JPH0934576A - Fine adjustment rate adjusting mechanism for fine adjustment control joy stick - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fine adjustment rate adjusting mechanism which has high flexibility and high operability despite its simple and inexpensive form for a fine adjustment control joy stick which moves up and down a fixed ball along a cylindrical inner wall and changes the distance between the centers of both fixed and movable balls to adjust the fine adjustment rate. SOLUTION: A fine adjustment control joy stick controls the fine adjustment of a manipulator when an object to be magnified by a microscope is operated by the manipulator. A grip part 103 having its circumferential surface formed in a gear-tooth shape is provided on the upper side of the joy stick, so that the joy stick is held by a hand and turned. An adjustment member 102 having a hanging fixed ball 29 is screwed into a mobile stage 101 placed in one of both biaxial directions and has the part 103 at the side opposite to the ball 29. A screw groove 104 is formed between the part 103 and a neck part. The stage 101 has a screw groove 105 formed in a through-hole against the groove 104. Thus the member 102 is screwed into the groove 105 and can move up and down.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a mechanism for adjusting a fine movement rate in a micromanipulator for performing a fine movement operation under a microscope.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the fields of basic medicine and biotechnology, cells are retained in order to retain cells such as organs and tissues of living organisms, egg cells and single cells, and perform cell treatment such as suction, injection and division. In micromanipulators to be operated, when performing micromanipulation operations on these cells within the field of view of the microscope, it is important to appropriately adjust the micromotion rate so that the cells can be manipulated by following the magnification of magnification. For this purpose, various fine movement rate adjusting mechanisms have been proposed.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view for schematically explaining the structure of a conventional cell processing apparatus. In FIG. 4, this cell processing apparatus actually carries out cell processing by a stage 3 in which an egg cell 1 is immersed in a test solution in a Petri dish 2 and placed thereon, a fixed holding section 4 which holds the egg cell 1 in a fixed manner. It comprises a micromanipulator 5 and an optical system 6 for observing an image in which the egg cell 1 is illuminated, and these parts are integrally formed and placed on a vibration-proof mat 7 for operation.

This micromanipulator 5 is equipped with various microtools 8 suitable for cell processing applications,
A three-dimensional moving mechanism for moving the tip three-dimensionally is provided, and the operator operates the three-dimensional moving mechanism by hydraulic pressure or the like by the joystick 9 for instructing the fine movement operation.

The joystick 9 hangs the operating rod 12 with the tip of a support frame 11 formed in the shape of an eave as a fulcrum, and the operating rod 12 swings in two orthogonal directions (arrows) 13 by hydraulic pressure or the like. Transmission unit 1 that transmits to the dimension movement mechanism
4 is provided, and the operation rod 12 is operated to finely operate the two-dimensional movement mainly in the horizontal plane. The operating rod 12 has a conversion part 15 for converting swinging in two orthogonal directions (arrows) 13 into a mechanical displacement in a horizontal plane, and the conversion part 15 is provided at a portion connected to the support frame 11. .

[0006] Further, in addition to the operation rod 12 provided by being hung, a device which is provided upright on the conversion portion 15 has also been generally used conventionally. However, since the operator can easily operate at a low position without lifting the arm, the one provided by hanging is often used recently. In addition, there is a case where it is necessary to move the processing object in the vertical direction in the three-dimensional movement mechanism, and therefore, a mechanism for performing a fine movement operation in the vertical direction is provided in the vicinity to enable three-dimensional movement. There is.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view for explaining the conversion section of the joystick in FIG. In FIG. 5, the joystick conversion unit has a base (not shown),
A Y-axis moving base 22 is mounted on the upper part of the base so as to be vertically movable via a linear way bearing (not shown), and is horizontally movable on the lower part of the base via a linear way bearing (not shown). An X-axis moving table 23 is attached. A holder 25, which also serves as a movement amount adjustment, is screwed into a large-diameter through hole of the X-axis moving table 23 so as to be vertically movable, and the lower portion of the cylinder of the holder 25, which also serves as a movement amount adjustment, has a knurled outer periphery. Is provided with a collar portion 25a, a curved surface 25b is formed on the upper portion of the inner circumference of the cylinder to support the upper portion of the movable sphere and prevent escape to the upper side, and a lower portion of the movable sphere 26 is formed on the lower portion of the inner circumference of the cylinder. A movable sphere fixture 27 for supporting is screwed.

