KR20200063808A - APPARATUS and method for measuring quantitation of reactive samples - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed are an apparatus and a method for measuring a fixed amount in in-vitro diagnosis which can accurately calculate an amount of a sample reacting with a reagent. The apparatus for measuring a fixed amount comprises: a depth camera to photograph an area coated with a reagent on a specimen absorption sheet included in a diagnosis strip at two or more different focal distances; a memory unit to store two or more images (hereafter, photographed images) photographed by the depth camera and a plurality of test data images obtained by photographing a plurality of specimen absorption sheets with a known amount of a coated reagent by the depth camera; and a calculation unit to use the photographed images among the plurality of test data images to calculate an amount of a sample reacting with the reagent.

Description

Apparatus and method for measuring the quantity of a reaction sample {APPARATUS and method for measuring quantitation of reactive samples}

The present invention relates to an in vitro diagnostic quantitative measuring apparatus and method, and more particularly, to an apparatus and method capable of measuring the exact amount of a sample reacted with a reagent.

There are various in vitro diagnostic techniques for various purposes such as pregnancy, infection, ovulation, etc. by reacting a sample obtained from a test object such as blood or urine with a reagent. As described in the general in vitro diagnostic kit disclosed in Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2007-0011815, it is possible to confirm the existence of a target to be tested through color change through an antigen-antibody reaction of a sample and a reagent.

1 is a block diagram of a general in vitro diagnostic kit.

Referring to Figure 1, the in vitro diagnostic kit is produced by applying a sample to detect a specific substance on the sample absorbent paper. The sample absorbent paper is generally a paper-shaped test paper, and is produced by applying a reagent, which is a chemical or antibody, to react with a sample on the top of the test paper. However, the reagent is not only applied to the top of a thin paper test paper, but is absorbed irregularly to the inside and the bottom.

It does not matter for the purpose of the test through simple discoloration, but recently it is also necessary to measure the exact amount of the sample reacted with the reagent for various test purposes.

Patent Publication No. 10-2007-0011815

An object of the present specification is to provide an in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement device capable of accurately calculating the amount of a sample reacted with a reagent.

This specification is not limited to the above-mentioned problems, and other problems not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

An in vitro diagnostic quantitative measuring apparatus according to the present specification for solving the above-described problem includes: a depth camera that photographs a region coated with a reagent in a sample absorbent paper included in a diagnostic strip at a different focal length of at least two or more; A memory unit for storing a plurality of experimental data images taken by the depth camera with two or more images taken by the depth camera (hereinafter referred to as'shooting images') and a plurality of sample absorbents that know the amount of the applied reagent in advance; And a calculator configured to calculate an amount of a sample reacted with the reagent using the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images.

According to one embodiment of the present specification, the optical properties of the sample absorbent paper may be transparent or translucent.

According to one embodiment of the present specification, the calculator may calculate an amount of a sample reacted with the reagent by determining an experimental data image having a similarity to the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images.

According to one embodiment of the present specification, the depth camera shoots at least two different focal lengths during each shooting section in a shooting section divided into at least two, and the experimental data image knows in advance the amount of the applied reagent The sample absorbent is an experimental data set image taken by the depth camera in a shooting section divided into at least two, and the memory unit stores two or more images taken by the depth camera during each shooting section as one section shooting image, The calculation unit may calculate an amount of a sample reacted with the reagent by determining an image having the highest similarity to the two or more interval photographed images among the plurality of experimental data set images.

In this case, the photographing section may be included between the time at which the sample and the reagent first react and the time at which the reaction between the sample and the reagent ends.

An in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement method according to the present specification for solving the above-described problems is an in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement method using an in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement apparatus including a depth camera, a memory unit, and a calculation unit, (a) the reagent coated with the memory unit Storing a plurality of experimental data images taken by the depth camera with a plurality of sample absorbents that know the amount of the sample in advance; (b) the depth camera photographing the area where the reagent is applied on the sample absorbent paper included in the diagnostic strip at at least two different focal lengths; (c) the memory unit storing two or more images (hereinafter referred to as'shooting images') taken by the depth camera; And (d) calculating the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent using the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in step (d), the calculator determines an experimental data image having the highest similarity to the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images to calculate the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent. It can be a step.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in the step (a), the experimental data image of the memory unit is photographed with the depth camera in a shooting section in which at least two or more sample absorbent papers in which the amount of reagents are applied are previously known. In the step of storing the experimental data set image, the step (b) is a step in which the depth camera shoots at least two different focal lengths during each shooting section in the shooting section divided into at least two, and the (c) Step) is a step in which the memory unit stores two or more images taken by the depth camera during each shooting section as a single section shooting image, and in step (d), the calculating unit among the plurality of experimental data set images It may be a step of calculating an amount of a sample reacted with the reagent by determining an image having the highest similarity to the two or more sectioned images.

