Automatic nucleic acid extraction module

By designing an automated nucleic acid extraction module that integrates the sample receiving area, the magnetic rod sleeve unloading area and the automated extraction area, the shortcomings of the existing modules in terms of integration and operation efficiency are solved, and more efficient sample processing and nucleic acid extraction are achieved.

CN222961432UActive Publication Date: 2025-06-10XIAN TIANLONG SCI & TECH +1
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Patent Information

Application Number
CN202421778994.5
Authority / Receiving Office
CN · China
Patent Type
Utility models(China)
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2024-07-25
Publication Date
2025-06-10
Estimated Expiration
2034-07-25

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

The existing automated nucleic acid extraction modules have shortcomings in terms of integration and operational efficiency, which has affected the accuracy and efficiency of the detection results.

Method used

An automated nucleic acid extraction module is designed, integrating the sample receiving area, the magnetic rod sleeve unloading area and the automated extraction area, and a drivingly moving pipetting unit, a consumable clamping transfer unit and a tube clamping unit. Through the arrangement of a common slide rail and a common guide rod, independent driving and efficient coordinated work of different functional units are achieved.

Benefits of technology

It improves the integration and operation efficiency of the module, reduces interference between functional units, realizes more efficient sample processing and nucleic acid extraction, and reduces the risk of contamination and operational complexity.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Patent Text Reader

Abstract

The utility model discloses an automatic nucleic acid extraction module which comprises at least one extraction mechanism, the extraction mechanism is configured in an extraction chamber comprising an independent air duct, the top end of the extraction chamber comprises an extraction electric door capable of being automatically opened and closed, and the extraction chamber further comprises a quality control product receiving part. The quality control product receiving part and the extraction mechanism are at least partially stacked, the quality control product receiving part comprises a quality control bearing disc which can be driven to move between a quality control adding position and a quality control liquid moving position, and the quality control product receiving part further comprises a transmission channel penetrating through the width direction of the extraction module; the consumable clamping and transferring unit, the liquid transferring unit, the tubular clamping unit, the sample tube opening and closing cover unit and the sample tube transferring unit are stacked in the space, so that the overall layout of the automatic extraction module is more compact, more functional units can be arranged, the operation strokes of different functional units are shortened, and the operation is more efficient.
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Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application designs an automated integration device used in the technical field of medical devices, and specifically designs an automated nucleic acid extraction module. Background Art

[0002] In vitro diagnostic technology is a very important diagnosis and treatment solution that has emerged with the development of modern medicine. Its analysis objects include in vitro tissues, secretions, swab preservation solutions, blood, etc. The diagnostic process has little to do with the living body to be diagnosed, so it has strong practicability. Among them, molecular diagnosis targeting nucleic acid sequences, because its detection object is the biological genetic material sequence, has the characteristics of strong specificity and high detection accuracy, so it is widely used in various industries. In animal husbandry, it can screen various diseases as early as possible, and then quickly cut off the possible disease transmission chain to ensure the property safety of farmers; in medicine, it can be used as the basis for early treatment and precise medication guidance; of course, it is also widely used in other industries, such as evidence inspection in criminalistics, sample analysis in experimental science, etc. With the increasing demand for detection and the restriction of the requirement for low pollution risk in detection operations, the streamlined batch processing of detection samples has become the optimal solution to solve the contradictions existing in the use of existing equipment, such as the increasing detection volume and the higher requirement for the accuracy of detection results.

