing apparatus using the same.

  Today's clinical tests, especially immunochemical tests, contribute to early diagnosis and treatment of diseases by rapid, sensitive and specific measurement of trace components in blood. However, many of the high-sensitivity measuring reagents used in these tests are very sensitive to contamination (contamination). For example, dirt on pipes, germs in the air, water and wetted parts In many cases, the reagent is decomposed by a trace metal contained therein, and as a result, an accurate measurement value cannot be obtained. In an automatic analyzer, when such a reagent for high sensitivity measurement is dispensed on the apparatus, it is generally dispensed by a pipetting method or a dispensing method, as in the case of dispensing a normal reagent. .

  In pipetting type dispensing, for example, a predetermined amount of reagent is aspirated from a plurality of reagent containers set on a reagent table by a common nozzle, and then discharged into a reaction container set at a predetermined location. However, when different reagents are dispensed by pipetting using a common nozzle, it is necessary to clean the nozzle after aspirating / discharging a certain reagent and before aspirating another reagent. Since the nozzle cleaning needs to be performed sufficiently to avoid cross-contamination between reagents, the time required for measurement becomes longer. In addition, a large amount of cleaning liquid for cleaning the common nozzle is consumed, which causes a problem of waste liquid treatment. Furthermore, inadequate nozzle cleaning leads to a serious problem in that accurate measurements cannot be obtained due to reagent carryover. When the pipetting method using a disposable tip instead of the common nozzle is adopted, the cleaning operation of the common nozzle becomes unnecessary, but it takes time to attach the disposable tip to the nozzle head and to remove and attach it after suction / discharge. Newly occurs. In addition, since the chip is discarded after every single suction / discharge, there is a problem that the running cost becomes high.

  In the dispensing method, for example, from the reagent container to the dedicated nozzle, the suction / discharge operation of the pump is performed by pipe connection via a pump, a valve, etc., and the reagent is dispensed. In the dispensing method, for example, a reagent dispensing nozzle dedicated to each reagent bottle is set to dispense the reagent. Therefore, the time required for the movement of the nozzle is saved, so that the dispensing time is short and the cross contamination of the reagent is eliminated. However, there is a problem that the dead volume is large because the apparatus is configured by pipe connection through a dispensing unit such as a pump or a solenoid valve from the reagent container to the dedicated nozzle. In addition, maintenance such as periodic cleaning of pipes and periodic replacement of parts is required periodically. In particular, when dispensing a high-sensitivity measuring reagent that is sensitive to the influence of contaminants in the piping, it is necessary to perform the maintenance frequently.

  As an improved method of the above dispensing method, Patent Document 1 discloses an automatic analyzer using a dispensing container in which a reagent container and a dispensing syringe are integrated. In Patent Document 1, by dispensing a reagent while rotating a turntable on which a plurality of reagent dispensing containers are arranged, dispensing time is short, suitable for random access, and there is a risk of occurrence of cross contamination. There is no automatic chemical analyzer disclosed.

  Usually, a reagent containing a component having low thermal stability is kept at around 10 ° C. in a reagent container. Therefore, when the reaction is carried out under the condition that the reaction temperature is 37 ° C., which is higher than room temperature, if the reagent in the reagent container is dispensed suddenly, it takes time to reach the reaction temperature. Therefore, it is necessary to warm the reagent to the reaction temperature or near the reaction temperature before dispensing into the reaction container. When dispensing a reagent by the dispensing method, it is easy to mount a device such as providing a liquid storage unit having a certain volume before the discharge pipe and heating the reagent in the storage unit. On the other hand, when dispensing a reagent by pipetting, if a common nozzle is used, it is necessary to wait for a certain period of time after the reagent is guided to the warming part by suction using the common nozzle. It takes. Further, after the reagent is discharged, the common nozzle and the heating section must be cleaned each time, so that the cleaning time becomes longer than in the case of the common nozzle alone, which is not practical. Even when using a disposable tip, it is necessary to warm the tip of the tip filled with the reagent after aspirating the reagent, so there is no need to wait for a long time before discharging, and this method is also practical. There is no such thing. Note that the dispensing container disclosed in Patent Document 1 disclosed as an improved method of the dispensing method is not designed to partially heat the reagent even in terms of the container structure. In addition, the dispensing container disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a method (direct pressure type) in which outside air corresponding to the discharge amount is mixed into the container after a predetermined amount of reagent is discharged when estimated from its shape. Therefore, it is difficult to apply to a reagent that is easily oxidized by air due to contamination from outside air or a reagent that is easily decomposed by various germs in the air.

