Apparatus for measuring the aggregation rate of particles

• US 4,135,819 A
• Filed: 01/12/1977
• Issued: 01/23/1979
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/1974
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Ernest Leitz GmbH
• Original Assignee: Ernest Leitz GmbH
• Inventors: Schmid-Schonbein, Holger
• Primary Examiner(s): Corbin, John K.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Punter, Wm. H.
• Application Number:
  US05/758,707
• Time in Patent Office: 741 Days
• Field of Search: 356/39-42, 356/197, 356/208, 356/209, 73/64.1, 128/26, 23/230 B
• US Class Current: 356/39
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/05 in blood

Abstract

Apparatus for measuring the aggregation rate of particles in liquids, comprising a transparent mixing chamber, a drive causing mixing, a photoelectric system for observing the mixed material in the chamber, and an analysis system following the photoelectric system, where the output signals are fed to a display and/or a warning and/or a memory system. The apparatus is applied to quickly ascertain information disclosing blood subsidence from a minimum amount of blood (capillary native blood free of coagulation inhibitor).

Claims

1. Apparatus for rapidly ascertaining the information disclosing blood subsidence from a minimum amount of native blood by measuring the natural aggregation rate of particles in liquid blood, comprising:

(a) means for illuminating and defining an optical axis;

(b) upper (11) and lower (10) means defining a transparent anti-aggregation chamber therebetween for being filled with a minimum amount of blood specimen, said blood specimen touching said upper and lower means and located along said optical axis;

(c) drive means for agitating said anti-aggregation chamber by way of slow motion of said upper means relative to said lower means and for separating said blood specimen;

(d) rapid shut-off means to stop said agitated chamber;

(e) photoelectric receiver means responsive to illumination leaving said anti-aggregation chamber;

(f) means for deriving electrical signals from said photoelectric receiver means after stopping said chamber over the whole aggregation time; and

(g) an analyzing stage for providing the first derivative of said electrical signals as a function of time, said derivative being indicative of the blood subsidence of said blood specimen.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said upper means comprises a body (11) penetrating said lower means comprising mixing chamber (10) and said drive means is actuated by a motor drive (12) contacting said upper means and equipped with a rapid shut-off.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said body penetrating into mixing chamber (10) is a rotating body (11).

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein said mixing chamber (10) and said rotating body (11) are so dimensioned in their respective shapes that for given rotational speeds of the rotating body, there is no significant centrifugal force applied to the blood being tested.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said upper means is movably supported and in that said drive means contacts and rotates said upper means.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein optical components influencing the phase and the amplitude of the illumination are inserted in said optical axis between said means for illumination and said photoelectric receiver means.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein optical components influencing the amplitude of the illumination are inserted in said optical axis between said means for illumination and said photoelectric receiver means.

8. In a method for obtaining measured values from blood sedimentation, by inserting a blood specimen in a transparent measuring chamber, erythrocytes aggregation present in the specimen is removed, the specimen is illuminated with light and the amount of light leaving the specimen over a given time is measured, the improvement comprising:

(a) said specimen is native blood inserted in a measuring chamber having upper (11) and lower (10) means movable relative to one another and the specimen comes in contact with said upper and lower means;

(b) erythrocytes aggregation present in said specimen is counteracted by movement of said upper means relative to said lower means;

(c) the amount of light leaving said specimen during the aggregation process setting in again is photometrically measured after sudden stopping of the movement of said upper and lower means and a photometric signal is generated; and

(d) the first derivative of said photometric signal as a function of time is determined.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the half value time of the derived function is ascertained and indicated.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the reciprocal value of the half value is formed as a formation constant of the erythrocytes aggregate and indicated.