JPS6113158A - Biochemical analyser - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To attain to enhance the efficiency of analytical work, by providing a centrifugal separator for separating serum from whole blood, a thermostatic tank having a photometric head and a pipet apparatus. CONSTITUTION:Centrifugal separators 2 each separating serum from whole blood, a tunnel shaped thermostatic tank 20 having a plurality of photometric heads and a pipe apparatus 54 capable of sucking separated serum to distribute the same to analytical slides passing through the thermostatic tank 20 are provided in a main body 1. Test tubes 8 each receiving a proper amount of whole blood are mounted to the disc 6 of each centrifugal separator 2, which are positioned directly under circular holes 11 provided to the main body 1, through said holes 11. Next, when an operation board 80 is manipulated, a driving part 3 is operated and the output shaft 4 thereof is rotated by 1/3. At this position, a rotation energizing means 12 is operated and whole blood in each test tube is separated into blood corpuscles and serum on the basis of specific- gravity difference thereof by centrifugal force due to the high speed rotation of each disc 6. Next, the shaft 4 is further rotated by 1/3 and the pipet apparatus 54 is operated to suck a proper amount of the serum in each tube 8. This sucked serum is dripped on the measuring surface of each analytical slide and irradiated with photometric light while the reflected light thereof is operated by a light receiving element and a measured value is displayed on a display device 76.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] This invention supplies a test sample to a biochemical analyzer, specifically an analysis slide equipped with an analysis element impregnated with a reaction reagent, and This invention relates to a device for chemically analyzing changes in color density by measuring changes in color density due to reactions.

[Conventional technology]

Generally, when determining whether or not a specific component is contained in blood and its content, an analysis slide equipped with an analytical element impregnated with a reaction reagent is used, and the test sample to be analyzed is placed on this analytical element. Means for supplying the solution dropwise, reacting it with a test sample in a thermostatic reaction chamber, and measuring the progress or result of the reaction (1), for example, the change in color density due to the reaction, using an optical density meter.

Devices that perform measurement and analysis using other means have been known.However, the serum used as the test sample for the above measurements is separated from whole blood in a separate process using a centrifugal separator, etc., and then transferred to an analysis slide using a pipette. They had to be fed individually, which was troublesome to handle.

[Purpose of the invention]

This invention is intended to solve the above problems, and involves separating serum as a test sample from whole blood.

The object of the present invention is to provide a biochemical analyzer that can automatically supply and measure separated serum to an analysis slide at the same time.

[Structure of the invention]

This invention is a tunnel-type thermostat that has a centrifugal separation means for separating serum from whole blood, a means for transporting one analysis slide linearly at a constant pitch, and a plurality of photometric heads at the stop position of the analysis slide. The above objective can be achieved by being equipped with a bath and a pipette device that can aspirate one separated serum and dispense it onto an analysis slide that passes through a constant temperature bath.

〔Example〕

Next, the present invention will be described based on an embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings.

1 is the biochemical analyzer main body (hereinafter simply referred to as the main body),
A centrifugal separator 2 is provided within the main body 1 for separating serum from whole blood.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the centrifugal separator 2 is provided with an arm 5 having the same length extending in three directions at the upper end of the output shaft 4 of the drive unit 3. The disk 6 is its spindle 6
It is rotatably supported via . The disk 6 is formed by fixing a top plate 6b to a bottomed cylindrical body 6a. A plurality of holes 7, 7- are arranged equally on the same circle on the outer edge of the top plate 6b of each disk 6, and each of the corporations 7, 7-, . . . has a cylindrical container 9 that can receive a test tube 8. As shown in FIG. 3 (I), it is suspended swingably through the pin 10, and due to the centrifugal force when the disk 6 rotates at high speed, its lower end is directed outward as shown in the same figure (Ir). The disk 6 revolves in the same circle together with the output shaft 4, which rotates one-third of a turn (120 degrees) in the direction of the arrow by the operation of the drive unit 3, and stops at a fixed position. It is possible to accurately stop at predetermined positions A, B, and C by means (not shown).

Reference numeral 11 denotes a circular hole provided in one top plate 1a of the main body 1 corresponding to the stop position A of the disk, and the circular hole 11 is large enough to completely expose the entire hole 7-. on the top surface of the disk.

