JP3202291B2 - Automatic opening device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic opening device capable of continuously pulling out a rubber stopper fitted in an opening of a container such as a blood collection tube without touching the opening.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As is well known, a rubber stopper is fitted into an opening of a container for storing blood, such as a vacuum blood collection tube, for the purpose of preventing blood from flowing out.

By the way, this rubber stopper is removed, for example, when setting a blood collection tube to an automatic analyzer.
At present, the operation of removing the rubber plug is conventionally performed manually.

[0004] However, when the rubber stopper is removed manually, there is a risk that the collected blood sample may come into contact with various illnesses by touching the collected blood sample. Therefore, there is a problem that such work is very complicated, and there is a risk of blood contact infection when collecting the collected rubber stoppers.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to automatically pull out rubber plugs of a plurality of blood collection tubes without touching the rubber plugs and to remove the rubber plugs. The stoppers can be collected and discarded without shaking hands, and there is no danger of accidentally damaging a container such as a blood collection tube when removing the rubber stopper. It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic opening apparatus excellent in safety which can be performed in a safe manner.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided an automatic opening apparatus comprising: a rack for vertically holding a plurality of containers such as blood collection tubes; And a plug transfer means for removing the rubber plug from the container held by the rack that has reached the plug opening position. A stopper engaged with the stopper, means for opening and rotating the stopper, and a rubber stopper collection container for accommodating a rubber stopper pulled out of the container by the means; The locking end is set at a height position where the locking end bites into the head of the rubber plug attached to the container during the opening operation, and the means for opening and rotating the locking body includes After rotating the stopper in the opening direction by the required angle, it is moved back to the original position, , It is characterized in that the driving control so as to rotate again to unplugging direction.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below in detail based on embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, in the automatic opening apparatus according to this embodiment, a blood collection container 14 having a rubber stopper 16 densely mounted therein is erected every required number (five in this embodiment). A rack 15 for holding, a container stocker A in which the plurality of racks 15 are set, and a rack transfer means (not shown) for sequentially transferring the racks 15 to an operated rack stocker C via an opening position. The plug opening device 1 installed in the middle of the rack transfer means and disposed between the container stocker A and the processed rack stocker C, and the rubber plug 16 pulled out by the plug opening device 1 are collected. And a detachable rubber stopper collection container 8.

The opening device 1 is disposed adjacent to the outlet side of the container stocker A, and as shown in FIG.
A flat base member 2 having a rubber mat 3 adhered to the lower surface thereof, a pair of supports 4 and 5 erected at both ends on the front side of the base member 2, and each of the supports 4 and 5 A rotating member 7 rotatably supported on the upper part via a shaft 6
And, it consists of.

The base member 2 has a space for accommodating the racks 15 on the front side of the portions where the supports 4 and 5 are erected.
Is configured to be carried into and out of the space from the horizontal and horizontal direction by the rack transfer means. It should be noted that, as the rack transfer means, known mechanisms for intermittently transferring this type of rack in the vertical direction and transferring the rack in the horizontal direction (rack longitudinal direction) at a predetermined position can be applied. The detailed description is omitted here.

The rotating member 7 has a horizontal plate 10
A locking member 11 extending downward from a front edge of the horizontal plate portion 10; a support piece portion 12 extending downward from both depth-side ends of the horizontal plate portion 10; An operating portion 13 fixed to the upper surface of the plate portion 10 and a driving device for reciprocatingly rotating the operating portion 13 within a predetermined range are provided. It is pivoted downward.

The driving device for reciprocatingly rotating the operating section 13 includes a link 18 having one end rotatably supported by the operating section 13 and a rotatable shaft having the other end of the link 18 rotatably. It comprises a rotating body 19 supported and a motor (not shown) for rotating the rotating body 19. Of course, this drive device is not limited to the illustrated embodiment, and any known mechanism can be applied as long as it is a mechanism that reciprocates the operating section 13 within a predetermined range.

On the other hand, the rotating member 7 is stopped in a state shown by a solid line in FIG. 2, that is, when the horizontal plate portion 10 is stopped in a horizontal state, and is not rotated counterclockwise from the horizontal state. (Not shown). Of course, the clockwise rotation in FIG. 2 is not restricted.