Other specific matters of the present invention are included in the detailed description and drawings.

According to the present specification, it is possible to calculate the exact amount of reaction between the sample and the reagent. Accurate diagnosis is possible based on the exact amount of reaction.

The effects of the present invention are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

1 is a block diagram of a general in vitro diagnostic kit.
2 is a block diagram schematically showing the configuration of an in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement device according to the present specification.
3 is a cross-sectional view of a sample absorbent paper.
4 is a flowchart illustrating a method for quantitative measurement of in vitro diagnosis according to the present specification.

Advantages and features of the invention disclosed in the present specification, and a method of achieving them will be apparent by referring to embodiments described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present specification is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below, but may be implemented in various different forms, and only the embodiments allow the disclosure of the present specification to be complete, and are common in the technical field to which the present specification belongs. It is provided to fully describe the scope of the present specification to a technician (hereinafter'the person'), and the scope of rights of the present specification is only defined by the scope of the claims.

The terminology used herein is for describing the embodiments and is not intended to limit the scope of rights of the present specification. In the present specification, the singular form also includes the plural form unless otherwise specified in the phrase. As used herein, “comprises” and/or “comprising” does not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other components other than the components mentioned. Throughout the specification, the same reference numerals refer to the same components, and “and/or” includes each and every combination of one or more of the components mentioned. Although "first", "second", etc. are used to describe various components, it goes without saying that these components are not limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one component from another component. Therefore, it goes without saying that the first component mentioned below may be the second component within the technical spirit of the present invention.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms used in this specification (including technical and scientific terms) may be used in a sense that can be commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this specification belongs. In addition, terms defined in the commonly used dictionary are not ideally or excessively interpreted unless explicitly defined.

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

2 is a block diagram schematically showing the configuration of an in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement device according to the present specification.

Referring to FIG. 2, the in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement apparatus 100 according to the present specification may include a depth camera 110, a memory unit 120, and a calculation unit 130.

The depth camera 110 may produce an image through a confocal method. The confocal method photographs a plurality of images while varying the focal length, and then provides information about the focal length together with the plurality of photographed images. The part in the image where the focal length is matched with the subject is clearly photographed, but the part in which the focal length is not matched is blurred. Through this, it is possible to calculate the distance between the camera and the clearly captured part in the subject. Furthermore, it is also possible to calculate a three-dimensional shape by collecting only the clearly photographed portion of the captured image by changing the focal length for the same subject.

The depth camera 110 may photograph an area coated with a reagent in a sample absorbent paper included in a diagnostic strip at at least two different focal lengths. To this end, the depth camera 110 may include a mechanical driving unit or a liquid lens to change the focal length by moving the lens. The liquid lens 120 is a lens capable of varying a focal length based on an electro-wetting phenomenon, and is a lens in which liquid droplets are interposed between metal substrates covered with a thin insulating layer. When the liquid lens applies a predetermined current to the substrate, an electrostatic pressure is generated to deform the shape of the liquid droplet, and the deformation may change a focal length by varying a path of light received. That is, the liquid lens is a lens capable of changing the focal length of light by varying the thickness of the shape of the liquid droplet according to the intensity of the applied current.

The memory unit 120 may store two or more images captured by the depth camera 110.

In addition, the memory unit 120 may store a plurality of experimental data images photographed with the depth camera of a plurality of sample absorbent papers in which the amount of the applied reagent is previously known. For example, 10 mg of the reagent is applied to the sample absorbent paper, and then the applied reagent is photographed with a depth camera. At this time, various images may be taken with a focal length of 2 or more for 10 mg of reagent. The various images captured are the experimental data images. Each experimental data image is matched with information on the focal length and the amount of reagent. In addition, even with the same amount of reagent, since the applied shape/shape and the like vary, the experimental data images may be accumulated for various shapes/shapes.

The memory unit 120 may be inside or outside the calculation unit 130 and may be connected to the calculation unit 130 by various well-known means. The memory unit 120 is a known mass storage medium such as a semiconductor device or a hard disk known to be capable of recording and erasing data such as RAM, ROM, and EEPROM, and collectively refers to a device in which information is stored regardless of the device type. It does not refer to a specific memory device.

The calculation unit 130 may calculate the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent using the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images.

According to one embodiment of the present specification, the optical properties of the sample absorbent paper are translucent. Through this, the depth camera is capable of taking a sample and a reagent reacted inside the sample absorbent paper.

