Selecting execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes

Abstract

The utility model discloses a picking execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes, which comprises a columnar tube bin capable of rotating, a plurality of circles of tube holes are arranged on the columnar tube bin around a central shaft, each tube hole is used for storing the biological sample tubes, a rotating mechanism is arranged at a position opposite to the tube holes, and the rotating mechanism is used for rotating the biological sample tubes. One end of the rotating mechanism is connected with the lifting mechanism, the other end of the rotating mechanism is connected with the suction head, and the rotating mechanism is used for driving the suction head to rotate to a horizontal position to directly face the pipe hole; rotating to a vertical position to directly face a net pipe / external entrance / exit of the low-temperature area; the suction head is used for sucking or releasing a biological sample tube; and the lifting mechanism is used for driving the rotating mechanism and the suction head to move up and down in a vertical plane so as to adjust the suction head to directly face pipe holes in different circles or a contact net pipe / external access port.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model belongs to the technical field of mechanical manufacturing, and in particular relates to a selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes. Background Art

[0002] The selection of biological samples in the biomedical field requires that the tubes, boxes or racks containing biological samples be taken out from low-temperature refrigerators or liquid nitrogen storage devices by manual, electric or pneumatic drive, and placed in an environment at room temperature or above minus 20 degrees Celsius. Biological samples that need to be used for experiments or other scientific research are then selected manually or with other mechanical equipment. Storage is the opposite process.

[0003] At present, for pneumatically driven picking equipment, the mechanical structure of the execution module occupies a large space and it is difficult to reach the corners of low-temperature refrigerators or liquid nitrogen storage devices, resulting in space waste and low space utilization. At the same time, the mechanical structure is complex to coordinate and has poor anti-interference ability, which can easily cause jamming caused by foreign matter and is inconvenient to maintain. Utility Model Content

[0004] The utility model provides a selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes, which solves the technical problems of low space utilization and easy jamming of the existing pneumatically driven selection execution module.

[0005] The utility model can be realized through the following technical solutions:

[0006] A selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes, comprising a rotatable columnar tube bin, on which a plurality of tube holes are arranged around a central axis, each of which is used to store biological sample tubes, and a rotating mechanism is arranged opposite to the tube hole, one end of the rotating mechanism is connected to a lifting mechanism, and the other end is connected to a suction head, which is used to drive the suction head to rotate, so that it rotates to a horizontal position, facing the tube hole; and rotates to a vertical position, facing a network pipe / external entrance and exit of a low-temperature area; the suction head is used to suck or release the biological sample tube;

[0007] The lifting mechanism is used to drive the rotating mechanism together with the suction head to move up and down in a vertical plane, so as to adjust the suction head to face the pipe holes on different circles or to contact the network pipe / external entrance and exit.

[0008] Furthermore, the lifting mechanism includes a sliding cylinder, and the rotating mechanism includes a rotating cylinder. The fixed part of the sliding cylinder is arranged on the first vertical side plate, and its lifting part is connected to the fixed part of the rotating cylinder through an L-shaped connecting plate. The rotating part of the rotating cylinder is connected to the suction head and is used to drive the suction head to rotate back and forth between a horizontal position and a vertical position.

[0009] Furthermore, an L-shaped limit baffle is provided on the L-shaped connecting plate, the free end of the L-shaped limit baffle extends toward the suction head position, and a limit pin extending downward is provided on the L-shaped limit baffle, and the limit pin is used to limit the rotation angle of the suction head in the horizontal position.

[0010] Furthermore, the central axis of the columnar tube bin is connected to the motor through a synchronous belt transmission mechanism, and the motor drives the columnar tube bin to rotate around its central axis through the synchronous belt transmission mechanism.

[0011] Furthermore, the motor and the columnar tube bin are mounted between a second parallel vertical side plate and a third vertical side plate, and a synchronous belt transmission mechanism is provided on the back of the third vertical side plate. Two synchronous wheels of the synchronous belt transmission mechanism are coaxially connected to one end of the central axis and the output shaft of the motor respectively.

[0012] Furthermore, a U-shaped groove extending upward is provided at the bottom of the second vertical side plate, the opening of the U-shaped groove faces the suction head on one side and faces the tube hole on the other side, and the opening size is consistent with the width of the suction head, and the suction head can pass through the U-shaped groove facing the tube hole.

