JPH0664071B2 - Automatic chemical analyzer - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an automatic chemical analyzer.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems] In recent automatic chemical analyzers, a plurality of types of reagents are dispensed by a random access method after dispensing the samples into a large number of reaction tubes on a reaction line. In many cases, each reagent is reacted with and then photometry is performed.

As a conventional example of such an apparatus, for example, a large number of reaction tubes are arranged in a circular shape, and these reaction tubes are rotationally driven with a pitch for a predetermined time, while sampling of the sample into these reaction tubes, dispensing of the first reagent, and First equipped with a sampling unit for cleaning and drying, a first reagent dispensing unit and a cleaning and drying unit
Reaction line system and a large number of reaction tubes arranged in a circular shape, and these reaction tubes are rotationally driven in synchronization with each reaction tube of the first reaction line, and the second reagent is dispensed to each reaction tube. A second reaction line system provided with a second reagent dispensing section for performing and a photometric system forming a photometric point for each of the reaction tubes is arranged adjacent to each other, and between the first and second reaction line systems. It is known that a reaction tube is configured to be exchanged.

However, in the above-mentioned conventional apparatus, each reaction tube is sent by one pitch at the time of sampling or reagent dispensing, so that the pitch time in the first reaction section cannot be delayed, and as a result, the first reaction section is delayed. There is a problem that it is not possible to take a sufficient time for the washing and drying treatment in the above.

Further, in the above-mentioned conventional apparatus, since the reagent dispensing nozzles of the first and second reagent dispensing units are not arranged on the same circumference as the reaction tubes, a random access method using these reagent dispensing nozzles is used. When reagents are dispensed by, the tubes connected to each reagent dispensing nozzle are entangled with each other, and because each reagent dispensing nozzle is attached and detached using the dispensing arm, the dispensing time However, there is a problem in that the processing speed of the entire device is decreased due to the increase in the number of devices.

[Object of the Invention] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it is possible to secure a sufficient time for the washing and drying process and to process the entire apparatus without wasting reagent dispensing time. It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic chemical analyzer capable of improving the speed.

[Outline of the Invention] An outline of the present invention for achieving the above object is to provide an arbitrary number of trapezoidal reaction tube cassettes in which a plurality of reaction tubes are housed in an arc shape while superposing each short side and long side. A first reaction section having a washing / drying section which is linearly arranged to wash and dry each reaction tube of each of these reaction tube cassettes, and the reaction tube cassette is made to correspond to the arc of each reaction tube while polymerizing the respective oblique sides. Second reaction section which is arranged in a circular shape and enables transfer of a reaction tube cassette to and from the first reaction section, and a radius of rotation corresponding to the arc of each reaction tube which is arranged above the first and second reaction sections. And a reagent dispensing system equipped with a reagent dispensing nozzle that is rotationally driven by.

[Examples of the Invention] Examples of the present invention will be described in detail below.

The apparatus of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is a sample cassette 5 in which an arbitrary number of sample containers 51 are housed in a constant temperature bath 50.
2 and a first reaction section 1 that is linearly driven and a second reaction section 2 that is driven to perform a circular motion, and are arranged above each of the first reaction section 1 and the second reaction section 2. And second reagent dispenser 3A, 3B driven and rotated
And a photometry system 30.

The first reaction section 1 is, for example, a trapezoidal reaction tube cassette 5-1 in which five reaction tubes 4 have a constant radius of curvature R and are housed in an arc shape at regular intervals as shown in FIG. ~ 5-1
5 are arranged linearly while superimposing each short side and long side, and the long side of the reaction tube cassette 5-1 which is one end is set at a predetermined time interval by the reaction tube linear drive plunger 6. By hitting, each reaction tube cassette 5-1 to 5-15
Is driven linearly in the direction of the arrow Y shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 with a predetermined time pitch. The time interval pitch is set to, for example, a moving time of 1 second and a stop time of 12 seconds.

A washing / drying unit 7 for washing and drying the reaction tubes 4 is provided at the positions of the reaction tube cassettes 5-1 and 5-2 in FIG. 1, and a sampling nozzle 8 is provided above the reaction tube cassette 5-3. Is arranged so that the sample is sucked from the inside of the sample container 51 and the sample is dispensed into each reaction tube 4 in the reaction tube cassette 5-3.