[0003] A pipelined automated system usually includes multiple integrated modules. Different sample processing operations can be run within each module. The pipelined system can be formed by splicing and assembling at the customer site. In the solution disclosed in Chinese invention patent CN109313209A, each module is configured as a plurality of module structures that are easy to splice. Each single module is convenient to transport and relatively small in size. After being shipped to the client, different modules can be quickly spliced by only adjusting the feet, etc. to obtain a pipelined automatic processing system with large-scale processing capabilities. Of course, some other influential in vitro diagnostic companies, such as Roche, Beckman, Siemens, etc., have all designed pipelined automatic processing systems. The automated processing systems of different companies can also perform detections of different targets and different projects. There are actually great differences in the overall layout and module design details. The system mainly includes a pretreatment module, which can mainly perform preprocessing operations such as the storage, transfer, and recycling of sample tube racks; a pretreatment module, which can perform pretreatment on the samples in the sample tube racks, such as transfer and extraction; a reaction system construction module, which can add different types of reaction reagents to the analyte solution obtained by pretreatment in a reaction container to construct a reaction system suitable for different types of detections; a reaction module, which can perform different types of detections on the reaction system transferred from the previous module in the reaction container or flowingly introduce it into a flow-through detection cell to output the detection results. Almost no operator intervention is required throughout the entire system. US Patent Application US20180313861A1 discloses a multi-functional transfer mechanism used in conjunction with a pipelined system. The provided sample tube transfer and delivery mechanism can transfer the sample tubes to be processed in the form of a whole rack to different processing modules for detection and processing. However, the flow path of this solution is relatively complex, and the multi-functional transfer mechanism occupies a large space and has a relatively high application cost. Japanese Patent JP6573547B2 configures the sample tube rack loading, adding, processing, and recycling beside the system construction and detection modules, and centrally configures the loading and recycling mechanisms. This configuration also has problems such as too long a flow path and low space utilization rate of the system. CN107462739B authorizes a method for supplement control of consumables (including consumable materials, reagents, etc.) used in conjunction with a pipelined detection system, which can cooperate with the system to perform continuous detections without interruption. This method needs to cooperate with the corresponding automated processing system. The realization of all the above functions depends on the design of highly integrated modules. Although the existing designs have carried out a certain degree of integrated design, the cost is very high and a relatively large number of special consumables are used. As a result, the inspection cost of the objects to be detected will be very high, which does not meet the overall requirements of the current medical development in our country.

[0004] Therefore, it is very necessary to design an automated nucleic acid extraction module with a higher degree of integration, and different functional mechanisms can be configured within the module to most reliably and efficiently perform all automated extraction operations. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of the present application is to provide an automated nucleic acid extraction module, which integrates a sample receiving area, a magnetic rod sleeve unloading area and an automated extraction area, and is configured with a pipetting unit, a consumable clamping and transfer unit, and a tube clamping unit that can be driven to move.

[0006] To achieve the above purpose, the present application provides the following technical solutions:

[0007] An automated nucleic acid extraction module includes at least one extraction mechanism, the extraction mechanism is configured in an extraction chamber including an independent air duct, and an extraction electric door that can automatically open and close is provided at the top of the extraction chamber; it also includes a quality control product receiving part, the quality control product receiving part is at least partially stacked with the extraction mechanism, the quality control product receiving part includes a quality control receiving tray, and the quality control receiving tray can be driven to move between a quality control addition position and a quality control pipetting position; it also includes a transmission channel running through the width direction of the extraction module, as well as a consumable clamping and transfer unit, a pipetting unit, a tube clamping unit, a sample tube lid opening and closing unit, and a sample tube transfer unit.

[0008] In some embodiments, the consumable clamping and transfer unit is configured on a first cross beam that can slide in the depth direction of the module, and the pipetting unit and the tube clamping unit are configured on a second cross beam that can move in the depth direction of the module.

[0009] In some embodiments, a common slide rail and a common guide rod are configured in the depth direction of the module. One end of each of the length directions of the two ends of the first cross beam and the second cross beam is respectively connected to the common slide rail in an embedded manner, and the other end opposite thereto is connected to the common guide rod in a rolling manner. The two cross beams are respectively driven and connected by a first cross beam driving motor and a second cross beam driving motor through corresponding transmission mechanisms, so that the first cross beam and the second cross beam can slide along the common slide rail with low resistance.

[0010] In some embodiments, it further includes a third cross beam fixed in the module, and a sample tube lid opening and closing unit and a sample tube transfer unit are respectively provided on two configured sides in the width direction of the third cross beam.

[0011] In some embodiments, the sample tube lid opening and closing unit is configured on a lid opening and closing fixed side plate fixedly connected perpendicular to the third cross beam.

[0012] In some embodiments, a sample tube clamping and transfer mechanism is configured below the third cross beam, which includes a sample tube clamping and transfer unit that can be driven to move to multiple different positions to cooperate in performing sample tube transfer, sample tube lid opening and closing, and sample liquid pipetting.

[0013] In some embodiments, a unloading mechanism is further included. The unloading mechanism includes a unloading extension beam configured in the module along its depth direction, and a unloading extension guide rail is fixed on the unloading extension beam. The unloading extension driving motor is fixedly connected to the unloading extension beam, and its output shaft is connected with a unloading extension driving wheel. A unloading extension driven wheel is also fixedly arranged along the length direction of the unloading extension beam at a preset distance from it. A unloading extension belt is wound between the unloading extension driving wheel and the unloading extension driven wheel, and a unloading extension connecting block is connected to one side of the unloading extension belt. The longitudinal substrate connected to the unloading unit is fitted and connected with the unloading extension guide rail and fixedly connected with the unloading extension connecting block.

