KR20170028467A - Mixing apparatus and method utilizing a capless tube - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a device capable of mixing samples using a capless tube, and to a method therefor. To this end, the device comprises: a jig part (110) supporting the capless tube (10) so that the capless tube (10) can be erected and performs rotation; and a driving part (120) generating driving force for rotation of the capless tube (10).

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention relates to a mixing apparatus and method using a capless tube,

The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for mixing a sample using a capless tube.

Among the devices that perform clinical immunoassay analysis, there are many devices that use a blood collection tube that contains the blood taken by the patient in the hospital. Blood collected in a blood collection tube is centrifuged to separate blood plasma and blood cells, and only the blood plasma is collected, and the equipment used for the examination is mainly made up.

However, since it takes a long time to examine and the method of isolating a sample is cumbersome, many clinical immunoassay equipments using whole blood are being released. The whole blood collected in the collection tube is collected after a certain period of time (approx. Several minutes), since the blood cells having a high density sink down and the plasma is raised. Therefore, depending on the collection time of the sample contained in the collection tube and the sampling interval, An error may occur. To solve this problem, when blood is used in a blood collection tube, blood is artificially mixed and used for diagnosis.

The blood collection tube holds the blood with the lid of the rubber material closed, and when the blood collection is necessary, the needle of the syringe is inserted into the lid and the blood is collected. Before the collection of the blood in the collection tube, the blood in the collection tube is mixed using the blood mixing device as described above.

1 (a), (b), (c), and (d) show a general blood mixing device. In (a) and (b) The blood is mixed by the exercise or the vibration, or the blood collection tube is rotated in the up and down direction as in (c), or a blood sampling tube is radially inserted into the tray, The blood is mixed and fixed.

However, a series of processes in which the blood is mixed with the lid closed in the blood collection tube and the blood is collected through the sample body needles is very disadvantageous to be applied to automated analysis equipment.

Specifically, in order to collect a sample in an automated sample analyzer, a long needle must be pierced into the lid of the blood collection tube to collect the sample. In this case, since the injection needle once sampled is contaminated, it must be cleaned Therefore, there is a problem in that the configuration of the analyzer is complicated and the size of the analyzer becomes large because it requires a separate device structure for washing the needle used with the device for piercing and pulling the needle into the lid in the analyzer.

Accordingly, the present inventor has developed a sample mixing apparatus which is advantageous for automation of sample analysis by using an untube tube to exclude a separate injection needle and its accompanying peripheral devices in automating the sampling process.

U.S. Patent No. 4,118,801 (registered on October 3, 1978)

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the prior art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and a method for mixing a sample, which is advantageous for automatic analysis equipment of a sample.

In order to accomplish the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided a sample mixing apparatus comprising: a jig part for supporting the canopy tube so that the canopy tube is erected and rotated; And a driving unit for generating driving force for rotating the canopy tube.

Preferably, the driving unit is vertically movably provided at an upper end of the cannula.

More preferably, the driving unit includes: a vertically movable lift frame; A first driving source for vertically driving the lifting frame; A stationary head rotatably provided on the lifting frame and adapted to closely fix the top of the canopy tube; And a second driving source for rotatingly driving the fixed head.

Preferably, the jig portion is characterized in that the canopy tube is freely rotatable by being seated on the upper portion.

Preferably, the driving unit contacts a side surface of the canopy tube to generate a rotational driving force.

More preferably, the jig includes a plurality of driven rollers capable of freely rotating in contact with the side surface of the canopy tube, and more preferably, at least one driven roller that is elastically supported and movable back and forth.

Preferably, the driving unit generates a rotational driving force in contact with a lower end of the cannula tube, more preferably, the jig part elastically supports the upper end of the cannon tube.

Next, the method for mixing a sample using the canopy tube of the present invention is characterized in that a sample is mixed by rotating the canopy tube in an upright state.

Preferably, the driving source generates a rotational driving force by a driving source which moves upward and downward at the top of the canopy tube and comes into close contact with the top of the canopy tube. More preferably, And is rotated.

In the sample mixing apparatus and method according to the present invention, the sample is mixed by rotating the upright tube without the lid, so that the sampling operation of the sample after the sample is mixed in the automatic analyzing equipment of the sample is performed by the needle It is possible to use a disposable sampling tool, and in particular, it is not necessary to use a needle for sampling, so that the configuration for operating the injection needle in the automatic analysis equipment and the cleaning equipment accompanying therewith are excluded, The configuration can be simplified.

