Reaction cup automatic loading device and in vitro diagnostic analyzer

Abstract

The present invention discloses an automatic loading device for reaction cups and an in vitro diagnostic analyzer, comprising: a picking mechanism; an inclined chute, the inclined chute including a sliding area and a buffer area; a valve unit, arranged between the buffer area and the sliding area; a first sensor, used to detect whether a reaction cup has slipped in the sliding area and output a first detection signal triggered by the reaction cup; a controller, which controls the picking mechanism to switch to a stopped state, controls the valve unit to switch to an open state after a preset first time, and controls the picking mechanism to switch to an open state after a preset second time after the valve unit is opened, in accordance with the first detection signal. The present invention adds a valve unit to the sliding area, which is controlled by the controller to sequentially limit only one reaction cup from entering the sliding area at a time, thereby blocking each reaction cup that enters the sliding area, preventing each reaction cup from sliding too quickly and causing unexpected situations such as the reaction cup mouth facing down, sliding out, or falling.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of in vitro diagnosis, and in particular to a reaction cup loading device and an in vitro diagnostic analyzer. Background Art

[0002] An in vitro diagnostic analyzer is a product that obtains clinical information by analyzing and testing human samples (blood, body fluids, tissues, etc.) outside the human body, thereby diagnosing diseases or body functions. The cuvettes used in analysis and testing are disposable, and continuous loading of cuvettes is necessary when a large number of tests are required. Therefore, current in vitro diagnostic analyzers all use automatic cuvette loading. The existing cuvette loading device includes a chute. However, during the cuvette loading process, unexpected situations often occur, such as cuvettes falling into the chute area with the cup mouth facing down, sliding out, or falling, causing other unpredictable failures. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides an automatic loading device for reaction cups, which ensures that the reaction cups in the chute are in a state with the cup mouth facing upward, and prevents accidents such as the reaction cups facing downward, sliding out or falling.

[0004] The technical solution adopted by the present invention is as follows: an automatic cuvette loading device, comprising:

[0005] The picking mechanism is used to pick up the reaction cups in the start state and output the reaction cups one by one;

[0006] An inclined chute, the inclined chute comprising a sliding area and a buffer area, the sliding area being used to receive the cuvette output by the pickup mechanism, the buffer area being connected to the sliding area and being used to buffer the cuvette;

[0007] The valve unit is provided between the buffer area and the sliding area, so that the reaction cups sliding down the sliding area are kept in a state with the cup mouth facing upwards and then enter the buffer area for queuing and caching;

[0008] a first sensor, configured to detect whether a cuvette has fallen in the sliding area and output a first detection signal triggered by the cuvette;

[0009] The controller sequentially controls the pickup mechanism to switch to a stopped state, controls the valve unit to switch to an open state after a preset first time, and controls the pickup mechanism to switch to an open state after a preset second time after the valve unit is opened, according to the first detection signal.

[0010] Further preferably, a second sensor is included, which is arranged at the input port of the buffer area, for detecting whether the reaction cup in the buffer area is full, and outputting a second detection signal triggered by the reaction cup. The controller controls the picking mechanism to switch to a stop state according to the second detection signal.

[0011] Further preferably, a third sensor is included for detecting whether a reaction cup has fallen in the sliding area, and outputting a third detection signal triggered by the reaction cup. The controller controls the picking mechanism to switch to a stopped state, controls the valve unit to switch to an open state after a preset first time, and controls the picking mechanism to switch to an open state after a preset second time after the valve unit is opened, in accordance with the first detection signal and / or the third detection signal.

[0012] Further preferably, the valve unit is an electromagnet pushing rod; when the valve unit is in a closed state, the push rod of the electromagnet pushing rod extends into the inclined slot to prevent the column reaction cup from continuing to slide downward; when the valve unit is switched to an open state, the push rod of the electromagnet pushing rod retracts backward and exits the inclined slot, allowing the column reaction cup to enter the buffer area.

