Holder unit assembly and holder unit system for petri dishes

Abstract

The present invention relates to a support unit assembly for petri dishes, characterized in that the support unit assembly has a main support unit capable of supporting a petri dish and an inner support unit capable of supporting a test tube-shaped petri dish, which is capable of being inserted into the main support unit in a form-fit manner. The present invention also relates to a support unit system for focused ultrasound cell experiments.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of medical aesthetics, and more specifically to a support unit assembly for a culture dish and a support unit system for focused ultrasound cell experiments. Background Technology

[0002] High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) is being used more and more widely in the medical aesthetics industry. HIFU utilizes focused ultrasound waves to penetrate human tissue without damage and focus within the body, thereby producing thermal effects (the primary effect), cavitation effects, and mechanical effects. This results in coagulative damage, ablation, coagulation, denaturation, destruction, or necrosis of the tissue at the focal point, without damaging normal structures outside the focal point.

[0003] During treatment, the treatment head of a focused ultrasound device, which is usually composed of a transducer, can be placed close to the skin and other tissues of the patient being treated, and the space between the treatment head and the patient is filled with a coupling medium such as degassed water or a special coupling agent.

[0004] Because different energies cause varying degrees of damage, the effectiveness and safety of focused ultrasound devices need to be accurately assessed during development. Therefore, before clinical application, experimental setups are required to conduct relevant experiments using cells in culture dishes.

[0005] Cell culture and storage must be performed in a sterile biological laboratory, typically using disc-shaped culture dishes with a diameter of 3 inches or more as carriers. Cells adhere to the bottom of the dish in a thin layer. However, the focal area of ​​focused ultrasound (FUS) is limited per session, for example, a spherical area only 4 mm in diameter. Therefore, it is impossible to treat all cells in a disc-shaped culture dish in one session (i.e., at a single horizontal position within the dish), which poses difficulties for subsequent sampling and data analysis. Furthermore, test tube-shaped culture dishes can be treated with focused ultrasound in one session due to their smaller bottom; however, test tube-shaped culture dishes usually require a separately designed support unit. The support units required for disc-shaped and test tube-shaped culture dishes are typically structurally independent and cannot be used together. Summary of the Invention

[0006] Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a support unit assembly for culture dishes and a support unit system for focused ultrasound cell experiments, by means of which at least one of the aforementioned technical problems existing in the prior art can be solved.

[0007] According to one aspect of the present invention, a support unit assembly for a petri dish is provided, characterized in that the support unit assembly has a main support unit capable of supporting a tray-shaped petri dish and a built-in support unit capable of supporting a test tube-shaped petri dish, the built-in support unit being shaped to fit into the main support unit.

[0008] The advantages of the support unit assembly of the present invention include, but are not limited to, the following: the culture dish assembly including the main support unit and the built-in support unit can support both tray-shaped culture dishes and test tube-shaped culture dishes. The main support unit and the built-in support unit can be used in conjunction with each other.

[0009] Advantageously, the main support unit has a support body capable of supporting a tray-shaped culture dish and a plurality of support rods connected to the support body.

[0010] Advantageously, the support has an annular base and a plurality of finger-shaped members arranged sequentially along the circumference of the base.

[0011] Advantageously, the finger has a fan-shaped cross-section and tapers radially inward.

[0012] Advantageously, the base has a support portion that extends radially inward beyond the inner surface of the finger-shaped member.

[0013] Advantageously, the base surrounds a through hole with its inner circumferential surface, the through hole extending at least partially from top to bottom.

[0014] Advantageously, the support rod has a connecting end through which it is detachably connected to a connecting hole on the support body.

[0015] Advantageously, the connecting end of the support rod has an interference fit, a neck, and an abutment portion successively starting from its end face. The diameter of the interference fit is larger than the inner diameter of the connecting hole, the diameter of the neck is smaller than the inner diameter of the connecting hole, and the abutment portion can abut against a recess in the support body around the connecting hole.

[0016] Advantageously, the built-in support unit has a lower support base and an upper receiving cylinder, the support base being able to be form-fitted and clamped in the main support unit, and the receiving cylinder being able to accommodate test tube-shaped culture dishes.

[0017] Advantageously, the support base surrounds a truncated cone-shaped cavity inside, into which the test tube-shaped culture dish can pass through the receiving tube with its bottom into the cavity.