  A so-called airless container disclosed in Patent Document 2 is an example of a dispensing container that avoids contamination due to various germs in the air. The airless container is different from the direct pressure type container in which the outside air corresponding to the liquid discharge amount is introduced into the container when the liquid in the container is discharged under static pressure, and the change in the internal pressure due to the discharge of the liquid in the container Is a container that can be canceled by reducing the liquid storage volume. Therefore, an airless container is used when the liquid contains a component that is susceptible to adverse effects such as decomposition when it comes into contact with outside air. The basic structure of the pump used in the airless container of Patent Document 2 is such that a push rod called a stem and a piston coupled thereto are arranged at the lower part of the nozzle head so that it can be moved up and down by a spring built in the cylinder housing. Yes. A sealing member is provided in the periphery of the piston, and a ball-shaped check valve is disposed at the lower end inside the cylinder housing, and an opening is formed at the lower end. With the above structure, a predetermined amount of dispensing can be performed by moving the dispensing head provided with the discharge port downward with one hand. In the airless container of Patent Document 2, the dispensing operation can be performed with one hand, and the liquid agent can be discharged to the other hand by pressing the nozzle head with a fingertip. In addition, as a technology to heat the liquid in the airless container immediately before dispensing, a dispenser equipped with a mechanism that quickly heats the liquid in the nozzle passage by installing a heater in the dispensing nozzle part of the airless container is patented It is disclosed in Document 3. However, since the main use of the container disclosed in Patent Documents 2 and 3 is dispensing and storage of cosmetics and detergents, high accuracy is not required for dispensing. In many cases, the durability of the spring holding the ball-shaped check valve constituting the pump is low, and the adhesion between the ball-shaped check valve and the cylinder or the cylinder and the piston sealing member increases as the number of discharges increases. From the viewpoint of structure, the containers disclosed in Patent Documents 2 and 3 are not applicable to analytical reagent containers that require high dispensing accuracy. Further, the spring used for holding the valve is usually in contact with the liquid reagent. Therefore, when a metal spring is used, it cannot be applied to a liquid reagent containing a component that is decomposed by the metal. Furthermore, since the heat retention mechanism disclosed in Patent Document 3 accommodates the heater in the nozzle head in a state where the heater is juxtaposed or surrounded by the pipe, it is difficult to make this portion disposable and the pipe is contaminated. In such a case, troublesome maintenance such as disassembling and cleaning or replacing pipes is required.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-086509 JP 2005-350144 A JP 2005-218985 A

  The problem of the present invention is that there is no cross contamination of the reagent, and it is possible to adjust the temperature of the high-sensitivity analytical reagent without affecting the bacteria and other pollutants in the outside air, and to dispense quickly and accurately. Is to provide a liquid container and an automatic dispensing device using the same.

The present invention made to achieve the above object includes the following inventions:
The first invention is
A liquid-tight and air-tight flexible container provided with one or more openings;
A port capable of being liquid-tightly connected to one of the openings and capable of taking out the liquid contained in the flexible container;
A liquid reservoir capable of controlling the temperature of a predetermined amount of liquid;
A pump for sucking / discharging the liquid taken out from the port;
A nozzle for discharging liquid;
It is a liquid container provided with.

  The second invention is the liquid container according to the first invention, wherein the liquid reservoir is provided between the port and the suction side of the pump, and the nozzle is provided on the discharge side of the pump.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the shaft of the flow path that communicates between one of the openings of the flexible container and the liquid storage section provided in the port connects the one of the openings and the suction side of the pump. It is a liquid container as described in 2nd invention which inclines with respect to.

  4th invention is the liquid container as described in 1st invention provided with the said liquid storage part between the discharge side of a pump, and a nozzle.

The fifth invention is
The pump is composed of a cylindrical part provided with a suction part and a discharge part, and a branch part branched in a direction perpendicular to the cylindrical part from a side surface of the cylindrical part,
Each of the suction part and the discharge part provided in the cylindrical part is provided with one or more check valves,
The liquid container according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, wherein the branch portion is a pump provided with a slidable piston supported by a spring.

