JPH06308134A - Apparatus for injecting reagent - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a reagent injecting apparatus which can measure a suction port of each reagent bottle in a reagent storage. CONSTITUTION:The apparatus is provided with a reagent injecting mechanism 4, a detecting means 23 for detecting that a suction port of each reagent bottle 2 passes a predetermined detecting position on the moving locus thereof, and a controller 32 for driving the detecting means 23 and controlling a stepping motor 3 thereby to move a reagent storage 1 at a predetermined speed and measuring the position of each suction port on the basis of the passing timing when the suction port of the reagent bottle 2 passes the detecting position in one moving cycle of the reagent storage 1. The reagent injecting mechanism 4 includes the reagent storage 1 storing a plurality of reagent bottles 2 with suction ports, the stepping motor 3 driving the reagent storage 1, a reagent nozzle 5 coupled to a reagent pump 7 and a reagent nozzle moving mechanism for moving and driving the reagent nozzle 5.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention generally relates to a reagent injection device which is incorporated in an automatic chemical analysis device and injects a reagent into a reaction container at a predetermined position of its reaction line.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An automatic chemical analyzer circulates and drives a plurality of reaction vessels along a reaction line, repeats dispensing of a sample to be measured, reagent injection, reaction, and measurement at each position, and the sample is analyzed based on the measurement results. This is an apparatus for analyzing the chemical properties of a measurement sample.

The reagent injection device is a device incorporated in such an automatic chemical analysis device and responsible for the reagent injection. The reagent injection device has a reagent container that can be equipped with a plurality of reagent bottles containing reagents. The reagent storage is driven to circulate by the drive unit. Further, the reagent injection device has a reagent injection mechanism. The reagent injection mechanism includes a reagent pump that can move forward and backward, a reagent nozzle connected to the reagent pump through a tube, and the reagent nozzle between the reagent injection position of the reaction line and the suction position on the reagent storage. And a moving mechanism that moves back and forth while moving up and down. Furthermore, the reagent injection device includes a controller that controls the drive unit and the reagent injection mechanism. The reagent injection device operates as follows with the controller as the control center.

The controller receives an instruction from the sequencer for controlling the reaction sequence of the entire automatic chemical analyzer to determine which reagent bottle to be next injected into the reaction container,
The drive unit is controlled to move the reagent bottle containing the reagent to the suction position. Then, the moving mechanism of the reagent injection mechanism is controlled to move the reagent nozzle to the suction position, and the reagent nozzle is lowered at that position so that the tip of the reagent nozzle reaches the reagent in the reagent bottle. Then, the reagent pump is driven forward to inhale an appropriate amount of the reagent. Furthermore, the moving mechanism of the reagent injection mechanism is controlled again to raise the reagent nozzle, move to the injection position on the reaction line, and reversely drive the reagent pump at that position to discharge the appropriate amount of the reagent into the reaction container. To do.

By the way, an automatic chemical analyzer is generally capable of handling a plurality of types of test items.
Accordingly, the reagent storage of the reagent injection device can be equipped with a plurality of reagent bottles containing different reagents as described above. Further, since the amount of the reagent used varies depending on the type of reagent, reagent bottles with various capacities are used.
Generally, since the reagent storage is formed in a circular shape, each reagent bottle is formed in a fan shape in cross section according to the circular shape of the reagent storage. The height of the suction port of each reagent bottle is uniformly determined in order to simplify the mechanism of the reagent nozzle moving mechanism and the control of the reagent nozzle movement. Therefore, the capacity of each reagent bottle is changed by creating the reagent bottle by changing its fan angle. However, the following problems occur due to the fact that the fan angle of each reagent bottle differs depending on its volume.

