A single-head small reagent tube aseptic filling machine

Abstract

This invention discloses a single-head small reagent tube aseptic filling machine, comprising: a filling machine for aseptic filling; the filling machine is internally equipped with a sorting unit and reagent tubes, for sorting and continuously feeding the reagent tubes through the sorting unit; a feeding unit is provided on the side of the sorting unit. Using the above technical solution, the rotary feeding unit rotates and repositions, achieving seamless connection between opening, filling, and sealing. Combined with a clamping design for temporarily holding the bottle cap, it eliminates the need for secondary cap handling, significantly improving filling efficiency. The equipment is equipped with a multi-station detection structure to screen for defects such as missing caps, high caps, crooked caps, and broken caps, controlling product quality from the source. It is also equipped with a limiting and lifting mechanism to effectively limit reagent tube offset, ensuring alignment, capping, and filling accuracy. The entire process operates in a closed aseptic mode, avoiding contamination risks. The equipment operates stably, has a high finished product qualification rate, and is suitable for batch aseptic filling production of small-sized reagent tubes.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of reagent tube filling technology, specifically to a single-head aseptic filling machine for small reagent tubes. Background Technology

[0002] Aseptic filling of reagent tubes is mainly used for PCR, sampling solutions, and diagnostic reagent dispensing. It is carried out in a Class 100 aseptic clean environment. Empty reagent tubes and bottle caps are sterilized with ethylene oxide in advance, and the reagent stock solution is sterilized by filtering through a 0.22μm filter membrane. The filling and capping process is completely closed and controlled to avoid microbial contamination. Because biological reagents are not resistant to high temperature sterilization, they cannot be sterilized as finished products. Aseptic filling is the only way to ensure the sterility of the finished product. There are two processes: fully automatic cap feeding and semi-automatic manual pre-capping. Piezoelectric micro-valve is commonly used for precise dispensing of liquids. After filling, the cap is sealed immediately, which meets the GMP cleanroom standards for in vitro reagents. According to a Chinese invention patent, patent number CN114074768A, entitled "A Micro-volume Biological Reagent Filling Machine," the machine includes a switching device, a feeding device, a reagent dispensing device, a capping device, and a discharging device. The reagent dispensing device includes a liquid injection drive assembly and a jet valve assembly. The liquid injection drive assembly is connected to the jet valve assembly. The liquid injection drive assembly is used to guide the reagent into the jet valve assembly, and the jet valve assembly is used to inject a predetermined amount of reagent into the reagent tube located at the reagent dispensing position. Equipped with a switching device, feeding device, reagent dispensing device, capping device, and unloading device, it can meet the fully automated production needs of reagent tube feeding, dispensing of micro-biological reagents, capping, and unloading. By replacing manual production with automated equipment, production efficiency and dispensing accuracy are improved, and leakage and misdispensing due to human fatigue are avoided. In addition, the spray valve assembly adopts a piezoelectric spray valve, which has the characteristics of high spray frequency, high control accuracy, and strong corrosion resistance, greatly improving dispensing accuracy. The aforementioned patented capping requires cap feeding, cap picking by grippers, cap placement across positions, and tightening, which is a long action chain. The overall machine cycle is limited by the capping speed, and the upper limit of production capacity is fixed. The cap is prone to jamming and material blockage when separated from the center, and the grippers are prone to cap mis-grabbing, resulting in frequent downtime and delays in filling. Changing the bottle cap specifications requires modification of the cap feeding and gripper structure, resulting in long downtime for debugging, further reducing the effective filling time. According to a Chinese invention patent, patent number CN115594132A, entitled "A Telescopic Filling and Sealing Machine with Bottle Shaking and Automatic Cap Unscrewing Function and its Operating Method," this filling and sealing machine can shorten the filling and capping time and path, reduce the risk of contamination of the medicine in the packaging material during filling, and simultaneously improve production efficiency through multi-station automated filling. It also adds a bottle shaking function to prevent sedimentation of the medicine during filling. The machine has a simple structure and is easy to use. It includes a filling and sealing machine body with an electrical control box, a track platform at the front end of the machine body, a mold for placing packaging materials on the track platform, and a cap-unscrewing filling machine connected to the track platform. Both the track platform and the cap-unscrewing filling machine are controlled and connected to the electrical control box of the filling and sealing machine body. Compared to a fully automatic cap sorting machine, it eliminates the need for a cap sorting structure, has a shorter cap removal stroke, and is more convenient for changing caps. However, it still requires cap storage and secondary cap removal, which consumes process time and reduces filling efficiency.

[0003] Therefore, providing a single-head aseptic filling machine for small reagent tubes that eliminates the cap storage and secondary cap removal processes in reagent tube filling, shortens station time, and improves filling efficiency has become an urgent problem to be solved in this field. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to solve the problems of cap storage and secondary cap removal processes in the existing single-head small reagent tube aseptic filling machine, shorten the station time, and improve filling efficiency.

