JPH0614055B2 - Automatic chemical analyzer - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to an automatic chemical analyzer for measuring the concentration of a specific component in a reaction solution obtained by reacting a sample with a reagent.

(Prior Art) A human serum or the like is used as a sample (sample), and a desired reagent is added to this to cause a chemical reaction,
There is known an automatic chemical analyzer that measures the concentration of a specific component in this reaction solution by, for example, a colorimetric method and uses it for diagnosis. In performing such a chemical analysis, it is necessary to prepare a sample to be analyzed in advance and distribute the sample to a plurality of reaction vessels according to measurement items. FIG. 9 illustrates an outline of such a dispensing operation. A sampler 1 in which a plurality of sample containers 2 filled with a sample are housed in a circular table 3 and a plurality of reaction containers 4 are housed in them. A sampling arm 6 is disposed between the reaction disk 5 and the reaction disk 5 which is intermittently moved by repeatedly carrying and stopping in a constant cycle. The arm 6 has a probe 7 at its tip and a center shaft 8 at the base as a fulcrum in a direction of an arrow. It is configured to be swingable. With such a configuration, the probe 7 of the arm 6 is first positioned on the sample container 2 of the sampler 1, and the probe 7 is lowered together with the arm 6 to inhale the sample and then raised again, and then the arm 6 is swung. The sample distribution operation, so-called sampling, is performed by positioning the reaction disk 5 on the reaction container 4 and lowering the arm 6 in the same manner as described above to discharge the sucked sample into the container 4. Such a sampling operation is repeated for each cycle, and sampling is performed on the plurality of reaction vessels 4 according to the measurement item of the sample to be analyzed.

Further, a reagent portion (not shown) is arranged at another position around the reaction disk 5 so that a desired reagent is distributed to the reaction container 4.

As described above, during the operation of distributing the sample or the reagent, there is a possibility that the operator performing the work such as the sample exchange and the reagent exchange may come into contact with the moving sampling arm 6 or the vertically moving probe 7. Therefore, as a safety measure, when the operator touches the arm 6 or the probe 7, a pressure sensor is provided for each of them so as to detect this state and immediately stop the operation of the apparatus. In addition, the provision of the pressure-sensitive sensor on the arm 6 or the probe 7 as described above is not only a safety issue, but also the device is configured by the operation of the arm 6 or the probe 7 being stopped by touching an obstacle. It also prevents the problem that the operation sequence between the units is deviated to cause a malfunction.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) In the conventional automatic chemical analyzer, however, the operation of the apparatus is immediately stopped when an obstacle is detected by the pressure-sensitive sensor, so that the measurement operation is interrupted at each detection. There is. For example, although there are some reaction vessels of a reaction disk in which the reaction vessels are intermittently moved in a certain cycle and in which various samples or reagents have been distributed according to the analysis item, the apparatus If the operation is stopped, the samples and the like may be deteriorated during the stop period, so that a large amount of the sample is wasted.
In addition, frequent interruption of measurement also reduces measurement efficiency. Furthermore, in order to restore the operation of the device, it is necessary to turn the power off and then on and perform a reset operation each time.

The present invention has been made to address the above problems,
It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic chemical analyzer capable of performing measurement without interruption even when an obstacle is detected by a pressure-sensitive sensor.

[Structure of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention distributes a liquid required for analysis from one container to another container by an arm with a probe in which a contact sensor is attached to at least an arm portion. In an automatic chemical analyzer for measuring the concentration of a characteristic component in a reaction liquid containing the liquid in a fixed cycle, the distribution of the cycle based on the detection information of the obstacle by the contact sensor during the distribution operation of each cycle. It is provided with control means for performing stop control of operation and control for returning the arm with probe to the origin position and restarting the distribution operation by the arm with probe from the next cycle.

(Operation) When the arm with probe is performing the distributing operation in each cycle, when an obstacle such as an operator touches the arm, the pressure-sensitive sensor detects this state, and the arm stops the distributing operation. Next, the origin of the arm is indexed, the arm is returned to the origin position, and the operation after the stop in this cycle is skipped. Subsequently, the arm starts the distribution operation of the next cycle from the origin position and performs desired operations such as sample distribution and reagent distribution. Therefore, the normal distribution operation can be automatically continued from the next cycle by stopping the distribution operation only in the cycle in which the obstacle is detected without interrupting the measurement of the device.