That is, when reagent bottles of various capacities are combined and installed in the reagent storage, there arises a problem that the position of the suction port of each reagent bottle becomes unknown. Therefore, it is necessary for the operator to determine the position of each suction port based on the combination of reagent bottles and manually input the position information in advance. For this reason, there is a problem that it takes time to determine the position of each suction port based on the combination of reagent bottles.
In addition, there is a risk that an input error will occur, and if an input error occurs, the reagent probe will be dropped to the part without the suction port and the reagent probe etc. will be damaged, or the wrong reagent bottle from the wrong reagent bottle other than the planned reagent bottle There is also a problem in that erroneous analysis results are output as a result of being sucked and injected into the reaction container.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to address the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a reagent injection device capable of measuring the suction port of each reagent bottle on a reagent storage. It is intended.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A reagent injection device according to the present invention comprises a reagent container equipped with a plurality of reagent containers for accommodating the reagents, which has an inlet for supplying and discharging the reagents,
A means for driving the reagent storage so that the suction port circulates along a predetermined orbit, a reagent nozzle connected to a reagent pump capable of forward and reverse movements, and a reagent nozzle moving mechanism for moving and driving the reagent nozzle. And sucking the reagent in the reagent container from the suction port at a predetermined suction position on the orbit,
A reagent injection mechanism that discharges the sucked reagent at a predetermined injection position on the reaction line into a reaction container that is moved along a predetermined reaction line, and the suction port of each reagent container has a predetermined position on the orbit. Detection means for detecting the passage of the detection position, and driving the detection means, while controlling the circulation moving means to move the reagent container at a predetermined speed, one cycle of the reagent container movement. In between, means for measuring the position of each of the suction ports based on the timing at which the suction port of each of the reagent containers passes the detection position is provided.

[0009]

According to the present invention, since the detection means for detecting that the suction port of each reagent container has passed the predetermined detection position on the orbit is provided, during one cycle of the reagent container which moves at a predetermined speed. Moreover, the position of each suction port can be measured by receiving the timing at which the suction port of each reagent container passes this detection position from the detection means.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A reagent injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The reagent injection device according to the present invention, under the sequence control of a sequencer, drives a plurality of reaction vessels in circulation along a reaction line, and dispenses a sample to be measured, reagent injection, stirring, reaction, measurement at each position thereof. , Repeated each washing process, built into an automatic chemical analyzer that analyzes the chemical properties of the sample to be measured based on the measurement results,
This is a device for injecting the reagent.

First, an automatic chemical analyzer incorporating this reagent injection device will be briefly described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is an external view showing a main part of the automatic chemical analysis device, and 50 is a turntable for circulatingly driving a plurality of reaction vessels 51 along reaction lines. Along the circular orbit of the reaction container 51 on the turntable 50, in order from the upstream, the measured sample dispensing position, reagent injection position, stirring position,
A measurement position and a washing position are determined, and a sample dispensing device 52 to be measured, a reagent injection device according to the present invention, a stirring device, a photometric device, and a washing / drying device (not shown) are arranged at each position. The sample dispensing device 52 to be measured includes a rotatable sampler 53 that can be equipped with a plurality of sample containers 54 that contain the sample to be measured, and a sample to be measured is inhaled from the sample container 54 and is then measured on the reaction line. Dispensing mechanism (sampling mechanism) for dispensing into the reaction container 51 at the sample dispensing position
It consists of 55. The reagent injection device according to the present invention is a device that is incorporated in such an automatic chemical analysis device as described above and is responsible for reagent injection.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the structure of a reagent injection device according to this embodiment. 3A and 3B are external views of reagent bottles having different capacities. In FIG. 1, 1 is a reagent storage. As shown in FIG. 2, the reagent storage 1 is formed in a cylindrical shape having a circular cross section having a bottom surface, and a plurality of reagent bottles 2 can be arranged and installed inside thereof. Reagent bottle 2
As shown in FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b), is formed in a fan shape in cross section according to the cylindrical shape of the reagent storage 1, and the suction port 30 is provided so as to project from the upper surface thereof. This suction port 3
0 has a light non-transmissive agent applied to the periphery thereof or is formed of a light non-transmissive material. The reason for this will be described later.
The height H from the bottom of the reagent bottle 2 to the tip of the suction port 30 is
It is set to a constant value for the sake of mechanical simplification of a reagent nozzle moving mechanism and simplification of control of reagent nozzle movement, which will be described later. Further, the reagent bottle 2 has a capacity of 50 ml and a capacity of 100 ml is shown in FIG. 3B, the capacity is determined according to the fan angle θ.