The sixth invention is
A liquid-tight and air-tight flexible container provided with one or more openings, and a port capable of being liquid-tightly connected to one of the openings and capable of taking out the liquid contained in the flexible container A liquid container comprising: a liquid reservoir capable of adjusting the temperature of a predetermined amount of liquid; a pump for sucking / discharging the liquid taken out from the port; and a nozzle for discharging the liquid;
Means for controlling the temperature of the liquid in the liquid reservoir;
Means for driving the pump to dispense liquid;
Means for moving the liquid container to a predetermined dispensing position;
Is an automatic dispensing device.

  The present invention will be described in detail below.

  The flexible container in the liquid container of the present invention may be any container that has one or more openings, has liquid-tightness and air-tightness, and can contract according to the discharge internal pressure. One of the openings is an opening for connecting a port to be described later. When the flexible container is filled with liquid, the flexible container may be filled from an opening for connecting the port. Alternatively, an opening for filling may be separately provided, and the liquid may be sealed from the opening after filling the liquid. Further, when it is necessary to deaerate the liquid after filling the liquid, another opening for bubbling nitrogen or helium may be provided. Further, the liquid tightness here means that there is no or almost no liquid permeability, and the air tightness means that there is no or almost no gas permeability. The material of the flexible container may be appropriately selected from commonly used materials that do not have liquid permeability and gas permeability, such as polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and the like. The sheet | seat which laminated | stacked the different resin layer can be illustrated. The capacity of the flexible container may be appropriately selected in consideration of the amount dispensed at one time, the required number of dispenses, or the space of the apparatus to be installed, but is usually selected from the range of 10 to 1000 mL. To do. In the case where the liquid contained in the flexible container is a liquid that needs to be shielded from light, the sheet is composed of one or more layers selected from the materials having no liquid permeability and gas permeability described above. Further, it is more preferable to use a flexible container made of a sheet provided with a sheet containing an aluminum layer. One embodiment of the sheet is a sheet in which thin layers of materials are laminated in the order of PET, aluminum, and polyethylene from the outside of the flexible container. The flexible container according to the one aspect has liquid-tightness and air-tightness, as well as light-shielding properties, toughness, heat resistance, pinhole resistance, sealing properties, etc., compared to ordinary resin containers. Has improved.

  The port in the liquid container of the present invention can be liquid-tightly connected to one of the openings of the flexible container, and introduces the liquid contained in the flexible container into a liquid storage section described later or a pump described later. It is sufficient if a flow path is provided. For example, it can be manufactured by molding into a hollow cylinder using a resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene so that it can be liquid-tightly connected to one of the openings of the flexible container. When the opening of the flexible container and the port are connected in a liquid-tight manner, the port may be connected to the opening of the flexible container as it is, but the resin constituting the flexible container It is preferable that a high liquid-tightness is obtained by heat-sealing with the resin constituting the port. When the opening of the flexible container and the port are connected by thermal fusion, the resin that forms the port is the resin that forms the flexible container (the innermost resin if the flexible container is a multilayer sheet) ) Is more preferable. The direction in which the liquid in the channel provided in the port flows (hereinafter referred to as the axis of the channel) can communicate with one of the openings of the flexible container and a liquid storage unit or a pump described later. The axis may be the same as the axis connecting one of the openings of the flexible container and the suction side of the pump, which will be described later, or may be inclined.

  The connection of the port in the liquid container of the present invention to the flexible container may be made by connecting the opening disposed on the bottom surface of the flexible container and the port, or the opening disposed on the side surface of the flexible container. And a port may be connected. When connecting the port to the opening disposed on the side surface of the flexible container, for example, the liquid storage unit described later or the port described later by connecting the port formed in a bowl shape to the opening disposed on the side surface of the flexible container. What is necessary is just to enable it to connect with the pump which performs.

  The liquid storage part in the liquid container of the present invention is a tank that temporarily stores a predetermined amount of liquid in order to control the temperature of the liquid introduced from a port or a pump described later, and is formed by molding a resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene. Can be manufactured. The capacity of the liquid storage unit may be one to several tens times the dispensed amount. Moreover, it is preferable that a liquid storage part is a structure which can adjust the temperature of the liquid in a liquid storage part easily by the means which controls the temperature of the liquid in the liquid storage part mentioned later. In addition, when the means for controlling the temperature of the liquid in the liquid storage part has a structure in which a temperature control material is attached to the aluminum block, the liquid storage part can be in close contact with the aluminum block from the viewpoint of improving the thermal conductivity. In addition, it is more preferable to make the structure as thin as possible within a range where strength can be maintained.