The movable sphere fixture 27 is substantially cylindrical and has a through hole whose inner circumference is expanded downward.
Collar 27 with knurls engraved on the outside of the bottom of the cylinder
a is provided, and a curved surface 27b is formed at the upper end of the cylinder to support the lower part of the movable sphere and prevent it from escaping downward. Also,
An outer peripheral surface of a fixed sphere 29 suspended from the Y-axis moving base 22 abuts on a cylindrical hole penetrating the movable sphere 26, and a base end of an operating rod 31 is provided at a lower portion of the cylindrical sphere of the movable sphere 26. The parts are screwed together.

The center of the fixed sphere 29 is O, and the movable sphere 26 is
If the center (the center point of the tilting motion of the operating rod 31) is C, and the centers O and C are arranged so as to coincide with each other, the movable sphere 26 simply rotates around the center O, and the fixed sphere 29. And the movable sphere 26 and the X-axis moving table 23 and Y which are moving bodies.
There is no change in the mutual positional relationship of the axis moving bases 22.

However, if the centers O and C are separated from each other, for example, the operating rod 31 is moved in the X-axis direction (left-right direction).
When tilted to, the fixed sphere 29 is fixed in the X-axis direction, so that the movable sphere 26 itself also swings around the center O together with the operating rod 31, and the swinging direction with respect to the center O in the X-axis direction. The movable table 23 is smoothly pushed and moved. On the other hand, when the operating rod 31 is tilted in the Y-axis direction (front-back direction), the fixed ball 29 can move in the Y-axis direction, so that the fixed ball 29 swings around the center C.
The Y-axis moving base 22 is smoothly pushed and moved in the swinging direction with respect to the center C.

Further, the movable sphere fixture 27 and the movable sphere 2
By adjusting the screwing amount of the holder 25, which is also used for adjusting the movement amount, into the X-axis moving base 23 while being integrated with 6, the positional relationship with the fixed sphere 29 along the cylindrical inner wall 26a of the movable sphere 26 is adjusted. A fine movement ratio adjusting mechanism is configured to move up and down and change the center distance between the fixed sphere 29 and the movable sphere 26 to adjust the fine movement ratio.

Therefore, in assembling the conversion unit 15, first, the movable ball 26 is assembled into the holder 25 that also serves as the movement amount adjustment, and then the movable ball fixing member 27 is screwed to integrate them, and finally, The integrated holder 25 for adjusting the movement amount is screwed into the X-axis moving base 23 to fix the whole. Further, the manufacturing of the holder 25 that also serves as the movement amount adjustment requires precise processing to cut the thread groove on the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical shape, and the formation of the thread groove on the outer surface having a large diameter is a large-scale operation. It is time consuming and the order of this assembly is important.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view for explaining the operation of the adjusting mechanism in FIG. In FIG. 6, the Z axis indicates the direction in which the positional relationship between the movable sphere 26 and the fixed sphere 29 is moved up and down. The X-axis is 2 in the two-axis directions described above.
One of the three displacement directions is shown, and the other one is the direction perpendicular to the plane of the drawing (for example, Y
If it is taken as the axial direction), the two-dimensional operation rod 3 in the horizontal plane
A swing of 1 can be represented. After that, X
The explanation will be easier to understand by taking the operation in the axial direction as an example.
The same applies to the axial direction if the X axis is replaced with the Y axis. The intersection of the X axis and the Z axis is the center O of the fixed sphere 29.

First, in the initial state, the operating rod 31 is on the Z axis, and if the initial coordinate of the center C of the movable sphere 26 at that time is C1, then the above-mentioned center distance from the center O of the fixed sphere 29 is Z1. Therefore, there is no displacement of the X-axis moving table 23 on the X-axis. Then, when the operating rod 31 is rocked to the position L in the X-axis direction and the rocking coordinate of the center C of the movable ball 26 at that time is C2, the X-axis movable base 23 is moved to the X-axis.
Move axially by displacement (arrow) X1. Next, if the center distance is increased in the Z-axis direction to Z2, the new initial coordinate of the center C of the movable sphere 26 in the initial state is C2.
Then, when the operating rod 31 is similarly swung to the position L and the new swing coordinate of the center C of the movable ball 26 is C4, the X-axis movable base 23 is similarly displaced (arrow). ) It means that you have moved a lot by X2.

