JP6820594B2 - Specimen basket - Google Patents

Description

The present application relates to a specimen basket in which a plurality of plates are stacked and held at intervals in the thickness direction.

Specimen baskets for laminating and holding plates (for example, slide glass, etc.) holding survey specimens at intervals in the thickness direction have been widely known. Such specimen baskets are used when transporting multiple plates or immersing them in a chemical solution. When immersing the plates in a chemical solution, the plurality of plates are housed in a basket, and then the plurality of plates are immersed in the chemical solution for each basket. That is, the basket containing the plurality of plates is put into the container in which the chemical solution is stored.

Here, Patent Document 1 includes dyeing including a substantially rectangular parallelepiped basket body (main body portion) for accommodating a plurality of slide glasses (plates) and a handle (grip portion) for picking up the basket body. The basket (specimen basket) is disclosed. The handle can be moved near the widthwise end of the basket body when the slide glass is inserted and removed.

Further, Patent Document 2 includes a specimen basket (specimen basket) provided with an accommodating portion (main body portion) for accommodating a plurality of slide glasses (plates) and a detachable hanging tool (grip portion) in the accommodating portion. It is disclosed.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-35386 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 7-260649

Here, as in Patent Document 1, in the conventional sample basket in which the grip portion is not removed, the grip portion is configured to protrude greatly to the outside of the main body portion. If the grips pop out, it becomes difficult to line up and stack the specimen baskets. Further, when various processing on the plate is to be automatically performed by an automatic processing device, it is desirable that the sample basket has a simple shape that is easy to handle by a machine or the like, for example, a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape in which the grip portion does not protrude outward. .. However, in the sample basket of Patent Document 1, the grip portion protrudes to the outside, and it is difficult to apply it to an automatic processing device. Further, the sample basket is put into the container in which the chemical solution is stored, but when the grip portion pops out, the container cannot be covered depending on the direction of the pop-out and the amount of pop-out, which may lead to deterioration of the chemical solution or an unintended phenomenon. was there.

As in Patent Document 2, a basket having a removable grip portion can be formed into a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape by removing the grip portion, if necessary, so that the grip portion does not protrude outward. However, it takes time to attach and detach the grip portion as appropriate, and it becomes difficult to grip the basket when the grip portion is removed. That is, conventionally, there has been no specimen basket that is easy to handle but suppresses the grip portion from popping out.

Therefore, the present application discloses a sample basket that is easy to handle and suppresses the grip portion from popping out.

The sample basket disclosed in the present application is a main body portion that holds a plurality of plates stacked and held at intervals in the thickness direction, and has a main body portion having an opening on the top surface thereof that allows insertion and removal of the plates. A grip portion having a main portion extending in the direction of the lamination and a pair of connecting portions for connecting the main portion to the main body portion is provided, and the grip portion includes the connecting portion with respect to the main body portion. by swinging and moving Te, a standing posture in which the main portion is opposed to the opening, the housing orientation the main portion extends along the side wall of the body portion, changeable der to is, the main body portion, It comprises a pair of front and rear walls that are substantially orthogonal to the side wall and face each other, and the specimen basket further comprises a mounting plate that forms a gap between the front and rear walls to which the connecting portion can slide. The connecting portion has a substantially flat plate shape to be inserted into the gap, and a stopper for inhibiting the detachment from the gap is formed in the vicinity of the base end thereof .

With such a configuration, in the accommodating posture , the main portion follows the side wall of the main body portion, so that the size of the sample basket can be kept small without removing the grip portion from the main body portion. As a result, it is possible to prevent the grip portion from popping out while being easy to handle. As a result, for example, the sample baskets can be arranged and stacked, and the sample baskets can be easily handled by the automatic processing device. Here, "the main portion is along the side wall of the main body portion" means that the main portion extends in a direction substantially parallel to the side wall and the main portion is in contact with the outer surface of the side wall, or the main portion. It means that the outer surface of the side wall is connected to the outer surface of the side wall, or the main part is located inside the outer surface of the side wall. Further, by forming the connecting portion into a substantially flat plate shape that is slidably sandwiched between the front and rear walls and the mounting plate, an appropriate frictional force is likely to be generated between the connecting portion and the front and rear walls and the mounting plate, and the connecting portion can be formed. It becomes easier to prevent falling and rocking due to its own weight. As a result, it is possible to prevent a collision between the grip portion and the plate due to a drop of the connecting portion or the like. Further, by making the connecting portion substantially flat, it is possible to maintain sufficient strength while suppressing the thickness.

Further, the side wall is formed with a recess or a hole recessed inside the main body portion, and the main portion may be accommodated in the recess or the hole in the accommodation posture .