[0014] In some embodiments, a unloading lifting driving motor is arranged on the longitudinal substrate. The output shaft of the unloading lifting driving motor is connected with a unloading lifting driving lead screw. The unloading lifting driving lead screw is threadedly connected with a unloading lifting connecting block, and the unloading lifting connecting block is connected to the unloading unit.

[0015] In some embodiments, a pipetting consumable receiving area is further arranged adjacent to the transfer channel. A unloading receiving position and a pipetting receiving position of the unloading mechanism are arranged in parallel with the pipetting consumable receiving area in the width direction of the module.

[0016] In some embodiments, a sample tube rack conveying part is further included. It can receive the sample tube rack to be pipetted from other modules through the sample tube rack input port, and can output the sample tube rack that has completed the sample liquid pipetting to other modules through the sample tube rack output port.

[0017] Due to the adoption of the above technical solutions, the beneficial effects of the present application are as follows:

[0018] 1. By configuring at least part of the extraction mechanism and the quality control receiving part in the module in a stacked state, the present application can arrange more functional units to the greatest extent in a limited space, making the integration degree of the automatic nucleic acid extraction module higher. The consumable clamping and transferring unit is arranged on the first cross beam that can slide along the depth direction of the module, and the pipetting unit and the tube clamping unit are arranged on the second cross beam that can move along the depth direction of the module. In this way, different functional units can be independently driven. The arrangement of the common slide rail and the common guide rod makes the movement trajectories of different functional units in the module more consistent, and also ensures that the drive control configuration of different functional units is simpler. At the same time, the fixed configuration of the third cross beam enables the functional units configured on it to have an overlap in the operation timing with the functional units on the first cross beam and the second cross beam, which can improve the operation efficiency and at the same time minimize the interference problems during the operation of each functional unit.

[0019] 2. On two configured sides in the width direction of the third cross beam, a sample tube switch cover unit and a sample tube transfer unit are respectively connected, which can maximize the use of the module's depth space. A sample tube clamping and transfer mechanism is configured below the third cross beam, which includes a sample tube clamping and transfer unit that can be driven to move to multiple different positions to cooperate in performing sample tube transfer, sample tube switch covering, and sample liquid pipetting. In this way, it can ensure that the open state of the sample tube only exists briefly at different operating positions, and the driving of the sample tube clamping and transfer mechanism can enable the open sample tube to complete the pipetting operation of the sample liquid along the shortest path and at the fastest speed, reducing the risk of contamination. The unloading unit in the unloading mechanism integrated in the module is only configured with two degrees of freedom of movement, which simplifies the motion drive and can also avoid interference with other functional units such as the pipetting unit and the consumable clamping and transfer unit as much as possible.

[0020] 3. The lifting motion of the unloading mechanism uses a lead screw slider drive, which has higher motion accuracy and is more suitable for the scenario with high-precision requirements for the motion position of the magnetic rod sleeve unloading. The pipetting consumable receiving area, unloading receiving position, and pipetting receiving position are arranged side by side in the width direction of the module, which can maximize the use of the space in the width direction of the module to ensure the simplicity of the system layout. At the same time, it also makes the operation paths of functional units such as the pipetting unit and the consumable clamping and transfer unit shorter and clearer. The configuration of the sample tube rack conveying part can automatically realize the inflow and outflow of the sample tube rack, which is more suitable for the continuous operation scenario of mass-produced products. Description of the Drawings

[0021] Figure 1 is the structural diagram of the automated nucleic acid extraction module provided by the present utility model;

[0022] Figures 2 - 6 is a schematic diagram of the consumable clamping and transfer unit in the automated nucleic acid extraction module provided by the present utility model being driven to transfer the extraction consumables from the extraction consumable receiving part to the unloading receiving position;

[0023] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of two moving cross beams and the functional units configured thereon provided by the present utility model;

[0024] Figure 8 and Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of the fixed-type cross beam and the functional units configured on two configured sides in its width direction provided by the present utility model;

[0025] Figure 10 is the state diagram of the unloading mechanism performing the transfer and unloading of the magnetic rod sleeve provided by the present utility model. Detailed Embodiment

[0026] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this application clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of this application. Obviously, the described embodiments are some, rather than all, of the embodiments of this application. Components of the embodiments of this application described and illustrated herein generally may be arranged and designed in a variety of different configurations.