Here, the displacement (arrow) X1 and the displacement (arrow)
The expansion rate of X2 will be described. The operation amount at the operator's hand when the operation rod 31 is swung can be approximated to the component Dx in the X-axis direction if the operation amount is a minute distance. If the total length of the operating rod 31 from the center O is Ll and the center distance is Z1, the displacement (arrow) X1 can be calculated by the following formula 1. Displacement (arrow) X1 = total length Ll of operating rod 31 ÷ center distance Z1 ... Equation 1

If the total length Ll of the operating rod 31 is 100 mm and Z1 is 0.2 mm, the displacement (arrow) X1 moves 1/500 mm when an operating amount of 1 mm is applied. Also, Z
If 2 is 0.4 mm, the displacement (arrow) X2 is 1/250 mm
Will be moved. That is, the center distance is from Z1 to Z
The displacement (arrow) is doubled from X1 to X2 by doubling to 2, and the fine motion rate can be adjusted by continuously changing from fine motion to coarse motion.

The case in which the adjustment of the fine motion rate is actually required will be described. For example, first, in a wide field of view of the microscope, that is, by reducing the magnification of the microscope to a small degree, the operation target and the operation start position are quickly and roughly selected by coarse fine movement operation (hereinafter, abbreviated as coarse and fine movement), and then To
Enlarging a narrow partial field of view, that is, changing the enlargement ratio to a large one, and performing cell processing by a fine tremor operation that is slow and has a margin (hereinafter, abbreviated as fine tremor). It has become.

Therefore, it is necessary to perform various operations such as adjusting the fine motion rate and operating the microscope to change the magnification and moving the center of the visual field, and also to move in the vertical direction and adjust the illumination. It is normal. In other words, the inclination of the operating rod 31 that has already been set is accidentally collapsed during these various operations,
The feature is that it is easy to shift the absolute position of the operation target. .
In addition, in order not to shift the absolute position, there is a case where an operation of screwing the movable ball fixing tool 27 in advance to suppress the movement of the movable ball 26 is added.

[0019]

However, when the conventional fine movement rate adjusting mechanism is used to utilize the fine movement operating joystick in a micromanipulator or the like, there are the following problems. (1) In addition to moving the operation object two-dimensionally in a horizontal plane, performing two-dimensional three-axis fine movement operation including movement in a direction perpendicular to this horizontal plane with a single operating rod. I couldn't. (2) Since the holder that also serves as the movement amount adjustment requires a sufficient size and smoothness for holding the movable ball, and a mechanical structure such as an inner thread groove that can be shared with the movable ball fixing tool, complicated machining is required. And it comes at a high cost. (3) When assembling the holder that also serves as the amount of movement adjustment, the order of assembling is restricted in relation to the movable sphere and the movable sphere fixture, and the weight integrated with these members and the outer shape is large. Careful incorporation was difficult and again was a factor in raising manufacturing costs. (4) As described above, it is necessary to simultaneously operate the peripheral instruments including the microscope when adjusting the fine motion rate. During the operation, the current tilt of the operating rod is erroneously collapsed and the absolute position of the operation target is adjusted. I was worried about moving, so it was difficult to do. (5) In order to prevent the movement of the absolute position, even if the movable sphere fixture is screwed in advance to restrain the movement of the movable sphere, the addition of the screwing operation itself makes the whole operation complicated. In view of the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a mechanism for adjusting a fine movement rate of a joystick for fine movement operation, which is flexible and has good operability in spite of its simple and inexpensive form.

[0020]

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention has the following means. (1) A fixed sphere, which is a fixed sphere, hangs down on one of the two-axis moving bases, a cylindrical inner wall is formed inside the movable sphere, which is a movable sphere, and the operating rod hangs outside. , The cylindrical inner wall is circumscribed on the outer peripheral surface of the fixed sphere, and the holding inner wall for holding and supporting the movable sphere is bored on the other movable table in the two-axis direction. It is circumscribed, and the operating rod is operated to finely move the two-axis moving bases, and the fixed sphere is moved up and down along the cylindrical inner wall of the movable sphere to change the center distance between the fixed sphere and the movable sphere. In the mechanism for adjusting the fine movement ratio in the fine movement operating joystick that adjusts the fine movement ratio by opening the through hole in the moving base on the side where the fixed ball is mounted facing the movable ball, the fixed ball is inserted into this through hole through the neck. A fixed ball can be moved back and forth along the inner cylindrical wall of the movable ball Fine motion rate adjustment mechanism in the fine control joystick, characterized in that provision. (2) The fine movement operation joystick, when operating an object to be magnified under a microscope with a manipulator,
The fine movement rate adjusting mechanism in the fine movement operating joystick according to claim 1, which is for performing fine movement operation of the manipulator. (3) The adjusting member is provided with a gripping portion whose circumferential surface is formed in the shape of gear teeth on the side opposite to the fixed sphere, and a screw groove is formed between the gripping portion and the neck so that the fixed sphere mounting side. The fine movement rate adjusting mechanism of the fine movement operating joystick according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the moving base has a corresponding thread groove formed in the through hole and the adjusting member is screwed into the through hole. (4) The adjusting member is provided with a rotation drive unit for rotating and driving in the forward rotation direction and the reverse rotation direction on the side opposite to the fixed ball, and a screw groove is formed between the rotation drive unit and the neck. Item 5. A fine movement rate adjusting mechanism in the fine movement operating joystick according to Item 1 or 2 or 3.

