A device for sorting laboratory containers

Abstract

The present invention proposes a sorting device for laboratory containers, which belongs to the technical field of experimental equipment. The device comprises a container placement box, wherein a plurality of container racks are arranged in the container placement box, the container racks are used to place containers, a sorting mechanism is installed on the top of the container placement box, the sorting mechanism comprises two parallel longitudinal slide rails, a sliding block is installed above the longitudinal slide rails, a lifting rod is installed on the sliding block, a mounting plate is arranged on the lifting rod, a transverse slide track is provided on the surface of the mounting plate, a sliding block is arranged in the transverse slide track, a sorter is installed on the sliding block, the sorter comprises a telescopic rod, a container clamp is installed at the end of the telescopic rod, the container clamp is used to fix the container, so as to drive the container to be transferred to a set area, so as to realize the sorting of laboratory containers from the box to the laboratory container rack or other laboratory container carriers, and the laboratory containers that can be sorted can be automatically completed in cooperation with a control system, thereby improving the sorting efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the technical field of experimental equipment, and in particular relates to a container sorting device for a laboratory. Background Art

[0002] In a diagnostic laboratory environment, laboratory containers such as test sample containers, test reagent containers or laboratory consumable containers are transported between multiple areas and / or stations according to a predefined laboratory workflow. For example, laboratory containers are received in a receiving area, where they are sorted and temporarily held before being dispatched to a laboratory area.

[0003] Typically, such laboratory containers are transmitted in one or more holding devices in a diagnostic laboratory environment. According to predefined laboratory workflow, based on predefined sorting criteria such as laboratory container type, test sample type or test sequence, laboratory containers are sorted or transferred to another holding device from one holding device. Laboratory containers can be sorted between two holding devices of the same type, for example, laboratory containers are sorted between two laboratory container racks. And / or laboratory containers can be sorted between two different types of holding devices, for example, laboratory containers are sorted from a box to a laboratory container rack or other laboratory container carriers. The sorting of laboratory containers can be done manually. But with the increase of throughput of automated diagnostic laboratory systems, the improvement of turnaround time and the increase of test combinations, the number of laboratory containers that need to be sorted is also increasing. Therefore, how to effectively and reliably sort laboratory containers in an automated manner is a difficult problem that needs to be solved. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present invention is aimed at the problems of the prior art. The technical solution adopted in the present application is: a sorting device for laboratory containers, including a container placement box, a plurality of container racks are arranged in the container placement box, the container racks are used to place containers, a sorting mechanism is installed on the top of the container placement box, the sorting mechanism includes two parallel longitudinal slide rails, a sliding block is installed above the longitudinal slide rails, a lifting rod is installed on the sliding block, a mounting plate is arranged on the lifting rod, a transverse slide is provided on the surface of the mounting plate, a slider is arranged in the transverse slide, a sorter is installed on the slider, the sorter includes a telescopic rod, a container clamp is installed at the end of the telescopic rod, and the container clamp is used to fix the container to drive the container to move to a set area. The slider is driven by a screw transmission mechanism, and the screw transmission mechanism includes a second motor and a second screw. The second motor is used to drive the second screw to rotate, and the slider on the second screw slides along the transverse slide.

[0005] Furthermore, the container placement box includes a support base and a box body, the support base is installed at the bottom of the box body, the box body is composed of a bottom plate and side plates arranged around the bottom plate, longitudinal slide rails are installed on the top surfaces of the two side plates in front and behind the box body, and sliding blocks are arranged on the longitudinal slide rails. The sliding blocks are driven by screw rods, and a first motor is installed at the end of the longitudinal slide rails. The first motor is used to drive the first screw rod to rotate, thereby driving the sliding block to move.

[0006] Furthermore, the lifting rod includes a lifting motor and a lifting screw. The lifting motor rotates to drive the lifting screw to rotate and then adjust the height of the lifting slider on the lifting screw. The lifting slider drives the mounting plate to perform lifting movement.

