JPH0434367A - Chemical analyser - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To suppress the measuring error based on the temp. difference at every places of a thermostatic mechanism part by operating a feed mechanism part so as to minimize the stationary time of an analytical slide at a certain point on the thermostatic mechanism part. CONSTITUTION:Excepting a time when an analytical slide is inserted in a slide feed route or discharged therefrom, an analyser is controlled so as to feed the analytical slide S when the analytical slide S is present on a thermostatic mechanism part D. When the analytical slide S is present only in the slide receiving part 6a of a disc 6 and there is a time equal to or more than the time required in one revolution of a feed mechanism part H during the period from the point of time when a sample to be examined is dripped to the analytical slide S to the measuring or calibrating point of time of the first analytical slide S, the feed mechanism part H is operated so as to make one revolution. By this method, the stationary time of the analytical slide S at a certain point on the thermostatic mechanism part D is minimized.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to a chemical analyzer that performs biochemical tests using analysis slides.

[Conventional technology] In biochemical analysis, for example, GOT, GPT.

There are devices that allow multiple biochemical tests including glucose, urea nitrogen, etc.

As such a biochemical test, a method is known in which analysis slides are used for rapid measurement. We provide chemical analysis equipment that enables quick and accurate measurement and testing.

This measurement method using analysis slides is quick and can perform sufficient tests with a small amount of liquid sample, so it is used, for example, in clinical chemistry tests that use precious body fluids such as blood. It is preferably used for chemically analyzing the presence or absence of a specific component in the blood, its content, etc. by dropping it and measuring the reflection density.

As a chemical analyzer that performs a measurement method using an analysis slide as described in 2, it includes a slide supply mechanism section that supplies the analysis slide, a sample dropping mechanism section that supplies the test sample to the analysis slide, and a constant temperature mechanism section that maintains the analysis slide at a constant temperature. a slide insertion mechanism section that inserts the analysis slide into the thermostatic mechanism section; a measurement mechanism section that measures the amount of the sample to be measured on the analysis slide; and a transport mechanism section that transports the analysis slide along a predetermined slide transport path. In some cases, the slide conveyance path is annular on the constant temperature mechanism section.

[The invention attempts to solve i! i! ] In a conventional chemical analyzer in which the slide transport path is annular on the constant temperature mechanism section, when inserting the analysis slides, a group of analysis slides are inserted together, sample supply by dropping the sample, photometry of the analysis slides, and analysis slides are performed. During the period from the time when the drop is applied to the last analytical slide in the group of analytical slides to the time when photometry is performed on the first analytical slide, the transport mechanism is not used except for transporting the analytical slide to the fixed position. had stopped.

Therefore, each analysis slide is kept at a constant temperature at a fixed position in the constant temperature mechanism, so if there is a difference in temperature at each location in the constant temperature mechanism, the transport environment temperature will be different, which may cause an error in the measured value.

This invention was made in view of this point, and its purpose is to minimize the time that the analysis slide remains stationary at a certain point on the thermostatic mechanism, as long as it does not interfere with measurements, etc.
This is to operate the transport mechanism section and suppress measurement errors based on differences between locations of the constant temperature mechanism section.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, the invention according to claim 1 provides a slide feeding mechanism unit that supplies an analysis slide, a sample dropping mechanism unit that supplies a test sample to the analysis slide, a constant temperature mechanism section that maintains the analysis slide at a constant temperature; a slide insertion mechanism section that inserts the analysis slide into the constant temperature mechanism section; a measurement mechanism section that measures the amount of the sample to be measured on the analysis slide; and a transport mechanism section for transporting slides along a slide transport path, and the slide transport path forms an annular shape on the constant temperature mechanism section, wherein an analysis slide is inserted into the slide transport path or from the slide transport path. The method is characterized in that, except when the analysis slide is being discharged, the transport is performed when the analysis slide is present on the constant temperature mechanism section.

Further, in the invention according to claim 2, the transport mechanism section is configured such that the transport mechanism section
If there is a time longer than the time required for rotation, the transport mechanism section is operated for one rotation at an arbitrary transport speed.