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

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of an automatic chemical analyzer of the present invention. A plurality of sample containers 2 filled with a sample to be analyzed is stored in a circular table 3 in a sampler 1, and a plurality of concentrically arranged rows are provided. It is located in. A plurality of reaction vessels 4 are accommodated in the reaction disk 5, and these reaction vessels 4 are intermittently moved counterclockwise, for example, by being continuously conveyed and stopped in a constant cycle by a drive mechanism (not shown). A probe 7 is attached to the tip between the sampler 1 and the reaction disk 5, and a sampling arm 6 that performs a swinging motion with a center shaft 8 as a fulcrum is arranged.
The sample in the sample container 2 can be distributed to the reaction container 4 by reciprocating between each cycle.

A reagent storage 9 is provided around the reaction disk 5, and a plurality of reagent containers 10 filled with the reagents are housed therein, and the reagent of the reagent container 10 can be distributed to the reaction container 4 by a reagent arm 11. Has been done. Also reaction disk 5
Around the periphery of the reaction container 4, a stirring arm 12 for stirring the reaction liquid composed of the sample and the reagent distributed in the reaction container 4, a photometric unit 13 for measuring the concentration of a specific component in the reaction liquid, and the reaction container 4 are washed. A cuvette cleaning elevator 14 is provided for each. Further, a cleaning pool 15 for cleaning the probe 7 is provided between the sampler 1 and the reaction disk 5.

The photometric data of the photometric unit 13 is sent to a CPU (central processing unit) 17 as a control means via an interface 16. The CPU 17 is composed of a dedicated microprocessor and controls the entire control operation of the apparatus necessary for performing analysis. Further, the CPU 17 has a function of controlling to perform a series of predetermined operations when the sampling arm 6 touches an obstacle, as described later.

The keyboard 18 is for inputting desired data in performing the analysis, the CRT 19 is for displaying the analysis result, and the printer 20 is for printing the analysis result.

FIG. 2 particularly shows the structure of the sampling arm 6 in detail. An arm pressure sensor 22 as a contact sensor is attached to the bottom of an arm head 21 which is rotatable around a center shaft 8. As shown in FIG. 3, for example, the arm pressure sensor 22 is constructed by assembling a cord switch 22b containing conductive rubber on an arm head base 22a from both sides with a rubber member 22c and a metal fitting member 22d, and assembling them. Two are provided on the surface. When the pressure sensitive sensor 22 touches an operator or the like while moving because the arm 6 performs a distributing operation, the rubber member 22c
Is deformed and the resistance of the cord switch 22b is changed, so that a detection signal based on this resistance change is generated by the CPU 17
The presence of the obstacle is detected by being sent to.

In this way, when it is detected that the arm 6 touches an obstacle during the distribution operation, the arm 6 immediately stops its movement under the control of the CPU 17. Next, CPU 1 for arm 6
The origin (home position) is indexed by the control of 7. The origin is set in advance for each unit such as the arm 6, and in the case of the arm 6, the position directly above the reaction container 4 on the reaction disk 5 is set as the origin. This origin is used when the arm 6 performs the distribution operation in each cycle.
This is for setting a reference position for starting the operation. The origin of the arm 6 is indexed by the arm moving pulse motor 23.
This rotational force is transmitted to the large pulley 26 on the arm 6 side and the center shaft 8 via the small pulley 24 and the belt 25 to rotate the arm 6. In this case, the pulse motor 23 is controlled so as to be rotatable in the forward and reverse directions, and the origin is efficiently indexed even if the arm 6 stops at any position due to an obstacle. A cut plate 27 is fixed to the lower end of the center shaft 8 and is configured to be rotatable integrally with the shaft 8. On the other hand, an arm home sensor 28 for indexing the origin in combination with the cut plate 27 is provided fixed independently of the movement of the cut plate 27. When the center shaft 8 rotates based on the forward or reverse rotation of the pulse motor 23 and the cut plate 27 moves to reach a position intersecting the arm home sensor 28, it is detected that the arm 6 has returned to the origin, and the home position is detected. A signal is sent from the arm home sensor 28 to the CPU 17. That is, the cut plate 27 and the arm home sensor 28 are configured so that the origin is indexed when they come to the combined position corresponding to the origin. When the origin is indexed, the rotation of the pulse motor 23 is stopped under the control of the CPU 17.

