AUTOMATIC METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR ANALYSIS AND REVIEW OF A PLURALITY OF STORED SLIDES

• US 3,851,972 A
• Filed: 10/18/1973
• Issued: 12/03/1974
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/1973
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Garret F. Ziffer, John Russell Nelson, Lester C. Smith
• Original Assignee: Garret F. Ziffer, John Russell Nelson, Lester C. Smith
• Inventors: Nelson, John Russell, Smith, Lester C., Ziffer, Garret F.
• Primary Examiner(s): McGraw, Vincent P.
• Application Number:
  US05/407,538
• Time in Patent Office: 411 Days
• Field of Search: 356/36,39,72,73,201 350/81
• US Class Current: 356/72
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/253 for batch operation, i.e. multisample apparatus analytical automats G01N35/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 414/137 including means for charging or discharging wafer cassette

Abstract

A method and system for automatically reviewing slides having biological cells thereon which include a sequencer for developing a sequence of first control signals and a sequence of second control signals. A scanning device operates in response to the first control signals to access sequentially slides to be studied in a storage device which stores a number of the slides. The scanning device locates particular areas on each slide in response to the second control signals. An analyzer device analyzes each cell located in the particular area on a slide and develops a detect signal in response to cells having characteristics other than particular cell characteristics. A memory stores the last developed first and second control signals, indicating slide storage location and cell location in a storage location in response to the detect signal. The sequencer is operative in response to a review signal to access sequentially each storage location containing information and couple the first and second control signals located therein to the scanning device. The scanning device operates in response to the first and second control signals to access again the slide and locate the particular area of the cell thereon.

Claims

1. A system for automatically reviewing slides having biological cells thereon including in combination sequencer means for developing a sequence of first control signals and a sequence of second control signals, storage means for storing a plurality of slides to be studied, scanning means coupled to said sequencer means and said storage means and operative in response to each particular first control signal in said sequence to access a particular slide in said storage means, said scanning means being further operative in response to each particular second control signal in said sequence to locate a particular area on the accessed slide, analyzing means coupled to said scanning means and said sequencer means for analyzing and detecting particular characteristics of each cell scanned on the accessed slide, said analyzing means being operative to develop a detect signal in response to each cell having characteristics other than said particular characteristics, memory means coupled to said sequencer means and said analyzing means and having a plurality of storage locations, said memory means being operative in response to said detect signal to store in a particular storage location, said last developed first and second control signals, said sequencer means including input means operative to develop a review signal, sequentially to access each of said plurality of storage locations and couple said particular first and second control signals located therein to said scanning maans, said scanning means being operative in response to said particular first and second control signals to access said particular slide and locate said particular area thereon.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said scanning means further includes observation means for visually observing cells on the accessed slide.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said sequencer means is a central processing unit.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein said sequencer means, a portion of said analyzing means and said memory means are portions of a central processing unit.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the slides have slide identification indicia thereon, and further including slide indicia scanner means coupled to said memory means, said slide indicia scanner means being operative to scan said accessed slide identification indicia and develop a slide identification signal therefrom, said memory means further being operative in response to said detect signal to store said last developed slide identification signal in said particular storage location.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein said slide indicia scanner means further is coupled to said sequencer means, said sequencer means further being operative in response to said review signal to compare said slide identification signal of the last accessed slide with said slide identification signal in said particular storage location.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein said analyzing means includes cell characteristic analyzer means coupled to said scanning means and operative in response thereto to develop characteristic signals, and comparison means coupled to said cell characteristic analyzer means and operative to compare said characteristic signals for said scanned cell with characteristic signals for particular characteristics of particular types of cells and develop said detect signal in response to a lack of correlation therebetween.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein said comparison means is constructed and arranged to develop a second detect signal in response to a correlation between said characteristic signals for said scanned cell and said characteristic signals for particular characteristics of particular types of cells.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein said scanning means includes microscope means coupled to said sequencer means and operative in response to said second control signal to move to said particular area on the accessed slide, and slide storage retrieval means coupled to said microscope means and said sequencer means and operative in response to said first control signal to access the slide and couple same to said microscope means.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein said microscope means includes optical means having a slide viewing field, a slide table for holding said accessed slide, and a slide table positioning mechanism coupled to said slide table and said sequencer means, said slide table positioning mechanism being operative in response to said second control signal to move said particular area on said accessed slide to said slide viewing field.

11. The system of claim 10 wherein said slide storage and retrieval mechanism includes accessing means coupled to said storage means for accessing each of said storage slides and carriage means coupled to said storage means and said microscope slide table for moving said accessed slide to said slide table.

12. The system of claim 9 wherein said analyzing means includes optical scanner means coupled to said microscope means for optically scanning said particular area and cell thereon and developing scanning signals, cell characteristic analyzer means coupled to said optical scanner means and operative in response to said scanning signals to develop characteristic signals, and comparison means coupled to said cell characteristic analyzer means and operative to compare said characteristic signals for said scanned cell with characteristic signals for particular characteristics of particular types of cells and develop said detect signal in response to a lack of correlation therebetween.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein said comparison means includes characteristic memory means coupled to said cell characteristic analyzer means for storing said characteristic signals for particular characteristics of particular types of cells, and comparator means coupled to said characteristic memory means and said cell characteristic analyzer means, said comparator means being operative to compare said characteristic signals developed by said cell characteristic analyzer means and said stored characteristic signals and develop said detect signal in response to a lack of correlation therebetween, said comparator means being further operative to develop a second detect signal in response to a correlation therebetween.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein said comparison means further includes counter means coupled to said comparator means and operative to count each of said second detect signals.