Further, the invention according to claim 3 provides that the time required for the transport mechanism to rotate once or more is longer than the time required for the transport mechanism to rotate once until the photometry or calibration of the first analysis slide. If there is time, the method is characterized in that the transport mechanism section is repeatedly operated for one rotation at an arbitrary transport speed.

Furthermore, in the invention according to claim 4, the transport mechanism section is configured such that the transport mechanism section
It is characterized in that the conveyance is carried out at a conveyance speed of at least 2 rotations and at most 2 rotations.

[Function] In the invention described in claims 1 to 3, the transport mechanism is moved so that the time during which the analysis slide remains stationary at a certain point on the thermostatic mechanism is minimized as long as it does not interfere with measurements, etc. This suppresses measurement errors due to differences between locations of the thermostatic mechanism.

In addition, in consideration of friction, fatigue, etc. caused by the rotation of the transport mechanism, the invention according to claim 4 provides a method for displacing the sample between the time of dropping the sample onto the last analysis slide and the measurement or calibration of the first analysis slide. The conveyance speed is controlled so that the conveyance mechanism rotates no less than 1 rotation and no more than 2 rotations, thereby obtaining the effect of rotation while minimizing frictional fatigue of the conveyance mechanism.

[Embodiments] Hereinafter, embodiments of the chemical analysis apparatus of the present invention will be described in detail based on the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a chemical analysis apparatus.

This chemical analyzer drops a sample onto an analysis slide S, measures the change in color density caused by the reaction, and chemically analyzes the presence or absence of a specific component in the sample. , a sample dropping mechanism section B, a slide insertion mechanism section C1, a constant temperature mechanism section D1, a measurement mechanism section E, a calibration mechanism section F, a slide ejection mechanism section G, and a transport mechanism section H, which are controlled by a control device I. .

Analysis slide S The analysis slide S is prepared according to many items including GOT, GPT, glucose, urea nitrogen, etc. The analysis element 1 having a reagent is attached to the recess in the center of the analysis slide S. ing.

Slide Supply Mechanism Section A The slide supply mechanism section A supplies the analysis slides S to the constant temperature mechanism section. This slide supply mechanism section A is equipped with a conveyance roller 2 that can rotate in forward and reverse directions, for example.

When the analysis slide S is inserted, this is detected and the transport roller 2 is driven by the control device I to send the analysis slide S in the direction of the constant temperature mechanism section. This constant temperature mechanism operates in the transport mechanism H to transport the analysis slide S to the sample dropping mechanism B.

In addition, the slide supply mechanism section A is equipped with, for example, a barcode reader (not shown), which reads the barcode of the analysis slide S that has started being transported, and when this information is input, it is displayed on the display of the chemical analyzer via the control device I. Information such as inspection items and calibration of the analysis slide S is displayed.

Sample Dropping Mechanism Section B The sample dropping mechanism section B allows a sample to be dropped onto the analysis slide S, and the analysis slide S is supplied from the constant temperature mechanism section. The sample dropping mechanism section B has a dropping shutter 3 that is controlled via the control device I in conjunction with the transport mechanism section H and the storage position of the analysis slide S to be transported to the transport mechanism section H, and that opens and closes automatically. Automatic dripping is performed.

Therefore, the analysis slide S supplied from the slide supply mechanism section A is temporarily held in the sample dropping mechanism section B, and the sample is dropped here. Thereafter, a sample is dropped onto the analysis slide S, synchronized with the operation of the transport mechanism section H, and inserted into the constant temperature mechanism section by the operation of the slide insertion mechanism section C.

This dropping of the sample may be performed manually by the inspector, or may be performed by an automatic dropping mechanism.

Slide insertion mechanism section C The slide insertion mechanism section C is equipped with a sample dropping mechanism section Bk-, and when the sample dropping onto the analysis slide S is completed, the transport roller 4 is driven via the control device by, for example, a key operation.
The analysis slide S is transported to the constant temperature mechanism section.