Figures 1 (a), (b), (c) and (d) show photographs showing a typical blood mixing device,
2 is a configuration diagram of the sample mixing apparatus of the present invention,
3 (a), 3 (b), 3 (c) and 3 (d) are diagrams for explaining an operation example of the sample mixing apparatus of the present invention,
4 (a) and 4 (b) are photographs showing before and after the mixing of the sample by the sample mixing apparatus of the present invention,
5 is a configuration diagram of a sample mixing apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention,
6 (a) and 6 (b) are diagrams showing the construction of a sample mixing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention,
7 is a configuration diagram of a sample mixing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

The specific structure or functional description presented in the embodiment of the present invention is merely illustrative for the purpose of illustrating an embodiment according to the concept of the present invention, and embodiments according to the concept of the present invention can be implemented in various forms. And should not be construed as limited to the embodiments described herein, but should be understood to include all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Meanwhile, in the present invention, the terms first and / or second etc. may be used to describe various components, but the components are not limited to the terms. The terms may be referred to as a second element only for the purpose of distinguishing one element from another, for example, to the extent that it does not depart from the scope of the invention in accordance with the concept of the present invention, Similarly, the second component may also be referred to as the first component.

Whenever an element is referred to as being "connected" or "connected" to another element, it may be directly connected or connected to the other element, but it should be understood that other elements may be present in between something to do. On the other hand, when it is mentioned that an element is "directly connected" or "directly contacted" to another element, it should be understood that there are no other elements in between. Other expressions for describing the relationship between components, such as "between" and "between" or "adjacent to" and "directly adjacent to" should also be interpreted.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. The singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms " comprises ", or "having ", and the like in the specification are intended to specify the presence of stated features, integers, But do not preclude the presence or addition of steps, operations, elements, parts, or combinations thereof.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Referring to FIG. 2, the sample mixing apparatus of the present invention includes a jig 110 to support the cannula tube 10 so that the cannula tube 10 is erected and rotated; And a driving unit 120 for generating a driving force for rotating the cannula tube 10.

The tube used in the present invention is an open tube 10 in which an opening is not covered with a lid at the upper opening. The sample may be a liquid sample such as a whole blood sample, or may be a mixture of liquid and solid.

The jig 110 includes a rotary tray 113 having a seating groove 111 formed on an upper surface thereof and a rotary shaft 112 formed at a lower end thereof and a bearing 114 for supporting the rotary shaft 112 freely rotatably .

The seating groove 111 may be a curved groove having a curvature radius that is the same as or slightly larger than the lower curved surface of the tube 10 so that a portion of the lower end of the tube 10 can be inserted, A guide member may be provided to support the side portion of the cannula tube 10 so that the cannula tube 10 can be held.

On the other hand, the seating groove may be provided with a sufficient depth so that the tube is self-standing without the aid of a separate guide member and may be located in the seating groove.

More specifically, the driving unit 120 includes a fixed head 121 for fixing and supporting the upper end of the canopy tube 10, And may be provided by a driving source 122 that is driven.

2, a separate driving source for vertically moving the driving unit 120 and guide means for guiding the moving direction of the driving unit 120 will be described with reference to the related drawings.

The driving source 122 may be provided by a variety of well-known electric motors, and a driving force transmitting means for transmitting a driving force such as a gear or a belt may be added between the fixed head 121 and the driving source 122.

The fixing head 121 is formed with a fixing hole 121a through which the upper end of the cannula tube 10 can be received and a guide surface 121b formed with an inclination in the fixing hole 121a, So that the upper end of the cannula tube 10 is guided along the guide surface 121b of the fixed head 121 and can be accurately seated in the fixing hole 121a.

The friction pad 123 may be provided on the bottom surface of the fixing hole 121a so that the friction pad 123 is brought into contact with the canopy tube 10 with a large frictional force, The rotation of the fixing head 121 can be accurately transmitted to the tube-like tube 10.

The rotary shaft of each of the jig 110 and the driving unit 120 is provided on the same axis C. The rotary tube 10 rotates on its axis C and the sample is mixed.

3 (a), 3 (b), 3 (c) and 3 (d) are views for explaining an operation example of the sample mixing apparatus of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3 (a), the untensioned tube 10 containing the sample is placed on the upper part of the jig 110, and then the driving unit 120 is lowered to closely contact the untensioned tube 10 to fix the upper end.

