Automatic tracking of a specimen holder moved from one specimen rack to another

• US 10,459,410 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Issued: 10/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shazi Iqbal
• Original Assignee: Shazi Iqbal
• Inventors: Iqbal, Shazi, Iqbal, Shiraz, Ross, II, Merrill S, Ross, Jeffrey S, Iqbal, Shahin
• Primary Examiner(s): Logan, Kyle
• Application Number:
  US13/844,607
• Publication Number:
  US 20140277695A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,419 Days
• Field of Search: 700225
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/021 Adjust spacings in an array of wells, pipettes or holders, format transfer between arrays of different size or geometry
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/185 Long distance transport, e.g. mailing
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/022 Transponder chips
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/024 Storing results with means integrated into the container
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/5453 for test tubes
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 9/06 Test-tube stands; Test-tube holders
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/00732 Identification of carriers, materials or components in automatic analysers
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 11/01 electric

Abstract

A user may move a specimen holder from one specimen rack to another specimen rack. A database automatically tracks the movement of the specimen holder from a rack slot of one specimen rack to a rack slot of the other specimen rack. To track movement of the specimen holder, the user places a specimen rack on a specimen reader that determines the location of any specimen holders in slots of the specimen rack. The user removes a particular specimen holder from a particular rack slot of the specimen rack and the database is updated to reflect removal of the particular specimen holder from the specimen rack. The user places another specimen rack on the reader and inserts the newly removed specimen holder in a slot of the another specimen rack. The database is updated to reflect insertion of the specimen holder in a particular slot of the another rack.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

providing first and second specimen racks that each include a plurality of rack slots that receive specimen holders, each specimen holder including an RFID tag with an RFID unique identifier and a barcode unique identifier that are stored in a database in association with one another;

receiving, by the second specimen rack, a specimen holder previously located in the first specimen rack and which is designated as the newly inserted specimen holder, the second specimen rack being situated on a specimen reader;

optically scanning, by the specimen reader, a matrix of optical sensing regions corresponding to the plurality of rack slots of the second specimen rack to determine the particular rack slot at which the newly inserted specimen holder is located, thus indicating an optically determined insertion change event; and

determining, by the specimen reader, the RFID unique identifier of the newly inserted specimen holder, wherein the determining includes;

transmitting, by the specimen reader in response to the optically determined insertion change event, an RF interrogation signal to specimen holders located in the plurality of rack slots of the second specimen rack;

transmitting, in response to the RFID interrogation signal, respective RFID response signals by RFID tags of specimen holders in the second specimen rack, the RFID response signals including respective RFID unique identifiers;

receiving, by the specimen reader, the RFID response signals, thus providing currently received RFID unique identifiers; and

comparing, by the specimen reader, the currently received RFID unique identifiers with prior received RFID unique identifiers to identify the RFID unique identifier of the newly inserted specimen holder.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the specimen reader includes a plurality of antenna zones, the method further comprising:

determining, by the specimen reader, a particular antenna zone of a plurality of antenna zones wherein the particular antenna zone is the antenna zone in which the newly inserted specimen holder is located;

transmitting, in response to determining the particular antenna zone by the specimen reader, an RF interrogation signal to the particular antenna zone of the plurality of antenna zones; and

receiving, by the specimen reader, RFID unique identifiers from specimen holders within the particular antenna zone.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

updating the database to store the RFID unique identifier of the newly inserted specimen holder in association with a rack slot identifier of the rack slot of the second specimen rack where the newly inserted specimen holder is located.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

updating the database to associate the barcode unique identifier of the newly inserted specimen holder with the rack slot identifier of the rack slot of the second specimen rack where the newly inserted specimen holder is located.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

receiving a query, by the database, for the rack slot location of a particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack, the query including the RFID unique identifier of the particular specimen holder;

providing, by the database, the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack;

displaying the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

receiving a query, by the database, for the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack, the query including the barcode unique identifier of the particular specimen holder;

providing, by the database, the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack;

displaying the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack.

7. A method, comprising:

providing first and second specimen racks that each include a plurality of rack slots that receive specimen holders, each rack slot having a rack slot identifier, each specimen holder including an RFID tag with an RFID unique identifier and a barcode unique identifier that are stored in a database in association with one another, the database including the RFID unique identifier and barcode unique identifier of each specimen holder in the first specimen rack in association with a rack slot identifier;

removing a specimen holder from a particular rack slot of the first specimen rack, the first specimen rack being situated on a specimen reader, the specimen holder thus removed being designated as the newly removed specimen holder;

optically scanning, by the specimen reader, a matrix of optical sensing regions corresponding to the plurality of rack slots of the first specimen rack to determine the particular rack slot at which the newly removed specimen holder was located, thus indicating an optically determined removal change event; and

updating the database to remove an association of the rack slot identifier from which the newly removed specimen holder was removed with the RFID unique identifier and barcode unique identifier of the newly removed specimen holder.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the specimen reader includes a plurality of antenna zones, the method further comprising:

determining, by the specimen reader, a particular antenna zone of a plurality of antenna zones wherein the particular antenna zone is the antenna zone in which the newly inserted specimen holder is located;

transmitting, in response to determining the particular antenna zone by the specimen reader, an RF interrogation signal to the particular antenna zone of the plurality of antenna zones; and

receiving, by the specimen reader, RFID unique identifiers from specimen holders within the particular antenna zone.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising moving the newly removed specimen holder to the second specimen rack.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving in a rack slot, by the second specimen rack, the newly removed specimen holder from the first specimen rack which is designated as the newly inserted specimen holder of the second specimen rack, the second specimen rack being situated on the specimen reader;

optically scanning, by the specimen reader, the plurality of rack slots of the second specimen rack to determine the particular rack slot at which the newly inserted specimen holder is located, thus indicating an insertion change event; and

determining, by the specimen reader, the RFID unique identifier of the newly inserted specimen holder.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the determining by the specimen reader the RFID unique identifier of the newly inserted specimen holder comprises:

transmitting, by the specimen reader, an RF interrogation signal to specimen holders located in the plurality of rack slots of the second specimen rack;

transmitting, in response to the RFID interrogation signal, respective RFID response signals by RFID tags of specimen holders in the second specimen rack, the RFID response signals including respective RFID unique identifiers;

receiving, by the specimen reader, the RFID response signals, thus providing currently received RFID unique identifiers; and

comparing, by the specimen reader, the currently received RFID unique identifiers with prior received RFID unique identifiers to identify the RFID unique identifier of the newly inserted specimen holder.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

updating the database to store the RFID unique identifier of the newly inserted specimen holder in association with a rack slot identifier of the rack slot of the second specimen rack where the newly inserted specimen holder is located.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

updating the database to associate the barcode unique identifier of the newly inserted specimen holder with the rack slot identifier of the rack slot of the second specimen rack where the newly inserted specimen holder is located.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

receiving a query, by the database, for the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack, the query including the RFID unique identifier of the particular specimen holder;

providing, by the database, the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack;

displaying the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack.

15. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

receiving a query, by the database, for the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack, the query including the barcode unique identifier of the particular specimen holder;

providing, by the database, the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack;

displaying the rack slot location of the particular specimen holder in the second specimen rack.