[0013] Further preferably, the valve unit also includes a limiting mechanism for limiting the movable distance of the push rod of the electromagnet pushing rod, and the limiting mechanism is composed of an E-type retaining spring and a push rod limiting seat. The E-type retaining spring is installed on the push rod of the electromagnet pushing rod, and the push rod limiting seat is installed behind the E-type retaining spring.

[0014] Further preferably, the valve unit further comprises a shaft sleeve sleeved on the push rod of the electromagnet pushing rod, and the shaft sleeve is fixed on the side wall of the inclined groove.

[0015] The present invention also provides an in vitro diagnostic analyzer, comprising the above-mentioned reaction cup automatic loading device.

[0016] The beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: the present invention adds a valve unit to the sliding area to provide a certain degree of obstruction for the reaction cup sliding downward in the sliding area. Through the control of the controller, only one reaction cup is restricted from entering the sliding area at a time, so that each reaction cup entering the sliding area is blocked, preventing each reaction cup from sliding too quickly and causing unexpected situations such as the reaction cup mouth facing downward, sliding out or falling. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solution of the present invention, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments. Obviously, for ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without any creative work.

[0018] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 2 The schematic diagram of the picking mechanism structure is omitted for the present invention; DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the present invention more clear, the technical solutions of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with specific embodiments of the present invention and corresponding drawings. Obviously, the embodiments described are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of them. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative efforts are within the scope of protection of the present invention. The technical solutions provided by each embodiment of the present invention are described in detail below in conjunction with the drawings.

[0021] like Figure 1 As shown, the present invention provides a reaction cup automatic loading device, comprising:

[0022] Picking mechanism 1, used to pick up the cuvettes in the start state and output the cuvettes one by one;

[0023] The chute 2 includes a sliding area 201 and a buffer area 202, wherein the buffer area 202 is connected to the rear of the sliding area 201; the sliding area 201 is used to receive the cuvette output by the picking mechanism 1, and the buffer area 202 is used to cache the cuvette container;

[0024] The valve unit 3 is provided between the sliding area 201 and the buffer area 202, so that the reaction cups sliding down the sliding area 201 are kept in a state with the cup opening facing upwards and then enter the buffer area 202 for queuing and caching;

[0025] The first sensor 4 is used to detect whether a cuvette has fallen in the sliding area 201 and output a first detection signal triggered by the cuvette;

[0026] The controller controls the picking mechanism 1 to switch to the stopped state, controls the valve unit 3 to switch to the open state after a preset first time, and controls the picking mechanism 1 to switch to the open state after a preset second time after the valve unit is opened according to the first detection signal.

[0027] Furthermore, a second sensor 5 is provided at the buffer input port for detecting whether the buffer is full of reaction cups and outputting a second detection signal triggered by the reaction cups. The controller controls the picking mechanism to switch to a stop state according to the second detection signal.

[0028] In order to avoid missing detection of the reaction cup in the chute sliding area, the chute sliding area is also provided with a third sensor 6. The third sensor 6 is closer to the valve unit 3 than the first sensor 4, and is used to detect whether there is a reaction cup sliding in the sliding area 201, and output a third detection signal triggered by the reaction cup. The controller controls the picking mechanism 1 to switch to the stop state, controls the valve unit 3 to switch to the open state after a preset first time, and controls the picking mechanism 1 to switch to the open state after a preset second time after the valve unit is opened according to the first detection signal and / or the third detection signal.

[0029] The preset first time is no less than the time from when the first sensor detects the reaction cup to when the reaction cup slides from the position of the first sensor to the valve unit and is then blocked and stopped by the valve unit. The preset first time is determined based on the sliding speed of the reaction cup and the distance from the first sensor to the valve unit. When actually determined, it can be determined based on statistics of multiple tests and is generally 3-10 seconds.

[0030] The preset second time can be 0 or any other time. Preferably, in order to further ensure that only one reaction cup enters the sliding area each time, the preset second time is not less than the preset first time; further preferably, the preset second time is the same as the preset first time.

