Automatic incubator and feeding and discharging process thereof

Abstract

The invention relates to biological culture equipment and discloses an automatic incubator which comprises a box body and a control unit, a feeding and discharging system is arranged in the box body, a small window is arranged on the side edge of the box body, a storage rack is arranged outside the small window, a carbon dioxide sensor is arranged in the box body, and the carbon dioxide sensor is connected with the control unit. The feeding and discharging system comprises a material stack and a material taking frame, the material stack comprises a rotating disc type star-shaped array material frame and a driving mechanism, a plurality of layers of material bins are arranged on each material frame, the material taking frame comprises a rotating seat and a lifting seat arranged on the rotating seat, and a telescopic material taking table is arranged on the lifting seat. The invention further discloses a material feeding and discharging process. According to the incubator, the feeding and discharging system is arranged in the incubator and is communicated with the outside through the small window, so that automatic input, output and incubation of materials in the incubator are realized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of biological culture equipment, and in particular to an automatic incubator and a material loading and unloading process thereof. Background Art

[0002] The degree of automation of biological culture equipment is getting higher and higher. However, as an incubator for biological culture, due to the limitations of the box structure and culture conditions, complex operations such as taking and placing culture samples and controlling temperature and pressure are required, so the degree of automation is not high.

[0003] With the improvement of the automation of biological culture, higher requirements are placed on incubators in automated biological culture production lines and unmanned culture rooms. In addition, the existing manual operation requires manual opening and closing of the door to take and put culture reagents during the culture process. Each time the door is opened and closed, it will have a significant impact on the temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide concentration and other parameters inside the incubator. After the door is opened and closed, the incubator needs a long time to reach the set culture parameters, which has a certain degree of impact on the efficiency and culture results of the culture process. Summary of the invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to solve the above problems and to provide an automated incubator and its material loading and unloading process. By setting up a material loading and unloading system in the incubator and connecting it to the outside world through a small window, the automated input, output and incubation of materials in the incubator can be achieved.

[0005] The technical solution adopted by the present invention is: An automated incubator, characterized in that it comprises a box body and a control unit, wherein a material feeding and discharging system is arranged in the box body, a small window is arranged on the side of the box body, a storage rack is arranged outside the small window, a carbon dioxide sensor is arranged in the box body, the carbon dioxide sensor is connected to the control unit, the material feeding and discharging system comprises a material stack and a material taking rack, the material stack comprises a turntable-type star-shaped array material rack and a driving mechanism, each material rack is provided with a multi-layer material bin, the material taking rack comprises a rotating seat and a lifting seat arranged on the rotating seat, a telescopic material taking platform is arranged on the lifting seat, the control unit controls the material stack to rotate so that the material bin is located at the material taking position, and the material taking rack drives the material taking platform to take material from the material bin or feed material to the material bin; the control unit controls the small window to open, and the material taking rack drives the material taking platform to take material from the storage rack or feed material to the storage rack, and closes the small window after completion.

[0006] Furthermore, a circulating air duct is arranged on the inner side of the box body, and a high-temperature steam humidifier is arranged on the bottom of the inner side of the box body.

[0007] Furthermore, a temperature sensor and a humidity sensor are provided in the box, and the temperature sensor and the humidity sensor are connected to the control unit.

[0008] Furthermore, a touch screen is arranged on the front door of the box, the touch screen is connected to the control unit, and a glass observation door is also arranged inside the front door of the box.

[0009] Furthermore, the driving mechanism of the material stack is arranged on the box turntable, a motor is arranged under the turntable, and a material rack is arranged on the turntable. The material rack is arranged in a star-shaped array, and the outer side of the material rack is a material entrance and exit.

[0010] Furthermore, the material bin includes a spacing support bar arranged on the material rack, and the material picking platform includes a double telescopic bar arranged on the lifting seat, the distance between the double telescopic bars is smaller than the spacing between the spacing support bars, and the material picking platform drops from the top of the material bin to place materials and rises from the bottom of the material bin to take materials.

[0011] Furthermore, the small window comprises a rectangular window body, a rail groove is arranged on the window body, a sealed small door is arranged in the rail groove, and the sealed small door is driven by a motor and a synchronous belt to move in the rail groove to open and close the small window.

[0012] Furthermore, position sensors are respectively arranged on both sides of the bottom of the window body, the position sensors are connected to the control unit, and a shielding small door is arranged outside the sealed small door.

