Centrifuge tube automatic filling system and method

Abstract

The present invention relates to an automatic centrifuge tube filling system and method, comprising a base, a centrifuge tube tray fixing frame, a lifting cantilever and a rotating cantilever. By adjusting the relative position of a fixed rectangular centrifuge tube tray and a centrifuge angular rotor, specific hole positions on the rectangular centrifuge tube tray can correspond to angular rotor holes on the centrifuge angular rotor to form a completely symmetrical relationship, supporting the automatic transfer of centrifuge tubes between the rectangular centrifuge tube tray and the centrifuge angular rotor through a mechanical structure, which helps to achieve efficient centrifugal operation.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of nucleic acid detection equipment, and in particular to an automatic centrifuge tube filling system and method. Background Art

[0002] In the process of nucleic acid testing and other experiments, samples are often centrifuged. The centrifugal force is generated by the high-speed rotation of the shaft to separate substances of different densities and sizes, so as to achieve the purpose of preliminary separation and purification. When performing high-speed centrifugation, it is usually necessary to evenly place the centrifuge tubes containing samples on an angular rotor with holes arranged in a circular shape, and the centrifugal operation of the samples in the centrifuge tubes is achieved by rotating the angular rotor. There is a certain angle between the centrifuge tube and the shaft of the angular rotor, and the angle variation range is usually 14° to 45°. The angular rotor has the characteristics of low center of gravity, long life, large capacity, and high speed.

[0003] Compared with the commonly used centrifuge tube tray, it mainly adopts a rectangular arrangement of holes, and the holes are all in a vertical state, and does not have the circular, inward-inclined hole arrangement on the centrifuge angle rotor. Therefore, under the current conditions, centrifuge tubes rely on manual placement one by one into the centrifuge angle rotor holes, which is time-consuming, labor-intensive, inefficient, and cannot achieve efficient automated operation. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to address the deficiencies in the prior art, the present invention proposes an automatic centrifuge tube filling system and method. By adjusting the relative positions of a fixed rectangular centrifuge tube tray and a centrifuge angular rotor, specific hole positions on the rectangular centrifuge tube tray can correspond to the angular rotor holes on the centrifuge angular rotor to form a completely symmetrical relationship, supporting the automatic transfer of centrifuge tubes between the rectangular centrifuge tube tray and the centrifuge angular rotor through a mechanical structure, which helps to achieve efficient centrifugation operations.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solutions adopted by the present invention include:

[0006] An automatic centrifuge tube filling system, characterized in that it comprises a base, a centrifuge tube tray fixing frame, a lifting cantilever and a rotating cantilever;

[0007] The base is fixed relative to the centrifuge rotor;

[0008] The centrifuge tube tray fixing frame is arranged on the base, and the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame clamps and fixes the centrifuge tube tray so that the inclination angle of the hole position on the centrifuge tube tray facing away from the centrifuge angular rotor is equal to the inclination angle of the hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor;

[0009] The lifting cantilever is connected to the base via a second motor, and the second motor drives the lifting cantilever to move vertically up and down relative to the base;

[0010] The rotating cantilever is rotatably connected to the lifting cantilever, and is driven by a third motor to perform rotational displacement relative to the lifting cantilever; a centrifuge tube transfer device corresponding to the centrifuge angular rotor hole position and / or the hole position on the centrifuge tube tray is provided at the end of the rotating cantilever.

[0011] Furthermore, the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame includes a first motor and a linear displacement clamp, the linear displacement clamp clamps the centrifuge tube tray and makes the inclination angle of the hole on the centrifuge tube tray away from the centrifuge angular rotor equal to the inclination angle of the hole of the centrifuge angular rotor, and the first motor drives the linear displacement clamp to move linearly in a direction parallel to the tangent of the centrifuge angular rotor.

[0012] Furthermore, the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame can be rotatably arranged on the base, and the rotation position of the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame compared to the base includes at least a first position in which the holes on the centrifuge tube tray are vertically upward and a second position in which the inclination angle of the holes on the centrifuge tube tray facing away from the centrifuge angular rotor is equal to the inclination angle of the holes of the centrifuge angular rotor.

