A swab test tube storage and supply assembly, a swab breaking mechanism, and a storage system

Abstract

The present invention relates to the field of medical device technology, specifically a swab test tube storage and supply assembly and a swab breaking mechanism and storage system. The present invention includes a test tube storage platform and an opening and closing cover assembly, and the test tube transfer is achieved between the two by a transfer mechanism; the opening and closing cover assembly includes a screw cap clamping assembly for clamping the test tube body and a screw cap assembly for clamping and rotating the test tube head; the screw cap assembly is provided with at least two screw cap claws with an elastic clamping action inward; the screw cap clamping assembly includes at least two clamping blocks that can clamp along the radial direction of the test tube, and each clamping block has a holding plate extending upward, so that when the clamping block closes and clamps the tube body, each holding plate encloses and forms an annular clamp that presses the screw cap claws at the screw cap assembly from the outside to the inside. The present invention can supply test tubes and automatically unscrew the tube caps of the test tubes. In addition, the structure for unscrewing the tube caps does not require multiple power sources for clamping the test tubes, which reduces costs and facilitates the layout of the power source circuit.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of medical devices, in particular to a swab test tube storage and supply component, a swab breaking mechanism and a storage system. Background Art

[0002] As the main tool for sampling, swabs can be used to collect liquid microorganisms, DNA, viruses and bacteria from the human mouth, nose, throat, cervix, etc., and play an important role in forensics, clinical medicine, environmental testing and other fields.

[0003] The existing swab sampling process is mostly as follows: medical staff take swab packaging bags or swab packaging tubes from the swab supply platform, then take out the swabs in the swab packaging bags or swab packaging tubes to sample the patients; after that, after the swab sampling is completed, medical staff are required to take test tubes containing detection reagents from the test tube supply platform, unscrew the caps on the test tube heads, break off the cotton swab part on the swab and place it in the test tubes containing the detection reagents, finally, screw the caps on the test tube heads back on, and store them centrally for subsequent centralized testing.

[0004] The above-mentioned swab sampling process obviously has the problem of insufficient operational efficiency and convenience. In particular, during the process of opening the test tube, the medical staff still needs to hold the swab after testing, which greatly increases the inconvenience of the opening process. It is also difficult to open the cover in one go, affecting the efficiency of swab sampling. In addition, during the above-mentioned swab sampling process, the medical staff needs to wear gloves. The frequent friction and capping operations will also accelerate the wear rate of the medical staff's gloves. Although there are devices for grabbing and capping test tubes at the test tube storage platform in the prior art, most of their capping structures are described in the text of the Chinese patent publication number CN213761866U entitled "A Cap Opener Capable of Automatically Opening the Test Tube Containing Throat Swabs", which clamps the tube cover and tube body of the test tube respectively by a test tube cover clamping device and a tube body clamping device, and uses the test tube cover clamping device to rotate to open or close the test tube cover. However, it is obvious that the method of using two clamping devices to clamp the tube body and the tube cover respectively, as described in the cited patent, not only increases the cost of the device, but also, because the test tube cover clamping device needs to rotate multiple times, it also causes great trouble in the wiring layout of the power source of the test tube cover clamping device during actual implementation. Therefore, it needs to be solved urgently. Summary of the Invention

[0005] In order to avoid and overcome the technical problems existing in the prior art, the present invention provides a swab test tube storage and supply assembly, a swab breaking mechanism, and a supply and storage system, which can supply test tubes and automatically unscrew the tube caps of the test tubes. In addition, the structure for unscrewing the tube caps does not require multiple power sources for clamping the test tubes, which reduces costs and facilitates the layout of the power source circuit.

[0006] To achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following technical solutions:

[0007] A swab test tube storage and supply assembly includes a test tube storage platform and an opening and closing cover assembly, and a transfer mechanism is used to transfer the test tubes between the two; the opening and closing cover assembly includes a screw cap clamping assembly for clamping the test tube body and a screw cap assembly for clamping and rotating the test tube head; the screw cap assembly is provided with at least two screw cap clamping claws with an inward elastic clamping action; the screw cap clamping assembly includes at least two clamping blocks that can clamp along the radial direction of the test tube, and each clamping block is provided with a holding plate extending upward, so that when the clamping block is closed to clamp the tube body, the holding plates surround and form an annular clamp that presses the screw cap clamping claws of the screw cap assembly from the outside to the inside.

[0008] As a further solution of the present invention: the outer side wall of the screw cap clamp is provided with a resistance reducing rolling portion which is in rolling engagement with the inner wall of the annular clamp.

[0009] As a further solution of the present invention: the transfer mechanism includes a multi-axis manipulator, the moving part of the multi-axis manipulator can perform at least horizontal movement and lifting movement, the screw capping jaws are installed on the moving part of the multi-axis manipulator, and the screw capping jaws constitute a grasping part on the moving part for grasping the test tube; a jaw opening rod is provided at the clamping center of the screw capping jaws, the jaw opening rod is arranged vertically and can slide along its own axis, the jaw opening rod has a protrusion on the rod body, the protrusion has an open state of sliding upward to open all the screw capping jaws and lock them, and a closed state of sliding downward to separate from the screw capping jaws so that the screw capping jaws are gathered and reset.

[0010] As a further solution of the present invention: a fixed seat is fixed on the moving part of the multi-axis manipulator, a capping motor is installed on the fixed seat, a telescopic rod is coaxially fixed on the output shaft of the capping motor, the telescopic rod can only perform vertical lifting movements, and a buffer spring is sleeved on the telescopic rod, and the capping clamp is hingedly installed at the lower part of the telescopic rod.

[0011] As a further solution of the present invention: the clamping claw opening rod is coaxially slidably fitted on the telescopic rod, and the opening and closing cover assembly also includes a reset baffle, which can extend into the inner side of the screw-on cover clamp and engage with the clamping claw opening rod to block the clamping claw opening rod from rising when the multi-axis manipulator drives the screw-on cover clamp to rise, thereby switching the protrusion from the open state to the closed state.