[0005] To address the above problems, this invention discloses a single-head small reagent tube aseptic filling machine, comprising: Filling machines are used for filling in aseptic environments; The filling machine is equipped with a sorting unit and reagent tubes, which are used to sort and continuously deliver the reagent tubes through the sorting unit. The side of the sorting unit is provided with a feeding unit for feeding reagent tubes; The feeding unit is provided with a capping unit on the side away from the sorting unit, which is used to rotate the cap of the reagent tube bottle; A filling unit is arranged parallel to the side of the capping unit for filling the reagent tube; The feeding unit rotates, causing the reagent tube to move and align perpendicularly with the capping unit, so that the capping unit can open the bottle cap pre-installed on the reagent tube. The capping unit temporarily holds the cap of the reagent tube after it has been unscrewed. The feeding unit rotates to cause the reagent tube to detach and be perpendicularly aligned with the capping unit. The reagent tube is then rotated by the feeding unit to be perpendicularly aligned with the filling unit, which is used by the filling unit to fill the reagent tube. The rotating feeding unit drives the reagent tube to be vertically aligned with the capping unit for a second time, so that the capping unit can lower the temporary cap and the reagent tube to complete the capping operation through rotation.

[0006] Using the above technical solution, the rotary feeding unit rotates and repositions, achieving seamless connection between opening, filling, and sealing. Combined with a clamping design that holds the bottle cap temporarily, it eliminates the need for secondary cap handling, significantly improving filling efficiency. The equipment features a multi-station detection structure that can screen for defects such as missing caps, high caps, crooked caps, and broken caps, controlling product quality from the source. It also includes limit and lifting mechanisms to effectively limit reagent tube misalignment, ensuring alignment, capping, and filling accuracy. The entire process operates in a closed, aseptic mode, avoiding contamination risks. The equipment operates stably, has a high finished product qualification rate, and is suitable for batch aseptic filling production of small-sized reagent tubes.

[0007] According to another specific embodiment of the present invention, the feeding unit includes a turntable and a groove. The turntable is disposed between the capping unit and the sorting unit. The outer peripheral wall of the turntable is provided with a groove for receiving reagent tubes. The turntable is driven to rotate by a motor for rotating and transporting reagent tubes.

[0008] According to another specific embodiment of the present invention, the feeding unit includes a turntable and a groove. The turntable is disposed between the capping unit and the sorting unit. The outer peripheral wall of the turntable is provided with a groove for receiving reagent tubes. The turntable is driven to rotate by a motor for rotating and transporting reagent tubes.

[0009] According to another specific embodiment of the present invention, a lifting mechanism is provided on the side of the motor drive unit away from the connecting sleeve shaft, for the motor drive unit to move up and down through the lifting mechanism.

[0010] According to another specific embodiment of the present invention, a limiting mechanism is provided on the side of the feeding unit away from the sorting unit, and the reagent tube forms a circumferential anti-rotation limiting cooperation with the feeding unit through the limiting mechanism to restrict the circumferential rotation of the reagent tube.

[0011] According to another specific embodiment of the present invention, the outer circumferential wall of the feeding unit is equipped with a detection part, which is used to detect defects in the bottle caps on the reagent tubes.

[0012] According to another specific embodiment of the present invention, a feeding part is provided on the side of the turntable near the sorting unit, a filling part is provided on the end of the turntable near the capping unit, a discharging part is provided between the filling part and the feeding part, a detection part is provided on the feeding part for detecting reagent tubes without caps, a detection part is provided on the filling part for detecting reagent tubes with high caps, and a detection part is provided on the discharging part for detecting reagent tubes with crooked caps.

[0013] According to another specific embodiment of the present invention, the reagent tube is a test tube with a pre-filled cap, and the test tube and the cap are rotated synchronously to reduce the waiting time between workstations.

[0014] According to another specific embodiment of the present invention, the filling machine further includes a control component, which is a PLC, a touch screen, or a control panel.

[0015] According to another specific embodiment of the present invention, the three-jaw clamp can hold the bottle cap temporarily after it is opened, thereby reducing filling time. Attached Figure Description

[0016] The present invention will now be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments: Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of a single-head small reagent tube aseptic filling machine provided by the present invention; Figure 2 This invention provides a single-head small reagent tube aseptic filling machine. Figure 1 A magnified schematic diagram of the overall structure at point A; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of a single-head small reagent tube aseptic filling machine provided by the present invention; Figure 4 This invention provides a single-head aseptic filling machine for small reagent tubes. Figure 3 A magnified structural diagram at point B; Figure 5 This is a front structural diagram of a single-head small reagent tube aseptic filling machine provided by the present invention; Figure 6 This invention provides a single-head small reagent tube aseptic filling machine. Figure 5 A magnified structural diagram at point C.