[0018] Advantageously, the main support unit has a support body capable of supporting a tray-shaped culture dish, the support body having an annular base and a plurality of finger-shaped members arranged successively along the circumference of the base, the support base being able to support itself on the finger-shaped members with its flange on its circumferential surface and on the base with its lower edge.

[0019] Advantageously, the built-in support unit can press against the disc-shaped culture dish inside the main support unit from above and fix the disc-shaped culture dish vertically.

[0020] Advantageously, the container has a laterally extending through hole in its wall, through which the insert can pass from the outside of the container and abut against the circumferential surface of the test tube-shaped culture dish.

[0021] Advantageously, the through hole is a threaded hole, and the insert is a screw.

[0022] Advantageously, the number of the finger-shaped members is four, and every two non-adjacent finger-shaped members are opposite each other.

[0023] Advantageously, the gap between adjacent finger-shaped pieces is sized such that a finger can pass through the gap at least partially from the radially outer side inward.

[0024] Advantageously, the outer diameter of the flange is larger than the diameter of the cylindrical cavity enclosed by the finger members.

[0025] According to another aspect of the present invention, the present invention provides a support unit system for focused ultrasound cell experiments, characterized in that the support unit system has a support unit component according to the present invention.

[0026] Advantageously, the support unit system further includes a carrier unit having a positioning matrix structure on its upper part for horizontal positioning of the tray-shaped culture dish or test tube-shaped culture dish.

[0027] Advantageously, the positioning matrix structure includes multiple tooth rows arranged sequentially along the circumference, each tooth row having multiple upward-opening tooth gaps through which the main support unit can be supported.

[0028] Advantageously, the positioning matrix structure includes four rows of teeth, with each pair of non-adjacent rows being mirror-symmetrical to each other.

[0029] Advantageously, an indicator is provided to indicate the sequence coordinates of the focal scan, and the main support unit is moved on the toothed row according to the indicator.

[0030] Advantageously, the support unit system has a support plate on which the support unit can be fixed, and the indicator is provided on the support plate.

[0031] Those skilled in the art will understand the advantages of the respective embodiments and various other embodiments by referring to the following detailed description of the corresponding embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0032] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments, wherein:

[0033] Figure 1 This is a schematic perspective view of the focused ultrasound cell experiment device according to an embodiment of the present invention, viewed from the front.

[0034] Figure 2 This is a schematic three-dimensional view of the focused ultrasound cell experiment device according to an embodiment of the present invention, viewed from a rear-angle perspective.

[0035] Figure 3 This is a schematic top view of the focused ultrasound cell experiment device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0036] Figure 4 yes Figure 3 A schematic enlarged view of part B of the focused ultrasound cell experiment device.

[0037] Figure 5 This is a schematic right view of the focused ultrasound cell experiment device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0038] Figure 6 yes Figure 5 A schematic enlarged view of part C of the focused ultrasound cell experiment device.

[0039] Figure 7 This is a schematic front view of the focused ultrasound cell experiment device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0040] Figure 8 yes Figure 7 A schematic enlarged view of a portion D of the focused ultrasound cell experiment apparatus.

[0041] Figure 9 This is a schematic partially exploded view of the focused ultrasound cell experiment device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0042] Figure 10 yes Figure 9 A schematic exploded view of some components of the focused ultrasound cell experiment device.

[0043] Figure 11 yes Figure 7 A schematic cross-sectional view of the focused ultrasound cell experiment apparatus along section line AA.

[0044] Figure 12 yes Figure 11 A schematic enlarged view of a portion G of the focused ultrasound cell experiment apparatus.

[0045] Figure 13 This is a schematic perspective view of the main support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0046] Figure 14 This is another schematic perspective view of the main support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0047] Figure 15 This is a schematic top view of the main support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0048] Figure 16 This is a schematic side view of the main support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0049] Figure 17 This is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of the main support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0050] Figure 18 This is a schematic perspective view of the main support unit and the disc-shaped culture dish inside it, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0051] Figure 19 yes Figure 18 A schematic three-dimensional partial exploded view of the main support unit together with the disc-shaped culture dish inside.

[0052] Figure 20 This is a schematic perspective view of the built-in support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0053] Figure 21 This is another schematic perspective view of the built-in support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0054] Figure 22 This is a side view of the built-in support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0055] Figure 23 This is a longitudinal sectional view of the built-in support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0056] Figure 24 This is a schematic perspective view of the built-in support unit of this invention, together with the test tube-shaped culture dish to be inserted.