[0012] As a further solution of the present invention: the screw cap clamping assembly also includes a screw capping station and a clamping power source for driving the clamping block to perform clamping and loosening actions. The upper part of the screw capping station has a positioning hole for inserting the test tube, and the axis of the positioning hole coincides with the plumb line where the clamping center of the clamping block is located.

[0013] The swab breaking mechanism adopts the swab test tube storage and supply assembly described above, and the swab breaking mechanism includes a swing rod driven by a swing power source and capable of swinging around a horizontal axis, a lifting slide driven by a lifting power mechanism and capable of reciprocating along the length of its rod is provided on the swing rod, and a sliding clamping hook is slidably matched on the lifting slide and capable of sliding along the length of the swing rod perpendicular to the length of the swing rod. When the clamping hook slides, it has a swab clamping state in which it can clamp the swab along the length of the swing rod together with the lifting slide and a releasing state in which the swab cannot be clamped, and the clamping center of the swab clamping state can be aligned with the clamping center of the clamping block when the swing rod swings. The plumb lines coincide; a guide bar arranged along the length of the rod is fixed on the rocker arm, and a guide long hole is provided on the guide bar. The guide long hole has a straight portion arranged along the length direction of the rocker arm and a bent portion inclined to one side adjacent to the cantilever end of the rocker arm, and the hole depth direction of the guide long hole is perpendicular to the sliding direction of the sliding clamp hook. A sliding column inserted into the guide long hole is fixed on the sliding clamp hook. When the lifting slide drives the sliding clamp hook to slide along the length direction of the rocker arm, the sliding column slides in the guide long hole, and when the sliding column slides to the outer end of the bent portion and the long hole portion respectively, the sliding column drives the sliding clamp hook to slide to the swab release state and the swab clamping state respectively.

[0014] As a further solution of the present invention: a swab rotating roller is rotatably matched on the lifting slide, and two clamping rollers are rotatably matched on the clamping hook. The axes of the swab rotating roller and the clamping roller are arranged along the length direction of the rocker arm. In the clamping state of the swab, the outer edges of the swab rotating roller and the two clamping rollers jointly enclose a clamping area for clamping the swab; a rotating gear is coaxially fixed on the swab rotating roller, and a rack meshing with the rotating gear is slidably matched on the lifting slide. A reset spring is installed on the lifting slide. Under normal conditions, the rack is squeezed by the reset spring and the gear is The outer end of the rack slides to the outside of the lifting slide, and the rotation direction of the rocker arm breaking the swab is used as the driving direction. A limit block is arranged below the swing axis of the rocker arm. The limit block positions the angle of rotation of the rocker arm in the driving direction, and when the sliding clamp hook is in the swab clamping state, the outer end of the rack intersects with the limit block along the moving path of the rocker arm rotating in the driving direction, so that when the rack abuts against the limit block, the rack is driven to slide inward and engage with the rotating gear. A waste box for receiving the waste of the swab after breaking is provided on the side of the swab breaking mechanism.

[0015] The supply and storage system uses the above-mentioned swab breaking mechanism, including a shell, a transfer conveyor belt arranged horizontally in the conveying direction is installed on the inner side of the shell, and a feeding component and a recovery component are respectively arranged above the starting section and the end section of the transfer conveyor belt. The feeding component supplies trays loaded with new test tubes to the starting section, and the recovery component is used to recover trays loaded with test tubes to be tested at the end section. The test tube storage platform is formed by a conveying surface between the starting section and the end section of the transfer conveyor belt; wherein the feeding component includes a vertical The feeding box of the storage channel has a vertical storage channel that runs through it from top to bottom. At least two trays loaded with new test tubes are stacked in the vertical direction in the feeding box. Both sides of the lower part of the feeding box are equipped with unloading conveyor belts arranged vertically in the conveying direction. The two unloading conveyor belts block the trays from falling when they are stationary, and generate a driving force to drive the trays to move downward when the unloading conveyor belts convey downward. A gap is provided between the conveying end of the unloading conveyor belt and the conveying surface of the transfer conveyor belt, and the side wall of the feeding box has an opening for the trays and the test tubes thereon to pass through along with the transfer conveyor belt.

[0016] As a further solution of the present invention: the recovery component includes a material receiving magazine with a vertical recovery channel, the vertical recovery channel runs through from top to bottom, a vertically arranged material receiving cylinder is installed on the material receiving magazine, and a lifting plate is installed on the output end of the material receiving cylinder, the lifting plate intersects with the terminal section on the transfer conveyor belt, and the transfer conveyor belt has an avoidance gap to prevent the lifting plate from lifting the pallet on the terminal section from bottom to top; a lifting card is movably arranged on the material receiving magazine, and the inner end of the lifting card is normally located in the vertical recovery channel, and when the lifting plate lifts the pallet from bottom to top, the inner end of the lifting card is pushed away from the vertical recovery channel by the pallet, and when the pallet is separated from the lifting card, the inner end of the lifting card is reset to the vertical recovery channel, and constitutes a bearing part for the pallet.

[0017] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0018] 1. This application abandons the traditional method of using two power sources to drive the clamping block and the capping jaws to perform the clamping action separately. Only one power source is required to drive the clamping block to clamp the test tube body, which can then drive the holding plate to assist the capping jaws in clamping the test tube cap. This allows a single power source to drive two clamping structures to clamp the test tube body and cap separately, reducing costs and facilitating the layout of the power source circuit. In addition, because the annular clamp formed by the holding plate after closing always defines the position of the capping jaws at the periphery, the capping jaws can rotate and prevent slipping between the caps. This also prevents the capping jaws from excessively clamping the caps, which could cause the caps to break, thereby forming a flexible protective clamp for the caps.

[0019] 2. The rolling cooperation between the resistance-reducing rolling part and the inner wall of the annular clamp ensures that the capping jaws can perform low-resistance capping rotation while ensuring stable clamping with the tube cap.

[0020] 3. The capping clamp is installed on the moving part of the multi-axis manipulator, and the capping clamp constitutes the grasping part on the moving part for grasping the test tube, so there is no need to set up an additional grasping part on the transport mechanism, which further reduces the cost of the device.

