Opening and closing device

Abstract

The present invention relates to the field of biological sample storage technology, and specifically provides an opening and closing cover device, which aims to solve the problems of existing opening and closing cover devices in how to achieve complete closure or complete opening of the screw cap of each cryotube, as well as the difficulty in manufacturing and processing, the inability to operate stably for a long time, and the short service life. To this end, the opening and closing cover device of the present invention includes a torque control mechanism, which includes a power shaft, a driven shaft, a spring, and a bit. The spring is sleeved on the power shaft and the driven shaft, and the spring uses its own elastic deformation to hold the power shaft and the driven shaft tightly, so that the power shaft drives the driven shaft to rotate by friction, and the driven shaft is subjected to an external reaction force that reaches a set friction force, so that the power shaft cannot drive the driven shaft to rotate. The present invention has the advantages of simple overall structure, low difficulty in processing and assembly, and the value of the friction torque can be designed according to needs, and is flexible to use.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of biological sample storage, and in particular provides a cover opening and closing device. Background Art

[0002] In the fields of life sciences, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and medical equipment, cryotubes are commonly used to store biological samples. This is especially true in large-scale biobanks, where large numbers of samples must be processed at once. Cryotubes are typically sealed with threaded caps.

[0003] Initially, caps were manually opened or tightened. To improve work efficiency, a cap opening and closing device was developed in the prior art to tighten or unscrew the caps of batches of cryopreservation tubes. However, in a centralized cap opening and closing system for cryopreservation tubes, ensuring that each cap is fully opened and closed is a basic requirement. The structural characteristics of the cryopreservation tubes and the carriers make the relative position of each cryopreservation tube random in the circumferential direction. How to achieve the complete closure of each cryopreservation tube cap is a technical difficulty.

[0004] In order to ensure that each cryotube can be completely unscrewed or tightened, a torque control clutch is designed in the existing technology to achieve torque transmission and limitation through a ratchet structure. However, it is difficult to process the ratchet feature in a small-size structure, and the ratchet feature has low strength, which is not conducive to long-term stable operation.

[0005] Accordingly, the present invention provides a new opening and closing cover device to solve the above technical problems. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The present invention aims to solve the above technical problems, namely, how to achieve complete closure or complete opening of the screw cap of each cryotube by the existing opening and closing cover device, and the problems of high manufacturing and processing difficulty, inability to operate stably for a long time, and short service life.

[0007] The present invention provides an opening and closing cover device, which includes a torque control mechanism, which includes a power shaft, a driven shaft, a spring, and a screwdriver bit. The driven shaft is located below the power shaft, and the spring is sleeved on the power shaft and the driven shaft. The spring uses its own elastic deformation to hold the power shaft and the driven shaft tightly, so that the power shaft drives the driven shaft to rotate using friction. After the driven shaft is subjected to an external reaction force that reaches a set friction force, the power shaft cannot drive the driven shaft to rotate, and the bottom end of the driven shaft is connected to the screwdriver bit.

[0008] In a specific embodiment of the above-mentioned cover opening and closing device, the rotation direction of the power shaft for closing the cover is opposite to the rotation direction of the spring itself, and the rotation direction of the power shaft for opening the cover is the same as the rotation direction of the spring itself.

[0009] In a specific embodiment of the above-mentioned cover opening and closing device, the diameters of the power shaft and the driven shaft are equal, and the inner diameter of the spring in a free state is smaller than the diameter of the power shaft.

[0010] In a specific embodiment of the above-mentioned opening and closing cover device, a connecting shaft is fixed to the bottom end of the driven shaft, the screwdriver bit is sleeved on the connecting shaft, the screwdriver bit can move along the axial direction of the connecting shaft, and the connecting shaft can drive the screwdriver bit to rotate; and / or,

[0011] An elastic member is sleeved on the connecting shaft between the bit and the driven shaft.

[0012] In a specific embodiment of the above-mentioned opening and closing cover device, the opening and closing cover device further includes a first support plate, the power shaft passes through the first support plate and is rotatably connected thereto, and the spring is located below the first support plate.

[0013] In a specific embodiment of the above-mentioned cover opening and closing device, the cover opening and closing device further comprises a rotation drive mechanism, the rotation drive mechanism is connected to the power shaft to drive the power shaft to rotate; and / or,

[0014] The rotary drive mechanism includes a motor, a driving gear, a driven gear, and a conveyor belt. The motor is fixed on the first support plate, the output shaft of the motor is connected to the driving gear, the driven gear is fixedly sleeved on the driven shaft, and the driving gear is meshed with the driven gear through the conveyor belt.