[0057] Figure 25 This is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of the built-in support unit and the inserted test tube-shaped culture dish according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0058] Figure 26 This is a schematic perspective view of the main support unit and the built-in support unit to be installed according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0059] Figure 27 This is a schematic perspective view of the main support unit and the embedded support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0060] Figure 28 This is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of the main support unit and the installed built-in support unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0061] Figure 29 This is a schematic perspective view of the main support unit, the disc-shaped culture dish to be inserted, and the built-in support unit, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0062] Figure 30This is a schematic perspective view of the main support unit, along with the inserted disc-shaped culture dish and the built-in support unit, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0063] Figure 31 This is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of the main support unit, along with the inserted disc-shaped culture dish and the built-in support unit, according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0064] The following describes various illustrative embodiments of the present invention. In this specification, various systems, structures, and devices are schematically depicted in the accompanying drawings for illustrative purposes only, and not all features of actual systems, structures, and devices are described. For example, well-known functions or structures are not described in detail to avoid unnecessary detail that could obscure the invention. It should be understood that in any practical application, many specific implementation decisions need to be made to achieve the specific goals of the developer or user, and to comply with system-related and industry-related limitations, which may vary depending on the specific application. Furthermore, it should be understood that while such implementation decisions are complex and time-consuming, they are routine tasks for those skilled in the art who benefit from this application.

[0065] The terms and phrases used herein should be understood and interpreted in accordance with the understanding of those skilled in the art. The consistent use of terms or phrases herein is not intended to imply a specific definition, i.e., a definition different from the common and conventional meaning understood by those skilled in the art. For terms or phrases intended to have a specific meaning, i.e., a meaning different from that understood by those skilled in the art, such specific definition will be explicitly listed in the specification, giving the specific definition of the term or phrase directly and unambiguously.

[0066] Unless otherwise required by the content, throughout the following description, the word “including” and its variations, such as “contains”, will be interpreted in an open-ended, inclusive sense, that is, as “including but not limited to”.

[0067] Throughout this specification, references to terms such as "an embodiment," "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., indicate that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the invention. Therefore, the phrases "in one embodiment" or "in one embodiment" appearing in different places throughout this specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

[0068] Furthermore, the terms "first," "second," etc., are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined with "first," "second," etc., may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of this invention, "a plurality of" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0069] In this invention, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," "linking," "fixing," etc., should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; or they can refer to the internal connection of two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention according to the specific circumstances.

[0070] In the following description of the accompanying drawings, the same reference numerals refer to similar or identical elements throughout the drawings and their description. Furthermore, the various features in the drawings discussed below are not necessarily drawn to scale. The dimensions of the various features and elements in the drawings may be enlarged or reduced to more clearly illustrate embodiments of the invention. For supplementary aspects of the teachings that can be directly identified from the drawings, see the relevant prior art. It should be noted that various modifications and variations in the form and detail of the embodiments can be implemented without departing from the overall concept of the invention.

[0071] The support unit assemblies for culture dishes 21 and 22 and the support unit system for focused ultrasound cell experiments of the present invention can be used, for example, in or as part of a focused ultrasound cell experiment apparatus 1. The focused ultrasound cell experiment apparatus 1 can be used to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of different focused ultrasound devices (only the treatment head 2 is shown in the figure) through cell experiments. However, the support unit assemblies and support unit systems of the present invention can also be used in other suitable experimental apparatuses.

[0072] Next, refer to Figures 1 to 31 The support unit assembly for culture dishes 21 and 22 and the support unit system including the support unit assembly of the present invention are described in conjunction with the focused ultrasound cell experiment apparatus 1.

[0073] See Figure 10 The treatment head 2 of the focused ultrasound device under test can have a generally drum-shaped design and therefore face the human body in the use state (in... Figure 10The treatment head 2 has a circular end face 3 (center facing upwards). The treatment head 2 can be a two-piece unit and can be connected together by screws 4 arranged around it. The treatment head 2 may have a centrally located pressure ring 5 radially inside the screw 4 on its end face 3, which can be detachably connected to the treatment head 2 by screws 6. The treatment head 2 may have a transducer that converts electrical signals into ultrasound and a coupling medium that forms the ultrasound propagation path inside it. The region of the end face 3 radially inside the pressure ring 5 can be formed by a plastic film that seals the coupling medium outwards and can form a treatment area 7. The treatment head 2 may have an electrical connector 8 on its side (see...). Figure 2 The treatment head 2 can be electrically connected to the main unit (not shown) via an electrical connector 8, and the main unit can control the treatment head 2 to generate ultrasound of, for example, different intensities.