[0021] 4. Use the lifting slide to slide downward, driving the slide column to slide to the long hole portion of the guide long hole. At this time, the sliding clamping hook slides and switches to the swab release state under the drive of the slide column, completing the clamping of the swab. Subsequently, the lifting slide continues to slide downward, driving the cotton swab part at the bottom of the swab to insert into the test tube. After that, the rocker arm swings, using the tube mouth of the test tube as a breaking fulcrum to break the swab. In this application, only one power source is required to drive the lifting slide to slide downward to achieve the clamping of the swab and insert the swab into the tube body, without the need for an additional power source to clamp the swab.

[0022] 5. When the rocker arm rotates in the driving direction to break the swab, the rack abuts against the limit block and slides, and the sliding rack engages with the rotating gear and drives the rotating gear to rotate, thereby driving the swab rotating roller to rotate and drive the swab to rotate, preventing the swab from sticking after breaking. No additional power source is required, which reduces costs and ensures the miniaturization of the swab breaking mechanism, reducing the motion interference between the swab breaking mechanism and other structures.

[0023] 6. After the new test tubes on the test tube storage platform are used up, the feeding component transports the tray loaded with new test tubes to the starting section of the transfer conveyor belt. Thereafter, the used test tubes to be tested collected on the test tube storage platform are transported to the end point by the transfer conveyor belt and recycled by the recycling component. At the same time, the tray loaded with new test tubes on the starting section of the transfer conveyor belt is replenished to the test tube storage platform, so that the swab test tube storage and supply component can restart the capping and feeding operations of new test tubes, thereby realizing the integrated operation of test tube feeding, feeding and recycling.

[0024] 7. The feeding assembly utilizes a method in which a vertically arranged unloading conveyor belt is installed on a feeding hopper with a vertical material storage channel. When the two unloading conveyor belts are stationary, they prevent the pallets from falling. As the unloading conveyor belts convey the pallets downward, they generate a driving force to drive the pallets downward, causing the lowest pallet between the unloading conveyor belts to slide downward under their drive, while the other pallets above slide downward under the action of gravity, thereby achieving continuous feeding. In addition, a gap is provided between the conveying end of the unloading conveyor belt and the conveying surface of the transfer conveyor belt, so that the lowest pallet automatically falls downward onto the transfer conveyor belt after separating from the unloading conveyor belt, while the upper pallets cannot unload due to the resistance of the unloading conveyor belt, resulting in a gap between the lowest pallet and the other pallets. As a result, when the lowest pallet moves with the transfer conveyor belt, there is no motion interference between the lowest pallet and the other pallets.

[0025] 8. The setting of the lifting block in the receiving box of the recycling component can achieve one-way prevention of the pallet from moving downward, so that after the lifting plate completes the lifting, there is no need for the receiving cylinder to continue to lift it, which reduces the energy consumption of the device and avoids the pallet falling due to failure of the receiving cylinder to continue lifting. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of the screw cap assembly and the screw cap clamping assembly.

[0027] Figure 2 It is a structural schematic diagram of the test tube storage and supply assembly in the present invention.

[0028] Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the structure of the capping clamping assembly in the present invention.

[0029] Figure 4 It is a structural schematic diagram of the rotary cover assembly in the present invention.

[0030] Figure 5 It is a structural schematic diagram of the rotary cover assembly and the reset baffle in the present invention.

[0031] Figure 6 It is a structural schematic diagram of the capping clamping assembly and the swab breaking mechanism in the present invention.

[0032] Figure 7 It is a structural schematic diagram of the swab breaking mechanism in the present invention.

[0033] Figure 8 It is a schematic diagram of the top cross-section structure of the lifting slide in the present invention.

[0034] Figure 9 This is a structural diagram of the swab breaking mechanism of the present invention after removing the lifting slide.

[0035] Figure 10 It is a side structural schematic diagram of the clamping hook and the guide bar in the present invention.

[0036] Figure 11 It is a structural schematic diagram of the swab breaking mechanism in the swab breaking state in the present invention.

[0037] Figure 12 The figure is a schematic diagram of the breaking process of the swab breaking mechanism of the present invention.

[0038] Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram of the structures of the feeding component, the test tube storage and supply component, and the recovery component in the present invention.

[0039] Figure 14 It is a structural schematic diagram of the supply and storage system of the present invention.

[0040] Figure 15 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the feeding component in the present invention.

[0041] Figure 16 It is a side structural schematic diagram of the feeding component in the present invention.

[0042] Figure 17 It is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the recycling component in the present invention.

[0043] Figure 18 It is a schematic diagram of the side cross-section structure of the recycling component in the present invention.

[0044] In the figure: 10, shell; 20, feeding assembly; 21, feeding box; 22, unloading conveyor belt; 30, recycling assembly; 31, receiving box; 32, receiving cylinder; 321, lifting plate; 33, lifting block; 40, opening and closing cover assembly; 41, multi-axis manipulator; 42, capping assembly; 421, fixing seat; 422, capping motor; 423, telescopic rod; 424, buffer spring; 425, capping clamp; 4251, inner convex block; 4252, resistance reducing rolling part; 426, clamping rubber ring; 427, clamping jaw opening rod; 43, capping clamping assembly; 431, capping station; 432, positioning hole; 4 33. Clamping power source; 434. Clamping block; 435. Holding plate; 44. Swab breaking mechanism; 441. Rocker; 4411. Guide bar; 4412. Long guide hole; 442. Swinging power source; 443. Lifting slide; 444. Clamping hook; 4441. Clamping roller; 4442. Slide column; 445. Lifting power mechanism; 446. Limiting baffle; 447. Swab rotating roller; 4471. Rotating gear; 448. Rack; 449. Reset spring; 45. Reset baffle; 50. Waste box; 60. Transfer conveyor belt; A. Tray; B. Test tube; B1. Tube body; B2. Tube cover; D. Swab. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0045] The following will clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. 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.