This is for attaching the test tube 8 to the container 9 which is suspended in the hole 7 of the disk 6. Reference numeral 12 denotes a rotation urging means for rotating the disk at a high speed at the disk stop position B. The rotation urging means 12, as shown in FIG. A motor 15 is installed on the cone shaft 1 of the motor 15.
6 is provided with an upwardly concave friction member 17, and the friction member 17 is configured to be coupled to and separated from a downwardly convex friction member 18 provided at the lower end of the support shaft 6' of the disk 6 by vertical movement of the movable plate 14. ing. The motor 15 of this rotation urging means 12
Needless to say, a device capable of rotating at a high speed (for example, 4 f 3000 rpm or higher) necessary to separate serum from whole blood in the test tube 8 is used. Reference numeral 19 denotes a pipette insertion hole provided in the upper plate 1a of the main body 1 corresponding to the stop position C of the disk, and the pipette insertion hole 19 matches one hole 7 (opening of the test tube 8) on the disk. do. In addition, C
At the position, the disk 6 is rotated forward and backward at a predetermined angle by a rotation urging means (not shown) having the same structure as the rotation urging means at the B position, and the test tube 8 containing the serum to be aspirated with the pipette device is You can choose. This selection involves attaching, for example, a barcode to a suitable location on the disc and transmitting it to the detector (
(not shown).

Reference numeral 20 denotes a tunnel-shaped constant temperature bath for the analysis slide 21 installed in the groove 1b provided on the top plate 1a of the main body 1, and the constant temperature bath 20 has an outer surface protected by a metal plate 22 as shown in FIG. An upper casing 24 with an opening-shaped cross section and a lower casing 25 with a U-shaped cross-section formed of a heat insulating material 23 are combined so that their opening sides face each other, and a heating element is placed inside the upper casing 24 and the lower casing 25. 26 and a heat sink 27 are arranged.

The heat sink 27 in the lower housing 25 is formed into a U-shaped cross section.
Between the upper ends thereof, there is a conveying path 28 in which opposing grooves 28a and 28b are formed in the center to lightly grip both edges of the analysis slide 21.
A top plate 29 is placed thereon.

Reference numeral 30 denotes an intermittent conveyance means for intermittently conveying the analysis slides 21 on the conveyance path 28 at a constant pitch, and the intermittent conveyance means 30 is provided at the center of the inner bottom surface of the heat dissipation plate 27 in the lower housing 25 as shown in the figure. Two grooves 31a, 31 along the path length direction.
b. An H-shaped base 32 is slidably fitted to the 11iaia and 3tb. The H-shaped base 32 can be moved back and forth with a predetermined stroke by a drive device (not shown). 33 are both side walls 32 of the H-shaped base 32
A pressing member 34 is attached to the center of the horizontal shaft 33, which extends between a and 32b at a predetermined distance.

Further, on the outside of both side walls 32a and 32b of the H-shaped base 32, a drive device (not shown) (which may be common to the drive device of the H-shaped base 32 or a separate device) is used to drive a predetermined stroke in the path length direction. Front and rear sliding plates 35a and 35b face each other. The horizontal shaft 3 is attached to the sliding plates 35a and 35b.
Vertical holes 36a, 36b are provided at the same interval as the installation interval of 3, and pins 37a, 37b protruding from the upper portions of both end surfaces of the pressing member 34 are fitted into the vertical holes 36a, 36b. Therefore, the pressing member 34 is slid forward with the sliding plates 35a and 35b stopping the H-shaped base 32.

Stand up as shown in Figure 6 (1). On the other hand, when sliding backwards, the sliding plate is designed to fall backwards as shown in Figure (II), and by combining the sliding movement of the H-shaped base 32 with the movement of this sliding plate, it is possible to press The member 34 can move forward in an upright state and can move backward in a collapsed state. When the pressing member 34 stands up, its upper end protrusion 34a protrudes above the conveying path 28 of the analysis slide 21 as shown in FIG. 7, and when it falls down, it sinks below the conveying path. By repeating the forward movement in an upright state and the backward movement in a fallen state, the analysis slide 21 is intermittently and sequentially transported forward.

Reference numeral 38 denotes a supply unit that supplies the analysis slides 2.1 to the conveyance path 28, and the supply unit 38, as shown in FIG. The rotating body 40 and the spindle 4 of the rotating body 40
1, and a pusher 43 installed on the stationary floor 42. The pusher 43 has mounting plates 44a facing each other as shown in FIG.

A movable body 47 equipped with a pusher plate 46 is slidably fitted to two shafts 45a and 45b extending between 44b, and the movable body 47 is arranged outside the mounting plate 44a. It is moored to a rope 51 stretched between a driving pulley 49 fixed to a shaft and a driven pulley 50 fixed to a shaft supported by a side plate 44c erected on the other mounting plate 44b side. Therefore, when the pusher plate 46 moves forward via the rope 51 due to the operation of the motor 48.