[0074] See Figure 10 and Figure 12 The support unit system may have a support unit 9. The support unit 9 may be made of a metallic material. The support unit 9 may have a generally cylindrical body 10. The support unit 9 may have an external connecting ring 11 located outside the body 10, which may be connected to, for example integrally formed on, the outer peripheral surface of the body 10 at the lower part of the body 10, for example, substantially flush with the lower end face of the body 10. The external connecting ring 11 may have a plurality of annularly arranged threaded holes 12 in the circumferential direction.

[0075] See Figure 10 , Figure 11 and Figure 12 The support unit 9 may have an internal connecting ring 13 located inside the body 10, which may be connected to, for example, integrally formed on the inner circumferential surface of the body 10 at the lower part of the body 10. The support unit 9 may be connected to the treatment head 2 via the internal connecting ring 13. The internal connecting ring 13 may extend downward in the axial direction beyond the lower end face of the body 10 and therefore the lower end face of the external connecting ring 11, and thus may form an annular protrusion. The internal connecting ring 13 may have a plurality of annularly arranged threaded holes 14 in the circumferential direction. The threaded holes 14 of the internal connecting ring 13 may correspond to the threaded holes 6 of the treatment head 2 for connecting the pressure ring 5.

[0076] Before connecting the inner connecting ring 13 to the treatment head 2, the pressure ring 5 of the treatment head 2 can be removed, exposing an annular recess with a threaded hole 6 on the end face of the treatment head 2. The protrusion of the inner connecting ring 13 can be fitted into the recess of the treatment head 2 in a form-fitting manner, and the threaded hole 14 of the inner connecting ring 13 can be connected to the threaded hole 6 of the treatment head 2 by screws. This achieves a stable connection between the support unit 9 and the treatment head 2.

[0077] To provide a circumferential seal at the connection between the protrusion of the support unit 9 and the recess of the treatment head 2, a sealing ring 15 may be provided. The sealing ring 15 may be fitted onto the circumferential surface of the protrusion of the support unit 9, may have its lower end face abut against the end face of the treatment head 2 and, for example, cover the screw 4 that connects the two parts of the treatment head 2, and may have its upper end face abut against the lower end face of the outer connecting ring 11, thereby forming a circumferential seal.

[0078] See Figure 10 and Figure 12 The support unit 9 may have a receiving cavity 16 for accommodating the coupling medium (not shown), which may be surrounded by the inner circumferential surface of the body 10 and the top surface of the inner connecting ring 13. When connected to the treatment head 2, the receiving cavity 16 may be closed from below by the end face 3 of the treatment head 2, for example, the treatment area 7 of the end face 3 of the treatment head 2. The receiving cavity 16 may be filled with the coupling medium during experimentation. Based on the circumferential seal of the sealing ring 15 described above, the coupling medium in the receiving cavity 16 will not leak circumferentially at the junction between the support unit 9 and the treatment head 2.

[0079] See Figure 1 and Figure 6 The supporting unit 9 may have, or be formed with, a positioning matrix structure 17 on its upper part of the body 10. This positioning matrix structure 17 can be used for different horizontal positioning of the supporting unit components during experiments. The positioning matrix structure 17 may include multiple, for example, four toothed rows 18 arranged sequentially circumferentially on the top side of the body 10. Each pair of adjacent toothed rows 18 may be spaced apart by a circumferential distance, for example, by an angular spacing of 90 degrees. Each pair of non-adjacent toothed rows 18 may be opposite each other, for example, mirror-symmetrical to each other (see...). Figure 3 See also Figure 6 Each tooth row 18 may include multiple tooth gaps 19, in this case seven tooth gaps 19 (see Figure 6 and Figure 8 Each tooth gap 19 may be defined by two adjacent teeth 20 (such as the middle five tooth gaps 19) or by one tooth 20 and the body 10 itself (such as the outermost two tooth gaps 19). Each tooth gap 19 may open upwards.