[0015] In a specific embodiment of the above-mentioned opening and closing cover device, the connecting shaft is a D-shaped shaft or an H-shaped shaft, and the bit is provided with a D-shaped hole or an H-shaped hole matching the D-shaped shaft or the H-shaped shaft.

[0016] In a specific embodiment of the above-mentioned opening and closing cover device, the opening and closing cover device also includes a second support plate, which is provided with a guide hole, and the screwdriver bit passes through the guide hole. The top end of the screwdriver bit is fixed with a chuck, and the chuck is pressed against the second support plate under the elastic force of the elastic member.

[0017] When the above technical solution is adopted, the present invention uses the deformation of the spring itself to clamp the power shaft and the driven shaft to achieve the connection between the power shaft and the driven shaft. There is friction between the power shaft, the driven shaft and the spring, and a friction torque is generated during rotation. The friction torque is used to drive the power shaft to drive the driven shaft to rotate. During the closing operation, after the driven shaft drives the screwdriver to tighten the cap, when the torque of the cap acting on the driven shaft is greater than the friction torque, the driven shaft and the spring slip relative to each other, thereby not affecting the tightening of other cryopreservation tubes, and ensuring that the cap on each cryopreservation tube is tightened, avoiding damage to the cryopreservation tube by over-tightening. During the opening operation, the spring clamps the driven shaft when the cap is screwed, and the friction torque is large, so that the cap on each cryopreservation tube can be opened. When the spring is a spring, during the closing operation, the tightening direction of the cap is opposite to the rotation direction of the spring itself, and during the opening operation, the direction of unscrewing the cap is the same as the rotation direction of the spring itself. The overall structure is simple, the processing and assembly are easy, the value of the friction torque can be designed according to needs, and it is flexible to use. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] The preferred embodiments of the present invention are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0019] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the opening and closing cover device provided by the present invention;

[0020] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 Overall three-dimensional diagram without motor installed;

[0021] Figure 3 for Figure 2 A top view of

[0022] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the opening and closing cover device in which the motor drives the drive shaft to rotate through the gear belt.

[0023] List of reference numerals:

[0024] 1. Torque control mechanism; 11. Power shaft; 12. Driven shaft; 13. Elastic member; 14. Bit; 15. Chuck; 16. Second limit block; 17. First limit block; 18. Spring; 19. Connecting shaft; 2. First support plate; 3. Second support plate; 4. Rotary drive mechanism; 41. Drive shaft; 42. Driven gear; 43. Second driving gear; 44. Motor; 45. First driving gear; 46. Gear belt; 5. Connecting plate. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] Preferred embodiments of the present invention are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Those skilled in the art should understand that these embodiments are intended only to illustrate the technical principles of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention. Those skilled in the art may adjust these embodiments as needed to suit specific applications.

[0026] It should be noted that, in the description of the present invention, terms such as "upper," "lower," "inner," and "outer" indicating directions or positional relationships are based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings. These are used solely for ease of description and are not intended to indicate or imply that the relevant devices or components must have, be constructed, or operate in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on the present invention. Furthermore, ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0027] Furthermore, it should be noted that, in the description of the present invention, unless otherwise expressly specified or limited, the terms "mounted" and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, they may refer to fixed, detachable, or integral connections; mechanical or electrical connections; and direct or indirect connections through an intermediary. Those skilled in the art will understand the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention based on specific circumstances.

[0028] See first Figure 1 and Figure 2 The present invention provides an opening and closing cover device, which includes a torque control mechanism 1. The torque control mechanism 1 includes a power shaft 11, a driven shaft 12, a spring 18, and a screwdriver bit 14. The driven shaft 12 is located below the power shaft 11, and the bottom end of the driven shaft 12 is connected to the screwdriver bit 14. The spring 18 is sleeved on the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12. The spring 18 uses its own elastic deformation to hold the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12 tightly, so that the power shaft 11 uses friction to drive the driven shaft 12 to rotate. After the driven shaft 12 is subjected to an external reaction force that reaches a set friction force, the power shaft 11 cannot drive the driven shaft 12 to rotate, that is, one of the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12 can rotate relative to the spring 18, resulting in slippage. In this embodiment, the reaction force exerted on the driven shaft 12 from the outside refers to the force exerted by the screw cap on the bit 14 when the driven shaft 12 drives the bit 14 to screw the screw cap. Since the bit 14 is connected to the driven shaft 12, the bit 14 transmits the reaction force generated by the screw cap to the driven shaft 12.