The drive shaft of the stepping motor 3 is connected to the central shaft of the reagent storage 1. Stepping motor 3
Is a drive means for intermittently rotating and rotating the reagent storage 1 by a predetermined minute angle each time the pulse drive signal is received. When the reagent storage 1 is rotated by the stepping motor 3, the suction port 30 of each reagent bottle 2 circulates a circular orbit around the rotation center of the reagent storage 1 accordingly.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 4 is a reagent injection mechanism.
The reagent injection mechanism 4 includes a reagent nozzle 5. The reagent nozzle 5 is connected to a reagent pump 7 via a reagent tube 6. The reagent pump 7 is a pump that can move forward and backward, and has a cylinder 8. The sliding wall 9 of the cylinder 8 has a connecting member 10
Is connected to a lead nut 11 of a lead screw mechanism, which is one of the linear motion mechanisms. Lead nut 11
Is inserted by being screwed into a thread of a lead screw 13 connected to a drive shaft of the stepping motor 12, so that the lead screw 13 can be reciprocally moved stepwise along the lead screw 13 in response to intermittent rotation of the stepping motor 12. It has become. Therefore, the sliding wall 9 of the cylinder 8 reciprocates stepwise in accordance with the movement step of the lead nut 11, so that a minute and appropriate amount can be accurately sucked and discharged.

The reagent nozzle 5 and the reagent tube 6 are also provided.
Are supported by the reagent arm 14. This reagent arm 14
Can be rotated and lifted by a rotating mechanism and a lifting mechanism. The reagent arm 14 is connected to a shaft 15 which is rotatably and vertically movable by a support mechanism (not shown). A circular fixture 16 is fixed to the shaft 15. The fixture 16 is connected to a drive shaft of a stepping motor 18 via a belt 17.
In addition, the fixture 16 includes a lead nut 20 of a lead screw mechanism similar to that described above via a U-shaped connector 19.
Are linked to. The lead nut 20 includes a lead screw 22 connected to a drive shaft of a stepping motor 21.
The screw thread is inserted into the thread of the stepping motor 21 and is reciprocally moved stepwise along the lead screw 22 according to the intermittent rotation of the stepping motor 21. When the stepping motor 18 and the stepping motor 21 are applied and driven by such a configuration, the reagent nozzle 5 correspondingly moves the suction position on the circular orbit of the suction port 30 of the reagent bottle 2 and the reagent injection position on the reaction line. It is possible to swivel to and from and up and down.

Although not shown, an angle between a certain point (reference point) on the reagent storage 1 and a reference position corresponding to the suction position, that is, a current position detecting means such as an encoder for detecting the current position of the reagent storage 1 Is installed on the rotary shaft of the reagent storage 1.
Further, the suction port 3 of each reagent bottle 2 is located at a predetermined detection position on the orbit of the suction port 30 of the reagent bottle 2 installed in the reagent storage 1.
Detection means 2 for detecting that 0 passes through this detection position
3 is fixed. The detection means 23 is, for example, an active transmission type optical sensor including a light source, and as shown in FIG.
The suction port 30 of the reagent bottle 2 is composed of a light source 25 such as a tungsten light bulb and a light receiving unit 26 such as a photodiode, which are arranged to face each other with the arm 24 sandwiching the suction port 30 of the reagent bottle 2.
When the light passes through the light source 25 and the light receiving portion 26, the light from the light source 25 is absorbed because the suction port 30 is coated with a light non-transmissive agent or is formed of a light non-transmissive material. Detecting means for detecting that the intake port 30 of each reagent bottle 2 is blocked by the intake port 30 and does not reach the light receiving unit 26 and passes between the light source 25 and the light receiving unit 26. Is.