[0080] See Figure 6 and Figure 8 Below each tooth gap 19, for example on the flange of the bearing unit 9 located below the tooth row 18, corresponding coordinates can be marked. Here, from the experimenter's perspective, see... Figure 5 and Figure 6 The tooth gaps 19 of the two opposing tooth rows 18 on the left and right sides correspond to the coordinates: -Y3, -Y2, ​​-Y1, Y0, -Y1, -Y2, ​​-Y3 respectively; see [link / reference] Figure 7 and Figure 8The tooth gaps 19 of the two opposing tooth rows 18 on the front and rear sides correspond to the coordinates: -X3, -X2, -X1, X0, -X1, -X2, -X3 respectively.

[0081] The support unit system may have support unit components for supporting tray-shaped culture dishes 21 or test tube-shaped culture dishes 22, see [link to relevant documentation]. Figures 26 to 31 The support unit assembly may have a main support unit 23, which can individually support a disc-shaped culture dish 21 with a large diameter-to-height ratio. See [link to relevant documentation]. Figures 13 to 19 .

[0082] See Figure 17 The main support unit 23 may have a generally cylindrical support body 24. The support body 24 may be made of an elastic material, such as plastic. The support body 24 may have a circumferentially closed annular base 25 and a plurality of, in this case, four finger-shaped members 26, sequentially arranged circumferentially along the base 25 and integrally formed on the annular base 25. Each pair of adjacent finger-shaped members 26 may be spaced apart by a circumferential distance, for example, by an angular spacing of 90 degrees. See also... Figure 16 The size of the gap 27 between adjacent finger-shaped pieces 26 can be set such that the experimenter's fingers can partially pass through the gap 27 from the radially outer side inward, allowing the experimenter to easily remove the disc-shaped culture dish 21 from the side upward. Each pair of non-adjacent finger-shaped pieces 26 can be opposite each other, for example, mirror-symmetrical to each other. Each finger-shaped piece 26 can have the same height. See also... Figure 15 Each finger 26 may have a fan-shaped cross-section, meaning that the cross-section may have radially outer arc segments and radially inner arc segments extending parallel to each other, and two straight segments connecting these two arc segments at their ends. The outer arc segments may be longer than the inner arc segments, which facilitates the outward compression and inward rebound of the finger 26. Furthermore, the outer arc segments may be longer than the inner arc segments to such an extent that the intersection of the extensions of the two straight segments can be located between the radial center of the finger 26 and the support 24, which further facilitates the outward compression and inward rebound of the finger 26. The finger 26 may be oriented perpendicular to the base 25, but may also be slightly inclined inward, i.e., towards the center of the support 24. Inclined finger 26 can have a greater rebound force after being compressed outward. The rebound force can help provide clamping force for the disc-shaped culture dish 21 placed within the support 24, or especially the built-in support unit 28, which will be described below. See also Figure 19 Each finger 26 may have a laterally extending, radially outwardly open connection hole 29 on its upper portion, such as a through hole (in this embodiment) or a blind hole. The two connection holes 29 on every two opposing fingers 26 may have a common axis. The finger 26 may have an annular recess 30 around the connection hole 29 on its outer peripheral surface.

[0083] See Figure 14 and Figure 17 The annular base 25 of the support 24 can be hollow, and its inner circumferential surface can surround a through hole 31. The through hole 31 can have a disc-shaped upper portion and a truncated cone-shaped lower portion adjacent to the upper portion. The lower portion of the through hole 31 can extend from top to bottom, which on the one hand facilitates the contact between the coupling medium in the receiving cavity 16 of the support unit 9 and the culture dish in the support 24, on the other hand facilitates the outward extrusion and inward rebound of the finger-shaped member 26, and also saves material of the support 24.

[0084] See Figure 15 and Figure 17 The annular base 25 of the support 24 may have a support portion 32 extending radially inward beyond the inner surface of the finger-shaped member 26. This support portion 32 may be configured as an inner flange and may surround the upper portion of the aforementioned through hole 31. The support portion 32 may support the disc-shaped culture dish 21 or the built-in support unit 28, which will be described below, on its upper surface.

[0085] See Figure 17 and Figure 19 The main support unit 23 may have four generally cylindrical support rods 33. Each support rod 33 may have a connecting end. Each support rod 33 may be detachably connected to a finger 26 via its connecting end, for example. The connecting end of the support rod 33 may successively have an interference fit portion 34, a neck 35, and a stop portion 36 from its end face. The diameter of the interference fit portion 34 may be larger than the inner diameter of the connecting hole 29 of the finger 26, so that it can form an interference fit with the connecting hole 29 after being inserted into the connecting hole 29, thereby preventing the support rod 33 from accidentally coming out of the connecting hole 29. The diameter of the neck 35 may be smaller than the inner diameter of the connecting hole 29. The stop portion 36 may be partially embedded in and abut against the annular recess 30 of the finger 26 and press against it, so that the elastic material of the finger 26 can be pressed around the neck 35, thereby further preventing the support rod 33 from accidentally coming out of the connecting hole 29.