By forming a recess or a hole in the side wall and accommodating the main portion in the recess or the hole, it is possible to prevent the main portion from protruding outward from the main body portion or reduce the amount of protrusion in the accommodating posture .

Further, the main portion may have a substantially flat plate shape so as to be inclined with respect to the top surface of the main body portion in the standing posture and substantially parallel to the outer surface of the side wall in the accommodation posture .

The main portion of the housing posture, by substantially parallel to the outer surface of the side wall, eliminating the pop-out to the outside from the main body portion of the main portion in accommodating position, or it is possible to reduce the amount of protrusion. Further, by making the main part substantially flat, it is possible to maintain sufficient strength while suppressing the thickness.

In this case, in the accommodation posture , the outer surface of the main part may be connected to the outer surface of the side wall so that the main part fits within the width of the main body part.

With such a configuration, it is possible to prevent the main body from protruding outward from the main body in the accommodation posture .

Further, the connecting portion may extend in the height direction in the standing posture and may extend in the inclined direction with respect to the height direction and the width direction in the accommodating posture .

With such a configuration, it is possible to eliminate the protrusion of the connecting portion from the main body portion to the outside or reduce the amount of protrusion in the accommodation posture while lengthening the connecting portion to some extent.

According to the specimen basket disclosed in the present application, since the main portion follows the side wall of the main body portion in the stored state, the protrusion of the grip portion of the specimen basket can be reduced or eliminated without removing the grip portion from the main body portion. As a result, a sample basket can be obtained that is easy to handle and can prevent the grip portion from popping out.

It is a perspective view of the specimen basket in the contained state. It is a perspective view of the specimen basket in an upright state. It is a perspective view of the grip part. It is a figure explaining the movement of the grip part. It is a figure which shows an example of the rack used in an automatic processing apparatus.

Hereinafter, the configuration of the sample basket 10 will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 and 2 are perspective views of the sample basket 10. Further, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the grip portion 14 used for the sample basket 10. The sample basket 10 houses and holds a plurality of plates 100 holding a sample for investigation. The survey sample is not particularly limited as long as it is a sample to be surveyed or analyzed, and for example, a tissue section collected from a living body is applicable. The plate 100 is a substantially rectangular thin plate, for example, a slide glass. The plurality of plates 100 are stored, transported, or immersed in a chemical solution in a state of being housed in the sample basket 10. The specimen basket 10 disclosed in the present application is a staining basket particularly suitable for staining a tissue section which is a specimen for investigation.

The sample basket 10 is roughly divided into a substantially rectangular main body portion 12 and a grip portion 14. Both the main body portion 12 and the grip portion 14 are made of a material that is not deteriorated by a chemical solution (for example, a dyeing solution). Therefore, the main body portion 12 and the grip portion 14 are made of an inorganic material having excellent chemical resistance, for example, a metal material such as stainless steel or aluminum, or an organic material having excellent chemical resistance, for example, fluororesin.

The main body portion 12 is a substantially box-shaped body in which a plurality of plates 100 are laminated and accommodated at intervals in the thickness direction thereof. The top surface of the main body 12 is completely open, allowing the plate 100 to be inserted and removed. The main body portion 12 includes a pair of front and rear walls 18, a pair of side walls 20, and a bottom surface portion 22. The pair of front and rear walls 18 face each other with a gap in the stacking direction of the plates 100 (Y direction in FIGS. 1 and 2). A mounting plate 16 described later is attached to the outer surface of the front and rear walls 18. Further, the front and rear walls 18 are opened at the lower half thereof in order to facilitate the entry of a chemical solution such as a dyeing solution into the main body portion 12.

The pair of side walls 20 face each other with a gap in the width direction of the plate 100 (X direction in FIGS. 1 and 2). Each side wall 20 is formed with two recesses 24 recessed toward the inside of the main body 12 at intervals in the height direction (Y direction in FIGS. 1 and 2). The recess 24 is formed over the entire longitudinal direction (stacking direction) of the side wall 20. A plurality of slits 26 extending in the height direction are formed in each recess 24 at intervals in the longitudinal direction. The widthwise end edge of the plate 100 is inserted into the slit 26. Further, a strip-shaped strip extending in the height direction is formed between the slit 26 and the slit 26, and the strip functions as a partition for partitioning the plate 100 and the plate 100.

The bottom surface portion 22 is also formed with a recess 28 recessed toward the inside of the main body portion 12. A plurality of slits 30 extending in the width direction are also formed in the recess 28 at intervals in the longitudinal direction, and the bottom edge in the longitudinal direction of the plate 100 is inserted into the slits 30. Further, a strip-shaped strip extending in the width direction is formed between the slit 30 and the slit 30, and the strip functions as a partition for partitioning the plate 100 and the plate 100.

