JPH10300577A - Spectrophotometer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a spectrophotometer which prevents a light-source lamp from being turned on wastefully for many hours, by a method wherein the light-source lamp is turned off automatically when a prescribed turning-off time elapses. SOLUTION: First, a personal computer stores a present time in a final operating time part Tc (step S1). Then, whether an operator performs a prescribed operation such as a measuring-condition setting operation and the like is detected (Step S2). When the operation is performed, a procedure is returned to Step S1, and a new present time is stored again in the time part TC. In addition, when the operation is not performed, whether the present time exceeds a set turning-off time Tm or not is judged on the basis of the time part Tc . When the time Tm does not elapse, a procedure is returned to Step S2, and a loop is repeated. On the other hand, when the time Tm elapses, a turning-off command is sent to a spectrophotometer body, and a light-source lamp is turned off so as to be displayed. Then, an OK bottom at a turning-off display is clicked, a turning-on command is sent to the spectrophotometer body, and the lamp can be turned of. After that, a procedure is returned to Step S1, and the above processing operation is repeated. In this manner, it is possible to prevent the light-source lamp from being turned on wastefully.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a spectrophotometer for turning off a light source lamp used for measurement of a spectrophotometer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Spectrophotometers are used not only in spectrum measurement for color measurement and the like, but also in wide fields such as quantitative measurement for film thickness measurement and time change measurement for enzyme reaction measurement.

In the above-mentioned spectrophotometer, since a light source lamp for irradiating light for photometry has a service life, it is preferable to turn off the light source lamp when the measurement is interrupted for a long time. For example, in the case of a halogen lamp serving as a light source in the visible light region, the durability time is about 2000 hours,
In the case of a D2 lamp serving as a light source in the ultraviolet and visible light regions, the durability time is about 500 hours. However, spectrophotometers
Since it takes a certain amount of time from when the light source lamp is turned on to when the light source and the device are thermally stabilized, if this light source lamp is turned on only when actually performing the measurement,
It is necessary to warm up the light source and the like for each measurement, and the measurement time is wasted.

Therefore, in the conventional spectrophotometer, when the measurement is interrupted for a while, the measurer manually turns off the light source lamp by operating a switch or the like.

[0005]

However, relying on manual operation to turn off the light source lamp cannot completely prevent a measurer from forgetting this operation and standing in a seat. Often stays lit for a long time. In addition, the measurer stood in the seat without turning off the light source lamp for a few minutes at first, but for some reasons, the measurer may not be able to return for a long period of time. It stays on for hours.

For this reason, the conventional spectrophotometer has a problem in that the light source lamps needlessly light up for a long time and the life of the light source lamps becomes unnecessarily short.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and automatically turns off a light source lamp when a predetermined light-off time elapses without the operator performing an operation. It is an object of the present invention to provide a spectrophotometer that can prevent light from being turned on for a long time.

[0008]

According to the automatic light source lamp extinguishing device in the spectrophotometer of the present invention, the time-measuring start means starts measuring the extinguishing time every time the measurer performs a predetermined operation. When a predetermined operation is sequentially performed at a time interval shorter than the time, the clocking is restarted from the beginning each time, and the clocking of the extinguishing time does not end, and the light source lamp maintains the lighting state. be able to. That is, while the measurer is performing an operation for preparation for measurement, post-processing of the previous measurement, and the like, the light source lamp can be kept on for the next measurement. However, if the measurer has never performed a predetermined operation within the light-off time, the time-out of the light-off time ends, and the automatic light-off means turns off the light source lamp. Therefore, if the measurer leaves the seat away from the spectrophotometer and starts a completely different task, and the light source lamp remains on for a long time with the light source lamp turned on, this light source lamp is automatically turned on. To prevent the life from becoming shorter.

Note that the light-off time is a time of a suitable length set in advance, and this time may be fixed or may have a predetermined value and be changeable. Also,
The turn-off time may be set by the measurer before measurement.

[0010]

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

FIGS. 1 to 6 show an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing a configuration of a light source lamp automatic extinguishing function. FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a “lamp auto-off message” dialog box displayed on the display, and FIG. 4 is a front view showing a configuration of a spectrophotometer including a main body of the spectrophotometer and a personal computer. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a main window of the spectrophotometer application displayed on the display, and FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a “spectral parameter” dialog box displayed on the display.

In the present embodiment, an ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometer that performs photometry in the visible light region and the ultraviolet light region using a D2 lamp as a light source lamp will be described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, UV-visible near-infrared spectrophotometer and infrared spectrophotometer,
Alternatively, the present invention can be similarly carried out for an arbitrary spectrophotometer such as a fluorescence spectrophotometer. Further, the type of the light source lamp does not matter.