[0017] Figure label: 1. Filling machine; 2. Sorting unit; 4. Capping unit; 5. Feeding unit; 7. Lifting mechanism; 8. Filling unit; 10. Reagent tube; 12. Limiting mechanism; 21. Feeding hopper; 22. Vibrating plate; 23. Flat vibrating track; 24. Bottle inlet track; 41. Motor transmission unit; 42. Connecting sleeve shaft; 43. Three-jaw clamp; 51. Groove; 71. Upper base plate; 72. Synchronous pulley A; 73. Synchronous pulley belt; 74. Synchronous pulley B; 75. Transmission screw; 76. Screw slider; 77. Movable plate; 78. Guide column; 79. Linear bearing; 710. Guide block; 711. Lowering base plate; 712. Lifting rod; 81. Fixing sleeve; 82. Needle; 121. Limiting cylinder; 122. Connecting block; 123. Limiting block. Detailed Implementation

[0018] The following specific embodiments illustrate the implementation of the present invention. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present invention from the content disclosed in this specification. Although the description of the present invention is presented in conjunction with preferred embodiments, this does not mean that the features of the invention are limited to these embodiments. On the contrary, the purpose of describing the invention in conjunction with embodiments is to cover other options or modifications that may be derived based on the claims of the present invention. To provide a deep understanding of the invention, many specific details will be included in the following description. The invention may also be implemented without using these details. Furthermore, to avoid confusion or obscuring the focus of the invention, some specific details will be omitted in the description. It should be noted that, unless otherwise specified, the embodiments and features in the embodiments of the present invention can be combined with each other.

[0019] In the description of this embodiment, it should be noted that the terms "upper", "lower", "inner", "bottom", etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, or the orientation or positional relationship commonly used in the placement of the product of the invention. They are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limiting the present invention.

[0020] The terms “first”, “second”, etc., are used only to distinguish descriptions and should not be interpreted as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0021] In the description of this embodiment, it should also be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "provided with," "set up," "connected," and "linked" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; and they can refer to the internal connection of two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this embodiment based on the specific circumstances.

[0022] like Figures 1 to 6As shown, this invention discloses a single-head small reagent tube aseptic filling machine, comprising a filling machine 1 for aseptic filling; the filling machine 1 is internally equipped with a sorting unit 2 and a reagent tube 10, for sorting and continuously feeding the reagent tube 10 through the sorting unit 2; a feeding unit 5 is provided on the side of the sorting unit 2 for feeding the reagent tube 10; a capping unit 4 is provided on the side of the feeding unit 5 away from the sorting unit 2 for rotating the cap of the reagent tube 10; a filling unit 8 is provided parallel to the side of the capping unit 4 for filling the reagent tube 10; the feeding unit 5 rotates to drive the reagent tube 10... The moving and capping unit 4 is perpendicularly aligned, and the capping unit 4 is used to open the bottle cap pre-installed on the top of the reagent tube 10; the capping unit 4 clamps and temporarily places the bottle cap of the reagent tube 10 after it has been opened; the feeding unit 5 rotates and drives the reagent tube 10 to disengage from the vertical alignment with the capping unit 4, and the reagent tube 10 is perpendicularly aligned with the filling unit 8 through the rotation of the feeding unit 5, and is used by the filling unit 8 to perform the filling operation on the reagent tube 10; the feeding unit 5 rotates and drives the reagent tube 10 to be perpendicularly aligned with the capping unit 4 for a second time, and is used by the capping unit 4 to lower the temporarily placed bottle cap and the reagent tube 10 to complete the capping operation through rotation.

[0023] In other words, the filling machine 1 operates in a sterile environment. An organizing unit 2 is installed on one side of its interior via a workbench. After the reagent tube 10 with its cap is screwed on, it is placed inside the organizing unit 2. Utilizing the vibration of the organizing unit 2, the reagent tube 10 is driven upwards along a spiral track within the tray by vibration and friction. Limiting bars on the track correct the posture of the reagent tube 10. Reagent tubes with abnormal posture automatically fall back into the hopper for re-organization. Reagent tubes with acceptable posture are continuously and directionally fed into the feeding unit 5 from the outlet, completing the feeding process. When the feeding unit 5 rotates, the reagent tubes 10 inside rotate synchronously. Figure 1 , Figure 2 As shown, the feeding unit 5 is provided with two capping units 4 on the side away from the sorting unit 2. A filling unit 8 is arranged between the two capping units 4. The number of filling units 8 is two, which are arranged in a mirror image, and there is a capping unit 4 between the two filling units 8.