[0027] Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of this application provided in the accompanying drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed application, but is merely representative of selected embodiments of this application. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of this application without creative efforts shall fall within the scope of protection of this application.

[0028] It should be noted that like reference numerals and letters denote like items in the following drawings. Therefore, once an item is defined in one drawing, it need not be further defined and explained in subsequent drawings.

[0029] Nucleic acid extraction is an essential operation for diagnostic techniques that use nucleic acid fragments as detection targets. Its quality will affect the entire detection result, and the execution efficiency of extraction also directly affects the output efficiency of subsequent nucleic acid detection results. There are many devices or modules for automated extraction, but these devices require operators to manually load samples, manually unload the magnetic rod sleeves after extraction, and manually package the extraction consumables in the used state. This results in low efficiency and a high risk of contamination. In fact, to obtain accurate amplification results, a more highly automated module design is particularly important, especially the design of an automated extraction module. The automated extraction module itself requires many operation steps to be performed, and relatively speaking, the operation process is also long. Integrating more functional units in a limited space and being able to drive the operation of each unit with less interference or more simply to perform different functional operations is very important for the design of an automated extraction module.

[0030] Figure 1This is the structural diagram of the automated nucleic acid extraction module provided by the present utility model; the overall configuration of the automated extraction module is a cube structure, and different functional units are arranged in its hollow part. A quality control addition part is arranged at the front of the module. The quality control addition port 2011 can be connected in a buckling manner with a quality control shutter that can be automatically or manually opened and closed. The quality control products added here can include positive quality control products, calibration products or reference standards for quantitative detection, etc. A recovery drawer is also provided, which is arranged in the recovery part 270 with a negative pressure state and low pollution risk. When it is necessary to centrally process the pipette tips or magnetic rod sleeves to be recovered, the recovery drawer can be automatically driven to open the recovery shutter buckled and connected in front of the recovery part 270. A consumable recovery packaging bag can be sleeved in the recovery drawer, so that the operator can seal the packaging bag filled with waste consumables, realizing low-pollution recovery operation, and during the operation of the module, the automatic recovery of consumables can be realized basically without additional intervention by the operator. In this embodiment, the extraction mechanism 240 is arranged between the quality control addition part and the recovery part 270 and is close to the front-end area of the module, so that the operation is more convenient when the extraction mechanism 240 needs to be repaired and maintained. At the same time, sufficient accommodation space is reserved for arranging other functional units in the depth direction. Here, the extraction mechanism 240 includes an independent partition board to form an independent extraction negative pressure area, which is connected through an extraction negative pressure fan and an extraction negative pressure air duct, and can form an extraction negative pressure area in the extraction mechanism 240 to reduce the risk of contamination during the extraction process. The quality control product receiving part includes a quality control addition position 201 and a quality control pipetting position 202. A quality control slide rail 2021 communicating with the two is arranged between the two different quality control operation positions. The quality control receiving tray can be driven to slide between the quality control addition position 201 and the quality control pipetting position 202 to receive the quality control reagent bottle or cooperate with the pipetting unit to transfer the quality control product to a part of the sample receiving well unit of the extraction consumable. Here, the extraction mechanism 240 and the quality control product receiving part at least partially overlap in the horizontal plane projection of the automated extraction module, so that the height direction space of the extraction module can be fully utilized, ensuring the compactness of the structure. This embodiment also includes a quality control product addition control part, which can synthesize the operator's quality control product addition instruction and the operation state of the extraction mechanism, and output an instruction to drive the quality control receiving tray to be driven to the quality control addition position to perform the update of the quality control product, so as to comprehensively determine whether the addition of the quality control product can be performed without interference. For example, when the extraction mechanism 240 is performing the extraction operation, the quality control product addition control part can combine the operator's quality control product addition instruction and drive the quality control receiving tray to move to the quality control addition position 201 to perform the addition of the quality control product. When the extraction mechanism 240 completes the extraction and the consumable transfer clamping unit is driven to transfer the consumables, the quality control product addition control part can output a waiting instruction to reserve enough time to perform the current extraction consumable transfer operation to ensure that each operation will not interfere with each other.The addition of quality control products can enable the addition of positive quality