JPH076920B2 - Structure of photometric unit in chemical analyzer - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial field of application) The present invention relates to a chemical analysis slide having a reagent layer, in which a substance to be measured is allowed to act at a constant temperature for a predetermined period of time, and then the degree of color change (the degree of pigment formation) is measured. The present invention relates to the structure of a photometry unit of a chemical analyzer that optically measures and quantitatively analyzes a substance to be measured.

(Prior Art) Conventionally, quantitative analysis of a specific chemical component in a liquid sample has been widely performed in various industrial fields. In particular, quantitative analysis of chemical components or formed components in biological fluids such as blood and urine is extremely important in the fields of biochemistry and clinical practice.

By the way, in recent years, a dry type chemical analysis slide has been developed which can quantitatively analyze a specific chemical component or a formed component contained in the sample solution by simply supplying a small amount of the sample solution. Practical use (Japanese Patent Publication No. 53-2167)
No. 7, JP-A-55-164356 shows an example of this chemical analysis slide). By using this chemical analysis slide, the sample liquid can be analyzed easily and quickly as compared with the conventional wet analysis method. Therefore, the slide can be used in medical institutions, laboratories, etc. that need to analyze a large number of samples. It is particularly preferably used.

In order to analyze the chemical components in the sample solution using the above-mentioned chemical analysis slide, attach a predetermined amount of the measured sample solution to the chemical analysis slide, and then set this in the incubator (incubator) in a predetermined manner. The sample is kept at a constant temperature (incubation) for a period of time to cause a color reaction (dye formation reaction), and then a measurement light containing a wavelength preselected according to the combination of the substance to be measured and the reagent contained in the reagent layer of the chemical analysis slide is applied. The slide is illuminated and its reflection optical density is measured. As a result, the substance to be measured such as the chemical component is quantitatively analyzed.

Various chemical analyzers for quantitatively analyzing the substance to be measured as described above have been proposed in the past. Generally, in this type of chemical analyzer, a light source is used when the reflection optical density of the slide is measured. To measure the reference reflected light amount from the reference density plate by irradiating the reference density plate with the measurement light emitted from the reference density plate, and to obtain the reflected optical density of the slide based on the reflected light amount from the slide and the reference reflected light amount. I have to. That is, using a white plate and a blackboard as the reference density plate, the reference reflected light amount from each is Iw, Ib,
If the amount of light reflected from the chemical analysis slide is Is, the reflection optical density D of the slide is Is required as.

In the measurement of the reflection optical density, the reference optical density is measured by irradiating the reference density plate and the slide surface with the measurement light, but conventionally, the measurement light from the light source lamp is insulated from heat. Condensing with a lens through the filter,
Further, the measurement surface of the reference concentration plate or the chemical analysis slide was irradiated through the aperture.

Since the light from the light source lamp is condensed by the lens, it is possible to increase the irradiation light amount, but the lens and the lens barrel for the heat insulating filter are required, and the structure becomes complicated and the number of parts is increased. There was a problem of high cost.

Further, the height of the film fluctuates due to the variation in the thickness of the frame of the analysis slide, and the light reflected from the lower surface of the film of the analysis slide is blocked by the edge of the opening of the constant temperature section while reaching the light receiver. However, there is a problem that the photometric accuracy varies.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a photometry unit structure in a chemical analyzer that has a simple structure and can obtain highly accurate analysis results.

(Means for Solving Problems) The photometric unit structure in the chemical analysis device according to the present invention is such that the chemical analysis slide on which the substance to be measured is dropped on the reagent layer is kept at a constant temperature for a predetermined time, and then the measurement light is applied to the slide. In a chemical analyzer that irradiates to measure the amount of reflected light from the slide and quantitatively analyzes the substance to be measured, a light source that irradiates the slide with the measurement light from the vertical direction without passing through a condensing unit. And a filter that selectively transmits a specific wavelength range of the light emission wavelength of the light source, and a light receiver that measures the amount of reflected light from the slide are integrally configured, and the light receiver is changed from the light source to the slide. It is characterized in that they are arranged on a line substantially perpendicular to the major axis direction of the irradiated substantially elliptical irradiation spot.

(Operation) With the above configuration, the light from the light source lamp is applied to the chemical analysis slide through a filter that transmits light of a specific wavelength without passing through a condenser lens, and the reflected light is received by a light receiver and reflected. By determining the optical density, the concentration of the component to be measured in the sample can be calculated.