[0013] An automated incubator feeding process, characterized in that it comprises the following steps: (1) Place the materials on the rack using auxiliary equipment; (2) The reclaiming platform is raised and lowered to the small window position; (3) Control the small window to open the sealed small door; (4) The material taking platform extends to the bottom of the storage rack, rises and then retracts to take out the material; (5) Control the small window to close the sealed small door; (6) The material rack is moved to the material bin to be arranged on the side of the material reclaiming platform; (7) The material reclaiming rack rotates the material reclaiming platform to one side of the material rack; (8) Lift the material reclaiming platform to the predetermined material bin position; (9) The material taking platform extends to the top of the material bin, descends and then retracts to place the material; (10) Repeat steps (1) to (9) to complete the material feeding.

[0014] An automated incubator discharging process, characterized in that it comprises the following steps: (1) The material rack is moved to the material bin to be taken and is located on one side of the material taking platform; (2) The material reclaiming platform moves to one side of the material rack; (3) Lift the material reclaiming platform to the predetermined material bin position; (4) The material taking platform extends to the bottom of the material bin, rises and then retracts to take out the material; (5) The material rack is raised and lowered and moved to the small window position; (6) Control the small window to open the sealed small door; (7) The material-retrieving platform extends to the storage rack, descends, and then retracts to place the material; (8) Control the small window to close the sealed small door; (9) Remove materials from the rack using auxiliary equipment; (10) Repeat steps (1) to (9) to complete the material discharge.

[0015] The beneficial effects of the present invention are: (1) No human involvement is required, suitable for unmanned laboratories; (2) Materials are placed and taken in through a small window, which is open for a short time and has little impact on various parameters inside the incubator; (3) The feeding and discharging system is highly efficient and has high operating precision; (4) It has a high degree of automation integration and can work in collaboration with other equipment to achieve automated biological cultivation processes. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Attached Figure 1 is a front view of the present invention; Attached Figure 2 Yes Figure 1 CC section view; Attached Figure 3 Yes Figure 2 AA section view; Attached Figure 4 It is a schematic internal cross-sectional view of the present invention; Attached Figure 5 It is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the material rack; Attached Figure 6 Yes Figure 5 A partial enlarged view of B in FIG. Attached Figure 7 It is a three-dimensional structural schematic diagram of the material reclaiming rack; Attached Figure 8 Yes Figure 7 A partial enlarged view of D in FIG. Attached Fig. 9 This is a back view of the small window; Attached Fig.10 This is a schematic diagram of the structure when the small window is opened; Attached Fig.11 It is a schematic diagram of the structure when the small window is closed.

[0017] The reference numerals in the accompanying drawings are: 1. Box body; 2. Front door; 3. Electric control cabinet; 4. Touch screen; 5. Observation door; 6. Inlet and outlet system; 7. Material stack; 8. Material rack; 9. Material rack; 10. Turntable; 11.Servo motor; 12.Material bin; 13. Materials; 14. Support bars; 15. Rotating seat; 16. Lifting seat; 17. Reclaiming platform; 18. Double telescopic bars; 19. Small window; 20. Shelf; 21. Window; 22. Track groove; 23. Sealed small door; 24. Position sensor; 25. Cover the small door; 26. Bushing; 27. Carbon dioxide sensor; 28. Temperature sensor; 29. Humidity sensor; 30. Circulation air duct; 31. High temperature steam humidifier. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] The specific implementation methods of the automated incubator and its material loading and unloading processes of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0019] See attached Figures 1 to 4 The automated incubator includes a box body 1 and a control unit. The box body 1 includes a front door 2 and an electric control cabinet 3 on the top. The control unit is controlled by the electric control cabinet 3. A touch screen 4 is provided on the front door 2 of the box body 1. The touch screen 4 is connected to the control unit to display equipment parameters and realize operation interaction. A glass observation door 5 is also provided inside the front door 2 of the box body 1 for observing and inspecting the inside of the box body 1.

[0020] A material loading and unloading system 6 is arranged in the box body 1 , and the material loading and unloading system 6 includes a material stack 7 and a material taking rack 8 .

[0021] See attached Figure 5 The material stack 7 includes a turntable star-shaped array material rack 9 and a driving mechanism. The driving mechanism is a servo motor 11 arranged under the turntable 10. The star-shaped array material rack 9 is arranged on the turntable 10. There are five material racks 9 in the figure, which are evenly distributed on the circumference of the turntable 10. Each material rack 9 is provided with a multi-layer material bin 12. The number of layers on each material rack 9 exceeds 21. The number of materials 13 on the entire material stack 7 exceeds 105, which meets the quantity requirement of cell culture in large quantities.