Further, a dilution water nozzle 9 is arranged above the reaction tube cassette 5-4, and the dilution water is dispensed to each reaction tube 4 sent to the position of the reaction tube cassette 5-4. There is.

A dispensing point R of the first reagent is formed for each reaction tube 4 at the position of the reaction tube cassette 5-5.
The first reaction region 10 is formed between 5 and 15. still,
The reaction tube cassette 5-1 shown in FIG. 3 is provided with a guide pin hole 5a.

The second reaction part 2 is rotatably arranged on an extension line of the respective reaction tube cassettes 5-1 to 5-15 of the first reaction part 1 in the traveling direction (X direction) and is shown by a drive motor 11 in FIG. A circular rotary table 12 which is rotationally driven in the direction of the arrow Y,
On the outer circumference of the rotary cable 12, there are provided twelve reaction tube cassettes 5-16 to 5-27 arranged in a circular shape so that each reaction tube 4 forms a radius of gyration that matches the radius of curvature R. In the arrangement state of the reaction tube cassettes 5-16 to 5-27 of the second reaction section 2 shown in FIG.
At the position of the reaction tube cassette 5-18 of the second reaction tube 2 facing the reaction tube cassette 5-15 located at the extreme end of the reaction section 1, there is a reaction tube cassette receiving portion 13A, and a reaction tube cassette 5
At the position of -27, a reaction tube cassette discharge part 13B is formed, and one of the reaction tube cassettes is discharged from the reaction tube cassette discharge part 13B and the reaction tube cassette is discharged along the transfer path Z by a transfer mechanism (not shown). 5-1. The reaction tube cassette supplied to the first reaction tube 1 by transferring the reaction tube cassette to the position 5-1 and discharging the reaction tube cassette into a blank state to the reaction tube cassette receiving portion 13A (for example, the reaction tube). The tube cassette 5-15) is taken into the second reaction section 2.

The first reagent dispensing unit 3A is supported above the first reaction region 10 so as to have a center of rotation, and is driven to rotate by a first motor 14A for reagent rotation.
And A item reagent first bin 16A, B item reagent first bin 16B placed on the first reagent table 15A, and A item reagent first bin 16A and B item reagent first bin 16B, respectively, Also, each dispensing nozzle is arranged so as to have a radius of gyration that matches the radius of curvature R of the reaction tube 4, and reagent dispensing is performed at the dispensing point R. A-item reagent first pump 17A, B-item reagent It is provided with a first pump 17B and a first striking plunger 18A disposed above the A-item reagent first pump 17A and striking the A-item reagent first pump 17A or the B-item reagent first pump 17B.

The second reagent dispensing section 3B is supported so as to have a rotation center above the rotation center of the second reaction section 2 and is driven to rotate by a second motor 14B for reagent rotation, and a second reagent table 15B. Item A reagent second bin 19A, B item reagent second bin 19 placed on the second reagent table 15B.
B and A item reagent second bottles 19A and B item reagent second bottles 19B communicate with each other, and the respective dispensing nozzles coincide with the radius of gyration formed by each reaction tube on the second reaction section 2. The second reaction part 2 is arranged so as to have a turning radius.
A reagent second pump 20A and B reagent second pump 20B for dispensing the second reagent into an arbitrary reaction tube of A, and a reagent A second pump arranged above A reagent second pump 20A. 20A or B item reagent second pump 20B and a second striking plunger 18B for striking.

The photometric system 30 includes a housing 22 having an opening 21 facing the rotation trajectory of each reaction tube of the second reaction section 2, and the housing 2
First, the light from the light source lamp 23, which is arranged in the second portion, is irradiated to each reaction tube passing through the opening 21 to form the photometric point P.
Optical fiber 24A, a second optical fiber 24B that receives the light that has passed through the photometric point P and guides it to the light receiving element 25 such as a photodiode, and the photometric data that is converted into an electrical signal by the light receiving element 25 is processed. And a signal processing system (not shown). Although FIG. 1 shows the case where one photometric point P is formed as the photometric system 30, in practice, several photometric points corresponding to the intervals between the reaction tubes 4 housed in the cassette of the reaction tubes are shown. Are formed.