  The liquid storage part in the liquid container of the present invention may be provided between the port and a pump suction part described later, or may be provided between a pump discharge part and nozzle described later. When the liquid storage part is provided between the port and the suction part of the pump, which will be described later, the axis of the flow path that communicates one of the openings of the flexible container provided in the port and the liquid storage part, When inclined with respect to an axis connecting one of the openings and the suction side of the pump, a connection portion between the flow path and the liquid storage portion, and a connection portion between the liquid storage portion and a pump suction portion described later Since the position is shifted, the stirring effect of the liquid in the liquid reservoir is increased, which is preferable in that a temperature gradient is less likely to occur. Incidentally, the liquid storage part may be an integrally molded product with a port or a pump described later, or may be independently detachably connected to a port after molding or a pump described later.

  As an example of a method for producing an integrally molded product of a port and a liquid storage part, a block in which a liquid storage part is provided at the bottom and a hollow part that communicates one of the openings of the flexible container and the liquid storage part is provided. And a method of manufacturing by inserting a block provided with a flow path that can be liquid-tightly adhered in the radial direction of the hollow portion and that can communicate with one of the openings of the flexible container and the liquid storage portion. It is done. In the manufacturing method, the shape of the block to be inserted can be exemplified by a hollow cylindrical shape or a hollow fiber wound shape. Further, the material of the block is preferably a resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene, like the material of the port.

  When the liquid storage part in the liquid container of the present invention is provided between the port and the suction part of the pump described later, the liquid whose temperature is adjusted (warmed) in the liquid storage part is diffused toward the container body by convection. In addition, the temperature of the liquid contained in the flexible container may change significantly (rise). In order to avoid this, a check valve may be further provided between the port and the liquid reservoir. Moreover, when the liquid storage part is provided between the discharge part of the pump mentioned later and a nozzle, the liquid temperature-controlled (warmed) in the liquid storage part may leak from a nozzle tip by liquid expansion. In order to avoid this, a check valve may be further provided between the liquid reservoir and the nozzle. However, when a check valve is provided between the liquid reservoir and the nozzle, increasing the volume of the liquid reservoir may reduce the dispensing accuracy due to the lack of liquid at the nozzle tip. It is preferable to keep the volume of 1 to several times the dispensed amount.

The pump in the liquid container of the present invention may be any pump that can suck the liquid contained in the flexible container taken out via the port and discharge it to the nozzle. As a preferred embodiment of the pump,
It is composed of a cylindrical part provided with a suction part and a discharge part, and a branch part branched in a direction perpendicular to the cylindrical part from the side surface of the cylindrical part,
Each of the suction part and the discharge part provided in the cylindrical part is provided with one or more check valves,
The branch portion is provided with a slidable piston supported by a spring,
A pump is given.
The preferable pump includes, for example, one or more check valves provided in each of the ports communicating in the vertical (or horizontal) direction of a T-shaped tube formed of a resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene. It can be manufactured by producing a discharge part and inserting a slidable piston supported by a spring into a port (branch part) without a check valve. Examples of the check valve provided in the pump include a spring type, a ball type, a diaphragm type, a duckbill type, etc., but it has a good sealing property, and the decomposition by the liquid to be dispensed by the liquid contact test with the liquid to be dispensed, etc. If it is a material with no problem, there is no particular limitation. The piston provided in the pump can be manufactured by molding with a resin such as polyethylene or polypropylene, for example. To connect the bifurcation and the piston in a fluid-tight and slidable manner, for example, a piston head formed of thermoplastic elastomer or rubber is screwed into or fitted into the piston tip. do it. The material of the spring for allowing the piston to spring in the branching portion can be exemplified by a metal such as stainless steel or a resin, but a metal is preferable in terms of strength and durability. In addition, it is more preferable that the spring is provided at a position where it does not come into contact with the liquid because the deterioration of the spring due to the liquid need not be taken into consideration.

  The connection of each component such as the liquid reservoir, pump and nozzle is connected in series to the liquid discharge port side of the port, as in the case where the aforementioned port is attached to one of the openings arranged on the bottom surface of the flexible container. It is also possible to connect to the liquid discharge port side of the port, or a series of at least two parts integrally formed on the port side.