The stopper body is formed by processing the shaft 6, and a projection (not shown) is formed on the shaft insertion hole side of the supports 4 and 5, so that the rotating member 7 is in a horizontal state. , The machined portion of the shaft 6 can be configured to engage with the projection formed on the shaft insertion hole side of the supports 4 and 5 to maintain a horizontal state. Protrusions or steps (not shown) are formed on the opposing surfaces of the bodies 4 and 5, and when the rotating member 7 is in a horizontal state, the lower surface of the horizontal plate portion 10 is It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which a horizontal state is maintained by abutting against a projection or a step formed on the fifth side.

Further, when the rotation member 7 is set in the horizontal state, the locking body 11 has its locking end 1.
As shown in FIG. 4, 1a is formed in a saw-tooth shape so as to securely bite and lock the peripheral surface of the head portion of the rubber plug 16 fitted in an opening of the container 14 or the like in a liquid-tight manner. At the same time, when the horizontal plate 10 is set in a horizontal state, the locking end 11 a of the locking body 11 is in contact with the upper end of the container 14 set in the open position when the horizontal plate 10 is set in a horizontal state. It is set at a height position that does not cut into the head of the rubber stopper 16 attached to the container 14. Of course, although not shown, a known pressure sensor is disposed at the locking end 11a of the locking body 11, and a member that is in contact with the locking end 11a of the locking body 11 by the pressure sensor. Container 14 or rubber stopper 16
It is also possible to control the opening operation of the rotating member 7 and to surely prevent the container 14 from being damaged by configuring such that the container 14 can be selected.

On the other hand, the rubber stopper collection container 8 has a substantially concave cross section and a substantially convex planar shape, and its length dimension is such that the rear end 8a is formed at the rear end of the base member 2a. The front ends 8b are formed so as to be flush with the front ends of the supports 4 and 5 so as to be positioned in contact with the corner fittings 17 fixed on both sides. I have.

In addition, the rubber stopper collecting container 8 has a front plate 8c formed to be inclined.
When engaging with the step 16a of the rubber plug 16 and rotating about the shaft 6 as a fulcrum and pulling out the rubber plug 16,
The pulled-out rubber plug 16 falls under its own weight in the direction of the rubber plug collection container 8, rolls on the inclined surface of the front plate 8 c, and is housed in the rubber plug collection container 8. Of course, the rubber stopper collection container 8 is not limited to the shape of the illustrated embodiment, and may have any appropriate shape as long as the rubber stopper 16 pulled out by the locking body 11 can be securely stored. Can be used.

The actuating portion 13 for driving the locking member 11 of the plug opening device 1 thus configured moves the link 18 forward and backward by the rotation of the rotating body 19, and the rubber is moved by the forward and backward operation of the link 18. Stopper 16 is withdrawn from container 14. Therefore, the operation of the operating section 13 is performed in synchronization with the loading / unloading operation of the rack 15.

As shown in FIG. 5, first, the locking end 11a of the locking body 11 is connected to the rubber plug 1 as shown in FIG.
6, the rubber stopper 16 is rotated by a required angle in the opening direction from this state, and as shown in FIG.
After being pulled up once from the opening of FIG. 4, the locking body 11 is returned to the horizontal position as shown in FIG. 7, and thereafter, the locking body 11 is again rotated in the opening direction, and After the locking end 11a of the locking body 11 is securely engaged with the step 16a of the rubber plug 16, the rubber plug 16 is completely removed from the opening of the container 14 as shown in FIG. Drive control is performed so as to be pulled out. This is because when the rubber plug 16 is formed of, for example, raw rubber having high elasticity, the rubber plug 1
6 and the container 14 have a large adhesion, and as a result, the locking body 11
Since there is a risk that the rubber plug 16 may be left unexposed in the single rotation operation, the operation of the engaging body 11 is controlled as described above to completely prevent this.

In the present invention, although not shown, a rubber stopper detecting means such as a limit switch is provided at the exit of the rack transfer path of the opening device in order to determine whether the rubber stopper is left unextracted. If the rubber stopper is left unplugged, the remaining rubber stopper comes into contact with the limit switch to turn off each drive device and automatically stop the transfer of the container holding the remaining rubber stopper. At the same time, the rotation member may be stopped at the rotation upper limit position of the locking body, and this state may be notified by an alarm or a lamp. In this case, the rack holding the remaining rubber stopper is removed from the transfer path, and the start switch or the reset switch is turned on again, whereby the opening operation is restarted. Of course, the presence / absence of the remaining rubber stopper is detected by, for example, a detecting means such as an optical sensor. If there is a remaining rubber stopper, the transfer of the rack is stopped as it is, and the rotating member is moved according to the procedure described above. , And the remaining rubber stopper can be pulled out again.