[0013] Furthermore, the central position of the rotating cantilever can be rotatably connected to the lifting cantilever, and a centrifuge tube transfer device is symmetrically arranged at each of the two ends of the rotating cantilever.

[0014] Furthermore, the centrifuge tube transfer device includes a slide rail, a slider with a centrifuge tube suction cup at the end, and a servo motor that drives the slider to move along the slide rail; the slide rail is inclined and has an inclination angle equal to that of the centrifuge rotor hole, and when the slider moves downward along the slide rail, the centrifuge tube suction cup is aligned with and contacts the centrifuge tube.

[0015] Furthermore, the end of the slider is provided with two centrifuge tube suction cups corresponding to adjacent holes of the centrifuge tube tray.

[0016] Furthermore, the first motor drives the linear displacement fixture to linearly displace in a direction parallel to the tangent of the centrifuge angular rotor via a belt.

[0017] Furthermore, the linear displacement direction of the linear displacement fixture is parallel to the lifting cantilever.

[0018] The present invention also relates to an automatic centrifuge tube filling method, which is characterized in that the automatic centrifuge tube filling system is used to automatically fill the centrifuge tube.

[0019] Further, the method comprises:

[0020] Fixing a centrifuge tube tray containing centrifuge tubes on a linear displacement fixture to form an inclination facing away from the centrifuge angular rotor;

[0021] The centrifuge tube is transferred from the centrifuge tube tray to the centrifuge angle rotor by a centrifuge tube transfer device arranged at the end of the rotating cantilever.

[0022] Further, the centrifuge tube is transferred from the centrifuge tube tray to the centrifuge angle rotor by the centrifuge tube transfer device arranged at the end of the rotating cantilever, comprising:

[0023] The operation of transferring the centrifuge tube from the centrifuge tube tray to the centrifuge angle rotor is alternately performed by two centrifuge tube transfer devices symmetrically arranged at the two ends of the rotating cantilever.

[0024] Furthermore, the method further comprises:

[0025] The linear displacement of the centrifuge tube tray and the rotational displacement of the centrifuge angular rotor are linked to each other, so that each hole position arranged in sequence on the centrifuge tube tray can correspond to each hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor through the rotating cantilever.

[0026] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0027] By using the centrifuge tube automatic filling system and method of the present invention, the operation of transferring the centrifuge tube between the tray and the angular rotor is decomposed into a combined movement in three directions: the displacement in the tilting direction of the slider, the vertical displacement and the rotational displacement, thereby realizing the automation purpose of moving the centrifuge tube into the high-speed centrifuge, replacing the current manual operation, and having the characteristics of small size, ingenious structure, low cost, high efficiency, etc. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] Figure 1 It is a top view schematic diagram of a preferred embodiment of the automatic filling system for centrifuge tubes of the present invention.

[0029] Figure 2 It is a front view schematic diagram of a preferred embodiment of the automatic filling system for centrifuge tubes of the present invention.

[0030] Explanation of the accompanying drawing numbers: 1-base, 2-centrifuge tube tray fixing frame, 21-first motor, 211-belt, 22-linear displacement clamp, 3-lifting cantilever, 31-second motor, 4-rotating cantilever, 41-centrifuge tube transfer device, 411-slide rail, 412-slider, 413-servo motor, 5-centrifuge angle rotor, 6-centrifuge tube tray. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] In order to more clearly understand the content of the present invention, it will be described in detail with reference to the drawings and embodiments.

[0032] In the prior art, the holes on the centrifuge angular rotor are arranged in a circular tilted manner to centrifuge the sample in the centrifuge tube while rotating. Due to the unique arrangement, it is difficult to use a traditional material transfer mechanism corresponding to a centrifuge tube tray arranged vertically in a rectangular array.

[0033] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 The figure shows a preferred embodiment of the centrifuge tube automatic filling system of the present invention, which mainly realizes the effect of automatically loading centrifuge tubes into the centrifuge angle rotor 5 by fixing the position of the centrifuge tube tray 6 and transferring the centrifuge tubes with multiple degrees of freedom.