The origin of the probe 7 is also indexed in accordance with the index of the origin of the arm 6. In the case of the probe 7, when performing the distribution operation,
The position where the height is at the upper end is set as the origin. This position is selected so that the tip of the probe 7 does not collide even if the arm 6 is moved. 4 (a) and 4 (b) show the configuration of the probe 7, where (a) is the normal position at the origin, and (b) is the state when the probe 7 is raised by touching an obstacle. is there. The probe interference sensor 29 is provided on the arm base 29a and functions to detect when the probe 7 descends and contacts an obstacle. In FIG. 2, the vertical movement of the probe 7 when the dispensing operation is performed by the arm 6 is performed by the vertical pulse motor 30. The rotational force of the pulse motor 30 is the small pulley 31a, the belt 32,
It is transmitted to the lead screw 33 via the large pulley 31b, and when the screw 33 rotates, the lead nut 34 moves up and down, and the lifter 35 holding it also moves up and down. The lifter 35 and the center shaft 8 are connected by a method in which the center shaft 8 is rotatable. When the center shaft 8 is raised, the lifter 35 is lifted and when it is lowered, the lifter 35 is pushed down. The arm head 21 is attached to the center shaft 8, and the probe 7 is moved up and down by moving the arm head 21 up and down. When the probe sensor 39 crosses the cut plate 40, a home signal is sent to the CPU 17, and the probe 7 at this time is sent.
The position of is at the origin. The pulse motor 30 is configured to be capable of forward and reverse rotation, and works to raise the probe 7 during normal rotation and lower the probe 7 during reverse rotation.

FIG. 5 is a timing chart showing a sequence operation of each unit when performing a 1-cycle distribution operation, and shows an example in which the 1-cycle time is 18 seconds.
This example shows the operation of sucking the sample in the sample container 2 of the sampler 1 and distributing it to the reaction container 4 of the reaction disk 5 by the sampling arm 6 (arm with probe). The sampling pump is used for sucking and discharging the sample by the probe 7, the probe solenoid valve is for controlling the suction and discharging operations, and the probe cleaning pump is for collecting unnecessary or remaining sample after suction and discharging. The cuvette cleaning pump for cleaning is used for cleaning the reaction vessel (cuvette) 4.

Next, the operation of performing the sampling operation according to this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart.

First, the arm 6 at the origin position is moved to the sample container 2 of the sampler 1 to perform the sample distributing operation (step a).
If an obstacle is detected (error occurs) by the moving arm pressure sensor 22, the flow proceeds to. When normal, the probe 7 is lowered into the sample container 2 together with the arm 6 (step b). When an obstacle is detected by the descending probe interference sensor 29, the flow proceeds to. , Will be described later. Then, the sample was inhaled (Step C)
After that, the probe 7 is raised to the original position (origin) (step d). Next, after moving the arm 6 onto the washing pool 15 (step e), the probe 7 is lowered and washed (step f), and after completion, the probe 7 is raised (step g).
Subsequently, after moving the arm 6 onto the reaction container 4 (step h), the probe 7 is lowered (step i), and the sample is discharged into the reaction container 4 (step j). Subsequently, after raising the probe 7 (step k), the arm 6 is moved again onto the washing pool 15 (step 1), and the probe 7 is lowered onto the washing pool 15 (step m). Next, the electromagnetic valve of the sampling channel is turned on (step n), and the probe 7 is washed (step o). Then, after returning the plunger to the origin (step p), the solenoid valve is turned off (step q). Next, after raising the probe 7 (step r), the probe 7 is washed (step s).

The above-mentioned steps complete the one-cycle sample distributing operation.

Next, the operation when an obstacle is detected during the distribution operation will be described.