[0046] For ease of understanding, the specific structure and working mode of the present invention are further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings:

[0047] The specific structure of the present invention refers to Figure 1-18As shown, its main structure includes a test tube storage and supply assembly for supplying test tubes B and opening the tube cover B2 of the test tube B, a swab breaking mechanism 44 that can automatically break the swab D after sampling and allow the cotton swab part of the swab D to fall into the test tube B, a feeding assembly 20 for replenishing the tray A loaded with new test tubes B to the test tube storage platform of the swab test tube storage and supply assembly, and a recovery assembly 30 for recovering the tray A loaded with the test tubes B to be tested.

[0048] Swab tube storage supply components, which mainly include Figure 1-5 As shown, it mainly includes a test tube storage platform and an opening and closing cover assembly 40, and the test tube is transported between the two by a transport mechanism. Figure 2 As shown, the test tube storage platform is used to store test tubes B. Specifically, it can be a work station or tray A for placing test tubes B. The opening and closing cover assembly 40 includes a capping clamping assembly 43 for clamping the tube body B1 of the test tube B and a capping assembly 42 for clamping and rotating the test tube head. The transfer mechanism transfers the test tube B on the test tube storage platform to the capping clamping assembly 43. The capping assembly 42 is shown in FIG. Figure 4 As shown, the capping assembly 42 is provided with at least two capping jaws 425 with an inward elastic clamping action. Specifically, the elastic clamping action of the capping jaws 425 can be achieved by a clamping rubber ring 426 sleeved on the outer periphery of all the capping jaws 425, or by a torsion spring, a tension spring or an elastic rubber band; the capping clamping assembly 43 is as shown Figure 3 As shown, the capping clamping assembly 43 includes at least two clamping blocks 434 that can clamp along the radial direction of the test tube. Figure 3 As shown, each clamping block 434 has a holding plate 435 extending upward, so that when the clamping block 434 is closed to clamp the tube body, each holding plate 435 surrounds and forms an annular holding hoop that presses the screw cap clamping claw 425 of the screw cap assembly 42 from the outside to the inside.

[0049] The present application abandons the traditional method of using two power sources to separately drive the clamping block 434 and the capping jaw 425 to perform the clamping action. Instead, only one power source is required to drive the clamping block 434 to perform the clamping action on the tube body B1 of the test tube B, which can then drive the holding plate 435 to form an annular clamp after closing, assisting the capping jaw 425 in clamping the tube cap B2 of the test tube B. This allows a single power source to drive two clamping structures to clamp the tube body B1 and tube cap B2 of the test tube B, respectively. This reduces costs and facilitates the layout of the power source circuit. In addition, because the annular clamp formed by the holding plate 435 after closing always limits the peripheral position of the capping jaw 425, the capping jaw 425 can rotate and prevent slipping between the cap B2. This also prevents the capping jaw 425 from excessively clamping the cap B2, which could cause the cap B2 to break, thereby forming a flexible protective clamp for the cap B2.

[0050] In addition, the holding plate 435 is enclosed and formed into an annular holding hoop which presses the screw cap clamping claw 425 at the screw cap assembly 42 from the outside to the inside. Figure 4 As shown, the outer wall of the capping jaw 425 is equipped with a resistance-reducing rolling portion 4252 that rolls with the inner wall of the annular hoop. By rolling with the inner wall of the annular hoop, the capping jaw 425 can ensure stable clamping with the pipe cap B2 while also being able to perform a low-resistance capping rotation action. Moreover, the outer periphery of the capping jaw 425 always maintains contact with the inner wall of the annular hoop, ensuring that the capping jaw 425 is always in a clamped state, thereby achieving a stable capping operation. Specifically, the resistance-reducing rolling portion 4252 can be a ball or a roller, which reduces the friction between the capping jaw 425 and the inner wall of the annular hoop, so that the capping jaw 425 can rotate relative to the inner wall of the annular hoop in the clamped state.

[0051] On the basis of the above, if Figure 4 As shown, the preferred screw-on capping jaws 425 have a clamping area with a flared lower portion after elastically gathering together, and the flared diameter is larger than the diameter of the tube cap B2 of the test tube B. Therefore, when the screw-on capping jaws 425 slide downward, they can be elastically sleeved directly on the tube cap B2 of the test tube B. In addition, by utilizing the elastic gathering of the screw-on capping jaws 425, the tube cap B2 can be clamped by the screw-on capping jaws 425 after the tube cap B2 is unscrewed, and the tube cap B2 can be separated from the tube body B1 when the screw-on capping jaws 425 rise. In addition, since the diameter of the tube cap B2 of the test tube B is often larger than the diameter of the tube body B1 of the test tube B, in actual implementation, the inner side of the lower part of the screw-capping clamp 425 is provided with an inner protrusion 4251 that can hook the lower edge of the tube cap B2 of the test tube B. Of course, the size of the inner protrusion 4251 should not be too large. After the screw-capping clamp 425 is fitted with the outer periphery of the tube cap B2, the inner protrusion 4251 is located at the lower edge of the tube cap B2 but does not contact the tube body B1 of the test tube B.