[0086] See Figures 1 to 3The diameter of the support rod 33 can be slightly smaller than the width of the tooth gap 19, thus allowing the support rod 33 to be engaged within the tooth gap 19 to achieve horizontal positioning of the main support unit 23. At each horizontal positioning position, the focal cross-sectional area of ​​the ultrasound focus emitted by the treatment head 2 into the culture dish can be a circular area with a diameter of 1mm-6mm, for example, 4mm, which is much smaller than the area of ​​the bottom of the disc-shaped culture dish 21 (where a cell layer is covered). To irradiate the cells at the bottom of the disc-shaped culture dish 21 as uniformly as possible over the largest area, the position of the main support unit 23 needs to be changed systematically. This requires the experimenter to move the support rod 33 into different tooth gaps 19 to achieve positional changes. For this purpose, see [link to documentation]. Figure 3 and Figure 4 The support plate 37, which will be described further below, may be equipped with an indicator 38 that indicates the sequence coordinates of the focal scan and the order in which the coordinates are changed, guiding the experimenter in moving the main support unit 23 on the toothed rack 18. The experimenter can move the main support unit 23 according to the predetermined focal scan sequence coordinates, thereby achieving a uniform scan of the largest possible square area at the bottom of the disc-shaped culture dish 21. See also... Figure 4 The indicator 38 may include a large circle, multiple rows of smaller circles within it, coordinates next to the four corner circles (from which the coordinates of each smaller circle can be derived), and a curved straight line. The outermost large circle may correspond to the circular bottom of the disc-shaped culture dish 21, each smaller circle may correspond to the circular area covered by the ultrasound focus at each horizontal position of the culture dish, the square area formed by all the smaller circles may correspond to the largest area at the bottom of the disc-shaped culture dish 21 that can ultimately be irradiated, and the curved straight line may correspond to the coordinate sequence of the movement of the main support unit 23. The coordinates of the main support unit 23 on the positioning matrix structure 17 can be adjusted according to the coordinates of the indicator 38.

[0087] See Figures 20 to 31 The support unit assembly may have a built-in support unit 28, which can be inserted into and clamped inside the main support unit 23. The built-in support unit 28 can support a test tube-shaped culture dish 22 with a small diameter-to-height ratio, see [link to relevant documentation]. Figure 24 and Figure 25 The built-in support unit 28 may be made of an elastic material, for example, the same material as the main support unit 23.

[0088] See Figures 20 to 23 The built-in support unit 28 may have a lower support base 39, which may be configured as a generally hollow truncated cone shape. See also Figure 23The support base 39 can enclose a truncated conical gap 40 within itself. Therefore, the support base 39 can have a radially outward rebound force after being radially pressed inward. The support base 39 can have a surrounding flange 41 on its upper circumferential surface, the outer diameter of which can be slightly larger than the diameter of the cylindrical shape formed by the inner surfaces of the fingers 26. Thus, when the built-in support unit 28 is inserted into the main support unit 23, the flange 41 can press the fingers 26 outward to generate a preload force, so that the built-in support unit 28 can be clamped within the main support unit 23. See [reference needed]. Figure 28 Furthermore, the support base 39 can be supported on the upper surface of the bearing portion 32 of the main support unit 23 by its lower edge 61, see also Figure 28 Based on the combined effect of the radially inward rebound force of the finger-shaped member 26 and the radially outward rebound force of the truncated cone-shaped support seat 39 of the built-in support unit 28, the built-in support unit 28 can be securely clamped in the main support unit 23.