[0024] For details, see Figures 1 to 2As shown, in this embodiment, when the feeding unit 5 drives the reagent tube 10 to rotate and move to the bottom of the capping unit 4 and completes the alignment, the feeding unit 5 stops rotating and no longer drives the reagent tube 10 to continue moving. After the alignment is completed, the capping unit 4 moves downward and grips the cap on the top of the reagent tube 10. Then, the capping unit 4 rotates in the opposite direction to remove the cap pre-installed on the bottle body. After that, the capping unit 4 moves upward to separate the cap from the bottle body. At the same time, the cap is always clamped and fixed by the capping unit 4. Then, the feeding unit 5 drives the opened reagent tube 10 to continue moving until the reagent tube 10 reaches the bottom of the filling unit 8 and the filling operation is completed here. After the filling is completed, the feeding unit 5 rotates in the opposite direction to send the filled reagent tube 10 back to the bottom of the capping unit 4 and achieve vertical alignment. At this time, the capping unit 4 moves downward again to attach the clamped cap to the top of the reagent tube 10. Then, the capping unit 4 rotates in the forward direction to tighten the cap back onto the top of the reagent tube 10. The entire filling and sealing process is thus completed.

[0025] It should also be noted that there are two capping units 4. During operation, two reagent tubes 10 can be processed simultaneously. Then, by rotating and moving the feeding unit 5, the two open reagent tubes 10 can be moved to the bottom of the two filling units 8, at which point the filling units 8 can fill the reagent tubes 10.

[0026] By adopting the above technical solution, compared with the existing fully automatic cap feeding and filling equipment and the independent cap storage solution of CN115594132A, this solution eliminates the independent cap feeding structure, dedicated cap storage station, and cap placement slot. After opening, the bottle cap is always held by the capping unit 4, which not only shortens the travel and process time of cap picking, cap storage, and secondary cap picking, improving production continuity and filling cycle, but also avoids the problems of contamination and posture deviation during bottle cap storage and transfer. At the same time, the equipment adopts a double capping unit 4 capping mechanism and a double filling unit 8 filling mechanism to achieve parallel operation of two stations, further improving the production capacity, making the overall structure more streamlined, and making changeover and debugging more convenient.