[0052] On the basis of the above, if Figure 2 As shown, the transfer mechanism includes a multi-axis manipulator 41, and the moving part of the multi-axis manipulator 41 can at least perform horizontal movement and lifting movement. The multi-axis manipulator 41 is a common transfer mechanism in the prior art and will not be described in detail here. In actual implementation, the transfer mechanism can also utilize multiple horizontal cylinders and plumb cylinders in the prior art to cooperate with each other to achieve transfer. The capping jaws 425 are installed on the moving part of the multi-axis manipulator 41, and the capping jaws 425 constitute the grasping part on the moving part for grasping the test tube B, so there is no need to set up a grasping part on the transfer mechanism, which further reduces the cost of the device. In addition, by using the capping jaws 425 to clamp the test tube B, not only can the test tube B be transferred from the test tube storage platform to the capping clamping assembly 43, but also when the test tube B is closed, the test tube B can be directly moved back to the test tube storage platform for storage. Further, as Figure 4As shown, a jaw opening rod 427 is provided at the clamping center of the screw cap jaw 425. The jaw opening rod 427 is arranged vertically and can slide along its own axis. The jaw opening rod 427 has a protrusion on the rod body. The protrusion has an open state in which all the screw cap jaws 425 are opened and locked by sliding upward, and a closed state in which the screw cap jaws 425 are separated from each other by sliding downward so that the screw cap jaws 425 are gathered and reset. In actual implementation, after the cotton swab portion of swab D falls into test tube B, the capping jaw 425 re-screws the tube cap B2 onto the tube body B1. Thereafter, the moving portion of the multi-axis manipulator 41 can drive the capping jaw 425 to grab the test tube B and move it to the test tube storage platform. At this time, the capping jaw 425 is moved downward, so that the top of the test tube B pushes the jaw opening rod 427 to slide upward, and the protrusion is used to open the capping jaw 425 to an unlocked state, so that the capping jaw 425 can be separated from the test tube B, completing the transportation and storage of the test tube B after the cap is closed. It is worth mentioning that the above-mentioned protrusion can open and lock the capping jaw 425. Specifically, the protrusion can be used to open the capping jaw 425, and the friction generated by the elastic extrusion between the protrusion and the capping jaw 425 can be used to prevent the protrusion and the capping jaw 425 from generating relative movement, thereby forming a lock. Other methods in the prior art may also be used, such as the raised portion being made of a magnetic material, which can be magnetically engaged with a magnetic structure above it to form a lock when sliding upward.

[0053] On the basis of the above, if Figure 2 and Figure 4 As shown, a fixed base 421 is fixed on the moving part of the multi-axis manipulator 41, and a capping motor 422 is installed on the fixed base 421. A telescopic rod 423 is coaxially fixed to the output shaft of the capping motor 422. The telescopic rod 423 can only perform vertical lifting movements. The capping clamp 425 is hingedly installed at the lower part of the telescopic rod 423. The lifting and lowering of the telescopic rod 423 is utilized to provide avoidance space for the opening and closing of the tube cover B2 when the tube cover B2 rotates; a buffer spring 424 is sleeved on the telescopic rod 423 to achieve elastic buffering when the capping clamp 425 is sleeved downward on the test tube B.

[0054] Further, such as Figure 2 and Figure 5 As shown, the clamping jaw opening rod 427 is coaxially slidably fitted on the telescopic rod 423, and the opening and closing cover assembly 40 also includes a reset baffle 45, which is driven by the multi-axis manipulator 41 to move the rotary cover assembly 42, and the reset baffle 45 is extended into the inner side of the rotary cover clamping jaw 425 and engaged with the clamping jaw opening rod 427, so as to block the clamping jaw opening rod 427 from rising when the multi-axis manipulator 41 drives the rotary cover clamping jaw 425 to rise, thereby switching the protrusion from the open state to the closed state, thereby eliminating the need to manually drive the clamping jaw opening rod 427 downward, and eliminating the need to set up an additional linear power source to drive the clamping jaw opening rod 427 to perform lifting and lowering movements.

[0055] On the basis of the above, if Figure 3 As shown, the capping clamping assembly 43 also includes a capping station 431 and a clamping power source 433 that drives a clamping block 434 to perform clamping and loosening operations. The capping station 431 has a positioning hole 432 on its upper portion for inserting the test tube B. The axis of the positioning hole 432 coincides with the plumb line of the clamping center of the clamping block 434, ensuring that the test tube B is always vertically positioned in the capping clamping assembly 43. Specifically, the clamping power source 433 can be a pneumatic cylinder, an electric cylinder, or a screw-slider structure.

[0056] The swab breaking mechanism 44 is mainly as follows Figure 6-12 As shown, the swab breaking mechanism 44 mainly includes a swing rod 441 driven by a swing power source 442 and capable of swinging around a horizontal axis, and a clamping structure on the swing rod 441 for clamping the swab D. Specifically, the swing power source 442 can be a motor in the prior art that can realize the swinging motion of the swing rod 441. Figure 6 As shown, the rocker 441 is provided with a lifting slide 443 driven by a lifting power mechanism 445 and capable of sliding back and forth along the length of the rod. Specifically, the lifting power mechanism 445 can be a linear drive structure such as a screw slider mechanism or a gear rack lifting structure. The lifting slide 443 is slidably matched with a sliding clamping hook 444 that can slide along the length of the rocker 441. When the clamping hook 444 slides, it can respectively have a swab clamping state in which it can clamp the swab D along the length of the rocker 441 together with the lifting slide 443 and a release state in which the swab D cannot be clamped. Moreover, the clamping center of the swab clamping state can coincide with the plumb line where the clamping center of the clamping block 434 is located when the rocker 441 swings. Figure 7 and Figure 9 As shown, the rocker 441 is fixed with a guide bar 4411 arranged along the upper portion of the length of the rocker. Figure 10 As shown, a guide long hole 4412 is provided on the guide bar 4411, and the guide long hole 4412 has a straight portion arranged along the length direction of the rocker arm 441 and a bent portion inclined to one side adjacent to the cantilever end of the rocker arm 441, and the hole depth direction of the guide long hole 4412 is perpendicular to the sliding direction of the sliding clamp 444, and the sliding clamp 444 is fixed with a sliding column 4442 inserted into the guide long hole 4412; when the lifting slide 443 drives the sliding clamp 444 to slide along the length direction of the rocker arm 441, the sliding column 4442 slides in the guide long hole 4412, and when the sliding column 4442 slides to the outer end of the bent portion and the long hole portion respectively, the sliding column 4442 drives the sliding clamp 444 to slide to the swab release state and the swab clamping state respectively.