As shown in FIG. 4, the spectrophotometer of the present embodiment comprises a spectrophotometer main body 1 and a personal computer 2 connected thereto. The spectrophotometer body 1
It is a main body of a measuring apparatus for setting a sample and actually performing spectrophotometry, and has a D2 lamp 3 mounted therein. The personal computer 2 controls the main body 1 of the spectrophotometer.
(Operating system), and control is performed by executing an application of the spectrophotometer on the OS. In addition, this spectrophotometer main body 1
The personal computer 2 exchanges measurement data and commands by communication via a serial interface. Note that the connection between the spectrophotometer main body 1 and the personal computer 2 is not limited to such a serial interface, and any interface may be used.

FIG. 5 shows a main window 11 displayed on the display 4 by a spectrophotometer application executed on the OS of the personal computer 2. In the main window 11, by clicking the “measure” button 12 with a mouse, a measurement start command is sent to the spectrophotometer main body 1 and the measurement can be executed. FIG. 5 shows a case where the transmittance of the sample in the wavelength range of 380.0 nm to 780.0 nm is measured. Therefore, the spectrophotometer main body 1 sequentially converts the light from the D2 lamp 3 from 380.0 nm to 780 using a grating. Photometry is performed by splitting light having a wavelength of up to 0.0 nm into light, and the measurement data is sequentially transmitted to the personal computer 2. Then, in the application, the measured data is converted into transmittance, and displayed by sequentially plotting the wavelength on the graph in the main window 11 on the horizontal axis. In the main window 11, the measurement can be stopped by clicking the “Stop” button 13.
By clicking the "F" button 14, the D2 lamp 3 of the spectrophotometer main body 1 can be turned off manually.

In the main window 11, when a "file" menu 15 on the menu bar is clicked, a pull-down menu 16 as shown in FIG. 5 can be opened. In the pull-down menu 16, by clicking a “read file” command 17, a “read file” dialog box (not shown) is opened, and past measurement data and reference data are read and the main window 11 is read.
Can be displayed on the graph inside. This graph can be displayed repeatedly by repeating the measurement or by superimposing a plurality of data read by the “file read” command 17. Also, this pull-down menu 1
In step 6, by clicking on a "store file" command 18, the measurement data sent from the spectrophotometer main body 1 is stored as a file in the hard disk device in the personal computer 2, and a "file erase" command 19 is issued. By clicking, any file in this hard disk device can be deleted.

When the "condition setting" menu 20 on the menu bar is clicked, a pull-down menu (not shown) is opened. When a "parameter" command is clicked here, for example, as shown in FIG. "Spectrum parameters" dialog box 21
Appears. In the "spectral parameter" dialog box 21, the user can select whether the photometric value of the measurement data is absorbance, transmittance, or the like, define the measurement range that is the scale of the vertical axis of the graph, or set the wavelength of the spectrum measurement. Measurement conditions can be set by defining a range or the like. These settings are confirmed by clicking the "OK" button 22, and the "spectral parameter" dialog box 21 is closed. Therefore, the “condition setting” menu 20 is used by a measurer to appropriately perform setting operations as needed before starting measurement.

When the "data processing" menu 23 on the menu bar shown in FIG. 5 is clicked, a pull-down menu (not shown) is opened. Here, a "peak detection" command, an "area calculation" command, or the like is clicked. Accordingly, various data processing can be performed on the measurement data. That is, the “peak detection” command detects the maximum value of the measurement data, and displays a list of values of the wavelength and the transmittance of each maximum value, and the “area calculation” command executes the “area calculation” command within the specified wavelength range. The result of integrating the transmittance etc. is displayed.
When the "display" menu 24 on the menu bar is clicked, printout and the like of a graph can be performed. Therefore, the "data processing" menu 23 and the "display" menu 24 are operated by the measurer as necessary mainly after the measurement is completed.

The application of the spectrophotometer has an automatic light source lamp extinguishing function. The configuration of the light source lamp automatic extinguishing function will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG. When the application of the spectrophotometer is started, first, in a first step (hereinafter referred to as "S"), the current time is read from the system timer of the personal computer 2 and stored as the last operation time Tc (S1). Next, it is detected whether or not the measurer has performed a predetermined operation (S
2) If an operation has been performed, the process returns to the process of S1, and a new current time is read and stored as the last operation time Tc. If no operation has been performed, the current time is read, and it is determined whether or not the light-off time Tm has elapsed since the last operation time Tc (S3). If the light-off time Tm has not elapsed, the process returns to S2 to repeat these loops.