Further, in FIG. 1, reference numeral 31 is a control center for controlling the operation of the entire reagent injection apparatus, which is a steady mode for executing the reagent injection process in the reaction process step, and the suction port 30 of each reagent bottle 2. It is a controller capable of selectively executing two kinds of operation modes, that is, a measurement mode for measuring the position of. The steady mode selection command is input from a sequencer that controls the sequence of the entire automatic chemical analyzer described above. The command for the measurement mode is input from the suction port position measurement controller 32, which will be described later. In the steady state mode, the controller 31 receives an instruction from the sequencer which reagent of the reagent bottle 2 is to be injected into the reaction container 51 next,
By supplying a pulse drive signal to each of the stepping motors 3, 12, 18, 21 in accordance with a preset reagent injection sequence, the stepping motors are interlocked and drive-controlled. In the measurement mode, the controller 31 supplies a pulse drive signal to the stepping motor 3 at a predetermined frequency to rotate the reagent container 1 at a predetermined angular velocity.

An inlet position measuring controller 32 is connected to the controller 31. The inlet position measuring controller 32 is provided for each reagent bottle 2 installed in the reagent storage 1.
Is a controller for measuring the position of the intake port 30 of the controller 31 and is activated in response to a measurement mode activation instruction input by an operator from an input unit (not shown) connected to the inlet position measurement controller 32, and the controller 31 And outputs a command to operate in the measurement mode, and drives the detection unit 23 and the above-described current position detection unit to a state in which detection operation is possible. The position of the suction port 30 of each reagent bottle 2 here means the step size (the number of steps) of the stepping motor 3 according to the distance of the suction port 30 of each reagent bottle 2 from the reference point of the reagent storage 1. Say that. The suction port position measurement controller 32 transmits the measured position information of each suction port 30 to the controller 31.

Next, the operation of the apparatus of the present embodiment configured as described above will be described. First, the operation in the measurement mode will be described. The measurement mode is measured by an operator from an input unit (not shown) connected to the suction port position measurement controller 32 after the reagent container 2 is equipped with a plurality of reagent bottles 2 having various capacities necessary for the plurality of types of inspection items. It is set by the command to start the mode. This measurement mode is set before actually starting the reaction process.

In response to the input of the measurement mode, the suction port position measuring controller 32 is activated to output a command to the controller 31 to operate in the measurement mode, and to detect the detecting means 23 and the above-mentioned current position detecting means. Drive to a possible state. The light source 25 of the detection means 23 receives drive power from the inlet position measurement controller 32 and emits light,
Further, the light receiving unit 26 receives a reference voltage, for example, from the inlet position measuring controller 32, and is in a light detecting state. Further, the current position detecting means also takes a detecting state. When the controller 31 receives a command from the suction port position measurement controller 32 to operate in the measurement mode, the stepping motor 3
Is supplied with a pulse drive signal of a predetermined frequency. The stepping motor 3 receives this pulse drive signal and intermittently rotates at a constant angular velocity according to this frequency. Therefore, the reagent storage 1 is driven by the rotational force of the stepping motor 3 and intermittently rotates at a constant angular velocity.

When the reagent container 1 rotates and the reference point of the reagent container 1 coincides with the reference position, the suction port position measurement controller 32 starts measuring the position of the suction port 30 of each reagent bottle 2. While the reagent storage 1 makes one rotation (one cycle) from this position, the suction port position measurement controller 32 detects the detection means 23.
The output signal from is continuously received. The waveform of this output signal on the time axis is, for example, as shown in FIG. In FIG. 5, time t0 is the time when the reference point of the reagent container 1 is at the reference position, and t1 is the time when the reagent container 1 makes one revolution from this position and returns to the reference position again. The inlet 30 of the reagent bottle 2 has a light source 25 and a light receiving section 26 of the detecting means 23.
When passing between the inlet and the outlet, since the light inlet 25 is coated with a light non-transmissive agent or formed of a light non-transmissive material, the light from the light source 25 is blocked by the light inlet 30 and received. Since it does not reach the portion 26, the output signal level at this time is in the low state. On the other hand, when the suction port 30 of the reagent bottle 2 does not pass between the light source 25 and the light receiving section 26 of the detecting means 23, the light from the light source 25 is received by the light receiving section 26.
The output signal level at this time is high (H
i) It becomes a state.