[0013] Furthermore, the tube holes adopt a through-hole structure, and a plurality of air blowing through-holes are arranged on the back side of the third vertical side plate. These air blowing through-holes are respectively connected to a corresponding tube hole in each circle of tube holes, and are respectively connected to a gas generating device. The gas generating device is used to blow air into the corresponding tube hole through the air blowing through-hole, so that the biological sample tube inside the tube hole can smoothly enter the pipette tip.

[0014] Furthermore, a U-shaped groove is opened on the outer surface of the columnar tube bin along its central axis direction, and the transmitting end and receiving end of the optical fiber sensor are arranged at the two ends of the U-shaped groove facing the second vertical side plate and the third vertical side plate.

[0015] The beneficial technical effects of the utility model are as follows:

[0016] (1) The columnar tube bin is arranged horizontally, which can save the space occupied by the entire selection execution structure in the low-temperature area compared to the traditional vertical arrangement, and provide a physical basis for the pipette tip to reach the corner position of the low-temperature area as much as possible, thereby effectively improving the space utilization rate, helping to reduce the overall volume of the biological sample tube low-temperature storage device and reducing the production cost.

[0017] (2) The integrated lifting mechanism and rotating mechanism are cleverly designed. The rotating mechanism realizes the position conversion of the suction head between the columnar tube bin and the network tube, and the lifting mechanism adjusts the upper and lower positions of the suction head to match the positions of the tube holes on different circles on the columnar tube bin. The structure is simple and easy to implement, which improves the practicality of the entire selection execution structure.

[0018] (3) Since the suction head and the columnar tube bin are rotated together, it is a movable series structure rather than a fixed series structure. Therefore, there is an appropriate gap between the two, and the suction head itself has the function of suction and release. While satisfying the transmission force, solid foreign objects such as dirt and burrs can fall through the gap, thereby effectively reducing the possibility of solid foreign objects causing the suction head and the tube hole to get stuck;

[0019] In summary, the lifting mechanism, rotating mechanism and columnar tube bin of the selection execution structure of the utility model are relatively independent, simple to coordinate and convenient to maintain. At the same time, the horizontally arranged columnar tube bin can reduce the space occupation, provide a physical basis for the suction head to reach the boundary position of the low-temperature area, help to reduce the volume of the entire storage device, and be more practical for mass production, with great application prospects. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the utility model;

[0021] Figure 2 It is a front projection schematic diagram of the overall structure of the utility model;

[0022] Figure 3 It is a left side projection schematic diagram of the overall structure of the utility model;

[0023] Figure 4 It is a right side projection schematic diagram of the overall structure of the utility model;

[0024] Figure 5 It is a structural schematic diagram of a columnar tube bin of the utility model;

[0025] Among them, 1-columnar tube bin, 101-U-shaped groove, 2-rotating mechanism, 3-lifting mechanism, 4-suction head, 5-first vertical side plate, 6-L-shaped connecting plate, 7-L-shaped limit baffle, 8-limiting pin, 9-synchronous belt drive mechanism, 10-motor, 11-second vertical side plate, 1101-U-shaped groove, 12-third vertical side plate, 13-trachea joint. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The specific implementation of the utility model is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and preferred embodiments.

[0027] like Figure 1-5As shown, the utility model proposes a selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes, including a rotatable columnar tube warehouse 1, on which a plurality of circles of tube holes are arranged around a central axis, each tube hole is used to store biological sample tubes, and a rotating mechanism 2 is arranged opposite to the tube hole, one end of the rotating mechanism 2 is connected to a lifting mechanism 3, and the other end is connected to a suction head 4, which is used to drive the suction head 4 to rotate, so that it rotates to a horizontal position, facing the tube hole; rotates to a vertical position, facing the net tube / external entrance and exit in the low-temperature area; the suction head 4 is used to absorb or release the biological sample tube; the lifting mechanism 3 is used to drive the rotating mechanism together with the suction head 4 to move up and down in a vertical plane, so as to adjust the suction head 4 to face the tube holes on different circles or contact the net tube / external entrance and exit. In this way, by utilizing the laterally arranged columnar tube bin 1, combined with the coordinated action of the rotating mechanism 2 and the lifting mechanism 3, the suction head 4 can reach the corner position of the low-temperature area where multiple network tubes are arranged as much as possible, thereby improving the space utilization rate. At the same time, each functional module of the selection execution structure of the utility model is relatively independent, the overall configuration is simple, maintenance is convenient, and the practicability is strong.