[0057] When using, Figure 12As shown in state 12a, the swing arm 441 is initially in a vertical state with the cantilever end facing upward. At this time, the clamping center of the swab clamping state coincides with the plumb line where the clamping center of the clamping block 434 is located, and the sliding column 4442 is located at the outer end of the bent portion of the guide long hole 4412. At this time, the sliding clamp hook 444 is in a swab release state. In this state, as shown in FIG. Figure 6 and Figure 12 As shown in the state 12b, the rod portion of the swab D after sampling can be placed into the clamping area of ​​the sliding clamp hook 444 manually or by a robot. Figure 12 As shown in the state 12c, the lifting slide 443 slides downward, driving the slide post 4442 to slide to the long hole portion of the guide long hole 4412. At this time, the sliding clamping hook 444 slides and switches to the swab release state under the drive of the slide post 4442, completing the clamping of the swab D. Subsequently, the lifting slide 443 continues to slide downward, driving the cotton swab portion at the bottom of the swab D to be inserted into the test tube B. Preferably, the easy-to-break point of the swab D is flush with the tube body B1 of the test tube B. After that, as shown in FIG. Figure 11 and Figure 12 As shown in the state 12d, the swing rod 441 swings, using the tube body B1 of the test tube B as a breaking fulcrum to break the swab D. Afterwards, the cotton swab part of the broken swab D falls into the test tube B. At this time, the tube cap B2 can be screwed onto the tube body using the screw cap assembly 42. At the same time, as shown in FIG. Figure 11 and Figure 12 As shown in the state 12e, the sliding clamping hook 444 switches to the swab releasing state again to release the rod of the disconnected swab D so as to perform the next breaking operation.

[0058] On the basis of the above, in order to prevent the swab D from sticking after being broken, the present application further provides a rotating structure to drive the rod of the swab D to rotate when the swab D is broken, to ensure that there is no adhesion at the broken part. Figure 8 As shown, the lifting slide 443 is rotatably equipped with a swab rotating roller 447, and the clamping hook 444 is rotatably equipped with two clamping rollers 4441. The axes of the swab rotating roller 447 and the clamping roller 4441 are arranged along the length direction of the rocker 441. In the swab clamping state, the outer edges of the swab rotating roller 447 and the two clamping rollers 4441 jointly enclose a clamping area for clamping the swab D. While clamping the swab D, the rotation of the swab rotating roller 447 and the two clamping rollers 4441 can also drive the swab D to rotate. Further, as Figure 9As shown, a rotating gear 4471 is coaxially fixed to the swab rotating roller 447, a rack 448 is slidably matched with the rotating gear 4471 on the lifting slide 443, and a return spring 449 is installed on the lifting slide 443; under normal conditions, the rack 448 is squeezed by the return spring 449 and the outer end of the rack 448 slides to the outside of the lifting slide 443, and the rotation direction of the swing rod 441 breaking the swab D is the driving direction, as shown in FIG. Figure 7 and Figure 11 As shown, a limit block 446 is arranged below the swing axis of the rocker arm 441, and the limit block 446 positions the angle of rotation of the rocker arm 441 in the driving direction, and when the sliding clamp 444 is in the swab clamping state, the outer end of the rack 448 intersects with the moving path of the rocker arm 441 rotating in the driving direction and the limit block 446, so that when the rack 448 abuts against the limit block 446, the drive rack 448 slides inward and engages with the rotating gear 4471, and a waste box 50 for receiving the waste of the swab D after breaking is provided on the side of the swab breaking mechanism 44. That is, when the rocker arm 441 rotates in the driving direction to break off the swab D, the rack 448 abuts against the limit block 446 and slides, and the sliding rack 448 engages with the rotating gear 4471, thereby driving the rotating gear 4471 to rotate, and then driving the swab rotating roller 447 to drive the swab D to rotate. There is no need to set up an additional power source, which reduces the cost and ensures the miniaturization of the swab breaking mechanism 44, reducing the motion interference between the swab breaking mechanism 44 and other structures.

[0059] The supply and storage system is mainly as follows Figure 13-18 As shown, the breaking mechanism primarily comprises a housing 10, a horizontally arranged transfer conveyor belt 60 mounted inside the housing 10, and a feeding assembly 20 and a recovery assembly 30 positioned directly above the starting and ending sections of the transfer conveyor belt 60, respectively. The feeding assembly 20 supplies trays A loaded with new test tubes B to the starting section, while the recovery assembly 30 recovers trays A loaded with untested test tubes B from the ending section. A section of the conveying surface of the transfer conveyor belt 60, located between the starting and ending sections, forms a test tube storage platform, with the swab storage platform preferably located in the middle of the conveying surface. After the new test tube B on the test tube storage platform is used up, the feeding component 20 supplies the tray A loaded with the new test tube B to the starting section of the transfer conveyor belt 60. Thereafter, the used test tube B to be tested stored on the test tube storage platform is transported to the terminal section by the transfer conveyor belt 60 and is recovered by the recovery component 30. At the same time, the tray A loaded with the new test tube B moves to the test tube storage platform for feeding, so that the swab test tube storage and supply component can restart the capping and feeding operations of the new test tube B, thereby realizing the integrated operation of feeding, feeding and recycling of the test tube B.

[0060] Specifically, such as Figure 15 and Figure 16As shown, the feeding assembly 20 includes a feeding cassette 21 having a vertical feeding channel. The vertical feeding channel is connected from top to bottom. The lower opening of the vertical feeding channel is used for discharging materials from the feeding cassette 21, and the upper opening is used for feeding materials into the feeding cassette 21. At least two trays A loaded with new test tubes B are stacked vertically in the feeding cassette 21. Both sides of the lower part of the feeding cassette 21 are installed with feeding conveyor belts 22 arranged vertically in the conveying direction, and the side walls of the feeding cassette 21 have openings for the trays A and the test tubes B thereon to be transported along the transfer conveyor belt 60. When the two feeding conveyor belts 22 are stationary, they prevent the trays A from falling. When the feeding conveyor belts 22 are transported downward, they generate a driving force to drive the trays A to move downward, so that the lowest tray A between the feeding conveyor belts 22 slides downward under the drive of the feeding conveyor belts, and the other trays A above slide downward under the action of gravity. There is a gap between the conveying end of the unloading conveyor belt 22 and the conveying surface of the transfer conveyor belt 60, so that the bottom pallet A automatically falls down to the transfer conveyor belt 60 after separating from the unloading conveyor belt 22, while the upper pallet A cannot be unloaded due to the resistance of the unloading conveyor belt 22, so that a gap is generated between the bottom pallet A and other pallets A. As a result, when the bottom pallet A moves with the transfer conveyor belt 60, there will be no motion interference between the bottom pallet A and other pallets A.