The constant temperature mechanism section keeps the analysis slide S at a predetermined temperature so that the color density change due to the reaction of the sample occurs appropriately. This constant temperature mechanism is controlled to a predetermined temperature by a controller.

Measuring mechanism section E The measuring mechanism section E measures the change in color density caused by the reaction of the sample dropped onto the analysis slide S, and performs chemical analysis of the sample.This measuring mechanism section E is located on the slide transport path of the transport mechanism section H. Alternatively, it is adjacent to the slide conveyance path and is photometered under the control of the control device I. In this embodiment, for example, light from a light source 5 is irradiated onto the analysis slide S, the reflected light is converted into an electrical signal by a light receiving element, the reflected density, that is, the optical density is obtained, and the control device The measured values are determined by comparing them to the calibration curve created in the previous section and printed on a roll of recording paper in the printer section.

Calibration Mechanism F Calibration Mechanism F The calibration mechanism F is designed to measure the time as close as possible before measuring the actual analysis slide S, since the lamp of the light source 5 is not always stable due to changes over time or electrical noise. This is a calibration means that corrects the photometry system within the photometry system.

This calibration mechanism section F is equipped with two types of calibration plates: a first standard plate with a low optical density value and a second standard plate with a high optical density value, which have been measured in advance with a device that can accurately measure optical density. A slide is provided, and the slide is driven by a motor to perform linear reciprocating motion.

Slide Discharge Mechanism Section G From the slide discharge mechanism section G, the analysis slide S whose measurement has been completed is discharged under the control of the control device I.

Conveyance Mechanism Section H The conveyance mechanism section H conveys the analysis slide S along a predetermined slide conveyance path formed by the disk 6, and the slide conveyance path is configured to form an annular shape above the constant temperature mechanism section. There is. In this embodiment, eight slide storage sections 6a are formed in the disk 6 of the transport mechanism section H, and one analysis slide S can be stored in each slide storage section 6a.

Next, the operation of this chemical analyzer will be explained with reference to FIG. 2 and FIG.'s3.

In this embodiment, control is performed so that the analysis slide S is transported when it is on the constant temperature mechanism section, except when the analysis slide is inserted into the slide transport path or when the analysis slide is ejected from the slide transport path.

For example, as shown in FIG. 3, when the analysis slide S exists only in the slide storage section 6a of the disk 6, the time period from the time when the test sample is dropped onto the analysis slide S to the first measurement or calibration of the analysis slide S is If there is a time longer than the time required for the transport mechanism H to rotate once, the transport mechanism H is operated for one rotation.

In addition, if there is a time longer than the time required for the transport mechanism H to rotate once until the photometry or calibration of the first analysis slide S occurs after the transport mechanism H has operated one rotation, , the transport mechanism section H is operated again by one rotation.

The disk 6 is rotated by a motor, and the pulse period of this disk rotation is arbitrary. In addition, the pulse cycle when transporting the disk 6 from the slide supply mechanism section A to the sample dropping mechanism section B, and the pulse period when transporting the disk 6 from the slide supply mechanism section A to the slide discharge mechanism section G.
The pulse period of a conveyance operation whose purpose is different from that of the present invention, such as the pulse period when conveying to the present invention, may be used as is for the conveyance operation of this invention, or the pulse period unique to the conveyance operation of this invention may be used. Good too.

Further, the pulse period may be determined in accordance with the time so that the disk 6 rotates exactly once during the time from immediately after the pulse shown in FIG. 2 to the measurement start time.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a chemical analysis apparatus showing another embodiment.

In the chemical analysis apparatus of this embodiment, an analysis slide S is supplied from a slide supply mechanism section A to a sample dropping mechanism section B. When the analysis slide S is inserted, this is detected and the conveyance roller 2 is driven by the restraint device I, and the analysis slide S is sent in the direction of the sample dropping mechanism section B.