[0028] The details are as follows:

[0029] The lifting mechanism 3 is executed by the slide cylinder, and the rotating mechanism 2 is executed by the rotary cylinder. The fixed part of the slide cylinder is arranged on the first vertical side plate 5, and its lifting part is connected to the fixed part of the rotary cylinder through the L-shaped connecting plate 6. The rotary part of the rotary cylinder is connected to the suction head 4. One side of the L-shaped connecting plate 6 can be connected to the lifting part of the slide cylinder, and the other side extends to the first vertical side plate 5 for connecting the fixed part of the rotary cylinder. In this way, the rotary cylinder and the slide cylinder can be almost on the same vertical plane, but not Contact the first vertical side plate 5 so that the sliding cylinder can drive the rotating cylinder and the suction head 4 to move up and down, and the rotating cylinder can drive the suction head 4 to rotate back and forth between the horizontal position and the vertical position. When in the vertical position, the biological sample tube can be sucked from the network tube to the suction head 4, or the biological sample tube inside the suction head 4 can be released to the network tube; when in the horizontal position, the biological sample tube inside the suction head 4 can be released to the tube hole of the columnar tube warehouse 1, or the biological sample tube can be sucked from the tube hole of the columnar tube warehouse 1 to the suction head 4.

[0030] Taking into account the mechanical errors generated during the repeated rotation of the rotating cylinder, an L-shaped limit baffle 7 is arranged on the L-shaped connecting plate 6. The free end of the L-shaped limit baffle 7 extends toward the position of the suction head 4, and a downwardly extending limit pin 8 is arranged on it. Since the L-shaped connecting plate 6 is above the rotating cylinder, that is, the L-shaped limit baffle 7 and the limit pin 8 are both above the suction head 4, if the rotation angle of the suction head 4 in the horizontal position is greater than the set angle, it will hit the limit pin 8, thereby limiting the rotation angle of the suction head 4, thereby realizing the function of the limit pin 8 for limiting the rotation angle of the suction head 4 in the horizontal position.

[0031] The columnar tube bin 1 is arranged horizontally, that is, its central axis is horizontal, and multiple circles of tube holes are arranged around the central axis from near to far, which extend radially, and each circle of tube holes is evenly spaced, for example, two circles, each circle has 16 tube holes. The central axis of the columnar tube bin 1 is connected to the motor 10 through the synchronous belt transmission mechanism 9, and the motor 10 drives the columnar tube bin 1 to rotate around its central axis through the synchronous belt transmission mechanism 9, so that each tube hole can be directly opposite to the suction head 4, so that the suction head 4 can transfer the biological sample tubes to the corresponding tube holes one by one or take them out from the corresponding tube holes.

[0032] We can clamp the motor 10 and the columnar tube bin 1 between the parallel second vertical side plate 11 and the third vertical side plate 12, such as setting the corresponding vertical side plates through bearings, with the motor 10 on the top and the columnar tube bin 1 on the bottom, and a synchronous belt drive mechanism 9 is set on the back of the third vertical side plate 12. The two synchronous wheels of the synchronous belt drive mechanism 9 are coaxially connected to one end of the central axis and the output shaft of the motor 10, respectively, so as to minimize the space occupied in the lateral direction and provide a physical basis for the suction head to reach the corner position of the low-temperature area as much as possible.

[0033] A U-shaped groove 1101 extending upward is provided at the bottom of the second vertical side plate 11. One side of the opening of the U-shaped groove 1101 faces the pipette tip, and the other side faces the tube hole. The opening size is consistent with the width of the pipette tip, and the pipette tip can pass through the U-shaped groove and face the tube hole. In this way, the front and rear positions of the pipette tip can be limited by means of the U-shaped groove to ensure that the pipette tip can face the tube hole, so that the biological sample tube can be smoothly transferred between the two.