Next, the operation of the automatic opening apparatus according to the present embodiment configured as described above will be described.

First, when a start switch (not shown) is turned on, the rack transfer means operates, and the rack 1 is turned on.
5 is transferred from the container stocker A to the opening position of the opening device 1.

In the opening position of the opening device 1, the rotating member 7 is set in a horizontal state in advance, and the rack 15 holding the container 14 is set to a predetermined opening position by the rack transfer means. Is done.

When the rack 15 is set at the predetermined opening position in this manner, the setting state is confirmed by detecting means such as a sensor (not shown), and then the rotating body 19 is operated to rotate. As a result, the link 18 is operated to rotate the rotating member 7 to a middle position shown in FIG.

When the rotating member 7 is rotated by a required angle in the backward direction of the base member 2 in this manner, the locking end 11a of the locking body 11 bites into the head of each rubber plug 16. The rubber stoppers 16 are slightly pulled out from the openings of the containers 14 while being lifted obliquely upward. From this state, the rotating member 7 rotates in the opposite direction to return the locking body 11 to the original position, and then rotates again in the plug opening direction, whereby the locking body 11 is rotated. After the locking end 11a of the locking member 11 is engaged with the step 16a of the rubber plug 16, the locking end 11a of the locking body 11 completely pulls out the rubber plug 16 from each container 14. The rubber stopper 16 pulled out from each container 14 in this way falls under its own weight in the rubber stopper collection container 8 direction and is automatically stored in the rubber stopper collection container 8.

The containers 14 from which the rubber stoppers 16 are automatically and completely removed in this manner are placed in the rack 15
Is transported intermittently to the next completed rack stocker C while being held.

[0027]

As described above, according to the automatic opening apparatus according to the present invention, the rubber stoppers attached to the plurality of blood collection tubes can be automatically and reliably pulled out without touching. This eliminates the risk of blood contact infections to this type of test worker, and allows the removal of the removed rubber stopper to be performed without touching the rubber stopper at all. There is no danger of accidentally damaging containers such as blood collection tubes when removing the stopper.
When the locking end of the locking body that locks with the rubber plug is formed in a sawtooth shape, the biting force into the rubber plug can be increased, so that the rubber plug can be reliably pulled out. In addition to the above, there are many excellent effects such as a simple structure, which can be provided at a low price.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory plan view showing a schematic configuration of an automatic opening device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a right side view showing an opening mechanism of the automatic opening apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a front view showing an opening mechanism of the automatic opening apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a front view showing an attached state of a locking body of the automatic opening device.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a state in which the locking end of the locking body is cut into the head of the rubber stopper in the step of pulling out the rubber stopper of the blood collection tube by the automatic opening device.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing a state in which the rubber stopper is pulled out halfway by the locking member in the step of pulling out the rubber stopper of the blood collection tube by the automatic opening device.

FIG. 7: In the step of pulling out the rubber stopper of the blood collection tube by the automatic opening device, the stopper is moved back to the original position, and the stopper end of the stopper is engaged with the step of the rubber stopper. It is explanatory drawing which shows a state.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the rubber stopper has been pulled out of the container in the step of pulling out the rubber stopper of the blood collection tube by the automatic opening device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List A Container stocker C Worked rack stocker 1 Opening device 7 Rotating member 11 Locking body 11a Serrated locking end of locking body 12 Supporting piece 13 Working part 14 Container 15 Rack 16 Rubber stopper 16a Rubber stopper step Part 18 link 19 rotating body

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-2-306165 (JP, A) JP-A-2-275362 (JP, A) JP-A-2-85360 (JP, U) JP-A-2-275360 128949 (JP, U) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G01N 35/00-35/10

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A rack for standing and holding a plurality of containers such as blood collection tubes, a rack transfer means for sequentially transferring the racks to an opening position, and a rubber stopper from a container held on the rack reaching the opening position. Opening means for engaging the rubber stopper at the time of opening operation, means for opening and rotating the locking body, and pulling from the container by this means. A rubber stopper collection container for accommodating the removed rubber stopper, wherein the locking body is at a height position where the locking end bites into the head of the rubber plug attached to the container during the opening operation. While being set, the means for opening and rotating the locking body is such that after rotating the locking body by a required angle in the opening direction,
An automatic opening apparatus characterized in that the automatic opening apparatus is controlled so as to return to the original position and rotate in the opening direction again.