The grip portion 14 is a portion to be gripped when the specimen basket 10 is lifted, and has a standing posture that greatly protrudes from the main body portion 12 as shown in FIG. 1 and a side wall 20 of the main body portion 12 as shown in FIG. It is possible to change to the accommodation posture along. The grip portion 14 is roughly classified into a main portion 32 and a pair of connecting portions 34 connected to both ends of the main portion 32. The main portion 32 and the connecting portion 34 are both substantially flat plates.

The main portion 32 is a portion actually gripped by the user and crosses the main body portion 12 in the stacking direction. The main portion 32 faces the opening of the main body portion 12 in the standing posture, and is along the side wall 20 of the main body portion 12 in the accommodating posture. Further, as is clear from FIG. 3, the main portion 32 is attached at an angle with respect to the connecting portion 34, and in the standing posture, the main portion 32 is inclined with respect to the top surface of the main body portion 12 (height as it advances in the width direction). The position has changed), and in the accommodation posture, it is substantially parallel to the side wall 20.

The connecting portion 34 is a flat plate-shaped portion extending from both ends of the main portion 32. The connecting portion 34 is inserted into a gap 38 between the mounting plate 16 and the front and rear walls 18, which will be described later. From another point of view, the connecting portion 34 is slidably sandwiched between the mounting plate 16 and the front and rear walls 18. At the base end of the connecting portion 34 (the end opposite to the main portion 32), a stopper 36 is provided to prevent the connecting portion 34 from coming off from the gap 38. The stopper 36 is not particularly limited as long as it is larger than the thickness of the gap 38 and projects outward. In the illustrated example, the stopper 36 is a folded-back portion in which the base end of the connecting portion 34 is folded outward. In addition, instead of the folded-back portion, a pin or a screw protruding outward may be provided in the vicinity of the base end of the connecting portion 34, and the pin may be used as the stopper 36. In any case, by providing the stopper 36, the stopper 36 can swing and move along the front and rear walls 18 without separating from the front and rear walls 18.

The mounting plate 16 is a member for mounting the connecting portion 34 to the front and rear walls 18. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the mounting plate 16 has a substantially L-shape that advances in the width direction (X direction) near the upper end of the front and rear walls 18, then bends and advances downward in the height direction. Is. Both ends of the mounting plate 16 are in contact with and fixed to the outer surface of the front and rear walls 18, but the other parts stand up outside the front and rear walls 18 as shown in FIG. A gap 38 is formed between the two. The size of the gap 38 is not particularly limited as long as it is larger than the thickness of the connecting portion 34, but is large enough to generate an appropriate frictional force between the connecting portion 34 and the front and rear walls 18 and the mounting plate 16. Is desirable. Here, it is desirable that the appropriate frictional force is such that the gripping portion 14 can be suppressed from falling or falling due to its own weight. By generating such a frictional force, it is possible to prevent the grip portion 14 that has moved vigorously due to its own weight from colliding with the end edge of the plate 100 or the like.

Next, the movement of the grip portion 14 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a view for explaining the movement of the grip portion 14, and is a view of the sample basket 10 as viewed from the front. As described above, the grip portion 14 can take a standing posture and a housing posture.

In the upright posture, the connecting portion 34 of the grip portion 14 extends in the height direction at the center in the width direction as shown in FIG. 4A. At this time, the stopper 36 (folded portion) provided at the base end of the connecting portion 34 comes into contact with the height direction end portion of the mounting plate 16 extending in the width direction, so that the grip portion 14 is prevented from coming off. There is.

When changing from the standing posture to the accommodating posture, as shown in FIGS. 4 (b) and 4 (c), the connecting portion 34 was pushed slightly downward to eliminate the contact between the stopper 36 and the mounting plate 16. After that, the connecting portion 34 is swung while being pushed downward. Finally, as shown in FIG. 4D, the main portion 32 is housed in the recess 24 on the upper side of the side wall 20 in a state of being parallel to the side wall 20. At this time, the outer surface of the main portion 32 is connected to the outer surface of the side wall 20, and the main portion 32 is within the width of the main body portion 12. Further, as is clear from FIG. 4D, the connecting portion 34 is also within the width of the main body portion 12. As a result, in the housed state, the grip portion 14 is contained within the dimensions of the main body portion 12, and does not protrude to the outside of the main body portion 12.