[0089] The built-in support unit 28 may have an upper cylindrical receiving tube 42, which may have a cylindrical receiving cavity. See also Figure 24 and Figure 25 The test tube-shaped culture dish 22 can be inserted into and housed in the container 42 with its body 10, and its top flange can abut against the top surface of the container 42, while its cell-laden bottom can protrude into the truncated conical gap 40 of the support 39. See also Figures 20 to 23 The receiving cylinder 42 may have a through hole 43 extending laterally perpendicular to the cylinder wall on its upper part, and the through hole 43 may be configured as a threaded hole. In this embodiment, the number of through holes 43 may be two, and the angular spacing between them may be 120°. Of course, other suitable numbers and angular spacings of through holes 43 are also conceivable. An insert, such as a screw (not shown), may pass through the through hole from the outside of the built-in support unit 28 and abut against the circumferential surface of the test tube-shaped culture dish 22 to fix the test tube-shaped culture dish 22 radially relative to the built-in support unit 28, thereby preventing unwanted lateral shaking during the experiment within the built-in support unit 28.

[0090] The built-in support unit 28, together with the test tube-shaped culture dish 22 inside it, can be placed onto the main support unit 23 (see...). Figures 26 to 28 (But not shown is the test tube-shaped culture dish 22). Since the bottom area of ​​the test tube-shaped culture dish 22 where cells are laid is small, for example, a circular area of ​​about 4 mm, the sonication of the cells in the entire test tube-shaped culture dish 22 can be completed by simply positioning the main support unit 23 at one position in the positioning matrix structure 17. The coordinates of this position can be X0, Y0.

[0091] See Figures 29 to 31In addition to supporting the test tube-shaped culture dish 22 as described above, the built-in support unit 28 can also vertically fix the disc-shaped culture dish 21 within the main support unit 23. Specifically, after the disc-shaped culture dish 21 is placed into the main support unit 23, the built-in support unit 28 can be subsequently placed into the main support unit 23 and pressed against the disc-shaped culture dish 21 with its support base 39. Since the built-in support unit 28 can be clamped by the finger-shaped member 26 based on the spring force, the built-in support unit 28 can reliably press the disc-shaped culture dish 21 vertically against the support portion 32 of the main support unit 23. This is highly advantageous because during the experiment, the bottom of the disc-shaped culture dish 21 is in contact with the coupling medium in the receiving cavity 16 of the support unit 9. The buoyancy exerted by the coupling medium on the disc-shaped culture dish 21 may cause it to float upwards or tilt relative to the main support unit 23. However, the pressure exerted by the built-in support unit 28 on the disc-shaped culture dish 21 can counteract this buoyancy, preventing the disc-shaped culture dish 21 from floating upwards or tilting. This is particularly suitable for situations where the disc-shaped culture dish 21 with a small diameter cannot be clamped radially by the finger-shaped member 26.

[0092] See Figure 10 The support unit system may have a support plate 37, which may be rectangular in shape. The support plate 37 may have a circular through-hole 44 in its center. The inner diameter of the through-hole 44 may be larger than the outer diameter of the body 10 of the support unit 9 and smaller than the outer diameter of the outer connecting ring 11, allowing the support unit 9 to pass through the through-hole 44 from below with its body 10 and to rest against the lower surface of the support plate 37 with its outer connecting ring 11. The support plate 37 may have a plurality (eight in this case) of annularly arranged threaded holes 45 radially outward from its through-hole 44. These threaded holes 45 may correspond to the threaded holes 12 of the outer connecting ring 11 of the support unit 9. Therefore, the support plate 37 and the outer connecting ring 11 of the support unit 9 may be connected to each other by means of these threaded holes 45, 12 using screws.

[0093] As mentioned above, the indicator mark 38 for indicating the displacement of the main support unit 23 can be set on the support plate 37, for example, next to the through hole of the support plate 37, so that the experimenter can observe the indicator mark 38 during the experiment.

[0094] The support plate 37 has a threaded hole at each of its four corners, which can be used to connect with the support frame unit of the experimental device 1.

[0095] The advantages of the support unit assembly for culture dishes 21 and 22 and the support unit system for focused ultrasound cell experiments of the present invention include, but are not limited to, the following: the culture dish assembly, including the main support unit 23 and the built-in support unit 42, can support both tray-shaped culture dishes 21 and test tube-shaped culture dishes 22. The main support unit 23 and the built-in support unit 42 can be used in conjunction with each other. The positioning matrix structure 17 of the support unit 9 allows for a uniform scanning of the tray-shaped culture dish 21 over the maximum range. The structural design of the support unit 9 allows for a stable connection with the treatment head 2 and optimally establishes a focused ultrasound transmission path from the treatment head 2 to the culture dishes 21 and 22, so that the focused ultrasound emitted by the treatment head 2 can be reliably transmitted to the cells within the culture dishes 21 and 22.