Analysis slide 21 in the cassette 39 located in front of it
is extruded as shown and supplied to the m feed path 28. In this case, the rotating body 40 is rotated by the operation of its driving means 52, and the cassette 39 loaded with the necessary analysis slides 21 can be selected to be placed in front of the pusher Fi46.

Reference numeral 53 denotes a dispensing hole for dispensing separated serum to the analysis slide 21 that travels intermittently within the transport path 28, as described above, and the dispensing hole 53 is located in the upper housing corresponding to the stopping position of the analysis slide 21. 24 in a penetrating manner. 54 is a pipette device, and the pipette device 54 is connected to the centrifugal separator 2.
The pipette descends through the pipette insertion hole 19 provided in the upper surface plate 1a of the main body 1 corresponding to the stop position C of the disc 6 constituting the test tube 8, moves upward after aspirating the serum in the test tube 8, and rotates at the upper moving point. It moves downward over the dispensing hole 53, and the aspirated serum can be dispensed onto the element surface 21a of the analysis slide 21. As shown in FIG. 10, the pipette device 54 is attached to a U-shaped frame 57a at the tip of a horizontal arm rod 57 fixed to the head of a vertical shaft 56 rotatably supported by a bearing member 55 provided on the upper surface plate 1a of the main body 1. It holds the pipette main body 58 so as to be able to move up and down.

A rack 59 formed on one side of the pipette main body 58 is engaged with a pinion 60 pivotally supported in the middle of the U-shaped frame 57a. The pinion 60 is connected to a drive means (not shown) through the inside of the horizontal arm rod 57, and can move the pipette main body 58 up and down by rotating the pinion in forward and reverse directions. Further, the vertical shaft 56 is connected to a driven gear 63 that meshes with a driving gear 62 of a motor 61 installed inside the main body 1.
The pipette main body 58 can rotate between the centers of the pipette insertion hole 19 and the dispensing hole 53.

64 is a suction machine, and 65 is a conduit connected to the suction machine 64.

66 is an optical means for photometry, and the optical means 66 for photometry is the eighth
11 and 12, a light beam generated from a light source 67 such as a halogen lamp is converted into a photometric beam of a desired wavelength through a lens 68 and a filter 69, and the photometric beam is transmitted to a rotating mirror device 70. The light is distributed through the optical fiber half 1 and guided to a photometry head 72 placed close to the measurement surface (back surface of the element) of the analysis slide 21 and irradiated thereon. This irradiation light is reflected from the measurement surface and transmitted to the light receiving element 74 through the optical fiber 73, and is then sent to the microcomputer.
etc., and the measured value is sent to the main body 1.
It can be displayed on the display window 76 of. This measured value may be printed on a roll of recording paper (not shown) if necessary.

A plurality of photometry heads 72 (four in the figure) are provided at the stop position of the analysis slide 21 traveling in the conveyance path 28, and each photometry head is connected to the end face of each optical fiber 71 connected to the nodule 72.

By setting the angle of the mirror 70a of the rotating mirror device 70, the photometric beam can be guided (see Fig. 11), and the photometric head 72 moves upward when the photometric beam is irradiated. As shown in FIG. 12, it is pressed against the measurement surface of the analysis slide 21.

The reason why a plurality of photometry heads 72 are provided here is for a rate analysis method that enables a plurality of measurements based on the time difference between dispensing serum onto an analysis slide and photometry.

Reference numeral 77 is a transparent glass inclined at 45° installed in the optical path of the photometric light beam in order to eliminate as much as possible errors in measurement values due to changes in the light intensity of the photometric light beam over time. A part of the light is referenced to a correction circuit (not shown) through the light receiving element 78 and is sent to the analysis slide 2.
The measurement value of the photometric light beam reflected from the measurement surface 1 can be corrected to a correct value.

In Figure 2, 79 is a storage container for the analysis slides measured by the photometric optical means 66, and 80 is an operation panel for inputting analysis items and the like and starting each device.

Next, the effect will be explained.

First, insert a test tube 8 containing an appropriate amount of whole blood into the disk 6 that is stopped directly below it through the circular hole 11 provided in the top plate 1a of the main body 1.Next, operate the operation panel 80 to determine the analysis items. Input and start. This causes the drive unit 3 to operate and its output shaft 4 to rotate one-third of the way and then stop, so the disk at position A moves to position B, and the disk at position B moves to position C2. The disks at position C move to position A at the same time. When the disk 6 with the test tube 8 attached thereto stops at position B, the rotation urging means 12 installed at that position is activated. That is, the movable plate 14 is moved upward by the solenoid 13, and the motor 15 and the disk 6 are connected via the friction members 17 and 18.
A supporting shaft 6' is directly connected to rotate the disk 6 at high speed. Due to the centrifugal force caused by the high speed rotation of this disk 6,
Whole blood is separated into blood cells and serum based on the difference in specific gravity.