[0034] Taking into account that the size of the tube body carrying the biological sample tube may have a slight deviation, and the surface of the tube body will have burrs after long-term use, etc., we have also added a reverse blowing function. First, the tube hole is set to a through-hole structure, and a plurality of blowing through-holes are set on the back of the third vertical side plate. These blowing through-holes are respectively connected to a tube hole in each circle of tube holes, and are respectively connected to the gas generating device through their own air pipe joints 13. The gas generating device is used to blow air into the corresponding tube hole through the blowing through-hole, so that the biological sample tube inside the tube hole can smoothly enter the suction tip. That is to say, when the biological sample tube inside the columnar tube bin needs to be transferred to the suction tip, in addition to using the suction function of the suction tip itself to suck the biological sample tube into the suction tip, the gas generated by the gas generating device can also serve as a booster to enable the biological sample inside the tube hole to smoothly enter the suction tip.

[0035] Although the position of each tube hole is different, they are always on their own circles. Therefore, as long as the starting tube hole is found, the positions of other tube holes can be known by calculating the circumference. Therefore, a U-shaped groove 101 is opened on the outer surface of the columnar tube warehouse 1 along its central axis direction, and the transmitting end and the receiving end of the optical fiber sensor are arranged at the two ends of the U-shaped groove 101 facing the second vertical side plate 11 and the third vertical side plate 12. In this way, through reasonable arrangement, as long as the optical fiber sensor generates a feedback signal, the processor can know the position of the starting tube hole, that is, the position of the tube hole exposed inside the U-shaped groove 1101 of the second vertical side plate 11 at this time, and then the positions of other tube holes can be obtained through calculation, and then the rotation angle of the motor is controlled so that the corresponding tube hole can be rotated to the position of the U-shaped groove 1101 with each rotation.

[0036] When the selection execution structure of the utility model is used for selection, the details are as follows:

[0037] 1. Positioning:

[0038] First, the suction tip is replaced with a straight-through suction tip, and then the selection execution structure of the utility model moves under the action of the transmission mechanism, and the position is accurately found by inserting the positioning rod to implement the positioning of the net tube, the external entrance and exit, and the tube hole in the low-temperature area of ​​the biological sample tube;

[0039] The specific positioning positions are: the external entrance and exit of the biological sample tube to be stored, the four corner network management positions of the low-temperature area, the inner circle starting position and the outer circle starting position of the columnar tube bin;

[0040] Among them, the external entrance and exit positions are directly saved; the inner circle starting position and the outer circle starting position of the columnar tube warehouse need to be determined by adjusting the motor, the slide cylinder and the rotating cylinder in conjunction with the U-shaped groove on the columnar tube warehouse; the position coordinates corresponding to each network management can be obtained by calculation according to the overall setting form of the network management inside the storage area, such as a matrix setting.

[0041] 2. Store biological sample tubes from external entrances and exits to low temperature areas:

[0042] (1) The transmission mechanism drives the selection execution unit to the external entrance and exit, the rotating cylinder switches the suction head to a vertical posture, the slide cylinder descends, the suction head opens the vacuum, and waits for the biological sample tube to be transported to the suction head; when the optical fiber sensor on the suction head detects the biological sample tube, the slide cylinder rises, the rotating cylinder switches to a horizontal posture, and the suction head opens the solenoid valve to blow the biological sample tube into the columnar tube bin. If it is stored in the outer circle of the tube bin, the slide cylinder needs to be lowered for storage. If it is stored in the inner circle of the tube bin, it does not need to be lowered and is directly stored; repeat the above process to take multiple biological sample tubes;

[0043] (2) When the task of taking tubes from the external entrance and exit is completed, the selection execution structure is moved to the low-temperature area, and according to the command received from the upper computer, the target sample tubes in the columnar tube bin are selected one by one, and the sample tubes are stored in the network tube; at this time, the rotating suction head is aligned with the tube bin, the backflush valve and suction head vacuum valve of the columnar tube bin are opened, and the assisted biological sample tube is moved to the suction head. After the optical fiber sensor on the suction head detects the sample tube, it switches to a vertical posture, the lifting cylinder descends, and after the vacuum is turned off, the sample tube will fall into the network tube due to gravity; according to this process, the sample tube is stored in the target mesh;

[0044] 3. Take the biological sample tube from the low temperature area to the external entrance and exit:

[0045] The process of taking out tubes is opposite to the process of storing tubes, and a number of target sample tubes are taken out from the target network tube; however, what is more complicated is that the target sample tubes to be taken out are often not the top layer, so the required biological sample tubes must be selected according to the target requirements; when selecting biological sample tubes, the problem of caching biological sample tubes above the target sample tubes will be involved. When the storage depth is shallow and the number of tubes to be selected is small, the columnar tube bin of the utility model can be used as a cache itself, and there is no need to cache the frozen biological sample tubes from the storage area A network tube to the B network tube, which will improve the selection and scheduling efficiency;

[0046] For example, if you need to take 11 sample tubes from 20# to 30# from top to bottom in a certain network tube, the selection execution structure will store them in the columnar tube bin from 1# to 30# in sequence, and then withdraw them from 19#, 18#...1# from the columnar tube bin to the network tube, and the remaining 20#-30# in the columnar tube bin will be directly withdrawn from the columnar tube bin to the external entrance and exit, so that the required sample tubes can be taken out at one time, and a small number of shallow target sample tubes from multiple network tubes can also be taken out at one time, and the biological sample tubes can be repeatedly transferred and stored indefinitely, thereby effectively improving the selection efficiency.

[0047] Although specific embodiments of the present invention are described above, those skilled in the art should understand that these are merely examples and that various changes or modifications may be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and essence of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention is limited by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes, characterized in that: It comprises a rotatable columnar tube bin, on which a plurality of tube holes are arranged around a central axis, each of which is used to store biological sample tubes, and a rotating mechanism is arranged opposite to the tube hole, one end of the rotating mechanism is connected to a lifting mechanism, and the other end is connected to a suction head, and is used to drive the suction head to rotate, so that it rotates to a horizontal position, facing the tube hole; or rotates to a vertical position, facing the net pipe / external entrance and exit of the low temperature area; the suction head is used to absorb or release the biological sample tube; The lifting mechanism is used to drive the rotating mechanism together with the suction head to move up and down in a vertical plane, so as to adjust the suction head to face the pipe holes on different circles or to contact the network pipe / external entrance and exit.

2. The selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes according to claim 1, characterized in that: The lifting mechanism includes a sliding cylinder, and the rotating mechanism includes a rotating cylinder. The fixed part of the sliding cylinder is arranged on the first vertical side plate, and its lifting part is connected to the fixed part of the rotating cylinder through an L-shaped connecting plate. The rotating part of the rotating cylinder is connected to the suction head and is used to drive the suction head to rotate back and forth between a horizontal position and a vertical position.

3. The selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes according to claim 2, characterized in that: An L-shaped limit baffle is arranged on the L-shaped connecting plate, the free end of the L-shaped limit baffle extends toward the suction head position, and a limit pin extending downward is arranged on the L-shaped limit baffle, and the limit pin is used to limit the rotation angle of the suction head in the horizontal position.

4. The selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes according to claim 1, characterized in that: The central axis of the columnar tube bin is connected to the motor through a synchronous belt transmission mechanism, and the motor drives the columnar tube bin to rotate around its central axis through the synchronous belt transmission mechanism.

5. The selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes according to claim 4, characterized in that: The motor and the columnar tube bin are mounted between a second parallel vertical side plate and a third vertical side plate. A synchronous belt transmission mechanism is arranged on the back of the third vertical side plate. Two synchronous wheels of the synchronous belt transmission mechanism are coaxially connected to one end of the central axis and the output shaft of the motor respectively.

6. The selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes according to claim 5, characterized in that: A U-shaped groove extending upward is provided at the bottom of the second vertical side plate, one side of the opening of the U-shaped groove faces the suction head, and the other side faces the tube hole. The opening size is consistent with the width of the suction head, and the suction head can pass through the U-shaped groove and face the tube hole.

7. The selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes according to claim 5, characterized in that: The tube holes adopt a through-hole structure, and a plurality of air blowing through-holes are arranged on the back side of the third vertical side plate. These air blowing through-holes are respectively connected to a tube hole in each circle of tube holes, and are respectively connected to a gas generating device. The gas generating device is used to blow air into the corresponding tube hole through the air blowing through-hole, so that the biological sample tube inside the tube hole can smoothly enter the suction head.

8. The selection execution structure for low-temperature storage of biological sample tubes according to claim 5, characterized in that: A U-shaped groove is opened on the outer surface of the columnar tube bin along its central axis direction, and the transmitting end and the receiving end of the optical fiber sensor are arranged at the two ends of the U-shaped groove facing the second vertical side plate and the third vertical side plate.

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