Preferably, the driving unit 120 can be fixed while rotating at a low speed while descending.

In the present invention, as the driving unit 120 rotates at a low speed and descends, the upper part of the upper part of the tube 10 And is naturally positioned along the rotation axis of the rotating driving part 120 so that it can be accurately fixed in the fixing hole 122 to be fixed.

Meanwhile, the rotation of the driving unit 120 when the driving unit 120 is lowered can be appropriately determined within a range lower than the rotating speed when the sample of the tube-like tube 10 is mixed.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 3 (b) and 3 (c), the rotatory motion of the drive unit 120 causes rotation of the cannula tube 10 in the same direction, and mixing of the sample is performed. At this time, 10 may be a rotational motion in either direction, or a rotational motion in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction may be repeated at certain times.

As shown in FIG. 3 (d), after the mixing of the sample is completed, the driving unit 120 is raised to return to the home position, and sampling and analysis work can be performed in the tube 10.

4 (a) and 4 (b) are photographs showing the state before and after the mixing of the blood in the tube by rotating (rotating) the blood in a certain condition. The photograph (a) (B) taken after rotating the tube for 35 seconds.

In FIG. 4 (b), 'd' represents the difference in maximum liquid level height of the blood caused by the centrifugal force during the rotation (rotation) motion of the tube, It can be seen that the difference in the height of the liquid surface occurs within about 1 cm in the range of the rotation speed at which the mixing can be performed and the difference in the height is not largely generated. Therefore, in the mixing device of the present invention, The mixing can be carried out without overflowing the sample in the process.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of a sample mixing apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The same reference numerals are used for the same components as those of the previously described embodiment, and redundant description is omitted.

Referring to FIG. 5, the sample mixing apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a jig 110 in which a cannula tube 10 is positioned upright and is capable of rotating, And a driving unit 220.

The driving unit 220 includes a vertically movable lifting frame 221, a first driving source 222a and 222b for vertically driving the lifting frame 221, and a second driving source 222b that is rotatably provided on the lifting frame 221, And a second driving source 225b which is connected to the fixed head 223 by a belt 224 and provides rotational driving force.

The lifting frame 221 is vertically movable and can be guided in the vertical direction by guide means fixed to a housing (not shown) constituting the outer appearance of the mixing apparatus. The lifting frame 221 may be provided with a fixed head 223 and second driving sources 225a and 225b.

The first driving source 222a and the first driving source 222b operate the elevating frame 221 in the vertical direction and in this embodiment the first driving motor 222a and the first driving motor 222a rotate forward or reverse And is provided by a ball screw 222b which is rotated to adjust the height of the lifting frame 221. [

The fixed head 223 is rotatably provided on the lifting frame 221 and the fixed head 223 which moves up and down together with the lifting frame 221 coincides with the direction of the rotation axis C of the non- Movement takes place.

On the other hand, a contact pad 223a can be provided at the lower end of the fixed head 223 to be in close contact with the upper end of the cannula 10.

The second driving source 225 and the second driving source 225b are provided to provide the rotational driving force of the fixed head 223 and include a second driving motor 225a mounted on the lifting frame 221, And a belt 224 that transmits the rotational driving force to the fixed head 223.

The second drive motor 225a is provided with a drive wheel 225b and the drive wheel 225b is connected to the driven shaft 223b extending to the upper end of the fixed head 223 by a belt 224 At this time, the driving wheel 225b has a larger diameter than that of the driven shaft 223b, so that a large speed increasing ratio can be obtained.

The sample mixing apparatus of this embodiment configured as described above can operate the upper and lower positions of the fixed head 223 by the first driving motor 222a and rotate the fixed head 223 by the second driving motor 225a Speed control is performed so that sample mixing in the tube-like tube 10 can be performed.

Meanwhile, the first drive motor 222a and the second drive motor 225a may be controlled by a controller (not shown). This operation may be manually operated by a user in a manual manner, It can function as a unit module for sample mixing in the analysis facility and can be automatically performed by a series of control commands that are programmed.

In the above-described embodiments, the driving source for rotating the cannula tube is disposed at the upper end of the cannula tube. However, the present invention is not limited thereto and may be disposed at the side or the lower end of the cannon tube. .