The suction port position measurement controller 32 measures the step size (the number of pulses of the pulse drive signal) required from the time t0 to each time when the output signal level becomes low, and determines the position of each suction port 30. measure. Since the reagent storage 1 is rotated at a predetermined angular velocity, the time from time t0 to each time when the output signal level becomes low is measured and divided by the angular velocity to calculate the distance. The step size may be measured by dividing by the movement distance per step, the step size may be measured by counting the pulse drive signals output from the controller 31, or any of various other methods. May be adopted. Note that, for high accuracy, it is desirable to measure the central time of the period during which the output signal level maintains the low state.

In this way, the reagent container 1 makes one rotation and the step size (the number of driving pulses of the stepping motor 3) from the reference point of the suction port 30 of each reagent bottle 2, that is, the position information of the suction port 30 of each reagent bottle 2. When is measured, the operation in the measurement mode ends. This position information is transmitted to the controller 31.

In the steady mode, the controller 31 is
Using this position information, the suction port 30 of the reagent bottle 2 containing the target reagent is moved to the suction position. That is, when the steady mode selection command is supplied to the controller 31 from the sequencer of the entire automatic chemical analysis apparatus described above, the controller 31 sets the steady mode. In the middle of the reaction process step, the sequencer outputs to the controller 31 an instruction as to which reagent bottle 2 reagent to inject into the reaction container 51 at appropriate times. The controller 31 uses the current position information of the reagent storage 1 from the current position detection means and the position information of the suction port 30 of the reagent bottle 2 previously input from the suction port position measurement controller 32 to determine the target reagent. The step size (the number of pulses) required until the suction port 30 of the bottle 2 reaches the suction position (reference position) is determined, and a pulse drive signal having the number of pulses corresponding thereto is supplied to the stepping motor 3. Therefore, the suction port 30 of the target reagent bottle 2 is moved to the suction position and stopped at this position.

At this time, a predetermined number of pulse drive signals are supplied from the controller 31 to the stepping motor 18. The reagent arm 14 pivots according to the rotation of the stepping motor 18, and the reagent nozzle 5 is moved above the suction position.

When the suction port 30 of the target reagent bottle 2 reaches the suction position, a predetermined number of pulse drive signals are supplied from the controller 31 to the stepping motor 21.
The reagent arm 14 descends according to the rotation of the stepping motor 21, the reagent nozzle 5 is inserted from the suction port 30 of the reagent bottle 2 at the suction position, and the tip thereof is inserted into the reagent.

In this state, the controller 31 supplies the stepping motor 12 of the reagent pump 7 with a number of pulse drive signals corresponding to the required amount of reagent, and the required amount of reagent is sucked into the cylinder 8. Then, a predetermined number of pulse drive signals are supplied to the stepping motor 21 from the controller 31 together with an instruction for reverse rotation, and the reagent arm 14 is raised.
After that, the controller 3 is added to the stepping motor 18 again.
A predetermined number of pulse drive signals are supplied from 1, and the reagent arm 14 rotates in response to the rotation of the stepping motor 18,
The reagent nozzle 5 is now moved above the injection position on the reaction line.

When the target reaction vessel 51 reaches the injection position, the stepping motor 12 is again supplied with a predetermined number of pulse drive signals corresponding to the planned injection amount from the controller 31, and the stepping motor 12 is rotated in response to the rotation. And a predetermined amount of reagent is discharged from the reagent nozzle 5,
It is injected into the reaction container 51.

As described above, according to this embodiment, since the position of the suction port of each reagent bottle can be measured in advance, the problem that the position of the suction port of each reagent bottle becomes unknown as in the conventional case is solved, Therefore, it is not necessary for the operator to determine the position of each suction port based on the combination of reagent bottles and manually input the position information in advance.