[0027] For details, see Figure 1 As shown, the feeding unit 5 includes a turntable and grooves 51. The turntable is installed between the capping unit 4 and the sorting unit 2. The turntable is divided into a feeding section, a filling section, and a discharging section. The feeding section is connected to the outlet of the reagent tube 10 of the sorting unit 2. The filling section corresponds to the working position of the capping unit 4 and the filling unit 8. The discharging section is located between the feeding section and the filling section, and the discharging section is equipped with a discharging mechanism. Several grooves 51 are opened on the outer peripheral wall of the turntable for placing the reagent tubes 10. The bottom of the turntable is connected to the motor inside the filling machine 1 and is driven by the motor to rotate, thereby realizing the transfer of the reagent tubes 10. Detection sections are installed on the outer circumference of the feeding unit 5. One detection section is set on the circumference of each of the feeding section, the filling section, and the discharging section. During equipment operation, the sorting unit 2 sorts the reagent tubes 10 and discharges them outwards. The groove 51 of the turntable feeding section receives the discharged reagent tubes 10. The motor drives the turntable to rotate. When the groove 51 carrying the reagent tubes 10 passes through the feeding section, the detection section at that location checks whether the top of the reagent tube 10 is equipped with a bottle cap. If there is a missing cap, the filling machine 1 stops. If the detection is qualified, the reagent tube 10 enters the filling section with the turntable and completes the filling operation in conjunction with the capping unit 4 and the filling unit 8. After filling and capping, the reagent tube 10 continues to be transported with the turntable. When it passes through the detection section of the filling section, the equipment checks whether the bottle cap is a high cap or a missing cap. Any defect will trigger the entire machine to stop. If there is no abnormality, the reagent tube 10 is transported to the unloading section. The detection section of the unloading section checks whether the bottle cap is crooked. If the bottle cap is crooked, the entire machine stops. After the detection is qualified, the reagent tube 10 is directly sent into the unloading mechanism to complete the finished product unloading. like Figure 1 The capping unit 4 shown includes a motor drive unit 41, a connecting sleeve shaft 42, and a three-jaw clamp 43. The motor drive unit 41 is located on the top of the feeding unit 5 on the side away from the sorting unit 2. The output end of the motor drive unit 41 is connected to the connecting sleeve shaft 42. The three-jaw clamp 43 is located at the bottom of the connecting sleeve shaft 42. The motor drive unit 41 drives the three-jaw clamp 43 to grip the bottle cap at the reagent tube 10 through an air pipe. The motor drive unit 41 drives the connecting sleeve shaft 42 to rotate, thereby driving the three-jaw clamp 43 to complete the capping action. A lifting mechanism 7 is provided on the side of the motor drive unit 41 away from the connecting sleeve shaft 42, which is used for the motor drive unit 41 to move up and down through the lifting mechanism 7. like Figure 3 The lifting mechanism 7 shown includes an upper base plate 71. The top of the upper base plate 71 is fixedly connected to the bottom of a platform inside the filling machine 1. A servo motor is fixedly connected to the bottom of the platform. A synchronous pulley A72 is driven by the bottom of the servo motor. A synchronous pulley B74 is driven by a synchronous pulley belt 73 located on the outer wall of the synchronous pulley A72. A transmission screw 75 is located on the side of the servo motor. The top of the transmission screw 75 is driven by the bottom of the upper base plate 71. The top of the synchronous pulley B74 is fixedly connected to the bottom of the transmission screw 75. The outer wall of the transmission screw 75 is fixedly connected to the bottom of the transmission screw 75. A screw slider 76 is threadedly connected to the outer wall of the screw slider 76. A movable plate 77 is fixedly connected to the outer wall of the servo motor. A descending base plate 711 is fixedly connected to the outer wall of the descending base plate 711. A guide post 78 is fixedly installed on the top of the descending base plate 711. The top of the guide post 78 passes through the movable plate 77 and the upper base plate 71 in sequence and is fixedly connected to them. A linear bearing 79 is slidably connected to the outer wall of the guide post 78. A lifting rod 712 is fixedly connected to the side of the linear bearing 79 through a guide block 710. The top of the lifting rod 712 is fixedly connected to the bottom of the side of the motor transmission part 41 away from the synchronous wheel A72. like Figure 6As shown, the limiting mechanism 12 includes a limiting cylinder 121, a connecting block 122, and a limiting block 123. The limiting cylinder 121 is mounted on the outer sleeve of the lifting rod 712 via a fixing plate. The connecting block 122 is slidably sleeved on the outer side of the outer sleeve. The piston rod of the limiting cylinder 121 is connected to the connecting block 122. The limiting block 123 is fixedly connected to the side of the connecting block 122 away from the limiting cylinder 121. The limiting block 123 and the groove 51 are parallel and aligned. During operation, the servo motor is activated, causing synchronous pulley A72 to drive synchronous pulley B74 to rotate via synchronous pulley belt 73. As synchronous pulley B74 rotates, the transmission screw 75, fixedly connected to its top, rotates synchronously along the bottom of the upper base plate 71. During rotation, the transmission screw 75 causes displacement of the screw slider 76, which is threaded onto the outer wall. The movable plate 77, fixedly connected to the screw slider 76, moves accordingly, causing the linear bearing 79 and guide block 710 to move along with the screw slider 76. The lifting rod 712 connected to the guide block 710 then drives the motor transmission unit 41 to reciprocate up and down. Simultaneously, the motor transmission unit 41 moves the connecting sleeve shaft 42 and the three-jaw clamp 43 up and down synchronously. When the three-jaw clamp 43, located at the bottom of the connecting sleeve shaft 42, moves to the top position of the reagent tube 10, the air supply cylinder via the air passage activates, driving the three-jaw clamp 43 to open. After it contacts the top cover of the reagent tube 10, the cylinder reverses its direction, driving the three-jaw clamp 43 to open. The cap is clamped, and then the motor drive unit 41 operates, driving the connecting sleeve shaft 42 and the three-jaw clamp 43 to rotate in the same direction. The cap of the reagent tube 10 is opened by the thread loosening torque. After the cap is opened, the lifting rod 712 is lifted upward, driving the motor drive unit 41, the connecting sleeve shaft 42, and the three-jaw clamp 43 to keep the cap clamped throughout the process. The removed cap is lifted upward in sync, so that the cap is completely separated from the reagent tube opening, leaving space for the reagent tube to fill vertically upward. Then the feeding unit 5 moves the empty tube body and precisely moves the cap-free reagent tube 10 to directly below the filling unit 8. The filling unit 8 discharges downward to complete the quantitative filling of the reagent inside the reagent tube. After the filling operation is completed, the feeding unit 5 rotates the filled reagent tube 10 to directly below the three-jaw clamp 43, ensuring that the reagent tube opening is completely aligned with the axis of the bottle cap held above. Then, the lifting rod 712 drives the motor drive unit 41, the connecting sleeve shaft 42, and the three-jaw clamp 43 holding the bottle cap to move downward at a constant speed until the lower end face of the bottle cap makes initial contact with the reagent tube opening. After contact is completed, the motor drive unit 41 is started, controlling it to rotate at a low speed that matches the capping torque and the reverse speed of the capping opening, driving the connecting sleeve shaft 42 and the three-jaw clamp 43 ... The clamp 43 and the bottle cap held inside rotate synchronously, causing the bottle cap to gradually tighten downwards along the thread of the reagent tube opening. After the bottle cap is tightened to the preset thread stroke and reaches the equipment torque judgment standard, and the sealing is confirmed, the matching cylinder switches the air supply direction through the air circuit to make an opening action, driving the three jaws of the three-jaw clamp 43 to open outwards synchronously, releasing the clamping limit on the outer wall of the bottle cap. Finally, the lifting rod 712 drives the motor transmission part 41, the connecting sleeve shaft 42, and the three-jaw clamp 43 to move upwards and reset as a whole, disengaging from the sealed reagent tube 10.