[0096] This invention may include any feature or combination of features or generalization thereof implied or expressly disclosed herein, and is not limited to any of the defined scopes listed above. Any elements, features and / or structural arrangements described herein may be combined in any suitable manner.

[0097] The specific embodiments disclosed above are merely exemplary, and it will be apparent to those skilled in the art, upon which the teachings herein will be adapted and implemented in different but equivalent ways. Therefore, it is evident that changes and modifications can be made to the specific embodiments disclosed above, and all such variations are considered to fall within the scope and spirit of the invention.

Claims

1. A support unit assembly for a petri dish, characterized in that, The support unit assembly has a main support unit capable of supporting tray-shaped culture dishes and a built-in support unit capable of supporting test tube-shaped culture dishes. The built-in support unit can be fitted into the main support unit in a shape-fitting manner and can be separated from the main support unit again. The built-in support unit has a lower support base and an upper receiving cylinder. The support base can be clamped into the main support unit in a form-fitting manner, and the receiving cylinder can accommodate test tube-shaped culture dishes. The main support unit has a support body capable of supporting a tray-shaped culture dish. The support body has an annular base and multiple finger-shaped members arranged sequentially along the circumference of the base. Specifically, when the built-in support unit is used to support test tube-shaped culture dishes, the support base of the built-in support unit can be supported on the finger-shaped piece by the flange on its circumferential surface and on the base by its lower edge. When the built-in support unit is used to vertically fix the disc-shaped culture dish within the main support unit, the built-in support unit can press against the disc-shaped culture dish within the main support unit from above and fix the disc-shaped culture dish vertically.

2. The support unit assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The main support unit has multiple support rods connected to the support body.

3. The support unit assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The finger-shaped component has a fan-shaped cross-section and tapers radially inward.

4. The support unit assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The base has a support portion that extends radially inward beyond the inner surface of the finger-shaped member.

5. The support unit assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The base surrounds a through hole with its inner circumferential surface, and the through hole extends at least partially from top to bottom.

6. The support unit assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that, The support rod has a connecting end, through which it is detachably connected to a connecting hole on the support body.

7. The support unit assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that, The connecting end of the support rod has an interference fit, a neck, and a stop portion successively starting from its end face. The diameter of the interference fit is larger than the inner diameter of the connecting hole, the diameter of the neck is smaller than the inner diameter of the connecting hole, and the stop portion can abut against the recess of the support body around the connecting hole.

8. The support unit assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The support base surrounds a truncated cone-shaped cavity inside, into which the test tube-shaped culture dish can pass through the receiving cylinder with its bottom into the cavity.

9. The support unit assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The container has a transversely extending through hole in its wall, and the insert can pass through the through hole from the outside of the container and abut against the circumferential surface of the test tube-shaped culture dish.

10. The support unit assembly according to claim 9, characterized in that, The through hole is a threaded hole, and the insert is a screw.

11. The support unit assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The number of the finger-shaped components is four, and every two non-adjacent finger-shaped components are opposite each other.

12. The support unit assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The gap between adjacent finger-shaped parts is sized such that a finger can pass through the gap at least partially from the radially outer side inward.

13. The support unit assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The outer diameter of the flange is larger than the diameter of the cylindrical cavity formed by the finger-shaped parts.

14. A support unit system for focused ultrasound cell experiments, characterized in that, The support unit system has a support unit component according to any one of claims 1 to 13.

15. The support unit system according to claim 14, characterized in that, The support unit system also includes a carrier unit, which has a positioning matrix structure on its upper part for horizontal positioning of the tray-shaped culture dish or the test tube-shaped culture dish.

16. The support unit system according to claim 15, characterized in that, The positioning matrix structure includes multiple tooth rows arranged sequentially along the circumference, each tooth row having multiple upward-opening tooth gaps through which the main support unit can be supported.

17. The support unit system according to claim 16, characterized in that, The positioning matrix structure includes four tooth rows, with each pair of non-adjacent tooth rows being mirror-symmetrical to each other.

18. The support unit system according to claim 16, characterized in that, An indicator is provided to indicate the sequence coordinates of the focal scan, and the main support unit is moved on the toothed row according to the indicator.

19. The support unit system according to claim 18, characterized in that, The support unit system has a support plate on which the support unit can be fixed, and the indicator is set on the support plate.

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