The calculating unit 130 according to the present specification may create a three-dimensional shape through the two or more images, and calculate a sample amount through the volume of the three-dimensional shape. Through this, even in the case of (b) to (e) of FIG. 3, it is possible to more accurately calculate the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent.

3 is a cross-sectional view of a sample absorbent paper.

3(a) is a state in which reagents are ideally absorbed in a sample absorbent paper. Generally, the reagent is applied on top of the sample absorbent paper, and the applied reagent is absorbed only in the downward direction of the sample absorbent paper, indicating an ideal state. In this case, even if only the top of the sample absorbent paper is photographed, the thickness of the sample absorbent paper is known in advance, so it is easy to know the amount of reaction between the reagent and the sample. However, the example shown in FIG. 3(a) is only an ideal case.

3B is a state in which the reagent is widely spread downward from the top of the sample absorbent paper and absorbed. 3(c), the reagent is narrowed downward from the top of the sample absorbent paper and is spread and absorbed. When the reaction amount of the reagent and the sample is calculated after only the upper end of the sample absorbent paper is taken as in the conventional method, FIG. 3(b) will be calculated as less than the actual value, and FIG. 3(c) will be calculated as more than the actual value. will be.

3(d) and 3(e), an empty space is formed and absorbed in a part of the applied reagent. When the reaction amount of the reagent and the sample is calculated after only the upper end of the sample absorbent paper is taken as in the conventional method, it is difficult to predict whether (d) and (e) of FIG. 3 will be calculated as more or less than actual.

In this way, various amounts of reagents applied in various forms are photographed with a depth camera and each image is stored as an experimental data image. As the amount of the experimental data image increases, the accuracy of the value calculated by the calculator 130 may be improved.

According to one embodiment of the present specification, the calculator 130 may determine an experimental data image having a similarity to the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images to calculate the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent. In this case, the calculator 130 may determine the experimental data image having the highest similarity, and read information on the amount of reagents matched to the determined experimental data image to calculate the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent.

Preferably, the calculating unit 130 calculates the amount of the sample reacted with each reagent from each photographed image photographed at different focal lengths, and the average value of the calculated plurality of values of the sample finally reacted with the reagent It can be calculated in quantity.

In addition, preferably, the calculation unit 130 calculates the amount of the sample reacted with each reagent from each photographed image photographed at different focal lengths, and finally calculates the value that occupies the largest proportion of the calculated plurality of values. It can be calculated from the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent.

On the other hand, the in vitro diagnostic quantitative measuring apparatus 100 according to the present specification may photograph a process of reacting a reagent and a sample in real time.

To this end, the depth camera 110 may shoot at least two different focal lengths during each shooting section in a shooting section divided into at least two. The photographing section may be included between the time when the sample and the reagent first react, and the time when the reaction between the sample and the reagent ends.

In this case, the experimental data image may be an experimental data set image photographed with the depth camera in a photographing section divided into at least two or more sample absorbent papers in which the amount of the applied reagent is previously known.

In addition, the memory unit 120 may store two or more images taken by the depth camera during each shooting section as one section shooting image.

In addition, the calculator 130 may determine an image having the highest similarity to the two or more interval photographed images among the plurality of experimental data set images, and calculate an amount of the sample reacted with the reagent.

Meanwhile, the calculator 130 calculates the concentration of the sample reacted with the reagent through the color of the photographed image, and calculates the exact amount of the sample reacted with the reagent using the volume of the 3D shape and the calculated concentration. Can be. Even with a sample or reagent having the same volume, a difference in concentration may occur, and a difference in color may occur when the sample reacts with the reagent due to the difference in concentration. The calculator 130 may analyze a color value of each pixel in the photographed image and calculate a density value for the corresponding color value. Thereafter, the calculator 130 may calculate a more accurate reaction amount by applying the calculated concentration value to the volume of the three-dimensional shape. Conversion data for a density value according to the color value may be stored in the memory unit 120.

Hereinafter, a method for quantitative measurement of in vitro diagnosis according to the present specification will be described. However, the in vitro diagnostic quantitative measuring method according to the present specification is a measuring method using the above-described in vitro diagnostic quantitative measuring device. Therefore, in describing the method for quantitative measurement of in vitro diagnosis according to the present specification, repeated description of the configuration of the in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement device will be omitted.

4 is a flow chart showing a method for quantitative measurement of in vitro diagnosis according to the present specification.

Referring to FIG. 4, first, in step S100, a plurality of sample absorbents that know in advance the amount of reagents to which the memory unit 120 is applied may store a plurality of experimental data images taken with the depth camera.