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

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a chemical analysis device having a photometric unit structure of the present invention disassembled into respective constituent elements,
The appearance of the device is as shown in Fig. 2a in plan view and in Fig. 2b in IIb direction.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the chemical analysis slide 1 used in the chemical analysis apparatus. The chemical analysis slide 1 includes a support, a reagent layer, and a frame 1a having a circular hole for dropping a liquid sample.
A dry multi-layer film 1b is formed by stacking development layers in this order, and a predetermined amount of a sample (substance to be measured) such as urine and blood is dropped on the film 1b and kept at a constant temperature (ink incubation). Color reaction.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2a and 2b, the chemical analysis device 10 comprises:
After setting the above-mentioned chemical analysis slide 1, a measuring unit 11 for performing a series of measurement operations including spotting, constant temperature keeping and photometry.
And an operation unit that performs the predetermined input operation necessary for this measurement operation
12, a display unit 13 for displaying a quantitative analysis result based on the above measurement operation, and a control unit 14 including a board for controlling these units.
And a power input section 15 and a case 16 for housing them. Then, the ROM card 17 is inserted into the control unit 14 of the chemical analysis device 10.
Quantitative analysis can be performed based on information stored in the OM card 17 (for example, measurement calibration curve, operation program, etc.). Further, a connector 70 for a serial printer is provided so that the quantitative analysis result can be printed out as required.

In the measuring section 11, after the chemical analysis slide 1 is set in the slide set hole 18, the recess 19a of the pipette guide 19 is set.
A sample is spotted on the slide 1 at a predetermined position by bringing a pipette into contact with the slide 1, and then the slide 1 is kept at a constant temperature in the constant temperature part 20 for a predetermined time to cause a color reaction, and then the photometric part 21 measures the light. Finally, the operation for discharging the slide 1 from the slide discharge port 22 is performed.

The operation unit 12 includes a start key 23, a numeric keypad 24, and a confirmation key 2.
5, slide cancel key 26, and chemical analyzer 10
Is composed of a keyboard 28 having a display 27 for displaying that the measurement is possible.

The power supply input unit 15 includes a power supply unit 29, a power switch 32 connected to the power supply unit 29 via a noise filter 30 and a fuse holder 31, a terminal 33, and a connector 34.

Display nameplate on top of case 16 to protect display 13.
Adjacent to 35 is attached a nameplate 36 showing the components that can be quantitatively analyzed by the chemical analyzer 10. An electric fan 37 is attached to the side surface of the case 16. Further, a cover 38 is provided on the upper surface of the case 16. The slide set hole 18 and the pipette guide 19 of the measuring section 11 are provided in the cover 38. Further, the cover constant temperature part 20a which constitutes a part of the constant temperature part 20 of the measuring part 11 is supported by the cover 38.

4a and 4b are a plan view showing the measuring unit 11 together with the case 16 with the cover 38 removed in detail and IVb-IVb thereof.
It is a line sectional view. The measuring unit 11 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4a and 4b and FIG.

The measuring unit 11 includes a holding unit 39 that holds the chemical analysis slide 1.
A slide holding member 40 having a groove formed therein, and a moving feed mechanism for moving the slide holding member 40 to a plurality of predetermined positions.
41 are provided.

The holding portion 39 of the slide holding member 40 is used for the chemical analysis slide 1.
When the slide 1 is set in the slide set hole 18 with the holding portion 39 positioned directly below the slide set hole 18, the outer periphery of the slide 1 is formed by the rectangular hole. It is designed to hold the department. The lower surface portion of the set slide 1 is positioned immediately below the slide holding member 40 and is supported by a support plate 42 fixed to the case 16. Further, a taper 39a for facilitating the insertion of the slide 1 is formed on the upper surface of the outer peripheral portion of the rectangular hole.

The slide holding member 40 is slidably supported by a pair of rods 43 and 44 on both sides of the holding portion 39. A U-shaped cutout portion 45 is formed in a part of the slide holding member 40 that slides on one rod 44, and the lower end portion of the cutout portion 45 extends in parallel with the rod 44. Two legs of a U-shaped feed guide 47 screwed with the shaft 46 are fitted while the rod 44 is held. Therefore, when the spiral shaft 46 rotates, the slide holding member 40 slides in the axial direction of the rods 43 and 44 along with the rotation. The rotation of the spiral shaft 46 is
Driven by the motor 48, a gear part 49 consisting of a pair of spur gears
Made through. The drive control of the motor 48 is performed by the control unit 14.

A black plastic disc and a white ceramic disc are embedded in two places on the lower surface of the slide holding member 40 on the display nameplate 35 side (that is, the right side in FIG. 4a) with respect to the holding portion 39. . That is, the slide holding member 40 is integrally formed with a blackboard and a white plate which serve as reference density plates when measuring the reflection optical density of the slide 1. The blackboard 50B and the white plate 50W are arranged at predetermined intervals in this order in the sliding direction of the slide holding member 40 from the holding portion 39, and are located at the center of the pair of rods 43 and 44.