  When the liquid container of the present invention is used, the discharge amount of the liquid contained in the flexible container is usually a fixed volume dispensing in the range of 10 to 1000 μL. In addition, when it is desired to dispense by changing the discharge amount, a pump detachably connected to the port or the liquid storage unit may be replaced with a pump having a different discharge amount.

  A preferred embodiment of the liquid container of the present invention is a liquid container in which a flexible container containing a liquid is covered with a container cover formed of a hard material. The container cover used in the preferred embodiment is a cover that is strong enough to prevent the flexible container from being deformed when a load is applied by hand when the flexible cover formed of a soft material is covered. Well, examples of the material include those formed of a resin such as PET, polyethylene, and polypropylene. Furthermore, as a method for increasing the strength of the container cover, a method of simply increasing the thickness of the container cover or forming it into a rib shape can be exemplified. The color of the container cover is preferably a non-colored resin when it is necessary to visually confirm the contraction state of the flexible container placed in the container cover, but the flexible container is visually confirmed. If not necessary, it may be colored with a pigment or a dye.

  When the liquid accommodated in the liquid container of the present invention is a liquid that needs to be shielded from light, the resin (polyethylene, polypropylene, etc.) used for the port, the liquid reservoir, the pump and the resin molding part of the nozzle is, for example, carbon black or titanium It is preferable to use a resin containing a pigment having a high light absorption property such as black.

  The liquid container of the present invention may be made disposable or reused, but the liquid that affects subsequent analysis due to dirt accumulated in the wetted part due to reuse or decomposition products of components contained in the liquid. In this case, it is preferable to make it disposable.

  The automatic dispensing device of the present invention drives the liquid container of the present invention, means for controlling the temperature of the liquid in the liquid reservoir provided in the liquid container of the present invention, and the pump provided in the liquid container of the present invention. It is characterized by comprising means for dispensing liquid and means for moving the liquid container of the present invention to a predetermined dispensing position. As a means for controlling the temperature of the liquid in the liquid reservoir, for example, an aluminum block is provided so as to be in close contact with a part of the outer wall of the liquid reservoir, and a temperature control material is in close contact therewith. The temperature control material is not particularly limited, and examples include an electronic temperature control element (for example, a Peltier element) when heating or cooling is performed, and a cartridge heater or a silicon rubber heater when only heating is performed. The means for driving the pump to dispense liquid can be exemplified by a means for pushing a piston provided in the pump. Specifically, the rotational drive of the motor is converted into the reciprocating direction, and then the reciprocating motion is performed. Means for transmitting to the push rod and continuously sucking / discharging the piston by the push rod can be mentioned.

  The liquid container of the present invention may be used as one of the components of the automatic dispensing apparatus described above or may be used alone. When the liquid container of the present invention is used alone, the flexible container body is covered with a container cover formed of a hard material so that manual discharge operation can be easily performed, and the piston end is in close contact with the fingertip It is preferable to devise such as.

A flexible container having one or more openings and having liquid-tightness and air-tightness, and a port capable of being liquid-tightly connected to one of the openings and capable of taking out the liquid contained in the flexible container A liquid reservoir of the present invention, comprising: a liquid reservoir capable of controlling the temperature of a predetermined amount of liquid; a pump for sucking / discharging the liquid taken out from the port; and a nozzle for discharging the liquid; And the liquid container of the present invention, means for controlling the temperature of the liquid in the liquid reservoir, means for dispensing the liquid by driving the pump, means for moving the liquid container to a predetermined dispensing position, ,
The following effects can be obtained by the automatic dispensing device of the present invention including

  (1) By providing a liquid reservoir and controlling the temperature of the liquid, the deterioration of the liquid due to the temperature adjustment can be kept to a minimum, and the liquid reaches the predetermined reaction temperature after being dispensed into the reaction vessel. Time can be shortened, so that the reaction can be made more efficient.

  (2) Since each liquid container has a dedicated dispensing system and the entire liquid container including the dispensing system can be made disposable, carryover and dispensing between liquids can be performed without putting effort into cleaning and maintenance of the dispensing pipes. It is possible to avoid the influence of contaminants in the piping.

  (3) Since the liquid container of the present invention is a so-called airless container, the operator does not touch the liquid contact portion. For this reason, it is possible to avoid external contamination such as contamination of air and contamination adhering to the human body.

  (4) When the pump in the liquid container of the present invention is a piston type pump in which one or more check valves are arranged in the suction side and discharge side openings, the liquid dispensing accuracy can be improved.