[0031] The first sensor 4, second sensor 5, and third sensor 6 are preferably self-reflective optical couplers. After the instrument is in operation, the second sensor detects whether there is a reaction cup at the chute input port (that is, whether the reaction cups in the buffer area are full). If there is a reaction cup, the controller controls the picking mechanism 1 to switch to a stopped state. Otherwise, if there is no reaction cup, the picking mechanism 1 is turned on. When either the first sensor 4 or the third sensor 6 detects a reaction cup, the controller first controls the picking mechanism 1 to switch to a stopped state, i.e., controls the picking mechanism 1 to stop picking up the reaction cup. Then, after a predetermined first time (0.5 seconds in this embodiment), the controller controls the valve unit 3 to open. That is, after the first sensor 4 or the third sensor 6 detects that the reaction cup is blocked by the valve unit and stops, the controller controls the valve unit 3 to open, allowing the reaction cup to slide down the sliding area 201 and remain in the cup-mouth-upward position, and then enter the buffer area 202 for queuing and caching. Finally, after a predetermined second time (0.5 seconds in this embodiment) after the valve unit is opened, the controller controls the picking mechanism 1 to open. This cycle repeats until the second sensor detects that the cup is full and the operation stops. This control process limits only one reaction cup to enter the sliding area at a time, so that each reaction cup entering the sliding area is blocked, preventing each reaction cup from sliding too fast and causing unexpected situations such as the reaction cup mouth facing down, sliding out or falling.

[0032] The pickup mechanism 1 is a conventional device capable of picking up cuvettes and outputting them one by one. In this embodiment, it specifically includes a bracket, a chain mounted on the bracket, and a chain drive mechanism for driving the chain. A plurality of cuvette drive blocks are evenly arranged on the surface of the chain, and a cuvette holding space 101 is formed between each two adjacent cuvette drive blocks.

[0033] A hopper 7 for holding cuvettes is provided on one side of the picking mechanism 1, and a portion of the chain is located in the hopper 7 and passes through the hopper 6 from bottom to top;

[0034] The chute 2 is disposed on the other side of the picking mechanism 1 relative to the hopper 7 and is used to receive the cuvettes falling from the cuvette holding space 101 .

[0035] like Figure 2 As shown, the valve unit 3 is an electromagnet push rod; when the valve unit is in a closed state, the push rod 301 of the electromagnet push rod extends into the inclined slot 2 to prevent the column reaction cup from continuing to slide downward. When the valve unit is switched to an open state, the push rod 301 of the electromagnet push rod retracts backward and exits the inclined slot 2, allowing the column reaction cup to enter the buffer area 202.

[0036] In order to further limit the movable distance of the push rod of the electromagnet pushing rod, the valve unit 3 also includes a limiting mechanism, which is composed of an E-type retaining spring 302 and a push rod limiting seat 303. The E-type retaining spring 302 is installed on the push rod 301 of the electromagnet pushing rod, and the push rod limiting seat 303 is installed behind the E-type retaining spring 302. When the push rod 301 of the electromagnet pushing rod retracts backward, it drives the E-type retaining spring 302 to move backward. When it hits the push rod limiting seat 303, it stops moving. The maximum distance that the push rod 301 of the electromagnet pushing rod can retract backward is the distance from the E-type retaining spring 302 to the push rod limiting seat 303.

[0037] Furthermore, the valve unit includes a sleeve 304 that is sleeved onto the push rod 301 of the electromagnet extension rod. The sleeve 304 is fixed to the side wall of the chute 2. The sleeve 304 restricts the push rod 301 to move only within the sleeve 304.