If an obstacle is detected in step a, the flow is
Proceeding to FIG. 7A, it is judged whether or not the obstacle has disappeared (step t). This step t is repeated until the obstacle is eliminated, and when the obstacle is eliminated, the delay operation is performed (step u). For example, a delay operation of 1 second is performed, and this is a consideration for preventing the occurrence of a collision accident or the like by moving the arm 6 suddenly after removing the obstacle. Next, the arm 6 is moved to the origin (step v). This operation is performed by the control operation of the pulse motor 23 of the CPU 17, as described above. When this operation ends, the flow jumps to step l.

Therefore, when an obstacle is detected in this way, the steps between step b and step k are omitted, but this is because the movement of the arm 6 is temporarily stopped and each unit is determined in advance by a program. This is done in order to prevent a malfunction from occurring due to the sequence of operations being deviated from each other. Similarly, step e, step h,
When an obstacle is detected in step l, the flow is set to proceed to. In this way, when the intermediate step is jumped to step l, the sample that has already been inhaled is discharged without being used for measurement and is wasted. However, this is a problem of only one cycle, and it occurs over multiple cycles. Considering the malfunctions and measurements that are obtained, it does not pose a practical problem. Note that in step v, if an obstacle is detected, the flow returns to step t.

Next, when an obstacle is detected in step b, the flow proceeds to FIG. 8 (b), the probe 7 is raised to the origin (step w), and then the arm 6 is moved to the origin (step x). ). Then the flow jumps to step l. Similarly, when an obstacle is detected in steps f, i, and m, the flow is set to proceed to. In such a case, the same action and effect as in the case of proceeding to the above can be obtained.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, when an obstacle is detected by the arm 6 or the probe 7 during the sample distributing operation in each cycle, the distributing operation is temporarily stopped and the arm is returned to the origin (home position). Since this is done, normal distribution operation can be performed from the next cycle.

As a result, it is not necessary to stop the operation of the apparatus and interrupt the measurement when an obstacle is detected as in the conventional case, and therefore a large amount of specimens and the like are not wasted. In addition, the measurement is skipped only for one cycle and is not interrupted, so that the measurement efficiency can be improved. Furthermore, it is not necessary to perform a troublesome power reset operation.

Although the present embodiment has been described by taking the example of performing the sample dispensing operation using the sampling arm, the present invention can be similarly applied to the case of performing the reagent dispensing operation. In the skipped cycle, when sample distribution or reagent distribution cannot be performed, it is convenient to add an error display to the measurement result of the sample.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, when an obstacle is detected during the liquid distribution operation by the probe arm, the distribution operation is stopped and the probe arm is returned to the origin position. Since the dispensing operation is automatically restarted from the next cycle, it is possible to provide an automatic chemical analyzer capable of improving measurement efficiency without wasting a large amount of sample.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of an automatic chemical analysis device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the structure of a sampling arm of the device of this embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a pressure-sensitive sensor attached to the sampling arm. 4A and 4B are side views showing the configuration of the probe of the apparatus of this embodiment, FIG. 5 is a timing chart showing the operation of each unit of the apparatus of this embodiment, and FIGS. 8 (a) and 8 (b) are timing charts for explaining the operation of this embodiment, and FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of the sample distributing operation. 1 ... sampler, 2 ... sample container, 4 ... reaction container, 5 ... reaction disk, 6 ... sampling arm, 7 ... probe, 17 ... CPU (central processing unit), 22 ... arm sense Pressure sensor, 23 ... Arm moving pulse motor, 27, 40 ... Cut plate, 28 ... Arm home sensor, 29 ... Probe interference sensor, 30 ... Vertical pulse motor, 39 ... Probe home sensor.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A probe-equipped arm having a contact sensor attached to at least an arm portion distributes a liquid required for analysis from one container to the other container, and a reaction liquid containing the liquid in a fixed cycle. In the automatic chemical analysis device for measuring the concentration of the characteristic component of, in the distribution operation of each cycle, based on the detection information of the obstacle by the contact sensor, the stop control of the distribution operation of the cycle and the origin position of the arm with a probe are performed. The automatic chemical analysis device is provided with a control means for performing the return control of the above and restarting the dispensing operation by the arm with a probe from the next cycle.