A flange portion 40a extending horizontally is formed at the end of the slide holding member 40 on the rod 43 side, and position detecting holes 51, 52, 53, 54 are formed at four positions of the flange portion 40a. Has been done. The position detection hole 51 is on a line drawn perpendicularly to the sliding direction of the slide holding member 40 from the center of the holding portion 39, and the position detection holes 52 and 53 are located on the blackboard 50B and the white board 50W, respectively. The position detection hole 54 is formed in the same positional relationship as the detection hole 51, and the position detection hole 54 is formed near the end of the flange portion 40a on the display nameplate 35 side. And the case
A public electric type first position sensor 55 and a second position sensor 56 that can face the position detecting holes 51 to 54 when the slide holding member 40 slides are provided in the vicinity of the flange portion 40a of the sixteen. The first position sensor 55 is arranged beside the opening 57 formed in the constant temperature part 20, and the holding part 3 of the slide holding member 40.
9, the blackboard 50B, the white plate 50W each center coincides with the center of the opening 57 of the constant temperature part 20, and this is detected by the position detection holes 51 to 53, and the slide holding member 40 is at the position to be spotted. At a certain time, this is detected by the position detection hole 54. On the other hand, the second position sensor 56 is a slide holding member.
40 is the discharge position (that is, the holding portion 39 is the discharge port of the case 16)
When the slide 1 held above the holding portion 39 is at a position above the 22 and is discharged to the discharge port 22), this is detected by the end portion of the slide holding member 40.

The detection signals from the position sensors 55 and 56 are input to the control unit 14, and the drive of the motor 48 is controlled based on the input signals. That is, the motor 48 is
It is stopped when slide 1 is in the spotting position,
When the start key 23 of the operation unit 12 is pressed, driving starts,
Slide holding member 40, white plate 50W, blackboard 50B, holding unit
39 is moved to the original spotting position while being temporarily stopped at the position directly facing the opening 57 of the constant temperature part 20 and at the discharge position. The stop time at each position is determined based on the information stored in the ROM card 17, but depending on the component to be quantitatively analyzed, the holding unit 39 stops at a position directly facing the opening 57 of the constant temperature unit 20. The time needs to be different. This is because the slide 1 is kept at a constant temperature at the above-mentioned position, so that the color reaction time corresponding to the components is secured.

FIG. 5 shows in detail a part of the measuring section 11 with the holding section 39 in a position directly facing the opening 57 of the constant temperature section 20, and is indicated by V in FIG. 4a.
It is a -V line sectional view.

The chemical analysis slide 1 on the slide holding member 40 is kept in a constant temperature state for a predetermined time by energizing the constant temperature section 20 (for example, 37 ° C. × 2 to 6 minutes in measuring blood glucose level). As a result, the reagent of the film 1b acts on the substance to be measured to cause a color reaction. A cover constant temperature part 20a is arranged above the constant temperature part 20 to facilitate keeping the constant temperature of the slide 1 by pressing the spotting surface of the slide 1 from above, and the liquid sample spotted on the slide 1. It is designed to prevent the evaporation of. The cover constant temperature part 20a is
A heater and a temperature adjustment sensor (not shown) maintain the temperature at a predetermined level.

Below the constant temperature part 20, a photometric part 21 having an optical system extending in the vertical direction toward the opening 57 is arranged. The photometric unit 21 is an outer lens barrel 21a having an optical receiver 60 fixed to the upper outer edge portion and an optical filter 60 fixed to the upper inner edge portion, an inner lens barrel 21b screwed to the inner side of the outer lens barrel, and having a heat insulating filter fixed to the upper portion, Also, a light source lamp 58 is provided inside the inner lens barrel. Further, the height position of the light source lamp 58 is adjusted to a predetermined height by the hexagon socket set screw 21c.

In the photometry unit 21, the measurement light emitted from the light source 58 made of a tungsten lamp is reflected on the lower surface of the film 1b of the slide 1, and the reflected light is made up of a photodetector made of a photodiode.
It is detected by 59. The reflected light amount Is thus detected is input to the control unit 14 and stored therein. Similarly, the white board 50W and the blackboard 50B are in the constant temperature section 20.
The measurement unit 21 also makes a measurement when it directly faces the opening 57, and the reflected light amounts Iw and Ib are input to the control unit 14 as reference reflected light amounts and stored.