[0034] First, the base 1 and the centrifuge angular rotor 5 (centrifuge) are relatively fixedly arranged to set an operation benchmark for the transfer of centrifuge tubes. The centrifuge tube tray fixing frame 2 is arranged on the base 1, so that the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame 2 also obtains an operation benchmark relative to the centrifuge angular rotor 5. At the same time, preferably, the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame 2 has the function of rotating relative to the base 1. The angular position of the centrifuge tube tray 6 fixed thereon can be changed by rotating the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame 2, for example, the first position in which the hole position on the centrifuge tube tray 6 is vertically upward is convenient for placing the centrifuge tube in the hole position, and the second position in which the hole position on the centrifuge tube tray 6 is tilted away from the centrifuge angular rotor 5 and the tilt angle of the hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor 5 is equal to the tilt angle of the hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor 5, which is convenient for the transfer operation of the centrifuge tube. Further preferably, the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame 2 includes a first motor 21 and a linear displacement fixture 22, and the linear displacement fixture 22 is driven by the first motor 21 to move in a straight line, and preferably connected to the first motor 21 by a belt 211 for driving. When in use, the centrifuge tube tray 6 is clamped and fixed on the linear displacement fixture 22 with an inclination matching the hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor 5, thereby ensuring the correspondence of the displacement along the inclination direction of the hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor 5 during the transfer of the centrifuge tube; on the other hand, the linear displacement fixture 22 is used to drive the centrifuge tube tray 6 to move linearly parallel to the tangent direction of the centrifuge angular rotor 5, which can support the sequential transfer operation of multiple centrifuge tubes arranged in a single row.

[0035] In the second aspect, the present invention completes the transfer operation of the centrifuge tube by using a combination of a lifting cantilever 3 and a rotating cantilever 4 connected in sequence. The lifting cantilever 3 is connected to the base 1 through a second motor 31, and can be driven by the second motor 31 to move vertically up and down relative to the base 1 (centrifuge angular rotor 5); the rotating cantilever 4 is rotatably connected to the lifting cantilever 3, for example, preferably as follows Figure 1 The structure shown is connected to the end of the lifting cantilever 3, so that the rotating cantilever 4 can perform rotational movement relative to the lifting cantilever 3 (centrifuge angular rotor 5). It is particularly preferred that a centrifuge tube transfer device 41 is symmetrically provided at each end of the rotating cantilever 4, and the center of the rotating cantilever 4 is connected to the lifting cantilever 3. When the rotating cantilever 4 rotates 180°, the centrifuge tube transfer devices 41 at both ends can be correspondingly swapped. The combination of the lifting cantilever 3 and the rotating cantilever 4 provides vertical and rotational displacement of the centrifuge tube, which is used to transfer the centrifuge tube between the corresponding centrifuge tube tray 6 position and the corresponding centrifuge angular rotor 5 position.

[0036] In combination with the above-mentioned first and second aspects, according to similar component relationships and displacement ideas, similar technical effects can also be achieved by fixing the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame 2 (linear displacement fixture 22) and adding an additional horizontal front-to-back displacement degree of freedom to the rotating cantilever 4. The centrifuge tube transfer device 41 is aligned with the hole position of the centrifuge tube tray 6 that needs to be operated by the front-to-back displacement of the rotating cantilever 4. After the centrifuge tube is adsorbed, the centrifuge tube transfer device 41 is aligned with the hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor 5 through the front-to-back displacement and the rotational displacement to release the centrifuge tube, thereby completing the sequential transfer operation of multiple centrifuge tubes. In other words, in essence, the system only needs to provide a relative linear displacement degree of freedom between the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame 2 (linear displacement fixture 22) and the centrifuge tube transfer device 41 to realize automatic batch transfer of centrifuge tubes.

