JPH01277758A - Automatic apparatus for chemical analysis - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To lessen a photometric downtime due to a fault of a lamp, by providing a current detecting means to detect a lamp current and by turning OFF a lamp power source when the lamp current is not detected. CONSTITUTION:A lamp power source 13 supplying a power to a light source lamp 7 is provided, while a current detecting means 14 detecting an electrification current for the lamp 7 is provided. In the case when the current detecting means 14 detects no current due to disconnection of the lamp 7 or any other cause, CPU 11 opens a lamp power source circuit switching means 16. After measures of replacement of the lamp and others are taken, the lamp power source circuit switching means 16 is closed. According to this method, repairs for a fault of a photometric system can be performed without turning OFF a main power source, and therefore downtime due to the fault can be lessened to the minimum.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to an automatic chemical analyzer that reacts a sample with a reagent and measures the concentration of a specific component in the reaction solution.

(Prior art) For example, serum collected from a human body is used as a sample, a desired reagent is reacted with it, and the concentration of a specific component in this reaction solution is measured by, for example, a colorimetric method to obtain a desired item. Total protein (TP>.

2. Description of the Related Art Automatic chemical analyzers that analyze urine M (UA), triglycerides (TG), and the like are known.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing the structure of such an analyzer, in which a plurality of reaction vessels 2 are arranged in a circular constant temperature bath 1.
These reaction vessels 2 are intermittently moved in the direction of the arrow at a constant rate of one stroke by a drive source (not shown). A sample dispensing nozzle 3 is arranged at position A around the constant temperature bath 1, a reagent dispensing nozzle 4 is arranged at position B, and a stirring bar 5 is arranged at position C. While the reaction vessel 2 is stopped, a desired sample to be analyzed is dispensed by the sample dispensing nozzle 3 into the reaction vessel 2 at position 8, and the sample to be analyzed is dispensed into the reaction vessel 2 at position B.
A desired reagent that reacts with the sample is dispensed by the reagent dispensing nozzle 4, and at position C, the reaction solution consisting of the sample and reagent in the reaction vessel 2 is stirred by the stirrer 5. Further, a photometry system 6 including a light source lamp 7 and a photodetector 8 is provided at a position in the middle of the movement path of the reaction container 2, and is arranged through the reaction container 2. The device is configured such that chemical analysis of a desired item is performed by measuring the concentration by a colorimetric method.

FIG. 3 shows the configuration of the power supply system of such an analyzer. An apparatus power supply 9 is provided to supply power during the rest of the apparatus, and from this, each power supply is supplied to each unit including the photometry system 6. It is now possible to do so. As a result, for example, the photometry system 6 starts photometry operation, and the output of the photodetector 8 is applied to the A/D converter 10 via various amplifiers (not shown).
The digital output of this A/D converter 10 is applied to a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11 to perform various calculations and control operations.

If some kind of failure occurs in the photometry system 6 in such an analyzer, for example, if the light source lamp 7 burns out, the output of the A/D converter 10 will drop, and this will cause the CPU to
11, and the failure display means 12 displays that fact. Therefore, the operator will turn off the device power supply 9 based on the fault indication.
After stabilizing, the light source lamp 7 is replaced and the device power source 9 is turned on again to restart the photometry operation.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) By the way, in conventional analyzers, when a failure occurs in the photometry system, countermeasures are taken such as turning off the device power and then replacing the light source lamp. When the downtime becomes large, there is always a problem. In other words, when the analyzer is powered off, not only the photometry system but also other units such as the thermostatic chamber are powered off, allowing the instrument to resume operation in a stable state. Since the samurai has to wait for the temperature of the constant temperature bath, etc., which had previously dropped due to being turned off, to rise to normal temperature again, it is inevitable that downtime will increase.

The present invention was made in response to the above circumstances.
The object of the present invention is to provide an automatic chemical analyzer that can take measures against failures of the photometric system without turning off the power of the device.

[Structure of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a lamp power source for supplying power to the light source lamp, and a current detection means for detecting the lamp current. A control means is provided to turn off the lamp power when no power is detected.