Next, the operation of the device having the above configuration will be described. In the initial state, each reaction tube 4 in the reaction tube cassette 5-3 has already been washed and dried, and in the second reaction section 2, the blank portion from which the reaction tube cassette 5-27 is released is the first reaction. It shall be facing the reaction tube cassette 5-15 of Part 1.

In this state, first, an arbitrary sample is sucked from the sample container 51 by the sampling nozzle, and the sample is dispensed into each reaction tube 4 in the reaction tube cassette 5-3.

Next, the plunger 6 is started, the reaction tube cassettes 5-1 to 5-51 of the first reaction tube 1 are moved by one pitch in the X direction, and then stopped for 12 seconds. By this moving operation, the most advanced reaction tube cassette 5-15 of the first reaction section 1 is taken into the blank portion of the second reaction section 2, and at the same time, the reaction tube cassette 5-27 moves along the transfer route to cause the initial reaction. It is taken into the position of the pipe cassette 5-1.

The dilution water is dispensed to each reaction tube 4 of the reaction tube cassette 5-3 that has moved above the dilution water nozzle 9 by the above-described movement operation. At this time, the following reaction tube cassette 5
-2, the sample is dispensed to each reaction tube 4 and the cleaning / drying by the cleaning / drying unit 7 is performed to the reaction tube cassettes 5-1 and 5-27. In the second reaction section 2, after the reaction tube cassette 5-15 is taken in, the second motor 14B
Thus, the subsequent reaction tube cassette 5-26 is moved to the reaction tube cassette discharging portion 13B and is discharged, and the blank portion after the discharge is further moved to the reaction tube cassette receiving portion 13A to enter the standby state.

Next, the linear drive of the first reaction section 1 by the plunger 6 is executed again, and the reaction tube cassette 5-3 reaches the reagent dispensing point R. At this time, the operation of the second reaction section 2 and the transfer operation of the reaction tube cassette 5-26 along the transfer path Z are performed in the same manner as described above. For each reaction tube 4 in the reaction tube cassette 5-3 reaching the reagent dispensing point R, the first reagent dispensing section 3A
For example, the dispensing of the first reagent of the item A is sequentially performed.
In this case, the radius of curvature R of each reaction tube 4 and the first reagent dispensing section 3
Since the radii of rotation of the dispensing nozzles of A are the same, by intermittently driving the first drive motor 14A by a predetermined angle, the A by the dispensing nozzle of the A item first reagent pump 17A
It is possible to quickly dispense the item first reagent. Thereafter, the reaction tube cassette 5-3 is linearly driven by the plunger 6 to move in the first reaction region 10 by one pitch, and during this time, the reaction between the sample in each reaction tube 4 and the A-item first reagent is performed. In parallel with the movement of the reaction tube cassette 5-3, linear driving of other reaction tube cassettes, sampling, dispensing of diluting water, and transfer of the reaction tube cassettes are performed in each part of the apparatus.

Eventually, the reaction tube cassette 5-3 reaches a position facing the reaction tube cassette receiving portion 13A of the second reaction section 2, and the plunger 6
Is sent to the reaction tube cassette 13A by the next linear drive and is taken into the second reaction section 2.

The reaction tube cassette 5-3 taken into the second reaction section 2 is
For example, the second pump 20A of item A, which is rotationally driven in the Y direction by the drive motor 11 and is rotationally driven by the second motor 14B, accesses each reaction tube 4 of the reaction tube cassette 5-3 to access each reaction tube 4 Dispense the second reagent of item A to.

In this case, the radius of curvature R formed by each reaction tube 4 and the rotation radius in the second reaction section 2 are the same, and the rotation radius of the A item second pump 20A and each reaction tube 4 in the second reaction section 2 are the same.
Since the radii of rotation of the second motor 14B are the same, the rotation angle of the second motor 14B and the impact timing of the second impact plunger 18B are properly set to accurately determine the A reagent of the second reagent in each of the reaction tube cassettes 5-3. It can be dispensed into the reaction tube 4. The same applies when the second reagent of item B is dispensed into each reaction tube 5-3.