[0061] like Figure 17 and Figure 18As shown, the recovery assembly 30 includes a receiving hopper 31 with a vertical recovery channel. The channel runs vertically through the hopper 31. The lower end of the channel is used to recover trays A and test tubes B to be inspected into the hopper 31, while the upper end of the channel is used to remove trays A and test tubes B from the hopper 31. A vertically arranged receiving cylinder 32 is mounted on the hopper 31. A lifting plate 321 is mounted at the output end of the receiving cylinder 32. The lifting plate 321 intersects the terminal section of the transfer conveyor 60, and a clearance is provided on the transfer conveyor 60 to allow the lifting plate 321 to lift trays A from the terminal section upward. Initially, the lifting plate 321 is located below the transfer conveyor 60. When tray A reaches the terminal section of the transfer conveyor 60, the receiving cylinder 32 drives the lifting plate 321 upward, thereby lifting tray A from the bottom up. Lifting blocks 33 are movably arranged on the material receiving hopper 31. Preferably, there are four lifting blocks 33 evenly distributed around the circumference of the vertical recovery channel. The inner ends of the lifting blocks 33 are normally located within the vertical recovery channel. When the lifting plate 321 lifts the tray A from bottom to top, the tray A pushes the inner ends of the lifting blocks 33 away from the vertical recovery channel. When the tray A separates from the lifting blocks 33, the inner ends of the lifting blocks 33 return to the vertical recovery channel, forming a support portion for the tray A. Specifically, the lifting blocks 33 can be rotating blocks in the prior art whose inner ends swing toward the vertical recovery channel by gravity, or they can be horizontally arranged elastic pins whose inner ends are elastically plugged into the vertical recovery channel. Any mechanism that can prevent the tray A from moving downward in one direction is sufficient. The provision of the lifting blocks 33 eliminates the need for continued support from the receiving cylinder 32 after the lifting plate 321 completes lifting. This reduces the device's energy consumption and prevents the receiving cylinder 32 from malfunctioning and causing the pallet A to fall. Of course, in actual implementation, the number of lifting blocks 33 positioned vertically can be determined based on the number of layers of pallets A required to be stacked in the vertical return channel.

[0062] Of course, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the details of the exemplary embodiments described above, but also encompasses the same or similar structures that can be implemented in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics of the invention. Therefore, the embodiments should be considered in all respects as illustrative and non-restrictive, and the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims, not the foregoing description, and it is intended that all variations that fall within the meaning and range of equivalents of the claims be encompassed within the present invention. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the claim to which they relate.

[0063] In addition, it should be understood that although this specification is described in terms of implementation methods, not every implementation method contains only one independent technical solution. This narrative method of the specification is only for the sake of clarity. Those skilled in the art should regard the specification as a whole. The technical solutions in each embodiment can also be appropriately combined to form other implementation methods that can be understood by those skilled in the art.

[0064] The technology, shape, and structure not described in detail in the present invention are all well-known technologies.

Claims

1. A swab breaking mechanism used in a swab test tube storage and supply assembly, characterized in that: The swab test tube storage and supply assembly includes a test tube storage platform and an opening and closing cover assembly (40), and the test tube is transported between the two by a transport mechanism; the opening and closing cover assembly (40) includes a screw cap clamping assembly (43) for clamping the test tube body and a screw cap assembly (42) for clamping and rotating the test tube head; the screw cap assembly (42) is provided with at least two screw cap clamping claws (425) capable of performing an elastic clamping action inward; the screw cap clamping assembly (43) includes at least two clamping blocks (434) capable of performing a clamping action along the radial direction of the test tube, and each clamping block (434) is provided with a holding plate (435) extending upward, so that when the clamping block (434) closes and clamps the tube body, each holding plate (435) encloses and forms an annular holding hoop that presses the screw cap clamping claws (425) at the screw cap assembly (42) from the outside to the inside; The swab breaking mechanism (44) includes a swing rod (441) driven by a swing power source (442) and capable of swinging around a horizontal axis, a lifting slide (443) driven by a lifting power mechanism (445) and capable of reciprocating along the length direction of the rod is provided on the swing rod (441), and a sliding clamping hook (444) that can slide along the length direction perpendicular to the swing rod (441) is slidably matched on the lifting slide (443), and the sliding clamping hook (444) has a swab clamping state in which the swab can be clamped along the length direction of the swing rod (441) together with the lifting slide (443) and a release state in which the swab cannot be clamped, and the clamping center of the swab clamping state can coincide with the plumb line where the clamping center of the clamping block (434) is located when the swing rod (441) swings. A guide bar (4411) arranged along the upper part of the length of the rod is fixed on the swing rod (441). A guide long hole (4412) is provided on the guide bar (4411), and the guide long hole (4412) has a straight portion arranged along the length direction of the rocker (441) and a bent portion inclined to one side adjacent to the cantilever end of the rocker (441), and the hole depth direction of the guide long hole (4412) is perpendicular to the sliding direction of the sliding clamp (444), and a sliding column (4442) is fixed on the sliding clamp (444) and inserted into the guide long hole (4412). When the lifting slide (443) drives the sliding clamp (444) to slide along the length direction of the rocker (441), the sliding column (4442 slides in the guide long hole (4412), and when the sliding column (4442) slides to the outer end of the bent portion and the straight portion respectively, the sliding column (4442) drives the sliding clamp (444) to slide to the swab release state and the swab clamping state respectively.

2. A swab breaking mechanism for a swab test tube storage and supply assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that: The outer side wall of the cap screwing jaw (425) is provided with a resistance-reducing rolling portion (4252) that rolls with the inner wall of the annular hoop.