[0028] The detection department is a detection component that integrates fiber optic photoelectric sensors and signal acquisition modules. It is arranged at three circumferential positions: the turntable loading section, the filling section, and the unloading section. It is connected to the PLC control system to realize interlock functions such as online detection at the workstation, abnormal shutdown, and bottle-free filling stop. It should be added that when the above-mentioned motor transmission unit 41, connecting sleeve shaft 42, and three-jaw clamp 43 drive the reagent tube 10 to rotate, the limiting cylinder 121 will drive the connecting block 122 to move forward. During the forward movement of the connecting block 122, the limiting block 123 fixedly connected to it extends into the turntable guardrail set on the outside of the turntable, forming an axial limit on the reagent tube 10 stuck in the groove 51, preventing the reagent tube 10 from rotating together with the connecting sleeve shaft 42 and the three-jaw clamp 43, thereby completing the opening and sealing operations. like Figure 2The filling unit 8 shown includes a fixing sleeve 81 and a needle 82. The needle 82 is mounted on both sides of the connecting sleeve shaft 42 via the fixing sleeve 81. An independent stepper motor drives the peristaltic pump connected to the needle 82, providing precise power output and zero-delay start / stop response. Filling parameters can be preset via a touch screen to accurately match the filling volume requirements of different sizes of reagent tubes 10. During operation, the needle 82 and the mouth of the reagent tube 10 are vertically aligned inside to prevent the needle 82 from touching the mouth and causing contamination or damage. Subsequently, the peristaltic pump delivers the liquid according to the set flow rate and duration, completing the precise filling of micro-volume liquids and strictly controlling the filling process. To minimize errors, the filling department is equipped with high-sensitivity fiber optic photoelectric sensors that monitor the bottle's position and orientation at the workstation 24 / 7, forming a closed-loop detection logic: when abnormal situations such as no bottle, missing bottle, bottle misalignment, or bottle inversion occur at the workstation, the sensor immediately collects the abnormal signal and transmits it to the PLC control system. The PLC immediately issues a stop command, triggering the bottle-free filling stop function and automatically locking the peristaltic pump filling action, eliminating production defects such as empty filling, missed filling, insufficient filling, and incorrect filling. This ensures the filling qualification rate and product consistency from the source, stably achieving a high-precision filling standard of ±1% to ±3%.

[0029] like Figure 1 As shown, the sorting unit 2 includes a feeding hopper 21, a vibrating plate 22, a flat vibrating track 23, and a bottle inlet track 24. The feeding hopper 21 is located on the main frame of the filling machine 1. The vibrating plate 22 is placed inside one side of the filling machine 1 via a worktable. The top of the vibrating plate 22 is perpendicular and parallel to the bottom of the feeding hopper 21. The flat vibrating track 23 is fixedly installed on the side of the vibrating plate 22. The bottle inlet track 24 is set at the end of the flat vibrating track 23 away from the vibrating plate 22. During operation, reagent tube 10 is fed into vibrating plate 22 via hopper 21. After starting vibrating plate 22, vibration causes reagent tube 10 to move upwards along the threaded groove and enter horizontal vibration track 23. The sorting unit 2 continues to vibrate, ensuring continuous feeding of reagent tube 10. The material is then transported via horizontal vibration track 23 to bottle inlet track 24 for storage. Figure 4 A cylinder is installed on the side of the bottle inlet track 24, and an L-shaped baffle is provided at the end of the cylinder. When the reagent tube 10 is inserted into the groove 51, the cylinder drives the L-shaped baffle to block the side of the bottle inlet track 24 away from the flat vibration track 23, preventing the material from flowing out continuously. When the next groove 51 moves to the side of the bottle inlet track 24, the cylinder drives the L-shaped baffle to retract, and the reagent tube 10 is then discharged and inserted into the groove 51, and conveyed by the turntable to complete the feeding operation.