The light source 58 emits measurement light over a relatively wide wavelength range, but the color development wavelength of the chemical analysis slide 1 differs depending on the chemical analysis slide and the substance to be measured.
An optical filter 60 is provided above the 58, and the measuring light in the effective wavelength range is selected by the optical filter 60 and used for the above measurement. Further, as described above, the temperature of the chemical analysis slide 1, which is kept at a constant temperature by the heat insulating filter 61 provided between the light source 58 and the optical filter 60, is raised by the heat from the light source 58, or this heat is generated by the optical analysis. It is designed to prevent the characteristics and life of the filter 60 from being adversely affected.

FIG. 6 is a view in the direction of Va in the state where the constant temperature part 20a and the slide holding member 40 are omitted in FIG. 5, and shows the constant temperature part 20 having an opening 57 in which a transparent glass plate is fitted in the central part. The lower end portions (see FIG. 1) of both ends are fixed to the support plate 42 with screws 20b.

The opening 57 has a circular shape, and the light from the light source lamp 58 is irradiated in a substantially circular shape as indicated by the diagonal lines in the center of the glass plate fitted in the opening 57, and the transparent glass The light transmitted through the plate is applied to the lower surface of the film 1b of the analysis slide 1. Then, the reflected light is received by a light receiver 59 provided in the XX axis direction perpendicular to the long axis Y-Y direction of the elliptic circle. Therefore, even if the height of the film 1b varies due to the thickness variation of the frame 1a of the analysis slide 1, the film 1b of the analysis slide 1
While the light reflected from the lower surface of the photodetector reaches the photodetector 59 made of a photodiode, it is not blocked by the edge of the opening 57 of the thermostat 20, and the photometric accuracy does not change.

Based on the measurement result of the measuring unit 21, the control unit 14 calculates the reflection optical density D of the chemical analysis slide 1. That is, It is calculated according to the following arithmetic expression. Then, the reflection optical density D is, for example, mg / d as a substance concentration based on the calibration curve of the substance to be measured stored in the ROM card 17 in advance.
The information is displayed on the display unit 13 in units of l. The arithmetic expression may be appropriately modified by operating the ten-key pad 24 based on the past measurement result at each hospital or the like.

(Advantages of the Invention) As described above, in the present invention, the condenser lens can be omitted, and the lens barrel of the condenser lens can be omitted. It may have a photometric structure. further,
By utilizing the fact that the irradiation spots radiated from the light source to the slide become a substantially circular shape from the shape of the filament of the light source lamp, by arranging the light receiver on a line substantially perpendicular to the major axis direction of the irradiation spots, Since the reflected light can be received efficiently, the measurement accuracy can be improved, and the eclipse (shielding) of the reflected light due to the side light aperture due to the variation of the height of the analysis slide surface is reduced, and the measurement can be performed. The accuracy can be improved. In addition, since the light source lamp and the photometric surface of the analysis slide can be brought very close to each other, the light amount of the light source lamp can be effectively used, and stray light can be reduced to improve the measurement accuracy.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a chemical analysis device having a photometric unit structure according to the present invention by disassembling it into respective constituent elements, and FIGS. 2a and 2b are plan views showing the appearance of the device and its perspective view.
IIb direction arrow view, FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a chemical analysis slide used in the device, and FIGS. 4a and 4b are plan views showing in detail the measuring unit 11 of the device together with the case with the cover removed. And its IVb-I
Vb line sectional view, FIG. 5 is a VV line sectional view of FIG. 4a, and FIG. 6 is a constant temperature part 20a and slide holding member 4 in FIG.
It is a Va direction arrow view in the state which 0 was removed. 1 …… Chemical analysis slide, 10 …… Chemical analysis device 11 …… Measuring section, 12 …… Operating section 13 …… Display section, 14 …… Control section 15 …… Power input section, 16 …… Case 17 …… ROM Card, 20 20a …… Constant temperature unit 21 …… Metering unit, 39 …… Holding unit 40 …… Slide holding member, 41 …… Automatic feeding mechanism 50W …… White board, 50B …… Blackboard

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A chemical analysis slide, on which a substance to be measured is dripped on a reagent layer, is kept at a constant temperature for a predetermined time, and then the slide is irradiated with measuring light to measure the amount of reflected light from the slide. In the chemical analysis device for performing the quantitative analysis of, a light source for irradiating the slide with the measurement light in a vertical direction without passing through a condensing unit, and selectively a specific wavelength region of the emission wavelength of the light source. A filter that transmits light and a light receiver that measures the amount of reflected light from the slide are integrally configured, and the light receiver is substantially in the major axis direction of a substantially elliptical irradiation spot irradiated from the light source to the slide. A photometric unit structure in a chemical analyzer characterized by being arranged on a right-angled line.