[0021]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The present invention is used for a mechanical conversion unit that decomposes the swing of an operating rod in a joystick for fine movement operation into two-dimensional components of operation, and particularly, performs fine movement operation under a microscope. In the micromanipulator for
A mechanism for adjusting the fine movement rate from the upper side of an upright joystick, a gripping portion for gripping and rotating the adjusting mechanism is provided on the upper side, and an adjusting member for hanging a fixed ball is biaxial. One that can be screwed into one of the moving bases and can easily follow and adjust to changes in the magnification of the microscope.

[0022]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The same parts in the above-mentioned conventional example are designated by the same reference numerals in the drawings, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a first embodiment according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, the first embodiment is provided by screwing into a new Y-axis moving base 101, and a fixed ball 29
The adjusting member 102 that hangs down is a main part, and the fixing ball 29 is finely moved up and down by adjusting the screwing of the adjusting member 102, and there is no holder 25 that also serves as the movement amount adjustment. A curved surface 110a that supports the upper part of the movable sphere 26 on the upper part of the through hole of the X-axis moving base 110 and prevents the upper part from escaping.
5 is formed, and the movable ball fixing member 27 is screwed into the lower portion of the through hole, which is the same as the mechanism for adjusting the fine movement rate in the conventional example of FIG.

FIG. 2 shows the adjusting member and the new Y in FIG.
It is an explanatory view for specifically explaining the axis moving base. In FIG. 2, the adjustment member 102 has a substantially cylindrical shape in which a grip portion 103 for gripping and rotating is provided on the side opposite to the fixed ball 29, and a male screw 104 is screwed on the outer peripheral surface. Gripper 1
03 has a disk shape having at least the same thickness and diameter as the annular flange in the conventional example, but may have any thickness and diameter that can be easily grasped by an operator.

Therefore, since the adjusting member 102 is adapted to be screwed into the Y-axis moving base 101 from the upper side of the converting portion, the mechanical structure of the converting portion is simplified. A structural allowance was added to add a mechanism to perform a three-axis fine movement operation that moves in a direction perpendicular to that with a single operating rod.

Further, the manufacturing is smaller than the conventional one because it is not necessary to hold the movable ball, and the mechanical structure such as the screw groove is simplified because it does not require cooperation with the movable ball fixing tool. The cost is low because it does not require complicated machining. The assembly is independent of the movable sphere and the movable sphere fixture, the assembly order is not restricted, and the outer shape is smaller than that of the conventional example, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

Further, since the fine movement rate is adjusted from the upper side of the joystick, which does not easily cause obstacles, the current tilt of the operating rod is not accidentally collapsed during the operation, and the absolute position of the operation object is determined. You can work without worrying about moving. In order to prevent the movement of the absolute position, it is not necessary to screw the movable ball fixing tool in advance to restrain the movement of the movable ball, so that the operation of screwing is not necessary, and as a result, the whole operation can be simplified.

The new Y-axis moving base 101 includes an adjusting member 10
2 is the same as the Y-axis moving base 22 in the conventional example of FIG. 5, except that the male screw 104 on the outer peripheral surface of 2 is provided with a screwing hole 105.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view for explaining the second embodiment according to the present invention. In FIG. 3, the second embodiment is similar to the first embodiment except that the second adjusting member 202 is provided instead of the first adjusting member. Second adjusting member 20
Reference numeral 2 is a rotation drive unit 2 for rotationally driving in forward and reverse directions.
03 is provided on the side opposite to the fixed sphere, and a screw groove 205 is formed between the rotation drive unit 203 and the neck.

The rotation drive section is for automatically controlling the above-mentioned center distance Z1. For example, the movement amount or movement speed of the micromanipulator is detected by the three-dimensional movement mechanism, or the tilt of the operating rod 31 is detected. The center distance Z1 can be changed by detecting the angle and the inclination speed in the transmission unit 14 and the conversion unit 15.