In the present embodiment, the predetermined operations include a file operation in the pull-down menu 16 of the “file” menu 15, a setting operation of the measurement conditions in the “spectral parameter” dialog box 21, a data processing operation, and This means all mouse operations and keyboard input operations performed for preparation for measurement and post-processing, such as printout operations, and states during measurement. The extinction time Tm is a time interval of such a length that the predetermined operation cannot be interrupted when the normal measurement work is continued. In the present embodiment, an appropriate time is set as a predetermined value in advance. Is set. It is assumed that the mouse or keyboard may not be operated during the measurement, but the operation is constantly performed during the measurement. That is, the "measurement state" is equivalent to operating the mouse or keyboard. In addition, the light-off time T
As for m, the setting can be changed by opening the “lamp automatic extinguishing / condition setting” dialog box 25 as shown in FIG. That is, in the “lamp automatic extinguishing / condition setting” dialog box 25, a new time is set by selecting any one of 10 minutes to 1 hour in the extinguishing time setting, and the “OK” button 26 is clicked. Confirm this setting. In the "lamp automatic extinguishing / condition setting" dialog box 25, instead of selecting the extinguishing time Tm, the setting may be made so that a numerical value representing the time can be arbitrarily input. In the "automatic lamp-off / condition setting" dialog box 25, the "automatic lamp-off" function itself can be disabled by selecting the "OFF" item in the lamp automatic extinguishing.

When the application is started by the process of S1, the time of the light-off time Tm is started. And if the measurer does not perform any predetermined operation,
Until the time-out of the light-off time Tm ends, the processing of S2 and S3 is repeated. If the measurer performs a predetermined operation during this time, the last operation time Tc is updated in the process of S1, and the timing of the light-off time Tm is restarted from the beginning. Therefore,
If the measurer sequentially performs predetermined operations at time intervals shorter than the light-off time Tm, only the processing of S1 to S3 is repeated. Here, the processing of S1 and S2 corresponds to the time counting start means. That is, storing the current time in the last operation time Tc in the processing of S1 means setting the start time of the time measured by the system timer, and the time measurement is started from this start time. . In the process of S3, by calculating the time difference between the start time and the current time, it is possible to determine whether the light-off time Tm has elapsed and the time measurement has ended.

If it is determined in step S3 that the light-off time Tm has elapsed, a light-off command is sent to the spectrophotometer main body 1 to turn off the D2 lamp 3 and the display 4 shown in FIG. The "Lamp automatic extinguishing message" dialog box 27 is displayed (S4).
"Lamp Auto Off Message" Dialog Box 27
Displays a message for notifying the measurer that the D2 lamp 3 has been turned off, and an "OK" button 28 for canceling the message is provided. And
It waits as it is until the measurer clicks the "OK" button 28 to perform the release operation (S5). Where S
The processes of 3 and S4 correspond to the automatic light-off means, and if it is determined in the process of S3 that the counting of the light-off time Tm has been completed,
In step 4, the D2 lamp 3 is automatically turned off.

According to the processing in S3 and S4, after the application is started or after the operator performs a predetermined operation last, if the light-off time Tm elapses without the operator performing the predetermined operation, D2 The lamp 3 is turned off. Therefore, when the measurer stands and sits away from the personal computer 2 for a long time, or starts work unrelated to the measurement and leaves the application of the spectrophotometer for a long time, the D2 lamp 3 is automatically turned on. The light is not turned off, and the light is not continuously turned on.

However, the "measurement" of the main window 11
When the measurement is actually started by clicking the button 12, the D2 lamp 3 must not be turned off during the execution of this measurement even if the operator does not perform any operation. Also, while the measurement is completed and the spectrophotometer body 1 is performing the operation of returning the grating to the original wavelength,
2 Lamp 3 must not be turned off. Therefore, it is necessary not to operate the light source lamp automatic extinguishing function during these periods. For this purpose, for example, the operation of the “measure” button 12 or the communication from the spectrophotometer main body 1 detects whether or not the measurement is being performed or the return period of the grating or the like. It may be handled in the same manner as when the user performs a predetermined operation. If the time required for the measurement or the restoration of the grating is sufficiently shorter than the light-off time Tm, the “measure” button 12
It is sufficient to include the click operation in the predetermined operation in the processing of S2.