After the time required for this separation has elapsed, the two-turn biasing means 12 separates from the disk 6'. The disk 6 is braked by a braking means (not shown) and becomes stationary. During the centrifugation at the B position, the test tube 8 is attached to the A position. Thereafter, the drive section 3 is activated again, and its output shaft 4 rotates one-third of a rotation, and the disk, which has finished centrifuging at position B, moves to position C.

The disk to which the test tube was previously attached at position A reaches position B, where it is centrifuged in the same manner as above.

The disk 6, which has moved to position C, stops so that one of the test tubes is aligned with the pipette insertion hole 19.2 Next, the pipette main body 58 of the pipette device 54 is lowered through the pipette insertion hole 19, and the tip is placed in the test tube. The serum layer is charged, and an appropriate amount of serum is aspirated by operating the suction device 64. As described above, in this C position, the disk 6 rotates and the serum to be aspirated by the pipette main body 58 is selected.

After suction, the pipette main body 5B is moved upward by the operation of the pinion 60, rotated by the motor 61, reaches directly above the dispensing hole 53, and descends again to drip the serum. On the other hand, the analysis slide 21 is placed in the transport path 28 by the pusher 43 of the supply section 38.
Since the serum is selectively supplied by the pipette and positioned corresponding to the dispensing hole 53 by the operation of the intermittent conveying means 30, the serum dropped from the pipette main body as described above is correctly supplied to the element surface of the analysis slide 21. It will be done. After the serum has been dispensed onto the element surface, the analysis slide 21 moves forward and reaches the installation position of the photometry head 72 of the photometry optical means 66, where it is photometered.

In this photometry, after the photometry head moves up and comes into close contact with the measurement surface of the analysis slide, the measurement surface is irradiated with a photometric light beam from the light source 67, and the reflected light is sent to the microcomputer via the light receiving element.
etc., and the measured values are displayed on the display window 76 of the main body 1. At the same time, the information is recorded on a roll of recording paper as required.

The above-mentioned operations are performed fully automatically.5 [Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, the centrifugation means for separating serum from whole blood and the two analysis slides are transported linearly at a constant pitch. have the means.

Moreover, it is characterized by being equipped with a tunnel-type constant temperature bath having a plurality of photometric heads at the stop position of the analysis slide, and a pipette device that can aspirate one separated serum and dispense it onto the analysis slide passing through the constant temperature bath. Whole blood can be used as a test sample, and there is no need to prepare serum in a separate process as in the past (not only is the test sample easy to handle, but the serum after one separation can be used immediately as a test sample). There are advantages that can be achieved.

In addition, once the analyst sets the test tube containing whole blood as specified, the entire blood serum is separated from the whole blood, and the aspiration, dispensing, and measurement of the separated serum are performed all at once, improving the efficiency of analysis work. It has various excellent effects such as the ability to achieve

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The figures show one embodiment of the present invention, in which Fig. 1 is an external perspective view of the main body, Fig. 2 is a plan view of the centrifugal separation means, Fig. 3 I,
II is a sectional view showing the rocking state of the test tube holding container before and after high-speed rotation, FIG. 4 is a front sectional view of the centrifugal separation means, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional perspective view of the conveyance path, and FIGS. 6 I and II are analysis. A diagram showing the operation of the pressing member of the slide, FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram when the pressing member is raised and moved forward, FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing the supply section of the analysis slide and the optical means for photometry, and FIG. FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the pipette device, and FIG. 11 is an enlarged view of the rotating mirror device. FIG. 12 is a sectional view showing the relationship between the irradiation head and the analysis slide. 1 - Main body 2 - Centrifugal separation means 6 - Disc
12 One rotation biasing means 2〇-Thermostatic chamber 21
- Analysis slide 28 - Transport path 30 - Intermittent transport means 38' - Supply section 43 - Pusher 54 - Pipette device 66 - Optical means for photometry Patent applicant Konishiroku Photo Industry Co., Ltd. Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 4. Figure 8 Figure 10

Claims (1)

[Claims] a tunnel-shaped thermostat having centrifugation means for separating serum from whole blood, means for transporting an analysis slide linearly at a constant pitch, and a plurality of photometric heads at the stop position of the analysis slide; A biochemical analyzer characterized by comprising a pipette device capable of aspirating separated serum and dispensing it onto an analysis slide passing through a thermostatic bath.