SPECIMEN TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM

• US 20150168433A1
• Filed: 09/24/2013
• Published: 06/18/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Aloka Medical, Ltd (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Takano, Dai, Suzuki, Katsuhiro
• Granted Patent: US 9,874,577 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00326 Analysers with modular structure
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00643 detecting malfunctions in conveying systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/0412 Block or rack elements with a single row of samples
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/0462 Buffers [FIFO] or stacks [LIFO] for holding carriers between operations
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/0465 Loading or unloading the conveyor
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/047 diverging, e.g. sending carriers to different analysers
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/00871 Communications between instruments or with remote terminals
• 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 35/04 Details of the conveyor system G01N35/021 - G01N35/028 take precedence

Abstract

A specimen transportation system is configured from linear modules, turn modules, and connection modules. The modules can freely combine with one another. Moreover, the modules form multiple paths through which specimen racks outputted from one specimen output device are transported to multiple analysis devices. When transporting a specimen rack from an upstream side to a downstream side, each module attaches a destination signal associated with the specimen rack to the specimen rack and transfers the destination signal to the downstream side. As a consequence of each module transporting the specimen rack from the upstream side to the downstream side that corresponds to the destination signal, the specimen rack becomes transported along a path that corresponds to the destination signal.

Claims

1. A specimen transport system comprising a plurality of modules, wherein

a plurality of paths for transporting a specimen from upstream to downstream are formed by the plurality of modules, and the plurality of modules include an intermediate module placed partway on each path,

the intermediate module comprises a unit that connects another module at each of an upstream side and a downstream side, a unit that transports a specimen which has been transported from the upstream side to the downstream side, and a unit that transmits a destination signal of the specimen acquired from the upstream side to the downstream side, and

the plurality of modules can be freely combined with each other, adjacent modules are connected to each other to form the plurality of paths, and each module transports a specimen which has been transported from the upstream side to the downstream side corresponding to a destination signal of the specimen, so that the specimen is transported along a path corresponding to the destination signal.

2. The specimen transport system according to claim 1, wherein

when the intermediate module transports the specimen which has been transported from the upstream side to the downstream side, the intermediate module transmits, along with the specimen, the destination signal correlated to the specimen to the downstream side.

3. The specimen transport system according to claim 1, wherein

the intermediate module includes a branch module in which a plurality of downstream modules can be connected at the downstream side, and

the branch module comprises a unit that selects, based on the destination signal, a downstream module corresponding to the destination signal from among the plurality of downstream modules.

4. The specimen transport system according to claim 3, wherein

the specimen is housed in a specimen rack, and

the branch module selects a downstream module corresponding to the destination signal correlated to the specimen rack which has been transported from the upstream side, and transports the specimen rack to the selected downstream module.

5. The specimen transport system according to claim 4, wherein

the branch module comprises a unit that rotates the specimen rack which has been transported from the upstream side, and selects a downstream module corresponding to the destination signal by rotating the specimen rack according to the destination signal correlated to the specimen rack.

6. The specimen transport system according to claim 5, wherein

for each of the plurality of paths formed by the free combination of the plurality of modules, a code that identifies the path is correlated, and

the branch module comprises a unit that can freely set a rotational direction of a specimen rack for each code correlated to each of the plurality of paths according to the free combination of the plurality of modules including the branch module.

7. The specimen transport system according to claim 1, wherein

for each of the plurality of paths formed by the free combination of the plurality of modules, a code that identifies the path is correlated, and

the destination signal is configured to identify one of the plurality of codes for the plurality of paths.

8. The specimen transport system according to claim 7, wherein

the intermediate module includes a branch module in which a plurality of downstream modules can be connected at a downstream side, and

the branch module comprises a unit that selects a downstream module of a path corresponding to a code identified by the destination signal from among the plurality of downstream modules.

9. The specimen transport system according to claim 8, wherein

the specimen is housed in a specimen rack, and

the branch module selects a downstream module of a path corresponding to a code identified by the destination signal correlated to a specimen rack which has been transported from the upstream side, and transports the specimen rack to the selected downstream module.

10. The specimen transport system according to claim 9, wherein

the branch module comprises a unit that rotates a specimen rack which has been transported from the upstream side.

11. The specimen transport system according to claim 10, wherein

the branch module selects the downstream module of the path corresponding to a code by rotating the specimen rack in a rotational direction corresponding to the code identified by the destination signal correlated to the specimen rack which has been transported from the upstream side.

12. The specimen transport system according to claim 11, wherein

the branch module comprises a unit that can freely set a rotational direction according to a code for each of the codes correlated to the plurality of paths according to a free combination of the plurality of modules including the branch module.

13. The specimen transport system according to claim 1, wherein

for each of the paths, a node signal indicating possibility/impossibility of transport at that path is correlated, and a node signal array made of a plurality of the node signals for the plurality of paths is formed, and

the intermediate module has:

a function to transmit a node signal array acquired from the downstream side to the upstream side, and

a function to change, when the intermediate module becomes unable to transport, the node signal, in the node signal array to be transmitted, of the path including the intermediate module to transport impossible.

14. The specimen transport system according to claim 13, wherein

the intermediate module includes a branch module in which a plurality of downstream modules can be connected at a downstream side, and

the branch module has a function to merge node signal arrays acquired from the plurality of downstream modules connected at the downstream side and to transmit the node signal array to the upstream side.

15. The specimen transport system according to claim 14, wherein

the plurality of modules include a furthest upstream module placed at a furthest upstream side in each path, and a furthest downstream module placed at a furthest downstream side of each path,

the furthest upstream module has a function to refer to a node signal array acquired from a downstream module connected at the downstream side, and to request, a specimen to be transported to a path for which the node signal indicates possibility of transport while avoiding a request of a specimen to be transported to a path for which the node signal indicates impossibility of transport, and

the furthest downstream module has a function to change, when an analysis device connected at the downstream side cannot accept a specimen, a node signal of a path to the analysis device via the furthest downstream module to transport impossible.