[0029] The diameters of the parts of the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12 that are held by the spring 18 are equal, ensuring the consistency of the spring 18 on the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12. In addition, the inner diameter of the spring 18 in the free state is smaller than the diameter of the power shaft 11.

[0030] By applying an external force opposite to the rotation direction of the spring to increase the inner diameter of the spring, the spring is sleeved on the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12. When the external force is removed, the spring simultaneously holds the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12 while recovering its own elastic deformation, thereby achieving the connection between the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12.

[0031] Continue reading below Figure 1 and Figure 2 A first limit block 17 is fixed on the power shaft 11, a second limit block 16 is fixed on the driven shaft 12, and a spring is arranged between the first limit block 17 and the second limit block 16. Under the action of its own elasticity, the top end of the spring abuts against the first limit block 17, and the bottom end of the spring abuts against the second limit block 16.

[0032] Specifically, in the process of tightening the screw cap to close the cap, the power shaft 11 rotates in the opposite direction of the spring 18 itself. Since the spring 18 holds the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12, the power shaft 11 can drive the driven shaft 12 to rotate through the spring 18, so that the driven shaft 12 drives the screw head 14 to rotate to rotate the screw cap in the tightening direction. When the driven shaft 12 drives the screw head 14 to tighten the screw cap and continues to rotate, when the torque of the screw cap reacting on the driven shaft 12 is greater than the friction torque, the driven shaft 12 or the power shaft 11 and the spring 18 slip relative to each other, thereby not affecting the tightening work of other cryopreservation tubes, and can ensure that the screw cap on each cryopreservation tube is tightened. When the screw cap is unscrewed to open the lid, the direction of unscrewing the screw cap is the same as the direction of rotation of the spring 18 itself. When the cap is screwed, the spring 18 holds the driven shaft 12 tightly. At the same time, the spring itself can also generate a torsion during the screwing process, thereby further clamping the driven shaft 12 and the power shaft 11, so that the friction force when opening the lid is slightly greater than the friction force when closing the lid, and the screw cap on each cryopreservation tube can be opened.

[0033] When the spring 18 holds the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12 tightly, there may be a gap between the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12, or they may be in contact with each other. However, the presence of a gap between the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12 is a preferred embodiment of the present invention to avoid friction when the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12 rotate relative to each other.

[0034] It should be noted that the spring is a preferred embodiment of the present invention because, during the closing operation, the direction of tightening the cap is opposite to the direction of rotation of the spring itself. As the cap is tightened, a reaction force is applied to the screwdriver bit, which indirectly acts on the driven shaft. This reaction force is opposite to the direction of rotation of the spring itself, causing the spring to deform in the opposite direction, increasing the inner diameter of the spring, thereby reducing the friction between the spring and the driven shaft 12 and the power shaft 11, thereby reducing the friction torque, causing the power shaft 11 to be unable to drive the driven shaft 12 to rotate, i.e., causing slippage, thereby preventing the cryopreservation tube from being damaged. During the opening operation, the direction of unscrewing the cap is the same as the direction of rotation of the spring itself. When opening the cap, the spring itself can generate a torsion, further tightening the driven shaft 12 and the power shaft 11, so that the friction force when opening the cap is slightly greater than the friction force when closing the cap, thereby smoothly unscrewing the cap and avoiding the problem of being unable to open due to insufficient force. By utilizing the characteristics of the spring itself to achieve the opening and closing operation, the friction torque value can be adjusted as needed, with high flexibility and long service life.

[0035] Continue reading Figure 2 The bottom end of the driven shaft 12 is fixed with a connecting shaft 19, and the screwdriver bit 14 is sleeved on the connecting shaft 19. The screwdriver bit 14 can move along the axis of the connecting shaft 19, and the connecting shaft 19 can drive the screwdriver bit 14 to rotate. Specifically, the connecting shaft 19 is a D-shaped shaft or an H-shaped shaft, and the screwdriver bit 14 is provided with a D-shaped hole or an H-shaped hole that matches the D-shaped shaft or the H-shaped shaft.

[0036] Those skilled in the art will understand that the structure of the connecting shaft 19 being a D-type shaft or an H-type shaft is not restrictive, and the connecting shaft 19 can also be other types of shafts, such as a spline shaft, and the corresponding bit 14 is provided with a spline hole that cooperates with the spline shaft.

[0037] An elastic member 13 is sleeved on the connecting shaft 19 between the bit 14 and the driven shaft 12 , wherein the elastic member 13 may be a spring.

