AUTOMATIC CENTRIFUGE, PRE-ANALYSIS SYSTEM WITH AUTOMATIC CENTRIFUGE AND THE CONTROL TECHNIQUES OF THAT SYSTEM

• US 20130281279A1
• Filed: 12/20/2011
• Published: 10/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi High-Tech Company Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Noda, Takayuki, Akutsu, Masashi, Yagi, Kenichi
• Granted Patent: US 9,651,570 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 494/1
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 13/00 Control arrangements specially designed for centrifuges; Programme control of centrifuges control arrangements for feed, charge, or discharge B04B11/00
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 2011/046 Loading, unloading, manipulating sample containers
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 9/14 Balancing rotary bowls balancing per se G01M; Schrappers
• CPC Class Codes: B04B 9/146 Unbalance detection devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/04 Details of the conveyor system G01N35/021 - G01N35/028 take precedence

Abstract

A determination mechanism which obtains information about the weight of the specimen housed in the specimen container is arranged on a conveyor line for connecting between a loading module and an automatic centrifugal unit, the specimens are held without being installed at an adaptor until the number of the specimens which can be subjected to a centrifugal processing at once by the automatic centrifugal unit arrives, and the specimens are installed after the arrival in an order from a heavier specimen at the adaptors to be paired, which are installed at the symmetric positions to each other across the rotation central axis. Also, the specimen is installed at the gravity-center position of the adaptor first, and the subsequent specimens are installed from the inner side at the point-symmetric positions to each other across the gravity-center position.

Claims

1. A pre-analysis system comprising:

a conveyor line which conveys a holder for holding a specimen container in which at least one specimen is housed;

at least one or more automatic centrifugal units arranged along the conveyor line; and

a plurality of adaptors which are positioned symmetrically to each other across a rotation central axis of the automatic centrifugal unit and which include a specimen holding unit at which a plurality of specimen containers can be installed,

conveying means which convey the specimen container in the holder of the specimen to the adaptor being provided, and

the conveying means installing the specimen containers sequentially in an order from a position closer to a gravity center in the specimen holding unit of the adaptor.

2. The pre-analysis system according to claim 1,

wherein the pre-analysis system includes:

a holding region which holds a predetermined number of the specimen containers;

a weight determination mechanism which directly or indirectly obtains a weight of the specimen housed in the specimen container prior to loading of the specimen container into the holding region on the automatic centrifugal unit; and

a control mechanism which performs control so as to install the specimen containers at the automatic centrifugal unit based on information obtained by the weight determination mechanism.

5. The pre-analysis system according to claim 1,

wherein the holding region can hold the specimen container(s) whose number(s) is equal to or larger than the number of specimen container(s) which can be installed at the plurality of adaptors at once.

6. The pre-analysis system according to claim 1,

wherein the pre-analysis system includes:

plurality of specimens;

a bucket which holds the adaptor so as to be attachable/detachable thereto/therefrom;

an adaptor holding unit which holds a plurality of the adaptors;

a specimen transferring mechanism which installs/removes the specimen container on the specimen container holding unit to/from the adaptor on the adaptor holding unit; and

an adaptor transferring mechanism which installs/removes the adaptor on the adaptor holding unit to/from a position of the bucket in the automatic centrifugal unit, and

the adaptor holding unit holds the adaptor(s) whose number(s) is equal to or larger than the number of adaptor(s) which can be processed by the automatic centrifugal unit at once.

10. The pre-analysis system according to claim 2,

wherein the pre-analysis system includes a specimen collecting unit which collects a specimen container whose specimen container weight determined by the weight determination mechanism is out of a predetermined range of a threshold value.

11. The pre-analysis system according to claim 10,

wherein the pre-analysis system includes a display device which displays a setting screen for setting the threshold value of the specimen container weight so as to correspond to a type of the specimen container.

12. The pre-analysis system according to claim 11,

wherein the pre-analysis system includes recognition means which recognize the type of the specimen container on a holder,

among the specimen containers whose weights have been obtained by the weight determination mechanism, the specimen collecting unit collects a specimen container whose specimen container weight is out of the range of the threshold value of the specimen container weight set based on the type of the specimen container recognized by the recognition means.

3. (Canceled)

4. (Canceled)

7. A control technique of a pre-analysis system, comprising:

a first comparing step of comparing between weights of specimens installed at a first adaptor and a second adaptor;

a second comparing step of comparing between weights of specimens installed at the first adaptor and the second adaptor when a specimen container to be transferred next has been transferred to the first adaptor determined as being lighter in the step; and

,

if a difference between the weights of the plurality of adaptors in the step is equal to or larger than a predetermined threshold value, an installing step of installing a specimen container to be transferred next at another adaptor except for the first adaptor and the second adaptor.

8. The control technique of the pre-analysis system according to claim 7,

wherein the pre-analysis system includes two or more automatic centrifugal units along a conveyor line, and

if a difference between the weights of the plurality of adaptors in the installing step is equal to or larger than a predetermined threshold value, a specimen container to be transferred next is conveyed to another automatic centrifugal unit.

9. (canceled)

13. (canceled)

14. An automatic centrifuge including at least two adaptors which are positioned symmetrically to each other across a rotation central axis and which include a specimen holding unit at which a plurality of specimen containers can be installed,

the automatic centrifuge comprising:

a holding region which holds a predetermined number of specimen containers; and

conveying means conveying the specimen container housed in the holding region to the adaptor, and

the conveying means installing the specimen containers sequentially in an order from a position closer to a gravity center in a specimen holding unit of the adaptor.

15. The automatic centrifuge according to claim 14,

wherein the automatic centrifuge includes:

a weight determination mechanism which directly or indirectly obtains a weight of the specimen housed in the specimen container prior to loading of the specimen container into the holding region; and

a control mechanism which performs control so that the specimen containers are installed at the adaptor based on information obtained by the weight determination mechanism.

17. The automatic centrifuge according to claim 14,

wherein, when the specimen containers are transferred to the adaptors,

the control mechanism sequentially transfers the specimen containers to such positions that installing positions of the specimen containers installed at the adaptors are point of symmetry across a gravity center position.

18. The automatic centrifuge according to claim 14,

wherein the holding region can hold the specimen container(s) whose number(s) is equal to or larger than the number of specimen container(s) which can be installed at the plurality of adaptors at once.

19. The automatic centrifuge according to claim 14,

wherein the automatic centrifuge includes:

a bucket which holds the adaptor so as to be attachable/detachable thereto/therefrom;

an adaptor holding unit which holds a plurality of the adaptors;

a specimen transferring mechanism which attaches/detaches the specimen container on the specimen container holding unit to/from the adaptor on the adaptor holding unit; and

an adaptor transferring mechanism which attaches/detaches the adaptor on the adaptor holding unit to/from a position of the bucket in the automatic centrifugal unit, and

the adaptor holding unit holds the adaptor(s) whose number(s) is equal to or larger than the number of the adaptor(s) which can be processed by the automatic centrifugal unit at once.

20. The automatic centrifuge according to claim 17,

wherein the adaptor transferring mechanism installs the specimen container first on a bucket supporting shaft on which the adaptor is installed or at a specimen holding position on an extension of the bucket supporting shaft.

16. (canceled)