[0022] See attached Figure 6The material bin 12 includes spaced support bars 14 arranged on the material rack 9. When no material 13 is placed, the material bin 12 is through-through from top to bottom. The material 13 used in cell culture is a well plate. Taking the 96-well plate in the figure as an example, the well plate is placed on the support bars 14. After the well plate is arranged, there is operating space above and below the well plate.

[0023] See attached Figure 7 The material collecting frame 8 includes a rotating seat 15 and a lifting seat 16 arranged on the rotating seat 15, and a telescopic material collecting platform 17 is arranged on the lifting seat 16. The rotating seat 15 is driven by a motor, and a vertical track is arranged on the rotating seat 15. The lifting seat 16 is driven to rise and fall on the vertical track through the motor belt transmission. The material collecting platform 17 is installed on the lifting seat 16, and the material collecting platform 17 is driven to be telescopic by the motor.

[0024] See attached Figure 8 The material taking platform 17 is a double telescopic bar 18, and the distance between the double telescopic bars 18 is smaller than the spacing between the support bars 14. The material taking platform 17 can drop from the top of the material bin 12 to place the material 13, and rise from the bottom of the material bin 12 to take the material 13.

[0025] See attached Figure 9-11 A small window 19 is arranged on the side of the box body 1, and a storage rack 20 is arranged outside the small window 19.

[0026] The material taking rack 8 is located between the material stack 7 and the small window 19. The rotating table of the material taking rack 8 rotates, so that the material taking table 17 switches positions between the material rack 9 and the small window 19, respectively, to operate the material bin 12 and the storage rack 20.

[0027] The small window 19 includes a rectangular window body 21, a track groove 22 is arranged on the window body 21, and a sealed small door 23 is arranged in the track groove 22. The sealed small door 23 is driven by a motor and a synchronous belt to move in the track groove 22 to open and close the small window 19. Position sensors 24 are respectively arranged on both sides of the bottom of the window body 21, and the position sensors 24 are connected to the control unit. A shielding small door 25 is arranged outside the sealed small door 23. The control unit drives the motor to rotate, and the synchronous belt drives the sealed small door 23 to move left and right in the track groove 22. The position sensor 24 determines whether the movement is in place, so as to open and close the sealed small door 23.

[0028] The end of the track groove 22 is inclined inwards, and when the sealing small door 23 is closed, the inclined section presses the sealing small door 23 inwards to ensure the sealing performance after closing. There are two track grooves 22, and a shaft sleeve 26 is respectively provided on both sides of the sealing small door 23. The shaft sleeve 26 moves in the track groove 22 to enable the sealing small door 23 to open and close.

[0029] Monitoring components such as a carbon dioxide sensor 27, a temperature sensor 28, and a humidity sensor 29 are arranged in the box 1 and connected to the control unit. The control unit feeds back to the user based on the information detected by the above sensors and displays it through a device such as a touch screen 4. The input parameters of the device can be adjusted to meet the experimental requirements.

[0030] A circulating air duct 30 is arranged on the inner side of the box 1, and a high-temperature steam humidifier 31 is arranged at the bottom of the inner side of the box 1 to provide necessary culture conditions in the box 1, and the parameters can be adjusted according to the information fed back by the system.

[0031] When the incubator is ready to load material 13 for biological cultivation, the input of material 13 is achieved through the above steps: (1) Placing the material 13 on the rack 20 through auxiliary equipment; (2) The material taking platform 17 is moved up and down to the position of the small window 19; (3) Controlling the small window 19 to open the sealed small door 23; (4) The material taking platform 17 extends to the bottom of the storage rack 20, rises and then retracts to take out the material 13; (5) Controlling the small window 19 to close the sealing small door 23; (6) The material rack 9 is moved to the material bin 12 to be arranged and is located on one side of the material taking platform 17; (7) The material rack 8 rotates the material table 17 to the side of the material rack 9; (8) Lifting the material reclaiming platform 17 to the predetermined material bin 12 position; (9) The material taking platform 17 extends to the top of the material bin 12, descends and then retracts to place the material 13; (10) Repeat steps (1)-(9) to complete the feeding of material 13.

[0032] After the feeding is completed, the culture-related functions of the incubator are activated to start the culture.

[0033] After the cultivation is completed, the cultivated material 13 is outputted. The specific steps are as follows: (1) The material rack 9 is moved to the material bin 12 to be taken and is located on one side of the material taking platform 17; (2) The material taking platform 17 moves to a position on one side of the material rack 9; (3) Lifting the material reclaiming platform 17 to the predetermined material bin 12 position; (4) The material taking platform 17 extends to the bottom of the material bin 12, rises and then retracts to take out the material 13; (5) The material rack 9 is lifted and moved to the position of the small window 19; (6) Controlling the small window 19 to open the sealed small door 23; (7) The material taking platform 17 extends to the storage rack 20, descends and then retracts to place the material 13; (8) Controlling the small window 19 to close the sealing small door 23; (9) Removing the material 13 from the rack 20 by auxiliary equipment; (10) Repeat steps (1) to (9) to complete the discharge of material 13.