[0007] Furthermore, the sorter includes a telescopic rod, which adopts an electric push rod. The electric push rod includes a motor, a reduction gear, a lead screw, a copper nut, a guide sleeve, a piston rod, a bearing seat, a spring, a cylinder seat, a cylinder, a connecting fork and a photoelectric proximity switch device. After the motor is reduced by the first or second gear, it drives the lead screw nut to rotate, converts the rotational motion of the motor into linear motion, and realizes the reciprocating motion of the push rod by utilizing the forward and reverse rotation of the motor.

[0008] Furthermore, the container clamp adopts a test tube clamp or other container clamp. As an embodiment, the clamp includes a plurality of spring pieces fixed on a supporting seat, each spring piece is composed of a clamping portion and a guide section, and the clamping portion is used to clamp the test tube, and the spring piece is in a check mark shape as a whole.

[0009] Compared with the prior art, the advantages and positive effects of the present invention are: The present invention adopts a sorting mechanism including two parallel longitudinal slide rails. The position of the sorting mechanism on the longitudinal slide rails is adjusted by a first motor. After reaching the designated area, the lateral position of the sorter of the sorting mechanism is adjusted by a second motor. The telescopic movement of the telescopic rod of the sorter drives the container clamp to clamp the container and transfer it to the designated area. The laboratory container can be sorted from the box to the laboratory container rack or other laboratory container carriers. The control system can automatically complete the sorting of laboratory containers, improve the sorting efficiency, and cope with the increasing number of laboratory container sorting work. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative labor.

[0011] Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of a first angle of a sorting device for laboratory containers of the present invention; Figure 2 It is a structural schematic diagram of a second angle of a sorting device for laboratory containers of the present invention; In the above figures, 1. container placement box; 2. container rack; 3. sorting mechanism. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0012] In order to more clearly understand the above-mentioned purpose, features and advantages of the present invention, the present invention is further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be noted that the embodiments of the present application and the features in the embodiments can be combined with each other without conflict.

[0013] In the following description, many specific details are set forth to facilitate a full understanding of the present invention. However, the present invention may also be implemented in other ways than those described herein. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments of the following disclosure.

[0014] Embodiment 1, as Figure 1-2 As shown, the present application provides a sorting device for laboratory containers, including a container placement box 1, a plurality of container racks 2 are arranged in the container placement box 1, the container racks 2 are used to place containers, a sorting mechanism 3 is installed on the top of the container placement box, the sorting mechanism 3 includes two parallel longitudinal slide rails, a sliding block is installed above the longitudinal slide rails, a lifting rod is installed on the sliding block, a mounting plate is arranged on the lifting rod, a transverse slide is provided on the surface of the mounting plate, a slider is arranged in the transverse slide, a sorter is installed on the slider, the sorter includes a telescopic rod, a container clamp is installed at the end of the telescopic rod, and the container clamp is used to fix the container to drive the container to move to a set area. The slider is driven by a screw transmission mechanism, the screw transmission mechanism includes a second motor and a second screw, the second motor is used to drive the second screw to rotate, and the slider on the second screw slides along the transverse slide.

[0015] The container placement box includes a support base and a box body. The support base is installed at the bottom of the box body. The box body is composed of a bottom plate and side plates arranged around the bottom plate. Longitudinal slide rails are installed on the top surfaces of the two side plates in front and behind the box body. A sliding block is arranged on the longitudinal slide rail. The sliding block is driven by a screw rod. A first motor is installed at the end of the longitudinal slide rail. The first motor is used to drive the first screw rod to rotate, thereby driving the sliding block to move.

[0016] The lifting rod includes a lifting motor and a lifting screw. The lifting motor rotates to drive the lifting screw to rotate, thereby adjusting the height of the lifting slider on the lifting screw. The lifting slider drives the mounting plate to perform lifting movements.