As is clear from FIG. 4D, the connecting portion 34 is inclined with respect to the height direction (Z direction) and the width direction (X direction) in the accommodation state. That is, in the housed state, the connecting portion 34 is inclined so as to advance upward as it approaches the main portion 32 from the base end. By inclining the connecting portion 34 in this way, it is possible to prevent the connecting portion 34 from protruding from the main body portion 12 while lengthening the connecting portion 34 to some extent. That is, in order to easily grip in the standing posture, the main portion 32 protrudes to some extent larger than the main body portion 12, and the fingers can be inserted between the upper end of the plate 100 and the main portion 32. It is desirable that there is space, and the connecting portion 34 is desired to have a certain length. On the other hand, if the connecting portion 34 is lengthened, the connecting portion 34 may not fit within the width of the main body portion 12 in the accommodated state. However, if the connecting portion 34 is tilted in the accommodated state, the connecting portion 34 can be prevented from popping out even if the connecting portion 34 is lengthened to some extent.

By the way, as is clear from the description so far, according to the sample basket 10 disclosed in the present application, the grip portion 14 can be substantially accommodated within the dimensions of the main body portion 12. Therefore, the sample baskets 10 can be easily arranged and stacked. When the plate 100 is immersed in a chemical solution such as a staining solution, the plate 100 is immersed in the chemical solution together with the sample basket 10. At this time, depending on the type of the chemical solution, the container for storing the chemical solution (the container into which the sample basket 10 is put) may be covered in order to prevent deterioration or unintended decrease (evaporation) of the chemical solution. According to the sample basket 10 disclosed in the present application, since the grip portion of the sample basket 10 does not protrude upward in the stored state, the container grip portion and the lid do not interfere with each other, and the lid is securely closed. Can be done.

In addition, some have proposed an automatic processing device that automatically processes such a plate 100. In such an automatic processing apparatus, it is desired that the sample basket 10 has a substantially rectangular shape that can be easily conveyed by a conveyor or the like. Further, when the plate 100 is taken out from the sample basket 10, it is desired that the plate 100 and the grip portion 14 have a shape that does not easily interfere with each other.

In order to avoid such a problem, in Patent Document 2, when the cover piece is sent to the cover piece attaching device (automatic processing device) for attaching the cover piece to the cover plate (plate), the hanging tool (grasping tool) is sent from the specimen basket (specimen basket). The configuration for removing the part) is disclosed. However, it was very troublesome to attach and detach the grip portion as needed. In the sample basket 10 disclosed in the present application, as described above, by housing the grip portion 14, the grip portion 14 can be housed within the dimensions of the main body portion 12 without removing the grip portion 14. The entire specimen basket 10 can be formed into a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. Further, in the accommodated state, the grip portion 14 is completely separated from the opening of the main body portion 12, and the plate 100 to be inserted and removed does not interfere with the grip portion 14. As a result, according to the sample basket 10 disclosed in the present application, the application to the automatic processing apparatus becomes easy.

Further, in the sample basket 10 disclosed in the present application, the grip portion 14 has a substantially flat plate shape. By forming the grip portion 14 into a flat plate shape in this way, it is possible to suppress the thickness while ensuring sufficient strength. Then, by suppressing the thickness, it is possible to prevent the grip portion 14 from popping out in the accommodated state. That is, the grip portion 14 is not limited to a flat plate shape, but may be a wire shape. However, in order to secure sufficient strength of the wire-shaped member, it is necessary to increase the diameter of the wire-shaped member. However, if the diameter of the wire-like member is increased, it may not fit in the recess 24 in the housed state and may pop out from the main body 12. On the other hand, if the grip portion 14 has a flat plate shape, the strength can be secured while reducing the thickness, so that the grip portion 14 can be stored in the recess 24 in the accommodated state, and the grip portion 14 can be prevented from popping out from the main body portion 12.

Further, by making the grip portion 14 substantially flat plate-shaped, the contact area with the front and rear walls 18 and the mounting plate 16 is increased, and thus the frictional force is increased, so that the grip portion 14 can be prevented from falling or falling due to its own weight. That is, when the grip portion 14 is a wire-like member, the contact area with the mounting plate 16 and the front and rear walls 18 is reduced, and the frictional force is reduced, so that the grip portion 14 is likely to fall or fall due to its own weight. If the grip portion 14 is dropped or collapsed due to its own weight, a part of the grip portion 14 may collide with the end edge of the plate 100. If the grip portion 14 has a substantially flat plate shape, such a problem can be effectively prevented.