[0038] Those skilled in the art will understand that the elastic member 13 is a spring, which does not limit the protection scope of the present invention. The elastic member 13 can also be a Z-shaped spring sheet, and the connecting shaft 19 passes through the Z-shaped spring sheet, which is also within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0039] Continue reading Figure 2 The opening and closing cover device further includes a first support plate 2, a power shaft 11 passing through the first support plate 2, the power shaft 11 being rotatably connected to the first support plate 2, and a spring 18 being located below the first support plate 2. The first support plate 2 can be connected to other components, thereby enabling the opening and closing cover device to be mounted on the component to be mounted via the first support plate 2.

[0040] Continue reading Figure 2The opening and closing cover device also includes a second support plate 3, which is located below the first support plate 2. A connecting plate 5 is fixed to each end of the first support plate 2. The bottom end of the connecting plate 5 is fixed to the second support plate 3. A guide hole is provided on the second support plate 3, through which a screwdriver bit 14 passes. A chuck 15 is fixed to the top of the screwdriver bit 14. The chuck 15 is pressed against the second support plate 3 under the elastic force of the elastic member 13, and the chuck 15 prevents the screwdriver bit 14 from falling out of the guide hole. Specifically, the top end of the elastic member 13 presses against the bottom end of the second limit block 16, and the bottom end of the elastic member 13 presses against the top end of the chuck 15, so that the elastic member 13 is in a compressed state.

[0041] Continue reading Figure 1 、 Figure 2 and Figure 3 The opening and closing cover device further includes a rotation drive mechanism 4, which is connected to the power shaft 11 to drive the power shaft 11 to rotate. The rotation drive mechanism 4 includes a motor 44, a first driving gear 45, and a driven gear 42. The motor 44 is fixed to the first support plate 2, and the output shaft of the motor 44 is connected to the driving gear. The driven gear 42 is fixedly sleeved on the power shaft 11, and the driving gear and the driven gear 42 are meshed.

[0042] Specifically, the first support plate 2 is rotatably connected to the drive shaft 41, and the first driving gear 45 is fixed to the drive shaft 41. The drive shaft 41 can be directly connected to the motor 44, or indirectly connected to the motor 44. When the drive shaft 41 is directly connected to the motor 44, the top end of the drive shaft 41 is fixed to the output shaft of the motor 44. When the drive shaft 41 is indirectly connected to the motor 44, as shown in FIG. Figure 4 As shown, the output shaft of the motor 44 is connected to a driving gear, and a second driving gear 43 is fixed on the driving shaft 41. The second driving gear 43 is located above the first driving gear 45. The driving gear drives the second driving gear 43 to rotate through a gear belt 46. Under this structure, one motor 44 can drive multiple opening and closing cover devices to open and close the cover, thereby realizing the simultaneous opening or closing of multiple cryopreservation tubes.

[0043] In addition, one drive shaft 41 can simultaneously drive multiple torque control mechanisms 1, that is, one drive shaft 41 can drive multiple power shafts 11 to rotate. In this case, a driven gear 42 is fixed to each power shaft 11, and multiple power shafts 11 are distributed circumferentially with the axis of the drive shaft 41 as the center, so that the first driving gear 45 on the drive shaft 41 can drive the rotation of multiple driven gears 42. Preferably, one drive shaft 41 drives four torque control mechanisms 1. This can achieve the purpose of compact space occupancy and avoid the problem of the first driving gear 45 on the drive shaft 41 having a large diameter and occupying a large space due to driving too many driven gears 42.

[0044] The cap opening and closing device designed in the present invention is used in conjunction with the cryotube clamping arm. The cryotube is driven up and down by the clamping arm to deliver the cryotube with the screw cap to the bottom of the batch head 14 so that the batch head 14 can dock with the screw cap. The clamping arm is prior art and will not be described in detail here.

[0045] The working principle of the present invention is that when closing the cover, the screw cap is docked with the bit 14 under the drive of the clamping arm, and then the motor 44 is started. The motor 44 drives the drive shaft 41 to rotate. When the first driving gear 45 is engaged with the driven gear 42, the drive shaft 41 drives the power shaft 11 to rotate. Due to the rotation direction of the first driving gear 45 and the driven gear 42, when closing the cover, the rotation direction of the drive shaft 41 is the same as the rotation direction of the spring itself, and the rotation direction of the power shaft 11 is opposite to the rotation direction of the spring itself. The power shaft 11 drives the driven shaft 12 to rotate through the friction force generated by the spring. , so that the screw head 14 drives the screw cap to rotate for tightening. When tightening, the reverse torque of the screw cap acting on the driven shaft 12 is greater than the friction torque between the spring and the driven shaft 12. Therefore, the driven shaft 12 slips relative to the spring to avoid over-screwing and damaging the cryopreservation tube; when opening the lid, the rotation direction of the power shaft 11 is opposite to that when closing the lid, and is the same as the rotation direction of the spring itself. When opening the lid, the spring itself can also generate torsion, further clamping the power shaft and the driven shaft, thereby increasing the friction force of opening the lid, thereby achieving the purpose of the power shaft 11 driving the driven shaft 12 to unscrew the screw cap.