[0030] It should be noted that the bottom motor of the aforementioned turntable is a servo motor, which can drive the turntable to rotate clockwise and backward; the aforementioned motor transmission part 41 is a servo motor, used to drive the connecting sleeve shaft 42 and the three-jaw clamp 43 to perform rotational work. Before the equipment is put into formal production, the power supply and air supply need to be connected and debugged. Connect to a 380V / 50Hz industrial power supply to power the whole machine and control system, and a 24V switching power supply to power low-voltage control components such as touch screen, sensors, solenoid valves, and relays. Connect to 0.6 to 0.8Mpa compressed air. The compressed gas is pre-treated by the pneumatic two-piece unit, filtered to remove water and purify impurities through the air filter, and then stabilized to a constant working air pressure by the pressure reducing valve. Then, the lubricating oil is atomized by the oil mist lubricator to continuously lubricate the high-frequency moving parts such as cylinders. The pre-treated clean and stable air source is precisely controlled by the solenoid valve to control the extension, clamping and pushing actions of each cylinder, avoiding equipment jamming and component wear caused by air pressure fluctuations and water vapor impurities. The reagent tubes 10 come in the following sizes: 150ul, 300ul, 700ul, and 1.1ml. After production starts, the reagent tubes 10 are manually fed into the feeding hopper 21. The equipment automatically sorts and straightens the disordered bottles through high-frequency vibration of the vibrating plate 22, thoroughly straightening the messy bottles and unifying them into a standard posture with the bottle mouth facing upwards. The straightened bottles enter the feeding unit 5 and are precisely positioned by the groove 51 to prevent bottle offset or tilting. Then, the servo-driven conveying mechanism feeds the bottles at a uniform speed. The conveying speed can be adjusted as needed by the frequency conversion system to adapt to different production capacity requirements. The qualified bottles are smoothly conveyed to the filling department one by one. The entire process is smooth without jamming, bottle tipping, or disorder, ensuring the stability of the workstation connection.

[0031] After the bottle arrives precisely at the filling section, the equipment starts a high-precision quantitative filling operation. The filling unit 8 uses an independent stepper motor to drive the peristaltic pump. The power output is precise and the start and stop response is without delay. The filling parameters can be preset through the touch screen to accurately match the filling volume requirements of different sizes of reagent tubes 10. During operation, the needle is precisely inserted into the mouth of the reagent tube 10 to avoid contamination or damage caused by the needle touching the mouth of the bottle. Then the peristaltic pump delivers the liquid according to the set flow rate and time to complete the precise filling of micro-volume liquid and strictly control the filling error. Meanwhile, the filling department is equipped with a high-sensitivity fiber optic photoelectric sensor to monitor the bottle's position and posture at the workstation in real time 24 hours a day, forming a closed-loop detection logic: when abnormal situations such as no bottle, missing bottle, bottle offset, or bottle inversion occur at the workstation, the sensor immediately collects the abnormal signal and transmits it to the PLC control system. The PLC immediately issues a stop command, triggers the bottle-free filling stop function, and automatically locks the peristaltic pump filling action to prevent production defects such as empty filling, leak filling, insufficient filling, and incorrect filling. This ensures the filling qualification rate and product consistency from the source and stably achieves a high-precision filling standard of ±1~3%. Once the pre-positioning is completed, the core capping mechanism of the equipment is activated. The three-jaw clamp 43 is driven by the independent connecting sleeve shaft 42. The capping torque, speed and stroke parameters can be preset through the touch screen to achieve precise torque controllable capping. The servo motor has the characteristics of smooth speed adjustment, accurate positioning and constant torque. It can adapt the capping force according to different bottle cap specifications, which not only ensures that the bottle cap is sealed tightly and without loosening, but also avoids excessive torque from damaging the bottle body, stripping the screws and breaking the cap. The entire capping process is equipped with an intelligent detection and rejection system that identifies abnormal products at the workstation in real time: for unqualified bottles such as those without caps, with high caps, with crooked caps, with caps that are too loose, or with caps that are too tight, the system automatically marks them and triggers a stop command. The entire machine is equipped with multiple safety interlocks and intelligent protection mechanisms throughout its operation. It relies on the proximity switch of the equipment door frame, the air pressure detection module, and the emergency stop sensing module to build a comprehensive safety system. In automatic operation mode, if the equipment protective door frame is not closed, the working air pressure is lower than the standard value, or the emergency stop switch is not reset, the PLC control system will directly lock the host startup program, and the equipment cannot be started and operated. During production, if the sensors detect abnormal operation of the mechanism, workstation jamming, or parameter exceeding the standard, the system will immediately and automatically stop the machine and cut off the power. At the same time, the specific fault code, fault location, and abnormality cause will be displayed in real time on the Fuji touch screen interface, which can facilitate operators to quickly troubleshoot and repair, effectively protect equipment parts, avoid production safety risks, and ensure that the sterile production environment is not compromised.