In the next step S110, the area where the reagent is applied may be located on the sample absorbent paper included in the diagnostic strip within the field of view of the depth camera 110. At this time, the sample may be pre-injected into the diagnostic strip, or the sample may be introduced after positioning the diagnostic strip.

In the next step S120, the depth camera 110 may photograph an area coated with the reagent at two or more different focal lengths.

In the next step S130, the memory unit 120 may store two or more images captured by the depth camera 110.

In the next step S140, the calculator 130 may calculate the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent using the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in step S140, the calculator 130 determines an experimental data image having the highest similarity to the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images to determine the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent. It may be a calculating step.

According to one embodiment of the present specification, in step S100, the memory unit 120 photographs an experimental data image with the depth camera in a shooting section in which at least two or more sample absorbent papers in which the amount of reagents are applied are previously known. It may be a step of storing an image of an experimental data set.

In this case, the step S120 may be a step in which the depth camera 110 shoots at least two different focal lengths during each shooting section in a shooting section divided into at least two.

In this case, the step S130 may be a step in which the memory unit 120 stores two or more images taken by the depth camera as one section photographed image during each photographing section.

In this case, the step S140 may be a step of calculating the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent by determining the image having the most similarity to the two or more interval photographed images among the plurality of experimental data set images.

The embodiments of the present specification have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings, but those skilled in the art to which the present specification pertains may implement the present invention in other specific forms without changing the technical spirit or essential features. You will understand. Therefore, it should be understood that the above-described embodiments are illustrative in all respects and not restrictive.

100: in vitro diagnostic quantitative measuring device
110: depth camera
120: memory unit
130: calculation unit

Claims (10)

A depth camera that photographs the area coated with the reagent on the sample absorbent paper included in the diagnostic strip at at least two different focal lengths;
A memory unit for storing a plurality of experimental data images taken by the depth camera with two or more images taken by the depth camera (hereinafter referred to as a'shooting image') and a plurality of sample absorbents that know the amount of the applied reagent in advance; And
In vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement device comprising a; calculation unit for calculating the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent using the photographed image of the plurality of experimental data images. The method according to claim 1,
An in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement device in which the optical properties of the sample absorbent paper are transparent or translucent. The method according to claim 1,
The calculation unit, the in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement device for calculating the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent by determining an experimental data image with a similarity to the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images. The method according to claim 1,
The depth camera shoots at least two different focal lengths during each shooting section in a shooting section divided into at least two,
The experimental data image is an experimental data set image photographed with the depth camera in a photographing section divided into at least two or more specimen absorbents in which the amount of the reagent applied is previously known.
The memory unit stores two or more images taken by the depth camera during each shooting section as one section shooting image,
The calculation unit, the in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement device for calculating the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent by determining the image having the highest similarity to the two or more sectioned image among the plurality of experimental data set images. The method according to claim 4,
The photographing section is an in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement device included between the time when the sample and the reagent first react and the time when the reaction between the sample and the reagent ends. As an in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement method using an in vitro diagnostic quantitative measuring device including a depth camera, a memory unit and a calculation unit,
(a) storing a plurality of experimental data images taken by the depth camera with a plurality of sample absorbents that know in advance the amount of reagent applied to the memory unit;
(b) the depth camera photographing the area where the reagent is applied on the sample absorbent paper included in the diagnostic strip at at least two different focal lengths;
(c) storing at least two images (hereinafter referred to as'shooting images') taken by the depth camera; And
(d) calculating the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent using the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images by the calculator; an in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement method comprising a. The method according to claim 6,
Quantitative measurement method for in vitro diagnostics in which the optical properties of the sample absorbent paper are translucent. The method according to claim 6,
The (d) step is a step of calculating the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent by determining the experimental data image having the highest similarity to the photographed image among the plurality of experimental data images. The method according to claim 6,
In the step (a), the memory unit stores the experimental data set image photographed with the depth camera in a photographing section divided into at least two or more sample absorbent papers in which the amount of reagent applied in advance is an experimental data image. ,
The step (b) is a step in which the depth camera shoots at least two different focal lengths during each shooting section in a shooting section divided into at least two,
In step (c), the memory unit stores two or more images taken by the depth camera during each shooting section as one section shooting image,
In step (d), the in vitro diagnostic quantitative measurement is a step of calculating the amount of the sample reacted with the reagent by determining the image having the highest similarity to the two or more sectioned images among the plurality of experimental data set images. Way. The method according to claim 9,
The photographing section is a method for quantitative measurement of in vitro diagnostics included between the time when the sample and the reagent first react and the time when the reaction between the sample and the reagent ends.

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