[0046] Through the above-mentioned embodiments and various extended examples, it can be seen that the spring uses elastic deformation to hold the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12 tightly, uses friction to make the power shaft 11 drive the driven shaft 12 to rotate, and uses the torque of the screw cap acting in the opposite direction on the driven shaft 12 to be greater than the friction torque between the spring 18 and the driven shaft 12 to cause a slipping effect to prevent the cryopreservation tube from being damaged due to over-tightening. When opening the cap, the direction of unscrewing the screw cap is the same as the rotation direction of the spring itself. During the unscrewing process, the spring itself can also produce torsion, further clamping the power shaft 11 and the driven shaft 12, thereby increasing the friction force of opening the cap, and then achieving the purpose of the power shaft 11 driving the driven shaft 12 to unscrew the screw cap. It has the advantages of simple overall structure and low processing and assembly difficulty. The value of the friction torque can be designed according to needs and is flexible in use.

[0047] Thus far, the technical solutions of the present invention have been described in conjunction with the preferred embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. However, it will be readily understood by those skilled in the art that the scope of protection of the present invention is obviously not limited to these specific embodiments. Without departing from the principles of the present invention, those skilled in the art may make equivalent changes or substitutions to the relevant technical features, and the technical solutions after such changes or substitutions will fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A cover opening and closing device, characterized in that: The opening and closing cover device includes a driving shaft and multiple torque control mechanisms, and the torque control mechanisms include a power shaft, a driven shaft, a spring, and a screwdriver bit. The driving shaft can drive the multiple power shafts to rotate, and the driven shaft is located below the power shaft. The spring is sleeved on the power shaft and the driven shaft. The spring uses its own elastic deformation to hold the power shaft and the driven shaft tightly, so that the power shaft drives the driven shaft to rotate by friction. When the driven shaft is subjected to an external reaction force that reaches a set friction force, the power shaft cannot drive the driven shaft to rotate, and the bottom end of the driven shaft is connected to the screwdriver bit. The rotation direction of the power shaft for closing the cover is opposite to the rotation direction of the spring itself, and the rotation direction of the power shaft for opening the cover is the same as the rotation direction of the spring itself.

2. The cover opening and closing device according to claim 1, wherein: The diameters of the parts of the power shaft and the driven shaft that are held by the spring are equal, and the inner diameter of the spring in a free state is smaller than the diameter of the power shaft.

3. The cover opening and closing device according to claim 1, wherein: The bottom end of the driven shaft is fixed with a connecting shaft, the bit is sleeved on the connecting shaft, the bit can move along the axis of the connecting shaft, and the connecting shaft can drive the bit to rotate; and / or, An elastic member is sleeved on the connecting shaft between the bit and the driven shaft.

4. The cover opening and closing device according to claim 1, wherein: The opening and closing cover device further includes a first support plate, the power shaft passes through the first support plate and is rotatably connected thereto, and the spring is located below the first support plate.

5. The cover opening and closing device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The opening and closing cover device further includes a rotation drive mechanism, which is connected to the power shaft to drive the power shaft to rotate; and / or, The rotary drive mechanism includes a motor, a first driving gear, and a driven gear. The motor is fixed on the first support plate. The output shaft of the motor is connected to the first driving gear. The driven gear is fixedly sleeved on the power shaft. The driving gear is meshed with the driven gear.

6. The cover opening and closing device according to claim 3, wherein: The connecting shaft is a D-shaped shaft or an H-shaped shaft, and the bit is provided with a D-shaped hole or an H-shaped hole that matches the D-shaped shaft or the H-shaped shaft.

7. The cover opening and closing device according to claim 3, wherein: The opening and closing cover device also includes a second support plate, which is provided with a guide hole. The bit passes through the guide hole. The top of the bit is fixed with a chuck, and the chuck rests on the second support plate under the elastic force of the elastic member.

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