[0034] The above are only preferred embodiments of the present invention. It should be pointed out that ordinary technicians in this technical field can make several improvements and modifications without departing from the principles of the present invention. These improvements and modifications should also be regarded as the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An automated incubator, characterized in that: It includes a box body and a control unit. A material feeding and discharging system is arranged in the box body, a small window is arranged on the side of the box body, a storage rack is arranged outside the small window, a carbon dioxide sensor is arranged in the box body, and the carbon dioxide sensor is connected to the control unit. The material feeding and discharging system includes a material stack and a material taking rack. The material stack includes a turntable star array material rack and a driving mechanism. Each material rack is provided with a multi-layer material bin. The material taking rack includes a rotating seat and a lifting seat arranged on the rotating seat. A telescopic material taking platform is arranged on the lifting seat. The control unit controls the rotation of the material stack so that the material bin is located at the material taking position, and the material taking rack drives the material taking platform to take materials from the material bin or feed materials to the material bin; the control unit controls the small window to open, and the material taking rack drives the material taking platform to take materials from the storage rack or feed materials to the storage rack, and closes the small window after completion.

2. The automated incubator according to claim 1, characterized in that: A circulating air duct is arranged on the inner side of the box body, and a high-temperature steam humidifier is arranged on the bottom of the inner side of the box body.

3. The automated incubator according to claim 1, characterized in that: A temperature sensor and a humidity sensor are arranged in the box, and the temperature sensor and the humidity sensor are connected to a control unit.

4. The automated incubator according to claim 1, characterized in that: A touch screen is arranged on the front door of the box body, and the touch screen is connected to the control unit. A glass observation door is also arranged inside the front door of the box body.

5. The automated incubator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The driving mechanism of the material stack is arranged on the box turntable, a motor is arranged under the turntable, a material rack is arranged on the turntable, the material rack is arranged in a star-shaped array, and the outer side of the material rack is a material inlet and outlet.

6. The automated incubator according to claim 5, characterized in that: The material bin includes a spacing support bar arranged on the material rack, and the material taking platform includes a double telescopic bar arranged on the lifting seat, the distance between the double telescopic bars is smaller than the spacing between the spacing support bars, and the material taking platform falls from the top of the material bin to place materials and rises from the bottom of the material bin to take materials.

7. The automated incubator according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The small window comprises a rectangular window body, a rail groove is arranged on the window body, a sealed small door is arranged in the rail groove, and the sealed small door is driven by a motor and a synchronous belt to move in the rail groove to open and close the small window.

8. The automated incubator according to claim 7, characterized in that: Position sensors are respectively arranged on both sides of the bottom of the window body, and the position sensors are connected to the control unit. A shielding small door is arranged outside the sealed small door.

9. An automated incubator feeding process, using the automated incubator as claimed in claims 1 to 8, characterized in that: The steps include: (1) Place the materials on the rack using auxiliary equipment; (2) The reclaiming platform is raised and lowered to the small window position; (3) Control the small window to open the sealed small door; (4) The material taking platform extends to the bottom of the storage rack, rises and then retracts to take out the material; (5) Control the small window to close the sealed small door; (6) The material rack is moved to the material bin to be arranged on the side of the material reclaiming platform; (7) The material reclaiming rack rotates the material reclaiming platform to one side of the material rack; (8) Lift the material reclaiming platform to the predetermined material bin position; (9) The material taking platform extends to the top of the material bin, descends and then retracts to place the material; (10) Repeat steps (1) to (9) to complete the material feeding.

10. An automated incubator discharging process, using the automated incubator as claimed in claims 1 to 8, characterized in that: The steps include: (1) The material rack is moved to the material bin to be taken and is located on one side of the material taking platform; (2) The material reclaiming platform moves to one side of the material rack; (3) Lift the material reclaiming platform to the predetermined material bin position; (4) The material taking platform extends to the bottom of the material bin, rises and then retracts to take out the material; (5) The material rack is raised and lowered and moved to the small window position; (6) Control the small window to open the sealed small door; (7) The material-retrieving platform extends to the storage rack, descends, and then retracts to place the material; (8) Control the small window to close the sealed small door; (9) Remove materials from the rack using auxiliary equipment; (10) Repeat steps (1) to (9) to complete the material discharge.

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