JPH0382965A - Automatic biochemical analyser - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To perform highly accurate distribution over a wide range by using a specimen distribution system corresponding to a scheduled suction amount. CONSTITUTION:The sampling mechanism of an analyser has a plurality of sampling syringe groups S1, S2 different in suction capacity connected to a nozzle flow passage (a) through change-over valves V1, V2, water supply flow passages b, c, d and a memory part M preliminarily storing scheduled suction amounts to be sampled. A syringe operating control part SC selects a syringe S1 small in its suction amount on the basis of the output of the memory part M when the scheduled suction amount is smaller than a predetermined value to connect the same to a nozzle flow passage (a) and sucks and emits a specimen of the scheduled suction amount and subsequently further emits water through the nozzle passage (a). When the scheduled suction amount is larger than a predetermined amount, the control part SC selects a syringe S2 large in a suction amount to connect the same to the nozzle flow passage (a) and selects said syringe S2 in order to suck and emit the specimen in the scheduled suction amount to perform drive control. By this constitution, accurate distribution becomes possible over a wide range.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (a) Field of Industrial Application This invention relates to an automatic biochemical analyzer. More specifically, the present invention relates to an automatic biochemical analyzer that measures the concentration or activity value of a target component in a biological sample containing multiple components such as serum or urine.

(B) Conventional technology An automatic biochemical analyzer that measures the concentration or activity value of a target component in a biological sample containing multiple components such as serum or urine analyzes the amount of sample necessary to measure the target component in a predetermined order. It is equipped with a sampling mechanism that samples the sample and discharges it into a predetermined container.A predetermined reagent is sequentially dispensed into the sample to be reacted, and the sample is extracted based on the change or rate of change in the absorbance of the resulting reaction solution. It is constructed so that the concentration or activity value of the target component contained therein can be determined.

As shown in FIG. 8, the automatic biochemical analyzer usually includes a sampling syringe (sl) with a small blunt diameter connected to the nozzle flow path (a), and a sampling syringe (sl) connected to the nozzle flow path (a),
) and a cleaning syringe (s2) with a large plunger diameter connected via a switching valve (v), but only the former (sl) functions as a sampling mechanism; At present, the latter (s2) is used for extrusion water in some cases.

(c) Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, when sampling is performed using one syringe as described above, there is a limit to the range of the amount that can be sampled. In fact, conventional sampling methods include a) aspirating (required amount + α) sample and dispensing the required amount, b) aspirating only the required amount of sample and dispensing the required amount + α (amount of water). In the case of method a) above, the syringe has a relatively large blunt diameter and is designed for a medium to large capacity (approximately 30 μQ), but there is a lot of sample loss and the amount of discharge is It has the disadvantage that it cannot be used.

On the other hand, in the case of method b) above, the syringe is made with a relatively small plunger diameter and a small to medium capacity (approximately 15 μQ) in order to improve the precision of micro-aspiration, but the stroke length There is a problem in that large-capacity sampling is impossible due to the relationship between

This invention has been made in view of the above situation, and aims to provide an automatic biochemical analyzer equipped with a sampling mechanism that can handle both small and large amounts of sample aspirated. .

- (d) Means for Solving the Problems Thus, according to the present invention, a sampling mechanism is provided for sampling samples in a predetermined order and discharging them into a predetermined container, and discharging water as necessary. An automatic biochemical analyzer that calculates the concentration or activity value of the target component contained in the sample based on the change or rate of change in the absorbance of the resulting reaction solution by sequentially dispensing prescribed reagents into the sample to be sampled and reacting them. (a)
a plurality of sampling syringe groups with different suction capacities connected to the nozzle flow path via a switching valve and a water supply flow path;
(b) a storage unit that stores in advance the scheduled suction volume to be sampled; and (c) based on the output of the storage unit, (i) selects a syringe with a smaller suction capacity when the scheduled suction volume is less than a predetermined value; After connecting this syringe to the nozzle flow path and aspirating and discharging the sample of the planned suction amount, water is further discharged through the nozzle flow path, and (i1) when the planned suction amount is larger than the predetermined amount, the suction capacity A biochemical automatic analyzer comprising a syringe operation control unit that selects a syringe with a large size, connects this syringe to a nozzle flow path, and controls the operation of the syringe to aspirate and discharge a predetermined amount of sample to be aspirated. is provided.