[0038] like Figure 1As shown in Figures 2 and 3, in order to facilitate the further transportation of the reaction output from the chute outlet, the reaction cup automatic loading device also includes a transfer tray 8 that receives the reaction cups output from the chute buffer area 202 one by one and transports the reaction cups to the corresponding operating positions; specifically, the transfer tray 8 is connected to the chute outlet, and there are multiple reaction cup positions 801 for placing reaction cups on the circumference of the transfer tray. When working, the transfer tray 8 always rotates in one direction. When the reaction cup connected to the chute outlet receives the reaction cup, the transfer tray 8 rotates to move the next reaction cup position to the chute reaction cup outlet, and the cycle is carried out in sequence.

[0039] In this embodiment, the transfer disk includes a concave mounting seat 802, a rotating disk 803 and a driving mechanism 804 (not shown) for driving the rotating disk 803 to rotate. The rotating disk 803 is rotatably arranged in the concave mounting seat 802, and the reaction cup positions 801 are distributed around the rotating disk 803. Specifically, the driving mechanism 804 includes a motor, a belt, a pulley and a rotating shaft. The motor is connected to the pulley through a belt, one end of the rotating shaft is connected to the pulley, and the other end of the rotating shaft passes through the concave mounting seat 802 and is connected to the rotating disk 803 to drive the rotating disk 803 to rotate. A bearing is provided between the rotating shaft and the concave mounting seat 802.

[0040] The foregoing description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that various modifications and variations of the present invention are possible. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, or improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention are intended to be within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A cuvette automatic loading device, characterized in that: include: The picking mechanism is used to pick up the reaction cups in the start state and output the reaction cups one by one; An inclined chute, the inclined chute comprising a sliding area and a buffer area, the sliding area being used to receive the cuvette output by the pickup mechanism, the buffer area being connected to the sliding area and being used to buffer the cuvette; The valve unit is provided between the buffer area and the sliding area, so that the reaction cups sliding down the sliding area are kept in a state with the cup mouth facing upwards and then enter the buffer area for queuing and caching; a first sensor, configured to detect whether a cuvette has fallen in the sliding area and output a first detection signal triggered by the cuvette; The controller, when the first sensor detects the reaction cup, first controls the picking mechanism to switch to a stopped state; then controls the valve unit to open after a predetermined first time, so that the reaction cup slides down the sliding area and remains in a state where the cup mouth faces upward, and then enters the buffer area for queueing and buffering; finally, controls the picking mechanism to open after a predetermined second time has passed since the valve unit was opened; The control process of the controller limits only one reaction cup to enter the sliding zone at a time; The valve unit is an electromagnet push rod; when the valve unit is in a closed state, the push rod of the electromagnet push rod extends into the inclined slot to prevent the reaction cup from continuing to slide downward. When the valve unit is switched to an open state, the push rod of the electromagnet push rod retracts backward and exits the inclined slot, allowing the blocked reaction cup to enter the buffer area.

2. The automatic cuvette loading device according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a second sensor, which is arranged at the input port of the buffer area and is used to detect whether the reaction cup in the buffer area is full, and output a second detection signal triggered by the reaction cup. The controller controls the picking mechanism to switch to a stop state according to the second detection signal.

3. The automatic cuvette loading device according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a third sensor for detecting whether a reaction cup has fallen in the sliding area and outputting a third detection signal triggered by the reaction cup. The controller controls the picking mechanism to switch to a stopped state, controls the valve unit to switch to an open state after a preset first time, and controls the picking mechanism to switch to an open state after a preset second time after the valve unit is opened, in sequence according to the first detection signal and / or the third detection signal.

4. The automatic cuvette loading device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The valve unit also includes a limiting mechanism for limiting the movable distance of the push rod of the electromagnet pushing rod. The limiting mechanism consists of an E-type retaining spring and a push rod limiting seat. The E-type retaining spring is installed on the push rod of the electromagnet pushing rod, and the push rod limiting seat is installed behind the E-type retaining spring.

5. The automatic cuvette loading device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The valve unit further comprises a shaft sleeve which is sleeved on the push rod of the electromagnet pushing rod, and the shaft sleeve is fixed on the side wall of the inclined groove.

6. An in vitro diagnostic analyzer, characterized in that An automatic reaction cup loading device comprising the device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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