[0017] The sorter includes a telescopic rod, which adopts an electric push rod. The electric push rod includes a motor, a reduction gear, a lead screw, a copper nut, a guide sleeve, a piston rod, a bearing seat, a spring, a cylinder seat, a cylinder, a connecting fork and a photoelectric proximity switch device. After the motor is reduced by the first or second gear, it drives the lead screw nut to rotate, and the rotational motion of the motor is converted into linear motion. The reciprocating motion of the push rod is realized by the forward and reverse rotation of the motor.

[0018] The container clamp can be a test tube clamp or other container clamp. As an implementation method, the clamp includes a plurality of spring pieces fixed on a supporting seat, each spring piece is composed of a clamping portion and a guide section, and the clamping portion is used to clamp the test tube, and the spring piece is in the shape of a check mark as a whole.

[0019] During operation, the first motor is used to adjust the position of the sorting mechanism on the longitudinal slide rail. After reaching the designated area, the second motor is used to adjust the lateral position of the sorter of the sorting mechanism. The telescopic movement of the telescopic rod of the sorter is used to drive the container clamp to clamp the container and transfer it to the designated area.

[0020] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and does not limit the present invention in other forms. Any technician familiar with the profession may use the technical content disclosed above to change or modify it into an equivalent embodiment with equivalent changes and apply it to other fields. However, any simple modification, equivalent change and modification made to the above embodiment based on the technical essence of the present invention without departing from the content of the technical solution of the present invention still falls within the protection scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. A sorting device for laboratory containers, characterized in that: It includes a container placement box, a plurality of container racks are arranged in the container placement box, the container racks are used to place containers, a sorting mechanism is installed on the top of the container placement box, the sorting mechanism includes two parallel longitudinal slide rails, a sliding block is installed above the longitudinal slide rails, a lifting rod is installed on the sliding block, a mounting plate is arranged on the lifting rod, a transverse slide is provided on the surface of the mounting plate, a slider is arranged in the transverse slide, a sorter is installed on the slider, the sorter includes a telescopic rod, a container clamp is installed at the end of the telescopic rod, the container clamp is used to fix the container to drive the container to be transferred to a set area; the slider is driven by a screw transmission mechanism, the screw transmission mechanism includes a second motor and a second screw, the second motor is used to drive the second screw to rotate, and the slider on the second screw slides along the transverse slide.

2. A sorting device for laboratory containers according to claim 1, characterized in that: The container placement box includes a support base and a box body, the support base is installed at the bottom of the box body, the box body is composed of a bottom plate and side plates arranged around the bottom plate, longitudinal slide rails are installed on the top surfaces of the two side plates in front and behind the box body, and sliding blocks are arranged on the longitudinal slide rails. The sliding blocks are driven by screw rods, and a first motor is installed at the end of the longitudinal slide rails. The first motor is used to drive the first screw rod to rotate, thereby driving the sliding block to move.

3. A sorting device for laboratory containers according to claim 1, characterized in that: The lifting rod includes a lifting motor and a lifting screw. The lifting motor rotates to drive the lifting screw to rotate, thereby adjusting the height of the lifting slider on the lifting screw. The lifting slider drives the mounting plate to perform lifting movements.

4. A sorting device for laboratory containers according to claim 1, characterized in that: The sorter includes a telescopic rod, which adopts an electric push rod. The electric push rod includes a motor, a reduction gear, a lead screw, a copper nut, a guide sleeve, a piston rod, a bearing seat, a spring, a cylinder seat, a cylinder, a connecting fork and a photoelectric proximity switch device. After the motor is reduced by the first or second gear, it drives the lead screw nut to rotate, and the rotational motion of the motor is converted into linear motion. The reciprocating motion of the push rod is realized by the forward and reverse rotation of the motor.

5. A sorting device for laboratory containers according to claim 1, characterized in that: The container clamp adopts a test tube clamp, which includes a plurality of spring pieces fixed on a bearing seat, each spring piece is composed of a clamping part and a guide section, and the clamping part is used to clamp the test tube, and the spring piece is in a check mark shape as a whole.

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