After this, in each reaction tube 4 of the reaction tube cassette 5-3, the second
The reaction with the reagent occurs, and the second reaction unit 2 is driven to rotate in the Y direction and reaches the inside of the opening 21 of the photometric system 30.

Then, from photometry 30, each reaction tube 4 of the reaction tube cassette 5-3
On the other hand, a photometric point P is formed respectively, and photometry of each reaction tube 4 is performed. Each photometric data in the photometric system 30 is converted into an electric signal by the photoelectric conversion element 25 and then subjected to signal processing, and is displayed on a CRT display (not shown) or printed out by a printer for diagnosis.

Reaction tube cassette 5 for which photometry has been completed in photometry system 30
3 is further rotationally driven in the Y direction to reach the reaction tube cassette discharge port 13B, is further transferred along the movement path Z, and is taken into the first reaction section 1.

In this way, all reaction tube cassettes 5-1 to 5-27
Washing / drying, sampling, diluting water injection, dispensing of the first and second reagents, and photometry are performed on each reaction tube 4. In this case, since the movement of each reaction cassette in the first reaction section 1 is carried out at the time pitch of 1 second movement and 12 seconds stop in the present embodiment, the cleaning time of each reaction tube 4 is utilized by utilizing the stop time. It can be done in ten parts.

In addition, since the reagent dispensing nozzle of the reagent dispensing system is arranged corresponding to the arc formed by the reaction tubes housed in each reaction tube cassette to perform reagent dispensing, the reagent dispensing processing time The mechanism of the reagent dispensing system can be short and simple.

In addition to the one shown in FIG. 1 as the photometric system, a rotation type system having a light source, an optical fiber, a light receiving element and a signal processing system with the center of the rotary table 12 in the second reaction section 2 as the center of rotation may be used. Can be implemented, in this case the second
Since the photometric processing time in the reaction section can be made faster, the time pitch for linear driving in the first reaction section 1 can be made relatively slower, and more time can be taken for the washing / drying processing.

Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the case of performing photometry after performing the dispensing of the first reagent in the first reaction section 1 and the dispensing of the second reagent in the second reaction section 2 has been described.
The reaction tube that has only dispensed the reagent is introduced to the second reaction section 2 for immediate photometry, or the first and second reagents are dispensed in the first reagent dispensing section.
It is also possible to dispense the reagent together and then perform photometry.

EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention described in detail above, the first aspect including the cleaning / drying section is provided.
Since the reaction tube cassettes are linearly arranged in the reaction section and circularly arranged in the second reaction section, it is possible to take sufficient time to wash and dry each reaction tube, and Since a space for arranging the washing / drying part, etc. is created next to the linearly arranged reaction tube cassette, the device can be downsized, and the trapezoidal reaction tube cassette can be arranged linearly or circularly. It is possible to provide an easy automatic chemical analyzer.

Further, since each reaction tube is arranged in an arc shape, and the reagent dispensing section also performs a rotary motion corresponding to the arc of each reaction tube, the processing time of reagent dispensing is short and the whole apparatus is It is possible to provide an automatic chemical analyzer that can improve the measurement speed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view showing an apparatus of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of the apparatus, and FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of a reaction tube cassette used in the apparatus. 1 ... 1st reaction part, 2 ... 2nd reaction part, 3A ... 1st reagent dispensing part, 3B ... 2nd reagent dispensing part, 4 ... reaction tube, 5
-1 to 5-27 ... Reaction tube cassette, 30 ... Photometric system.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An arbitrary number of trapezoidal reaction tube cassettes each accommodating a plurality of reaction tubes in an arc shape are arranged linearly while superimposing their short sides and long sides, and each reaction of these reaction tube cassettes. A first reaction part having a cleaning / drying part for cleaning and drying the tubes, and a reaction tube cassette are arranged in a circular arrangement corresponding to the arcs of the reaction tubes while polymerizing the hypotenuses of the reaction tube cassettes and reacting with the first reaction section. Reagent equipped with a second reaction part that enables transfer of a tube cassette, and a reagent dispensing nozzle that is disposed above the first and second reaction parts and is driven to rotate at a radius of gyration corresponding to the arc of each reaction tube. An automatic chemical analyzer having a dispensing system.