Automatic analyzing apparatus

• US 4,781,891 A
• Filed: 12/01/1983
• Issued: 11/01/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/1979
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Olympus Optical Company Ltd. (Olympus Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Olympus Optical Company Ltd. (Olympus Corporation)
• Inventors: Galle, Kevin, Sakurada, Masahiko, Manabe, Sugio, Banno, Taiichi, Orimo, Ryoichi
• Primary Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Application Number:
  US06/557,386
• Time in Patent Office: 1,797 Days
• Field of Search: 422/63-67, 422/100, 422/102, 422/104, 436/91, 436/45, 436/47, 356/73.244, 356/24 L, 356/318, 73/293, 73/864.11, 73/864.22, 364/497, 204/406-410 I E, 141/1, 141/130
• US Class Current: 422/64
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00435 Refrigerated reagent storage
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00752 bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/0465 Loading or unloading the conveyor
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/1025 Fluid level sensing
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/02 using a plurality of sample containers moved by a conveyor system past one or more treatment or analysis stations G01N35/0098 and G01N35/0099 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/1002 Reagent dispensers

Abstract

An automatic analyzing apparatus for effecting chemical analyses for various sample liquids such as blood, urine, and the like, comprising a sample delivery pump for metering a sample liquid into a reaction cuvette, a reagent delivery pump for delivering to the reaction cuvette a given amount of a given reagent selected from a plurality of reagents contained in a reagent cassette, to form a test liquid, a feed mechanism for successively supplying reaction cuvettes along a circular reaction line, a plurality of photometering sections arranged along the reaction line for effecting a plurality of photometric and/or nephelometric and/or fluorometric measurements for each test liquid at different time instances to produce a plurality of photometric results, and circuitry for receiving the photometric results and selecting therefrom given quantitative analytical data of a given test item.

Claims

1. An apparatus for effecting automatic analysis for sample liquids comprising:

a turntable arranged rotatably abouts its center axis and having a plurality of receptacles formed along a peripheral portion of the turntable for holding a plurality of reaction vessels;

means for rotating the turntable about its center axis intermittently, rotation of said turntable resulting in the indexing of reaction vessels in said receptables along a path of travel;

means for successively feeding reaction vessels into successive receptacles of the turntable;

means for delivering given amounts of samples into reaction vessels;

means for delivering given amounts of at least one reagent, corresponding to a given test item to be measured, into reaction vessels held by said receptacles of the turntable to form test liquids in respective reaction vessels;

means comprising a light source fixed at a center of the turntable for emitting light beams having a plurality of wavelengths in all radial directions of said turntable;

rotatable light beam directing means arranged about the center axis of the turntable for directing a light beam emitted from the light source toward successive reaction vessels held in said receptacles of the turntable, said light beam directing means comprising a cylinder having a longitudinal axis and having a slit formed therein positioned about said light source and being rotatable about said longtudinal axis distally around the light source and arranged proximally with respect to the path of travel of reaction vessels in said receptacles of the turntable during intermittent rotation thereof;

photometering means, fixed relative to said light source, having a plurality of light receiving ports fixedly arranged adjacent a plurality of photometric positions along said path of travel to receive light beams from said light source transmitted through reaction vessels in said receptacles of the turntable when reaction vessels are positioned at said photometric positions, said photometering means comprising a plurality of optical fibers arranged in a radial manner distally with respect to the path of travel of reaction vessels in said receptacles of the turntable, each fiber having a first and a second end, the first end of each fiber being placed opposite the distal side of the respective vessel positioned in a respective one of said receptacles at a respective photometric position, and the second ends of all fibers being collected together, a photodetector placed opposite the collected second ends of the fibers, and a filter unit fixed relative to said photometering means and said light source said filter unit including a plurality of optical filters rotatably arranged between the collected second ends of fibers and the photodetector, said filters each having a different transmission wavelength;