[0037] In the third aspect, under the premise of realizing the above functions, the present invention performs the suction operation of the centrifuge tube through the centrifuge tube transfer device 41. Preferably, the centrifuge tube transfer device 41 is composed of a slide rail 411, a slider 412, and a servo motor 413. The slide rail 411 is fixedly connected or integrally connected to the end of the rotating cantilever 4, and is arranged at an inclination angle corresponding to the hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor 5. The slider 412 moves up and down along the slide rail 411, so that the slider 412 is always in a direction parallel to and overlapping with the hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor 5, and also corresponds to the hole position of the centrifuge tube tray 6 clamped and fixed on the linear displacement fixture 22. In use, the slider 412 is driven by the servo motor 413 to move up and down along the slide rail 411, so that the centrifuge tube suction cup set at the end of the slider 412 can contact and absorb the centrifuge tube, thereby moving the centrifuge tube. Further preferably, two centrifuge tube suction cups can be set at the end of the slider 412, so that two centrifuge tubes can be sucked at one time for transfer operation. Corresponding to any two adjacent holes on the centrifuge angle rotor 5, due to their close distance, they can be approximately considered to be arranged in a straight line. When moving two adjacent centrifuge tubes, sufficient margin can be provided to ensure that both centrifuge tubes can be correctly inserted into the holes of the centrifuge angle rotor 5.

[0038] The present invention also relates to a centrifuge tube automatic filling method performed using the above-mentioned centrifuge tube automatic filling system. In particular, the special structure of the above-mentioned system can realize the linkage between the linear displacement of the centrifuge tube tray 6 and the rotational displacement of the centrifuge angular rotor 5, so that the multiple centrifuge tubes that need to be transferred on the centrifuge tube tray 6 can be moved to the operating position of the rotating cantilever 4 and the centrifuge tube transfer device 41 in sequence, and the centrifuge angular rotor 5 rotates synchronously according to the linear displacement of the centrifuge tube tray 6, thereby ensuring that the hole positions on the centrifuge angular rotor 5 can be switched as needed and correspond to the operating positions of the rotating cantilever 4 and the centrifuge tube transfer device 41 to complete the automatic operation. When a centrifuge tube transfer device 41 is set at each end of the rotating cantilever 4, the two centrifuge tube transfer devices 41 can be used to alternately perform the work efficiency. Similarly, the above-mentioned system and method can also realize the automatic operation of transferring centrifuge tubes from the centrifuge angular rotor 5 to the centrifuge tube tray 6.

[0039] When the system described in the above embodiment is used to transfer the centrifuge tube, the following specific steps can be used:

[0040] Place the centrifuge tube tray 6 on the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame 2, rotate the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame 2 so that the holes on the centrifuge tube tray 6 are vertically upward, and place the centrifuge tubes in the holes;

[0041] Rotate the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame 2 and fix the centrifuge tube tray 6 containing the centrifuge tubes, so that the centrifuge tube tray 6 is kept at an inclination angle corresponding to the centrifuge rotor 5;

[0042] The lifting cantilever 3 moves downward, and at the same time the linear displacement fixture 22 moves forward and backward to align the centrifuge tube transfer device 41 with the centrifuge tube that needs to be transferred;

[0043] The slider 412 moves downward, and the suction cup absorbs the centrifuge tube;

[0044] The slider 412 moves upward, and then the lifting cantilever 3 moves upward, so that the centrifuge tube transfer device 41 is completely separated from the centrifuge tube tray 6;

[0045] The rotating cantilever 4 rotates to align the centrifuge tube transfer device 41 with the centrifuge tube adsorbed thereon with the corresponding hole position on the centrifuge angular rotor 5;

[0046] The lifting cantilever 3 moves downward, and then the slider 412 moves downward, and the centrifuge tube is inserted into the hole 5 of the centrifuge angle rotor;

[0047] The slide block 412 moves upward, and then the lifting cantilever 3 moves upward, so that the centrifuge tube transfer device 41 is completely separated from the centrifuge angle rotor 5, and one transfer is completed.

[0048] For a structure in which a centrifuge tube transfer device 41 is symmetrically arranged at both ends, while the centrifuge tube is inserted into the hole of the centrifuge angular rotor 5, the linear displacement clamp 22 can be moved back and forth to align with the next centrifuge tube to be operated, and another relatively arranged centrifuge tube transfer device 41 can be used to adsorb the centrifuge tube, thereby realizing continuous operation with higher efficiency.