[0032] The equipment supports both manual and automatic operation modes, adapting to various scenarios such as debugging, production changeover, and mass production. When using different bottle sizes for production, the manual mode can be switched to individually debug the operating position, speed, and stroke of each mechanism, including bottle feeding, filling, capping, and conveying. Fine-tuning of the conveyor belt spacing, capping head height, bottle fixing device position, and peristaltic pump filling parameters is also possible. After completing no-load testing, filling volume calibration, and capping torque verification, the optimal process parameters are saved. Once the debugging is successful, the equipment can be switched to automatic mode to achieve continuous and stable mass production. The machine has a compact structure, smooth transmission, and adjustable parameters, perfectly meeting the standardized and automated production needs of sterile micro-volume liquid products in the biopharmaceutical and life science industries.

[0033] While the present invention has been illustrated and described with reference to certain preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that the above description is a further detailed explanation of the invention in conjunction with specific embodiments, and should not be construed as limiting the specific implementation of the invention to these descriptions. Various changes in form and detail can be made by those skilled in the art, including simple deductions or substitutions, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A single-head aseptic filling machine for small reagent tubes, characterized in that, include: Filling machines are used for filling in aseptic environments; The filling machine is equipped with a sorting unit and reagent tubes, which are used to sort and continuously deliver the reagent tubes through the sorting unit. The side of the sorting unit is provided with a feeding unit for feeding reagent tubes; The feeding unit is provided with a capping unit on the side away from the sorting unit, for rotating the reagent tube cap; a filling unit is provided parallel to the side of the capping unit for filling the reagent tube. The feeding unit rotates, causing the reagent tube to move and align perpendicularly with the capping unit, so that the capping unit can open the bottle cap pre-installed on the reagent tube. The capping unit temporarily holds the cap of the reagent tube after it has been unscrewed. The feeding unit rotates to cause the reagent tube to detach and be perpendicularly aligned with the capping unit. The reagent tube is then perpendicularly aligned with the filling unit via the rotation of the feeding unit, which is used by the filling unit to fill the reagent tube. The rotating feeding unit drives the reagent tube to be vertically aligned with the capping unit for a second time, so that the capping unit can lower the temporary cap and the reagent tube to complete the capping operation through rotation.

2. The aseptic filling machine for single-head small reagent tubes according to claim 1, characterized in that, The feeding unit includes a turntable and a groove. The turntable is located between the capping unit and the sorting unit. The outer peripheral wall of the turntable has a groove for receiving reagent tubes. The turntable is driven to rotate by a motor for transporting reagent tubes.

3. The aseptic filling machine for single-head small reagent tubes according to claim 1, characterized in that, The capping unit includes a motor drive unit, a connecting sleeve shaft, and a three-jaw clamp. The motor drive unit is located on the top side of the feeding unit away from the sorting unit. The output end of the motor drive unit is connected to the connecting sleeve shaft. The three-jaw clamp is located at the bottom of the connecting sleeve shaft. The motor drive unit drives the three-jaw clamp to grip the bottle cap at the reagent tube through an air pipe. The motor drive unit drives the connecting sleeve shaft to rotate, thereby driving the three-jaw clamp to complete the capping action.

4. The aseptic filling machine for single-head small reagent tubes according to claim 3, characterized in that, A lifting mechanism is provided on the side of the motor drive unit away from the connecting sleeve shaft, which is used for the motor drive unit to move up and down via the lifting mechanism.

5. The aseptic filling machine for single-head small reagent tubes according to claim 3, characterized in that, A limiting mechanism is provided on the side of the feeding unit away from the sorting unit. The reagent tube forms a circumferential anti-rotation limiting fit with the feeding unit through the limiting mechanism, which is used to restrict the circumferential rotation of the reagent tube.

6. The aseptic filling machine for single-head small reagent tubes according to claim 2, characterized in that, The outer circumferential wall of the feeding unit is equipped with a detection part, which is used to detect defects in the bottle caps on the reagent tubes.

7. The aseptic filling machine for single-head small reagent tubes according to claim 6, characterized in that, The turntable has a feeding section on the side near the sorting unit and a filling section on the end near the capping unit. A discharging section is provided between the filling section and the feeding section. The feeding section has a detection section for detecting reagent tubes without caps. The filling section has a detection section for detecting reagent tubes with high caps. The discharging section has a detection section for detecting reagent tubes with crooked caps.

8. The aseptic filling machine for single-head small reagent tubes according to claim 1, characterized in that, The reagent tubes are pre-capped test tubes, and the test tubes and caps are rotated synchronously to reduce waiting time between workstations.

9. The aseptic filling machine for single-head small reagent tubes according to claim 1, characterized in that, The filling machine also includes a control component, which is a PLC, a touch screen, and a control panel.

10. The aseptic filling machine for single-head small reagent tubes according to claim 3, characterized in that, The three-jaw clamp can hold the bottle cap temporarily after it has been opened, thus reducing filling time.

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