The configuration described so far is an example, and the grip portion 14 has a standing posture in which the main portion 32 crosses the opening of the main body portion 12 facing the opening, and the main portion 32 is along the side wall 20 of the main body portion 12. Other configurations may be modified as appropriate, provided that the containment posture is variable. For example, in the above description, the connecting portion 34 is slidably sandwiched between the mounting plate 16 and the front and rear walls 18, but if the connecting portion 34 can move and swing along the front and rear walls 18. , Other configurations may be used. For example, instead of omitting the mounting plate 16, a cam hole may be formed in the front and rear walls 18, and a pin inserted into the cam hole and moving along the cam hole may be provided in the connecting portion 34.

Further, in the above description, the main portion 32 and the connecting portion 34 of the grip portion 14 have a substantially flat plate shape, but as described above, if it is possible to prevent falling due to its own weight and reduce the thickness, The grip portion 14 may be composed of a wire-like member. Further, if the main portion 32 is thin enough to be tolerated, the recess 24 of the side wall 20 may be omitted, and the main portion 32 may overlap the outer surface of the side wall 20 in the housed state. Further, instead of the recess 24, the side wall 20 may be provided with a hole in which the main portion 32 in the housed state is housed.

Further, in the above description, the grip portion 14 is configured to tilt only on one side (right side in FIG. 4), but may be configured to tilt on both sides (right side and left side in FIG. 4). Therefore, for example, the mounting plate 16 is not substantially L-shaped, but is substantially U-shaped, that is, a portion extending in the width direction along the upper end piece of the front and rear walls 18, and extending in the width direction. The shape may have a portion extending downward in the height direction from both ends of the portion.

Further, when set in the automatic processing apparatus, a rack for holding a plurality of the above-mentioned sample baskets 10 side by side may be used. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a rack 110 used in an automatic processing device. The rack 110 has a base 112 and a plurality of partition walls 114 based on the base 112. The specimen basket 10 is housed in the space between the partition wall 114 and the partition wall 114 in a state of being laid down sideways (a state in which the front and rear walls 18 and the base 112 are parallel to each other). In this case, the automatic processing device may convey the sample basket 10 together with the rack 110. Further, the automatic processing device slides the plate 100 to be processed laterally and takes it out.

Here, in the sample basket 10 disclosed in the present application, the grip portion 14 is housed within the dimensions of the main body portion 12, and the entire sample basket 10 in the housed state is formed into a substantially rectangular parallelepiped without a partially protruding portion. Therefore, the sample basket 10 can be stably held even in the rack 110 having a simple shape as shown in FIG. Further, at this time, the grip portion 14 does not cross the upper end opening of the sample basket 10. Therefore, when the plate 100 is inserted and removed from the specimen basket 10, the grip portion 14 and the plate 100 do not interfere with each other, and the plate 100 can be inserted and removed by a simple mechanism.

10 Specimen basket, 12 main body, 14 grip, 16 mounting plate, 18 front and rear walls, 20 side walls, 22 bottom, 24,28 recesses, 26,30 slits, 32 mains, 34 connecting parts, 36 stoppers, 100 plates , 110 racks, 112 bases, 114 bulkheads.

Claims (5)

It ’s a specimen basket,
A main body that holds a plurality of plates in a laminated manner while being spaced apart in the thickness direction, and has an opening formed on the top surface of the main body that allows the plates to be inserted and removed.
A grip portion having a main portion extending in the direction of the lamination and a pair of connecting portions for connecting the main portion to the main body portion.
With
The grip portion has a standing posture in which the main portion faces the opening and a housing posture in which the main portion is along the side wall of the main body portion by swinging and moving the connecting portion with respect to the main body portion. And can be changed to
The main body includes a pair of front and rear walls that are substantially orthogonal to the side wall and face each other.
The specimen basket further includes a mounting plate that forms a gap between the front and rear walls so that the connecting portion can slide.
The connecting portion has a substantially flat plate shape to be inserted into the gap, and a stopper for inhibiting detachment from the gap is formed in the vicinity of the base end thereof.
Specimen basket characterized by that. The sample basket according to claim 1.
The side wall is formed with a recess or a hole recessed inside the main body.
The main portion is housed in the recess or hole in the housed posture.
Specimen basket characterized by that. The sample basket according to claim 1 or 2.
The specimen is characterized in that the main portion is substantially flat so as to be inclined with respect to the top surface of the main body portion in the standing posture and substantially parallel to the outer surface of the side wall in the accommodation posture. basket. The sample basket according to claim 3.
A specimen basket characterized in that, in the accommodating posture, the outer surface of the main portion is connected to the outer surface of the side wall so that the main portion fits within the width of the main body portion. The sample basket according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
The sample basket is characterized in that the connecting portion extends in the height direction in the standing posture and extends in a direction inclined with respect to the height direction and the width direction in the accommodation posture.

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