3. The swab breaking mechanism used in the swab test tube storage and supply assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that: The transfer mechanism includes a multi-axis manipulator (41), the moving part of the multi-axis manipulator (41) can perform at least horizontal movement and lifting movement, the screw capping jaws (425) are installed on the moving part of the multi-axis manipulator (41), and the screw capping jaws (425) constitute a grasping part on the moving part for grasping the test tube; a jaw opening rod (427) is provided at the clamping center of the screw capping jaws (425), the jaw opening rod (427) is arranged vertically and can slide along its own axis, and the jaw opening rod (427) has a protrusion on the rod body, and the protrusion has an open state in which all the screw capping jaws (425) are opened and locked by sliding upward, and a closed state in which the screw capping jaws (425) are separated by sliding downward to make the screw capping jaws (425) gather and reset.

4. A swab breaking mechanism for a swab test tube storage and supply assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that: A fixed seat (421) is fixed on the moving part of the multi-axis manipulator (41), a capping motor (422) is mounted on the fixed seat (421), a telescopic rod (423) is coaxially fixed on the output shaft of the capping motor (422), the telescopic rod (423) can only perform vertical lifting movements, and a buffer spring (424) is sleeved on the telescopic rod (423), and a capping clamp (425) is hingedly mounted on the lower part of the telescopic rod (423).

5. The swab breaking mechanism used in the swab test tube storage and supply assembly according to claim 4, characterized in that: The clamping jaw opening rod (427) is coaxially slidably engaged with the telescopic rod (423), and the opening and closing cover assembly (40) further includes a reset baffle (45), which can extend into the inner side of the screw cap clamping jaw (425) and engage with the clamping jaw opening rod (427) to block the clamping jaw opening rod (427) from rising when the multi-axis manipulator (41) drives the screw cap clamping jaw (425) to rise, thereby switching the protrusion from the open state to the closed state.

6. The swab breaking mechanism used in the swab test tube storage and supply assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that: The capping clamping assembly (43) further includes a capping station (431) and a clamping power source (433) for driving the clamping block (434) to perform clamping and loosening actions. The upper portion of the capping station (431) has a positioning hole (432) for inserting a test tube, and the axis of the positioning hole (432) coincides with the plumb line where the clamping center of the clamping block (434) is located.

7. The swab breaking mechanism used in the swab test tube storage and supply assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that: The lifting slide (443) is rotatably equipped with a swab rotating roller (447), and the sliding clamping hook (444) is rotatably equipped with two clamping rollers (4441). The axes of the swab rotating roller (447) and the clamping roller (4441) are arranged along the length direction of the rocker (441). In the swab clamping state, the outer edges of the swab rotating roller (447) and the two clamping rollers (4441) are enclosed together to form a clamping area for clamping the swab; a rotating gear (4471) is coaxially fixed on the swab rotating roller (447), and a rack (448) meshing with the rotating gear (4471) is slidably equipped on the lifting slide (443). A reset spring (449) is installed on the lifting slide (443). In normal state, the rack (448) is squeezed by the reset spring (449) and the rack (448) is pressed. The outer end of the rack (448) slides to the outside of the lifting slide (443), and the rotation direction of the rocker arm (441) breaking the swab is used as the driving direction. A limit block (446) is arranged below the swing axis of the rocker arm (441). The limit block (446) positions the angle of rotation of the rocker arm (441) in the driving direction, and when the sliding clamping hook (444) is in the swab clamping state, the outer end of the rack (448) rotates along the rocker arm (441) in the driving direction and intersects with the limit block (446). When the rack (448) abuts against the limit block (446), the drive rack (448) slides inward and engages with the rotating gear (4471). A waste box (50) for receiving waste swabs after breaking is provided on the side of the swab breaking mechanism (44).

8. A supply and storage system, which is applied to a swab breaking mechanism applied to a swab test tube storage and supply assembly as described in any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The invention comprises a shell (10), wherein a transfer conveyor belt (60) arranged horizontally in the conveying direction is installed on the inner side of the shell (10), and a feeding component (20) and a recovery component (30) are respectively arranged above the starting section and the terminal section of the transfer conveyor belt (60), wherein the feeding component (20) supplies a tray loaded with new test tubes to the starting section, and the recovery component (30) is used to recover the tray loaded with test tubes to be tested at the terminal section, and the test tube storage platform is formed by a section of the conveying surface between the starting section and the terminal section on the transfer conveyor belt (60); wherein the feeding component (20) comprises a feeding box (21) having a vertical material storage channel ), the vertical material storage channel is connected from top to bottom, at least two trays loaded with new test tubes are stacked in the vertical direction in the material replenishment box (21), and both sides of the lower part of the material replenishment box (21) are equipped with a discharge conveyor belt (22) arranged vertically in the conveying direction. The two discharge conveyor belts (22) block the tray from falling when they are stationary, and generate a driving force to drive the tray to move downward when the discharge conveyor belt (22) is conveyed downward; a gap is provided between the conveying end of the discharge conveyor belt (22) and the conveying surface of the transfer conveyor belt (60), and the side wall of the material replenishment box (21) has an opening for the tray and the test tube thereon to pass through along with the transfer conveyor belt (60).

9. The storage system according to claim 8, characterized in that: The recycling assembly (30) includes a receiving box (31) with a vertical recycling channel, the vertical recycling channel is connected from top to bottom, a vertically arranged receiving cylinder (32) is installed on the receiving box (31), and a lifting plate (321) is installed at the output end of the receiving cylinder (32), the lifting plate (321) intersects with the terminal section on the transfer conveyor belt (60), and the transfer conveyor belt (60) has an avoidance lifting plate (321) to lift the pallet on the terminal section from bottom to top The receiving magazine (31) is movably provided with a lifting block (33), and the inner end of the lifting block (33) is normally located in the vertical recovery channel. When the lifting plate (321) lifts the tray from bottom to top, the tray pushes the inner end of the lifting block (33) away from the vertical recovery channel, and when the tray is separated from the lifting block (33), the inner end of the lifting block (33) is reset to the vertical recovery channel and constitutes a supporting portion for the tray.

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