  (5) The automatic analyzer can be easily downsized.

The figure which showed the 1st aspect of the liquid container of this invention. The figure which showed the 2nd aspect of the liquid container of this invention. The figure which showed the one aspect | mode of the port in the 2nd aspect of the liquid container of this invention. The figure which showed the 3rd aspect of the liquid container of this invention. The figure which showed the one aspect | mode of the automatic dispensing apparatus of this invention.

  EXAMPLES Hereinafter, although an Example demonstrates this invention in detail, these Examples do not limit this invention.

Example 1
A first embodiment of the liquid container of the present invention is shown in FIG. The liquid container 100 of FIG.
A flexible container 110 having liquid-tightness and air-tightness provided with one opening 111;
A port 120a capable of being liquid-tightly connected to the opening 111 of the flexible container and capable of taking out the liquid contained in the flexible container 110;
The cylindrical portion 131 is provided with a suction portion 132a and a discharge portion 132b, and a branch portion 133 that branches from the side surface of the cylindrical portion 131 in a direction perpendicular to the cylindrical portion. Each of the suction portion 132a and the discharge portion 132b has 1 Two check valves 135a and 135b, and a pump 130 provided with a slidable piston 137 elastically supported by a spring 138 at a branching portion 133, and
A liquid reservoir 140 that communicates the flow path 121 in the port with the suction part 132a of the pump and can heat a predetermined amount of liquid;
A nozzle 150 for discharging the liquid contained in the flexible container 110, which can be liquid-tightly connected to the discharge unit 132b of the pump;
A container cover 160 covering the flexible container 110;
It has.

  The flexible container 110 is a bag-shaped container made of PET (thickness 16 μm), aluminum (thickness 9 μm), and polypropylene (thickness 40 μm) from the outside. The port 120a was manufactured by integral injection molding with polypropylene so as to be integrated with the liquid reservoir 140. The pump 130 is formed by injection molding a polypropylene tube 131 and a branch portion 133 branched in a direction perpendicular to the cylindrical portion from the side surface of the cylindrical portion 131 with polypropylene, and then the suction portion 132a is formed with silicon rubber. The discharge part 132b can communicate with the nozzle 150 injection-molded with polypropylene via the duckbill-type check valve 135b molded with silicon rubber so as to communicate with the liquid storage part 140 via the duckbill-type check valve 135a. In addition, a piston head 136 (formed of a thermoplastic elastomer) having a branching portion 133 supported by a stainless spring 138 is installed so that a suction / discharge operation can be performed by a piston 137 fitted to the tip portion.

Example 2
A second embodiment of the liquid container of the present invention is shown in FIG. The liquid container 100 of FIG. 2 is obtained by changing the port and the liquid storage portion in the liquid container of FIG. 1 to the structure shown in FIG.

The port 120b and the liquid reservoir 140 shown in FIG.
In the polypropylene block 122 provided with a liquid reservoir 140 that can communicate with the suction part 132a of the pump at the bottom and provided with a hollow part that communicates the opening of the flexible container and the liquid reservoir 140,
A hollow cylindrical block 123a (FIG. 3 (A)) or a hollow thread wound block 123b (FIG. 3) provided with a flow path 121 that communicates the opening of the flexible container and the liquid reservoir 140, which is injection-molded with polypropylene. It can manufacture by inserting (B)) into the said hollow part liquid-tightly.
The flow path 121 that communicates the opening of the flexible container and the liquid reservoir 140 in the blocks 123a and 123b has an axis that connects the opening of the flexible container and the suction part 132a of the pump. It is provided so that it may incline with respect to.

Example 3
A third embodiment of the liquid container of the present invention is shown in FIG. The liquid container 100 of FIG.
The same flexible container 110 as provided in the liquid container of FIG.
The same pump 130 as provided in the liquid container of FIG.
A port 120c provided with a flow path 121 that can be liquid-tightly connected to the opening 111 of the flexible container and can communicate with the opening 111 and the suction part 132a of the pump;
A liquid reservoir 140 that can be liquid-tightly connected to the discharge part 132b of the pump and can heat a predetermined amount of liquid;
A nozzle 150 for discharging the liquid contained in the flexible container 110, which can be liquid-tightly connected to the liquid reservoir 140;
The same container cover 160 as provided in the liquid container of FIG.
It has.