That is, when the operating rod 31 is tilted, a non-linear operation can be realized at the time of starting and ending the tilting operation. Therefore, when the cells to be manipulated under the microscope are cells, and when a micropipette or the like in a micromanipulator enters the egg membrane to access the follicle, the tip of the micropipette naturally accelerates to start work quickly. It is possible to prevent damage to the cell membrane and the like by applying smooth braking.

In the first and second embodiments described above, the fixed sphere is hung on the Y-axis moving base, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the fixed sphere is X.
As a matter of course, it may be hung on the shaft moving base. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and it goes without saying that various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0032]

As described above, the present invention has the following effects. (1) Since the mechanical structure of the conversion unit is simplified, for example, a mechanism for performing a triaxial fine movement operation for moving the operation target object in a direction perpendicular to the horizontal plane by one operation rod is added. A structural margin was born. (2) Since the new vertical fine movement part does not need to hold a movable ball, it is smaller than the conventional example and does not require cooperation with the interlocking fixed part, so the mechanical structure such as the screw groove is simple. The result is a low cost product that does not require complicated machining. (3) The assembling of the vertical fine movement part is independent of the movable ball and the interlocking fixed part, the assembling order is not limited, and the outer shape is smaller than that of the conventional example, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced. (4) Since the fine adjustment is performed from the upper side of the joystick, which does not easily cause an obstacle, the absolute position of the operation object can be moved without accidentally breaking the current tilt of the operation rod during the operation. You can work without worrying about getting lost. (5) In order to prevent the movement of the absolute position, it is not necessary to screw the interlocking fixing part in advance to suppress the movement of the movable ball, so that the addition of this screwing operation is not necessary, and as a result, the entire work is simplified. it can. According to the above (1) to (5), it becomes possible to provide a mechanism for adjusting the fine movement rate of the joystick for fine movement operation which is flexible and has good operability in spite of its simple and inexpensive form.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view illustrating a first embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a new adjusting mechanism in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view illustrating a second embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of a conventional egg cell processing device.

5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a conversion unit of the joystick in FIG.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the operation of the conversion unit in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 egg cell 2 petri dish 3 stage 4 fixed holding part 5 micromanipulator 6 optical system 7 anti-vibration mat 8 microtool 9 joystick 11 support frame 12 operating rod 14 transmission part 15 conversion part 22 Y-axis movement table 23 X-axis movement table 25 movement amount Adjustable holder 25a Collar 25b Curved surface 26 Movable sphere 27 Movable sphere fixture 27a Collar 27b Curved surface 29 Fixed sphere 31 Control rod 101 Y-axis moving base 102 Adjusting member 103 Grip 104 Male screw 110 X-axis moving base 110a curved surface 202 second adjustment member 203 rotation drive unit

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A fixed sphere, which is a fixed sphere, is hung on one of the two-axis moving bases, a movable sphere that is a movable sphere has a cylindrical inner wall formed inside, and an operating rod is provided outside. The cylindrical inner wall is hung down and circumscribes the outer peripheral surface of the fixed sphere, and a holding inner wall that holds and supports the movable sphere is bored on the other movable table in the two-axis direction. Circumscribing the surface and operating the operating rod to finely move the two-axis moving bases to move the fixed sphere up and down along the cylindrical inner wall of the movable sphere,
In the mechanism for adjusting the fine movement ratio in the fine movement operation joystick, which adjusts the fine movement ratio by changing the center distance between the fixed ball and the movable ball, a through hole is formed in the moving base on the fixed ball mounting side facing the movable ball. An adjustment member that hangs a fixed ball through the neck is fitted into this through hole, and the fixed ball is provided so as to be movable back and forth along the cylindrical inner wall of the movable ball. mechanism. 2. The fine movement operation joystick performs fine movement operation of the manipulator when operating an object to be magnified under a microscope with the manipulator. A mechanism for adjusting the fine movement rate of a joystick for fine movement operation. 3. The fixing member, wherein the adjusting member is provided with a gripping portion having a circumferential surface formed in a gear tooth shape on the side opposite to the fixed sphere, and a screw groove is formed between the gripping portion and the neck. The fine movement rate adjusting mechanism in the fine movement operating joystick according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the moving base on the attachment side has a corresponding thread groove formed in the through hole and the adjustment member is screwed in. 4. The adjusting member is provided with a rotary drive unit for rotating and driving in the forward and reverse directions on the side opposite to the fixed ball, and a screw groove is formed between the rotary drive unit and the neck. A fine movement rate adjusting mechanism in the fine movement operating joystick according to claim 1, 2, or 3.