6 (a) and 6 (b) are block diagrams of a sample mixing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, the sample mixing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention includes a driving unit 310 that is rotated in contact with a side surface of the canopy tube 10, And a jig portion.

The driving unit 310 includes a driving motor 312 fixed to the fixed frame 311 and a driving shaft 312a connected to the driving shaft 312a of the driving motor 312 by a belt 313, And a driving roller 314 for driving the driving roller 314.

The jig can be provided by a plurality of driven rollers 321 and 322 that are located on the opposite side of the drive roller 314 and are freely rotatable in contact with the side of the canopy tube 10.

In this embodiment, the driven rollers 321 and 322 are constituted by a first driven roller 321 and a second driven roller 322, and the first driven roller 321 and the second driven roller 322 are disposed on a vertical plane The vertical plane VP means a plane including the rotation axis of the driving roller 314 and the axis C of rotation.

Preferably, at least one of the two driven rollers 321 and 322 is elastically supported by the elastic body 323 with the rotary shaft being movable.

In this embodiment, the first driven roller 321 is movable forward and backward in parallel with the vertical plane VP. At this time, the rotation axis 321a of the first driven roller 321 is elastically supported by the elastic body 323.

Therefore, when the canopy tube 10 is inserted horizontally at a position facing the first driven roller 321, the first driven roller 321 is moved backward while the elastic body 323 is compressed, The first driven roller 321 is advanced again by the restoring force of the elastic body 323 and is brought into close contact with the side surface of the cannula tube 10.

In the thus constituted sample mixing apparatus, the rotation of the drive roller 314 together with the plurality of driven rollers 321 and 322 causes the rotation of the tube-like tube 10 to rotate, so that the sample can be mixed.

On the other hand, in this embodiment, the canopy tube 10 is placed on the rotation axis C by a plurality of driven rollers 321 and 322 together with the driving roller 314 to allow sample mixing, The lower end of the canopy tube 10 is seated and a freely rotatable jig plate 330 can be added and the jig plate 330 is provided in the same manner as the jig 110 of the above- .

7 is a configuration diagram of a sample mixing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, the sample mixing apparatus of the present embodiment includes a driving unit 410 having an upper tube 10 vertically disposed to be rotated, and an elastic support unit (not shown) 420).

The driving unit 410 includes a driving motor 411, a first rotating body 412 that is rotated by the driving motor 411, a second rotating body 412 that is circumscribed by the first rotating body 412, Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > 413 < / RTI >

The first rotating body 412 may have a diameter larger than that of the second rotating body 413 in order to obtain a large speed increasing ratio and the first rotating body and the second rotating body may be provided by gear teeth However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a rotational drive force may be transmitted through a belt.

The second rotatable body 413 is vertically positioned with the canopy tube 10 at the upper portion thereof and the upper end of the canopy tube 10 is supported by the elastic support portion 420.

The resilient support portion 420 supports the upper end of the cannula tube 10 and can be provided by, for example, a leaf spring.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the inventions. It will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art.

10: open tube 110: jig
120, 220, 310, 410: driving part 330: jig plate

Claims (12)

A jig part for supporting the cannula tube so that the cannon tube is upright and can rotate;
And a driving unit for generating a driving force for rotating the cannula tube. The sample mixing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the driving unit is vertically movable on an upper end of the cannula. 3. The apparatus according to claim 2,
A vertically movable lift frame;
A first driving source for vertically driving the lifting frame;
A stationary head rotatably provided on the lifting frame and adapted to closely fix the top of the canopy tube;
And a second driving source for driving the fixed head to rotate. The sample mixing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the jig part is freely rotatable by being positioned on an upper portion of the canopy tube. The sample mixing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the driving unit generates a rotational driving force in contact with a side surface of the canopy tube. The sample mixing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the jig includes a plurality of driven rollers capable of freely rotating in contact with side surfaces of the canopy tube. The sample mixing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the jig includes at least one driven roller that is elastically supported and movable back and forth. The sample mixing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the driving unit generates a rotational driving force in contact with a lower end of the canopy tube. The sample mixing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the jig part elastically supports the upper end of the tube. In a method of mixing a sample using a tube-like tube,
And rotating the upright tube in an upright position to mix the sample. 11. The method according to claim 10, wherein a rotational driving force is generated by a driving source which moves up and down at an upper end of the canopy tube and is in close contact with an upper end of the canopy tube. 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the drive source rotates while contacting the cannula.

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