  The port 120c was manufactured by integral injection molding with polypropylene.

Example 4
One embodiment of the automatic dispensing apparatus of the present invention is shown in FIG. The automatic dispensing device in FIG.
A liquid container 100 shown in FIG.
Means 200 for controlling the temperature of the liquid in the liquid reservoir 140;
Means 300 for driving the piston 137 to dispense liquid;
Means 400 for moving the liquid container 100 shown in FIG. 2 to a predetermined dispensing position;
It has.

  The means 200 for controlling the temperature of the liquid in the liquid reservoir 140 is manufactured by inserting the cartridge heater 220 into the temperature control aluminum block 210 that can heat the liquid in the liquid reservoir 140. The means 300 for driving the piston 137 to dispense the liquid includes a push rod 310 that reciprocates the piston 137 in the horizontal direction and a pulse motor 320 that transmits the operation to the push rod 310. The means 400 for moving the liquid container 100 to a predetermined dispensing position includes the movement of the push rod 310 between the moving holder 410 and the mounting position from the mounting position of the liquid container 100 to the discharge position. The pulse motor 420 is capable of reciprocating in the same axial direction.

Example 5
100 mL of an aqueous solution (pH 10) composed of 100 mM 2-amino-2-methyl-1-propanol, 1 mM phosphonium bromide, and 0.1 mM fluorescein is accommodated in the flexible container 110 in the liquid container (FIG. 1) prepared in Example 1. By manually operating the piston continuously, the liquid was discharged and filled up to the tip of the nozzle. An operation of placing a beaker on an electronic balance, manually discharging the aqueous solution, and measuring the discharge weight was continuously performed 10 times. As a comparative control for simultaneous reproducibility evaluation of the dispensed amount, a commercially available glass airless container (ST-GLASS 20 mL (SC18) / tea tube, top of Co., Ltd.) filled with the aqueous solution was used. The results are shown in Table 1.

It was found that the simultaneous reproducibility was remarkably good, with the CV of the liquid container of the present invention being 0.24% while the discharge amount variation coefficient (CV) of the commercially available airless container was 1.59%.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100: Liquid container 110: Flexible container 111: Opening part 120a, 120b, 120c of a flexible container: Port 121: Port flow path 122, 123a, 123b: Block 130: Pump 131: Cylindrical part 132a: Suction part 132b: Discharge part 133: Branch part 135: Check valve 136: Piston head 137: Piston 138: Spring 140: Liquid storage part 150: Nozzle 160: Container cover 200: Means for temperature control of liquid in the liquid storage part 210: Aluminum block 220: cartridge heater 300: means for dispensing liquid 310: push rod 320, 420: pulse motor 400: means for moving the liquid container to a predetermined dispensing position 410: holder for movement

Claims (4)

A liquid-tight and air-tight flexible container provided with one or more openings;
A port capable of being liquid-tightly connected to one of the openings and capable of taking out the liquid contained in the flexible container ;
A pump for sucking / discharging the liquid taken out from the port;
A liquid reservoir capable of adjusting the temperature of a predetermined amount of liquid provided between the port and the suction side of the pump;
A nozzle for discharging the liquid provided on the discharge side of the pump ;
Liquid container with The axis of the flow path that communicates between one of the openings of the flexible container and the liquid storage section provided in the port is inclined with respect to the axis that connects one of the openings and the suction side of the pump. The liquid container according to claim 1 . The pump is composed of a cylindrical part provided with a suction part and a discharge part, and a branch part branched in a direction perpendicular to the cylindrical part from a side surface of the cylindrical part,
Each of the suction part and the discharge part provided in the cylindrical part is provided with one or more check valves,
The branch portion slidable piston elastically supported by a spring in is provided, a pump, a liquid container according to claim 1 or 2. A liquid-tight and air-tight flexible container provided with one or more openings, and a port capable of being liquid-tightly connected to one of the openings and capable of taking out the liquid contained in the flexible container A pump for sucking / discharging the liquid taken out from the port; a liquid storage portion capable of controlling the temperature of a predetermined amount of liquid provided between the port and the suction side of the pump; and a discharge side of the pump A liquid container provided with a nozzle for discharging the liquid provided in
Means for controlling the temperature of the liquid in the liquid reservoir;
Means for driving the pump to dispense liquid;
Means for moving the liquid container to a predetermined dispensing position;
Automatic dispensing device with

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