The sample dropping mechanism section B enables the sample to be dropped onto the analysis slide S, and the control device I is linked to the transport mechanism section H and the storage position of the analysis slide S transported to the transport mechanism section H.
Dripping shutter 3 that opens and closes automatically and is controlled via
have.

The sample dropping mechanism section B is provided between the slide supply mechanism section A and the constant temperature mechanism section, and this sample dropping mechanism section B has a constant temperature function for the analysis slide S and a holding function for one or more analysis slides S. are doing.

Therefore, the analysis slide S supplied from the slide supply mechanism section A is temporarily held in the sample dropping mechanism section B, and the sample is dropped here. By having the sample dropping mechanism section B hold one or more analysis slides S, the analysis slides S can be supplied to the apparatus at once, which simplifies the supply operation.

After this, the sample is dropped onto the analysis slide S, and the transport mechanism section F
It is inserted into the constant temperature mechanism in synchronization with the operation of the This sample dropping mechanism section B has a constant temperature function for the analysis slide S, and can maintain the analysis slide S at a predetermined temperature state.

The slide insertion mechanism section C is provided in the sample dropping mechanism section B,
When dropping the sample onto the analysis slide S is completed, the transport roller 4 is driven via the control device I by, for example, a key operation, and the analysis slide S is transported to the constant temperature mechanism section.

[Effects of the Invention] As is clear from the above explanation, the inventions recited in claims j to 3 are capable of performing measurements, etc. in such a way that the time during which the analysis slide remains stationary at a certain point on the thermostatic mechanism is minimized. Since the transport mechanism section is operated as long as there is no problem, it is possible to suppress measurement errors based on differences in the constant temperature mechanism sections at different locations, and to reduce the influence of temperature unevenness on measured values.

Further, the invention according to claim 4 is such that the transport mechanism unit makes one or more rotations and two or less rotations between the time of dropping the sample onto the last analysis slide and the measurement or calibration of the first analysis slide. Because it controls the conveyance speed,
Rotation can be used while minimizing friction, fatigue, etc. of the transport mechanism.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the chemical analysis apparatus, FIG. In the figure, the symbol S is the analysis slide, A is the slide supply mechanism section,
B is a sample dropping mechanism, C is a slide insertion mechanism, D is a constant temperature mechanism, E is a measurement mechanism, F is a calibration mechanism, G is a slide ejection mechanism, and H is a transport mechanism. Patent applicant Konica Corporation Figure 1

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A slide supply mechanism unit that supplies an analysis slide, a sample dropping mechanism unit that supplies a test sample to the analysis slide, a constant temperature mechanism unit that maintains the analysis slide at a constant temperature, and a constant temperature mechanism unit that maintains the analysis slide at a constant temperature. A slide insertion mechanism section that is inserted into the thermostatic mechanism section, a measurement mechanism section that measures the test substance on the analysis slide, and a transport mechanism section that transports the analysis slide along a predetermined slide transport path, In a chemical analysis apparatus in which the slide transport path is annular above the thermostatic mechanism, the analysis slide is not connected to the thermostatic mechanism except when inserting an analysis slide into the slide transport path or discharging an analysis slide from the slide transport path. A chemical analysis device characterized in that it is controlled so that it is transported when it is present on a part. 2. If there is a time longer than the time required for the transport mechanism to make one rotation between the time when the test sample is dropped onto the last analysis slide and the time when the first analysis slide is measured or calibrated, an arbitrary 2. The chemical analysis apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the transport mechanism section is operated for one rotation at a transport speed. 3. If there is a time longer than the time required for the transport mechanism to make one rotation between the time after the transport mechanism has operated one rotation and the photometry or calibration of the first analysis slide, 3. The chemical analysis apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the transport mechanism section is repeatedly operated for one rotation at an arbitrary transport speed. 4. Carry out the transport at such a speed that the transport mechanism makes at least 1 rotation and no more than 2 rotations between the time when the sample is dropped onto the last analysis slide and the measurement or calibration of the first analysis slide. Claim 1 characterized by
Chemical analyzer as described.