[0049] The above is only a preferred specific embodiment of the present invention, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily thought of by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed by the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An automatic centrifuge tube filling system, It is characterized in that It includes a base, a centrifuge tube tray fixing frame, a lifting cantilever and a rotating cantilever; The base is fixed relative to the centrifuge rotor; The centrifuge tube tray fixing frame is arranged on the base, and the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame clamps and fixes the centrifuge tube tray so that the inclination angle of the hole position on the centrifuge tube tray facing away from the centrifuge angular rotor is equal to the inclination angle of the hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor; The lifting cantilever is connected to the base via a second motor, and the second motor drives the lifting cantilever to move vertically up and down relative to the base; The rotating cantilever is rotatably connected to the lifting cantilever, and is driven by a third motor to perform rotational displacement relative to the lifting cantilever; a centrifuge tube transfer device corresponding to the centrifuge angular rotor hole position and / or the hole position on the centrifuge tube tray is provided at the end of the rotating cantilever.

2. The system according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The centrifuge tube tray fixing frame includes a first motor and a linear displacement clamp. The linear displacement clamp clamps the centrifuge tube tray and makes the inclination angle of the hole on the centrifuge tube tray away from the centrifuge angular rotor equal to the inclination angle of the hole of the centrifuge angular rotor. The first motor drives the linear displacement clamp to linearly displace in a direction parallel to the tangent of the centrifuge angular rotor.

3. The system according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The centrifuge tube tray fixing frame is rotatably arranged on the base, and the rotation position of the centrifuge tube tray fixing frame compared to the base at least includes a first position in which the holes on the centrifuge tube tray are vertically upward and a second position in which the inclination angle of the holes on the centrifuge tube tray facing away from the centrifuge angular rotor is equal to the inclination angle of the holes of the centrifuge angular rotor.

4. The system according to claim 2, It is characterized in that The central position of the rotating cantilever can be rotatably connected to the lifting cantilever, and a centrifuge tube transfer device is symmetrically arranged at each of the two ends of the rotating cantilever.

5. The system according to claim 1 or 4, It is characterized in that The centrifuge tube transfer device includes a slide rail, a slider with a centrifuge tube suction cup at the end, and a servo motor driving the slider to move along the slide rail; the slide rail is tilted and has an inclination angle equal to that of the centrifuge rotor hole, and the centrifuge tube suction cup is aligned with and contacts the centrifuge tube when the slider moves downward along the slide rail.

6. The system according to claim 5, It is characterized in that The end of the slide block is provided with two centrifuge tube suckers corresponding to adjacent holes of the centrifuge tube tray.

7. The system of claim 2, It is characterized in that The first motor drives the linear displacement fixture to move linearly in a direction parallel to the tangent of the centrifuge angular rotor through a belt.

8. The system of claim 4, It is characterized in that The linear displacement direction of the linear displacement fixture is parallel to the lifting cantilever.

9. A method for automatically filling a centrifuge tube, It is characterized in that The centrifuge tube automatic filling system according to any one of claims 1 to 8 is used to automatically fill the centrifuge tube.

10. The method according to claim 9, It is characterized in that The method comprises: Fixing a centrifuge tube tray containing centrifuge tubes on a linear displacement fixture to form an inclination facing away from the centrifuge angular rotor; The centrifuge tube is transferred from the centrifuge tube tray to the centrifuge angle rotor by a centrifuge tube transfer device arranged at the end of the rotating cantilever.

11. The method according to claim 10, It is characterized in that The method of transferring the centrifuge tube from the centrifuge tube tray to the centrifuge angle rotor by means of a centrifuge tube transfer device arranged at the end of the rotating cantilever comprises: The operation of transferring the centrifuge tube from the centrifuge tube tray to the centrifuge angle rotor is alternately performed by two centrifuge tube transfer devices symmetrically arranged at the two ends of the rotating cantilever.

12. The method according to claim 10, It is characterized in that The method further comprises: The linear displacement of the centrifuge tube tray and the rotational displacement of the centrifuge angular rotor are linked to each other, so that each hole position arranged in sequence on the centrifuge tube tray can correspond to each hole position of the centrifuge angular rotor through the rotating cantilever.

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