In the apparatus of the present invention, a sampling mechanism known in the art can be used as is, except for configuring the sampling mechanism as follows.

The sampling mechanism of the apparatus of the present invention includes a plurality of sampling syringe groups and a water supply channel connected to the nozzle channel via a switching valve, a storage section, and a syringe operation control section.

The syringe group is composed of syringes with different suction capacities. In this case, the difference in suction capacity may be formed based on the difference in the stroke length of the plungers, but from a structural point of view, it is preferable to create a structure in which a difference in suction amount occurs even if the stroke length is constant. This is preferable and requires a configuration that improves the accuracy of suctioning minute amounts, and is therefore preferably configured with a group of syringes with different syringe sizes (that is, plunger diameters). In this case, at least a small-diameter syringe suitable for a minute to small suction amount and a large-diameter syringe suitable for a medium-to-large suction amount are provided, and the number of syringes is not limited. That is, as the number of syringes increases, valves for switching connection to the nozzle flow path may be provided.

The water supply channel may be configured such that water can be supplied to the nozzle channel through one of the syringes, and the water supply channel may be configured such that water can be supplied to the nozzle channel through one of the syringes. It is also possible.

The storage unit stores the amount of suction to be sampled (planned suction i
1) can be stored in advance according to the sampling order.

The syringe operation control unit sequentially reads out the scheduled suction volume stored in the storage unit according to the sampling order, compares the read volume with a threshold value, and selects a syringe with a corresponding suction volume from the syringe group based on the comparison result. The selected syringe is selected from the following and is configured to drive the selected syringe in a predetermined suction/discharge method. The above threshold value may be set as appropriate, but it is preferable that it be a value that distinguishes between trace to small volume and medium to large volume. As a specific example in this case, for example, lO
For example, using μQ as a threshold value, a trace to small capacity is set to 1-10 μA, and a medium to large capacity is set to 1 L to 30 μQ. The suction/discharge drive of the syringe differs depending on whether the threshold rise is small or larger. The handling of this boundary value (equivalent to the threshold value) may be included in any of the above as appropriate. If it is smaller than the threshold, water is supplied to the nozzle flow path and ejected so as to push out the sample remaining in the nozzle flow path after the selected syringe is driven for suction and ejection. On the other hand, if the threshold rise is large, the selected syringe will aspirate and eject the planned suction volume, but at this time, it will suction in excess of the scheduled suction volume stored in the storage unit, and from this excess suction volume a predetermined amount will be determined. Preferably, the plunger of the syringe is driven to dispense up to an amount of .

(E) Effect According to this invention, when sampling a sample, first,
The pre-stored planned suction amount is compared with a predetermined value, and based on this comparison, a syringe with a suction capacity that is compatible with the planned suction amount is selected. In the above comparison, if the planned suction amount is smaller than the predetermined value, the sample of the planned suction amount is aspirated by the syringe selected at that time, and the entire amount is discharged from the nozzle channel. Subsequently, water is supplied to this nozzle channel, and the sample remaining in the channel is poured out together with the water.

On the other hand, in the above comparison, if the planned suction volume is larger than the predetermined value, then the selected syringe will aspirate a sample in excess of the scheduled suction volume, and only the scheduled suction volume will be discharged from the nozzle flow path. .

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited thereby.

(F) Embodiment FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the main part configuration, centering on the sampling mechanism, of an example of the automatic biochemical analyzer of the present invention. In the example of this figure, the sampling mechanism (S) includes two syringes S,
This shows what S2 is applied to.

In the same figure, Vl and Vt are three-way solenoid valves, S, , S
2 are syringes with different diameters (however, Sl<S2), S
C is the syringe operation control unit, and a is the sample suction nozzle N at the tip.
and W represents degassed water, respectively. Note that b, c, and d each indicate a flow path for connection.

The syringe operation control section SC has a built-in CPU and is composed of a storage section M, a comparison section C, and a drive section.