means for driving said turntable, filter unit and light beam directing means in such a manner that during each cycle of the intermittent rotation of the turntable, the light beam directing means and said filter unit are each rotated at least one full revolution, so that each of the light beams are made incident upon reaction vessels in each of said receptacles of the turntable at least once to produce successively from said photometering means a plurality of photometered values, corresponding to each of said different transmission wavelengths, for test liquid contained in each of such reaction vessels;

means for removing a reaction vessel from a receptacle of the turntable after photometry has been completed for a test liquid contained in that reaction vessel; and

means for receiving said plurality of photometered values and for selecting therefrom given quantitative analysis data for a given test item for a respective test liquid in each of a plurality of reaction vessels.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1 or 4, further comprising means for compensating, or correcting for, differences in outputs from the optical fibers.

6. An apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising means for continuously measuring test liquid contained in reaction vessels held in said receptacles of the turntable at respective photometric positions.

2. An apparatus for effecting automatic analysis for sample liquids comprising:

means for feeding successively reaction vessels into an entrance of a common reaction line;

means for feeding intermittently a plurality of reaction vessels along the common reaction line toward an exit of said common reaction line;

means for delivering given amounts of samples to successive reaction vessels on said common reaction line;

reagent delivery means for delivering given amounts of at least one reagent, corresponding to a test item to be measured, into successive reaction vessels on the common reaction line to form test liquids in successive reaction vessels, said reagent delivery means comprising means for supporting a plurality of reagent bottles moveably through a reagent delivery position, and means for delivering a given amount of a reagent from a reagent bottle positioned in said reagent delivery position into a reaction vessel;

a plurality of separate and unconnected photometric units each comprising a plurality of photometering means, means for receiving reaction vessels from the exit of said common reaction line, means for feeding received vessels intermittently along a photometric unit reaction line and means for removing reaction vessels from the photometric unit reaction line; and

means for distributing reaction vessels fed from the exit of the common reaction line among said plurality of photometric units through said means for receiving, so that test liquids contained in reaction vessels distributed to each respective photometric unit is photometered with light having different wavelengths at least two times in said photometric unit to obtain a plurality of photometered values for each such test liquid; and

means for retaining reaction vessels on the photometric unit reaction lines for a first period of intermittent movement longer than a second period of intermittent movement of the reaction vessels on the common reaction line.

3. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein each of said photometric units comprises:

a turntable arranged rotatably about its center axis and having a plurality of receptacles for receiving reaction vessels, and means for rotating the turntable intermittently, and wherein said plurality of photometering means comprises a single light source arranged at a center of said turntable for emitting a light beam, means for directing the light beam toward reaction vessels held in the receptacles of the turntable at respective photometric positions of the turntable, a plurality of light receiving ports, each port being adjacent a respective photometric position, fixedly arranged to receive the light beam transmitted through reaction vessels held in receptacles of the turntable, a single photodetector, a plurality of light guides for guiding the light beams received by the light receiving ports to the photodetector, and means for driving said turntable and light beam directing means in such a manner that during each cycle of the intermittent rotation of the turntable, the light beam is made incident upon reaction vessels held in said receptacles of the turntable at least once to produce successively a plurality of photometered values for test liquids contained in reaction vessels held in said receptacles of the turntable.

4. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said light beam directing means comprises a cylinder having a longitudinal axis and having a slit formed therein positioned about said light source and being rotatable about said longitudinal axis distally around the light source and arranged proximally with respect to a path of travel of reaction vessels in said receptacles of the turntable during intermittent rotation thereof, and wherein said photometering means comprises a plurality of optical fibers arranged in a radial manner distally with respect to the path of travel of reaction vessels in said receptacles of the turntable, each fiber having first and second ends, the first end of each fiber being placed opposite the distal side of the respective vessel in a respective one of said receptacles of the turntable, and the second ends of all fibers being collected together, a photodetector, including a photomultiplier tube placed opposite the collected second ends of the fibers, and a filter unit rotatably arranged between the collected second ends of fibers and the photodetector, and including a plurality of filters having different transmission wavelengths.