Although the above-mentioned detection means 23 is an active transmission type optical sensor in which the light source 25 and the light receiving portion 26 are arranged to face each other, it may be a reflection type optical sensor. In the embodiment in this case, as shown in FIG. 6A, a reflection agent is applied to the outer peripheral surface of the inlet port 30 of the reagent bottle 2, and a reflection type optical sensor is provided along the circumferential trajectory of the inlet port 30. Place 61. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 6B, a reflective label 63 is attached to the upper surface of the reagent bottle 2 and outside the suction port 30, and the reflective label 63 faces the circumferential orbit of the reflective label 63. The reflection type optical sensor 62 is arranged in such a direction.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but can be modified in various ways. For example, in the above-described embodiment, it has been described that the cylindrical reagent container that can be equipped with a plurality of reagent bottles having a fan-shaped cross section is rotated, but the reagent bottle may have another shape such as a prismatic shape, The reagent container may have another shape such as a rectangular tube shape, or the reagent container may be moved back and forth on a straight line. In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the reagent container is moved to move the suction port of the reagent bottle to the suction position below the reagent nozzle, but the reagent container is fixed and the reagent bottle intended for the reagent nozzle. May be moved to the suction port.

[0032]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, a reagent container equipped with a plurality of reagent containers for accommodating the reagent, which has an inlet for supplying and discharging the reagent, and a predetermined inlet are provided. On the orbit, the device is equipped with a means for driving the reagent container so as to circulate along the orbit, a reagent nozzle connected to a reagent pump capable of forward and backward movement, and a reagent nozzle moving mechanism for moving and driving the reagent nozzle. The reagent in the reagent container is sucked from the suction port at a predetermined suction position, and the sucked reagent is discharged into the reaction container moved along a predetermined reaction line at a predetermined injection position on the reaction line. And a detection means for detecting that the suction port of each of the reagent containers passes a predetermined detection position on the orbit, and driving the detection means and controlling the circulation moving means. The above reagent storage And a means for measuring the position of each of the inlets based on the timing when the inlet of each reagent container passes the detection position during one cycle in which the reagent container moves at a constant speed. Then, the reagent injection device capable of measuring the position of each suction port by receiving from the detection means the timing at which the suction port of each reagent container passes this detection position during one cycle of the reagent storage that moves at a predetermined speed. Can be provided.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a reagent injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external view showing a main part of an automatic chemical analyzer in which the reagent injection device shown in FIG. 1 is incorporated.

FIG. 3 is an external view of reagent bottles having different capacities shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the detection means shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a waveform diagram showing a change in waveform of an output signal output from the detection means on the time axis while the reagent container makes one rotation from the reference position.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an embodiment in which an optical sensor of a type different from the optical sensor of the detecting means shown in FIG. 4 is adopted.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Reagent storage, 2 ... Reagent bottle, 3 ... Stepping motor, 4
… Reagent injection mechanism, 5… Reagent nozzle, 6… Reagent tube,
7 ... Reagent pump, 31 ... Controller, 32 ... Suction port position measuring controller.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A reagent container equipped with a plurality of reagent containers for accommodating the reagents, the inlets for supplying and discharging the reagents, and the inlets circulatingly moving along a predetermined orbit. A means for driving the reagent storage, a reagent nozzle connected to a reagent pump that can move forward and backward, and a reagent nozzle moving mechanism that moves and drives the reagent nozzle, and the inside of the reagent container at a predetermined suction position on the orbit. Reagent injecting mechanism for inhaling the reagent from the inhalation port and discharging the inhaled reagent at a predetermined injection position on the reaction line into a reaction container that is moved along a predetermined reaction line; Detecting means for detecting that the inlet of the vehicle has passed a predetermined detection position on the orbit, and driving the detection means and controlling the circulation moving means to move the reagent container at a predetermined speed. ,Previous Reagent injection, comprising means for measuring the position of each suction port based on the timing when the suction port of each reagent container passes the detection position during one cycle in which the reagent storage moves. apparatus.