The storage unit M stores the scheduled suction amount of the sample to be sampled, and the scheduled suction amount is read out to the sampling unit via the CPU. The comparison section C has a threshold value of lO.
μQ, if the planned suction amount is 1 to 10 μQ, use syringe S1, and if the planned suction amount is 11 to 30 μQ, use syringe S.
, are outputted to the driving section via the CPU. In the drive section, if the syringe S1 is selected by the output signal from the comparison section C, the syringe S1 is selected by the output signal from the comparison section C.
One plunger is driven to suck, and then this plunger is driven to discharge. After that, the three-way solenoid valve is switched so that the syringe S discharges degassed water.
to drive. Further, when the syringe S2 is selected by the output signal from the comparison section C, the plunger of the syringe S is driven to suck, and then the plunger is driven to eject.

The operation will be explained below based on specific examples and drawings.

(i) Assuming that the amount of sample to be aspirated is 5μQ,
When this amount is read from the storage section, it is compared in the comparison section,
As a result, syringe S1 is selected.

At this time, vl is first switched to the Sl side, and v2 is switched to the W side. Nozzle N moves to the sample suction position,
The nozzle tip goes down and enters the sample. On the S1 side, the plunger is lowered by a predetermined amount of sample (5μ0) to aspirate the sample, and on the S2 side it is lowered by a certain distance (Figure 2).

Next, the nozzle N moves to the sample dispensing position, and the plunger on the S1 side rises to dispense the sample (FIG. 3). Subsequently, Yl is switched to the S side, the plunger on the S2 side is raised, and the sample remaining inside the nozzle is discharged together with water (FIG. 4).

(i1) When the sample amount is 20 μe, when this amount is read from the storage section, it is compared in the comparison section, and as a result, the unring S2 is selected. At this time, during sample suction and discharge, the plunger moves up and down at the respective positions while Vl and V are switched to S2I11 (FIG. 5).

Regardless of the sample amount, after discharging the sample, the nozzle moves to the cleaning position, ■1 is on the S side, v2 is on the W side, S is lowered, ■ is switched to the V side, and the plunger is The rising nozzle side is cleaned (Fig. 6, Fig. 7). After repeating this process several times, the next sample is sampled.

Note that the entire flow path is filled with water, so when aspirating and discharging a small amount of sample, the sample remaining in the nozzle at the time of discharge is pushed out by water, so there is always water at the tip of the nozzle. Even if sampling of the remaining trace amount is repeated, the concentration value will hardly be affected.

(G) Effects of the Invention According to the present invention, since a sample dispensing method is used according to the planned suction amount, accurate dispensing over a wide range of amounts is possible. Furthermore, it is also applicable when sample 2 must be diluted.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the main parts of an example of the automatic biochemical analyzer of the present invention, centering on the zumbling mechanism, and FIGS. 2 to 7
This figure is an explanatory diagram for explaining the sampling operation of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 8 is a diagram corresponding to FIG. 1 of a conventional example. S...Zumbling mechanism, S,, Sl...Sampling syringe, v,...
y...Three-way solenoid valve, SC...Syringe operation control section, M...Storage section, C...Comparison section, D...Drive section, a... Nozzle flow path, N... Sample suction nozzle W... Degassed water. Chiku 2 Diagram of the Kanto Fueto No. 1 Defense Unexamined Patent Publication No. 3-82965 (5) Fig.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A sampling mechanism that samples samples in a predetermined order and discharges them into a predetermined container and discharges water as necessary, and sequentially applies a predetermined reagent to the sampled sample. It consists of an automatic biochemical analyzer that calculates the concentration or activity value of the target component contained in the sample based on the change or rate of change in the absorbance of the obtained reaction solution by dispensing the sample and reacting, and the sampling mechanism is (a) ) a plurality of sampling syringe groups with different suction capacities and a water supply flow path connected to the nozzle flow path via a switching valve; (b) a storage unit that stores in advance a scheduled suction amount to be sampled; (c) Based on the output of the storage unit, (i) If the planned suction volume is less than a predetermined value, select a syringe with a smaller suction capacity, connect this syringe to the nozzle flow path, and aspirate the sample of the planned suction volume. After discharging, water is further discharged through the nozzle flow path. (ii) If the planned suction amount is larger than the predetermined amount, select a syringe with a larger suction capacity, connect this syringe to the nozzle flow path, and set the planned suction amount. An automatic biochemical analyzer comprising a syringe operation control unit that selects and controls a syringe to aspirate and discharge a sample.