In the process of S5, when the measurer clicks the "OK" button 28 of the "lamp automatic extinguishing message" dialog box 27 to perform a release operation, a lighting command is sent to the spectrophotometer main body 1 and the D2 lamp 3 is sent. Is turned on, and the "lamp automatic extinguishing message" dialog box 27 is closed to erase the message display (S
6). Then, the process returns to S1 and repeats the subsequent processes again. In this way, if the D2 lamp 3 is automatically turned off and the "lamp auto-off message" dialog box 27 is opened, the D2 lamp 3 will be turned off when the measurer returns to his / her seat or completes work unrelated to the measurement. Can be surely turned off, and "OK"
This is convenient because the work for measurement can be resumed just by clicking the button 28.

In S1 to S6, the function of automatically turning off the light source lamp in the application of the spectrophotometer is shown as a series of processes. However, the actual application is repeatedly called from the OS of the window system every time.
The presence / absence of an event such as an operation of an operator or input of measurement data is checked, and if any event occurs, a process corresponding to the event is performed. Therefore, the above S2
Is performed by checking for the presence or absence of a predetermined event. The process of S1 is performed at the time of initial setting when an application is started or at the time of processing a predetermined event.
The processes in S3 and S4 are executed before returning control to the OS without a predetermined event. Also,
The processing of S5 and S6 is the same as the processing of a normal dialog box.

As described above, the spectrophotometer according to the present embodiment operates while the operator performs predetermined operations sequentially at intervals shorter than the light-off time Tm for preparation for measurement and post-processing.
Since the lighting state of the D2 lamp 3 is maintained, the next measurement can be performed immediately, and the measurement time is not wasted. Also, if the measurer has never performed a predetermined operation within the turning-off time Tm, the D2 lamp 3 is turned off automatically, so that the D2 lamp 3 is turned on uselessly and the life is shortened. Can be prevented.

In the above embodiment, a personal computer-controlled spectrophotometer in which the main body 1 of the spectrophotometer is controlled by the personal computer 2 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and includes a display device and an input device. The present invention can be similarly applied to a stand-alone type spectrophotometer or the like.

In the above embodiment, the case where the automatic light source lamp extinguishing function is realized as software in an application executed on the OS of the window system has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention is not limited to this. It can be realized by hardware, hardware, or a combination thereof. For example, if the system has an interval timer mechanism, the above S1 and S2
Is set to turn off the time Tm in the interval timer when a predetermined operation is performed, and to start timekeeping. The processes of S4 to S6 in the interrupt routine started when the interval timer ends timekeeping May be executed. Also, for example, the OS of the personal computer 2 has a screen saver function (a function to turn off the screen display or switch to a moving screen display in order to protect the phosphor of the display when no key input or mouse operation is performed for a certain period of time). ), Etc., the processing of S4 to S6 can be executed instead of erasing the screen by using this.

Further, in the above embodiment, in the process of S2, all mouse click operations, keyboard input operations, and the like performed for preparation for measurement and post-processing are included in the targets of the predetermined operations performed by the measurer. However, in order to avoid the overhead due to the processing of S1, only the main operation such as clicking the "read file" command 17 or the "OK" button 22 or pressing the "line feed" key on the keyboard is performed. It may be. Conversely, when the screen saver function is used, operations unrelated to the measurement are also targeted. That is, in the present invention, what kind of operation this predetermined operation is limited to is arbitrary, and the process of S1 may be executed even when an event other than the operation of the measurer occurs. .

[0030]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the apparatus for automatically turning off the light source lamp of the spectrophotometer according to the present invention, when the spectrophotometer is left unattended without performing a predetermined operation for a long time. Since the light source lamp is automatically turned off, it is possible to prevent the useless lighting of the light source lamp from shortening the service life more than necessary and wasting resources.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1, showing an embodiment of the present invention, is a flowchart illustrating a configuration of a light source lamp automatic extinguishing function.

FIG. 2 illustrates one embodiment of the present invention, and is a diagram illustrating a “lamp automatic extinguishing / condition setting” dialog box displayed on a display.

FIG. 3 illustrates one embodiment of the present invention, and is a diagram illustrating a “lamp automatic extinguishing message” dialog box displayed on a display.

FIG. 4, showing an embodiment of the present invention, is a front view illustrating a configuration of a spectrophotometer including a spectrophotometer main body and a personal computer.

FIG. 5, showing an embodiment of the present invention, is a diagram illustrating a main window of a spectrophotometer application displayed on a display.

FIG. 6, showing an embodiment of the present invention, is a diagram illustrating a “spectral parameter” dialog box displayed on a display.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Spectrophotometer main body 2 Personal computer 3 D2 lamp 4 Display

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A time-measurement start means for starting time-out of a light-off time each time a measurer performs a predetermined operation, and when the time-out of the light-off time ends without the measurer performing a predetermined operation, A spectrophotometer comprising: an automatic extinguishing means for extinguishing a light source lamp.