(Function) When the lamp power supply is set and the lamp current is not detected by the current detection means, the lamp power supply is turned off by the control means. As a result, after 5M of lamp replacement measures have been taken, the lamp power is turned on and the photometry operation is restarted. Therefore, it is possible to take measures against failures in the photometry system without turning off the power of the apparatus, thereby minimizing downtime.

(Example) Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the automatic chemical analyzer of the present invention, in which a lamp power source 13 is connected in series to a light source lamp 7 constituting a photometric system 6, and a current detecting means 14 for detecting the lamp current. For example, electric current and lamp electric! A lamp power circuit opening/closing means 16, such as a switch, for turning off these lamp power supply circuits 15 including '13 is connected in series.

Furthermore, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11 to which the output of the photometry system 6 is applied is connected between the current detection means 14 and the lamp power supply circuit opening/closing means 16. The output of the current detection means 14 is always applied to the CPU 11, so that if any failure occurs in the lamp power supply circuit 15, it is immediately detected and necessary control operations are performed. The input means 17 is composed of a keyboard, and is used to enter data and turn on the lamp power circuit 15 again after necessary troubleshooting measures have been taken for the lamp power circuit 15.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained.

If some kind of failure occurs in the lamp power supply circuit 15 of the photometric system 6 during operation of the analyzer including the photometric system 6. For example, if the light source lamp 7 burns out, the lamp current will stop flowing, so the photometric operation will stop and this state will cause the current It is detected by the detection means 14. As a result, the CPU 11, which constantly monitors the output of the current detection means 14, determines this abnormal situation.
A control operation is immediately performed to open the lamp power supply circuit opening/closing means 1G. As a result, the lamp power supply circuit 15 is completely turned on, so that the operator can replace the light source lamp 7. Subsequently, data necessary for turning on the lamp power supply circuit 15 is input using the input means 17, and the CPU 11 is caused to perform a control operation to close the lamp power supply circuit opening/closing means 16. As a result, the lamp power supply circuit 15 is completely turned on, and the light source lamp 7 is turned on, so that the photometry operation is performed.

According to this embodiment, countermeasures such as replacing the light source lamp 7 can be taken by simply turning off the lamp power supply circuit 15 of the photometry system 6 while keeping the power of the device in the on state without turning off the device. This allows you to minimize downtime. In other words, since the power supplied to other units other than the photometry system 6 is not turned off, it is possible to fix only necessary malfunctions while keeping the operating state of the thermostatic oven etc. in a stable state. Therefore, the time required until device operation can be resumed can be kept to the minimum necessary.

In this embodiment, the case where the light source lamp 7 of the photometry system 6 burns out has been explained as an example, but the case where a failure occurs due to other causes can be dealt with in the same way. For example, even if the lamp power supply 13 itself fails and it becomes impossible to supply current to the light source lamp 7, this state will be detected by the current detection means 14 as J, so necessary measures will be taken in the same way. be able to. In addition, in the event that some kind of failure occurs in the lamp power supply circuit, a warning means such as a buzzer is prepared in advance at the same time as this is detected, and the CPU 11 performs a control operation such as issuing an alarm, thereby taking immediate countermeasures. It becomes possible to give lectures.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, a failure in the photometry system is detected by detecting the current in the lamp power supply circuit, and a countermeasure for the failure is taken by turning off the lamp power supply. This prevents you from spending more time than necessary for countermeasures, and downtime can be kept to a minimum.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the automatic chemical analyzer of the present invention, Figure 2 is a schematic plan view showing an example of the configuration of the automatic chemical analyzer, and Figure 3 is the power supply of a conventional automatic chemical analyzer. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the system. 6... Photometry system, 7... Light source lamp, 8... Photodetector, 11... CPU (central processing unit), 13.
...Lamp power supply, 14...Current detection means, 15...
Lamp power supply circuit, 16... Lamp power supply circuit opening/closing means. Figure 1

Claims (1)

[Claims] In an automatic chemical analyzer that reacts a reagent with a sample and measures the concentration of a specific component in the reaction solution using a photometric system, the photometric system includes a light source lamp that irradiates the reaction solution with light and a current that supplies current to the light source lamp. 1. An automatic chemical analyzer comprising: a lamp power supply for detecting a lamp current; a current detection means for detecting a lamp current; and a control means for turning off the lamp power supply when no lamp current is detected.