15. The system of claim 13 wherein said characteristic memory means includes a plurality of storage areas for storing a plurality of said characteristic signals for said particular type of cells, and said comparator means includes a plurality of comparators for comparing said characteristic signals developed by said cell characteristic analyzer means with said plurality of characteristic signals in said plurality of storage areas.

16. The system of claim 13 wherein said memory means includes storage control means operative in response to a stored signal coupled thereto to store said last developed control signals, said input means being constructed to develop a plurality of particular input signals, said sequencer means being constructed to respond to said particular input signals and said second detect signal to develop said detect signal.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein the slides have slide identification indicia thereon, and further including slide indicia scanner means coupled to said memory means, said slide indicia scanner means being operative to scan said accessed slide identification indicia anD develop a slide identification signal therefrom, said memory means further being operative in response to said detect signal to store said last developed slide identification signal in said particular storage location.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein said slide indicia scanner means further is coupled to said sequencer means, said sequencer means further being operative in response to said review signal to compare said slide identification signal of the last accessed slide with said slide identification signal in said particular storage location.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein said scanning means further includes observation means for visually observing cells on the accessed slide.

20. The system of claim 18 wherein said sequencer means is a central processing unit.

21. The system of claim 18 wherein said sequencer means, a portion of said analyzing means, and said memory means are portions of a central processing unit.

22. The system of claim 1 wherein said scanning means further is operative upon access of said slide to oil said slide.

23. The system of claim 9 wherein said scanning means further includes slide oiler means coupled to said sequencer means and operative in response to a fourth control signal to oil said slide.

24. A system for automatically reviewing slides having biological cells thereon wherein the slides are stored in a particular location of a storage device including in combination accessing means for accessing sequentially each stored slide in said storage device and recognizing the storage location of an accessed slide, scanning means coupled to said accessing means for receiving the slide accessed, said scanning means being operative upon receipt of the slide accessed to locate sequentially particular areas on the accessed slide, analyzing means coupled to said scanning means for recognizing the presence of a cell on a particular area of the accessed slide, said analyzing means being operative upon recognition of said cell to identify said cell as one of a known type and an unknown type, memory means having a plurality of memory locations coupled to said analyzing means, scanning means and accessing means for storing in a memory location said recognized accessed slide storage location and cell particular area on the accessed slide in response to identification of said cell as an unknown type, and circuit means coupled to said accessing means, said scanning means and said memory means and operative to access sequentially each of said plurality of memory locations, said accessing means being operative in response to a memory location being accessed to reaccess said slide storage location stored therein, said scanning means being operative in response to said memory location being accessed to receive the slide reaccessed and locate on the reaccessed slide the particular area stored in said memory location.

25. A method for reviewing in an automated system a plurality of slides having biological cells thereon which includes a storage means for storing a plurality of slides and an information memory means, and wherein said review is initiated by a review signal, the steps of:

A. Accessing a stored slide in a particular slide location in said storage means;

B. Sequentially locating a plurality of particular areas on said accessed slide;

C. Automatically analyzing and identifying each cell on said slide;

D. Storing the accessed slide particular storage location and the particular area of each cell analyzed having unidentifiable characteristics in a memory location in said information memory means;

E. Returning the slide to said particular slide location in said storage means;

F. Repeating steps A, B, C, D and E for each of said plurality of slides;

G. Sequencing through each memory location in said information memory means containing said accessed slide particular storage location and said particular area of each cell having identifiable chaRacteristics upon initiation of said review signal; and

H. Sequentially reaccessing each slide having unidentifiable cells thereon in response to said stored slide location information.

26. The method of claim 25 further including the step of automatically locating the particular area of each cell having unidentifiable characteristics on each reaccessed slide in response to said stored cell location information.

27. The method of claim 26 further including the step of storing the accessed slide particular storage location and the particular area on said slide for a cell having particular identifiable characteristics in a memory location.

28. The method of claim 27 wherein the system further includes visual observation means, and further including the step of providing visual observation of each slide reaccessed and each cell thereon.

29. The method of claim 26 wherein said system further includes sequencer means for developing a sequence of first control signals and a sequence of second control signals, and wherein said steps of accessing and sequentially locating the slide areas further includes the steps of accessing a slide in said storage means in response to a particular first control signal in said sequence, and locating a particular area on said accessed slide in response to a particular second control signal in said sequence.

30. The method of claim 29 wherein said step of storing each accessed slide location and the particular area of each analyzed cell having unidentifiable characteristics includes the step of storing said last developed first and second control signals in said memory location.

31. The method of claim 29 wherein said step of accessing a slide in said storage means includes the step of oiling said accessed slide.

32. In a method for automatically retreiving slides from a storage device for reexamining specific biological cells thereon, the cells previously having been examined during an examination mode and the area of each specific cell having been recorded automatically, the steps of:

accessing automatically from the storage device a slide having thereon at least one of the specific cells to be reexamined;

placing the slide in a reexamination orientation, said placing including automatically reaccessing the area on the slide of each specific cell automatically recorded.