control to control the operation quality of the extraction system. It can also achieve quantitative detection by adding calibration products to basically accurately quantify the original concentration of the target. In this way, the application scenarios of the entire system can be maximally expanded (both qualitative and quantitative detection are possible). The transmission channel 210 in the middle position runs through the width direction of the automatic extraction module and can transfer extraction consumables and / or reagent kits, etc. Adjacent to the transmission channel 210, a pipetting consumable receiving area 232 is also configured, which can store the pipetting consumables transferred by the transmission channel and enable the pipetting unit to pick up the pipetting tips at a relatively fixed position to transfer samples or quality control products. The pipetting consumables here can be arranged in an array on a pipetting consumable box or a pipetting consumable rack. There is also a pipetting receiving position 231, on which extraction consumables transferred by the transmission channel 210 can be configured. The extraction consumables transferred in the transmission channel here are in the same direction as the extraction consumables received by the pipetting receiving position 231. In this way, the consumable clamping and transfer unit 161 can quickly and efficiently configure the extraction consumables transferred from other modules in place, and the pipetting unit can also quickly transfer the sample liquid or quality control products into the well unit of the extraction consumables. An unloading mechanism is also configured in the area adjacent to the transmission channel. In the mechanism, an unloading receiving position 220 is configured to receive the extraction consumables in a direction different from that of the extraction consumables in the pipetting receiving position 231. Among them, the pipetting consumable receiving area 232, the unloading receiving position 220 of the unloading mechanism, and the pipetting receiving position 231 are arranged side by side in the width direction of the module, ensuring the compactness of the module. The unloading unit 141 can be driven to move along the depth direction of the automatic extraction module, and then complete the intake of the magnetic rod sleeve in the used extraction consumables in the unloading receiving position 220, and then move to the magnetic rod sleeve recovery port arranged at an interval from it to complete the unloading of the magnetic rod sleeve; in a deeper direction, a sample tube clamping and transfer mechanism is configured, which includes a sample tube clamping and transfer unit that can be driven to move to multiple different positions to cooperate in performing sample tube transfer, sample tube lid opening and closing, and sample liquid pipetting. In cooperation with the sample tube clamping and transfer unit, a sample tube transfer unit 171 is also configured in the automatic extraction module, which can transfer the sample tube in the sample tube rack from the sample tube rack transfer area 250 to the clamping and transfer unit. Then, the clamping and transfer unit is driven to run a preset distance, and the sample tube lid opening and closing unit can cooperate with the clamping and transfer unit to perform the lid opening operation of the sample tube. Then, the open-lid sample tube is driven by the clamping and transfer unit to move another preset distance. At this time, the pipetting unit 111. Figure 6It can be driven to transfer a certain amount of sample liquid from the sample tube in the open state to the well unit corresponding to the extraction consumable in the pipetting receiving position 231. The sample tube in the open state that has completed the addition can be driven to return, and can cooperate with the sample tube lid opening / closing unit to re-seal the sample tube, and finally return to the initial suitable transfer position to cooperate with the sample tube transfer unit 171 to put the sample tube that has completed pipetting back into the sample tube rack. In this embodiment, a sample tube rack conveying part 260 is also configured, which can receive the sample tube rack to be pipetted from other modules through the sample tube rack input port 261, and can output the sample tube rack that has completed sample liquid pipetting to other modules through the sample tube rack output port 262. In order to ensure a certain anti-pollution performance in the module, a first air outlet 151 and 152 are also configured at the top of the module, and a wind guiding component 150 is also configured and can filter and discharge the environmental air in the module through the fan component configured therein, achieving the effect of reducing the pollution risk of the module.

[0031] Figures 2 - 6It is a schematic diagram of the consumable clamping and transfer unit in the automated nucleic acid extraction module provided by the present utility model being driven to transfer the extraction consumable from the extraction consumable receiving part 241 to the unloading receiving position 220; in the sample well unit of the extraction consumable within the pipetting receiving position 231, a certain amount of sample liquid in the sample tube can be transferred. Here, the extraction consumable can be a commonly used type of 96-well deep well plate consumable, which includes 16 well units capable of receiving the sample liquid. In this way, the pipetting unit 111 can transfer the sample liquid in 15 sample tubes and a quality control reagent to form a loaded extraction consumable to be purified, or transfer the sample liquid in 16 sample tubes to 16 well units to form a loaded extraction consumable to be purified. In this way, the consumable clamping and transfer unit 161 can clamp the extraction consumable to be purified and be driven to move above the extraction consumable receiving part 241 of the extraction mechanism 240. Here, in the vertical space, the extraction mechanism 240 and the quality control product receiving part are at least partially stacked. The quality control receiving tray that has completed the quality control product receiving can be driven to move from the quality control addition position 201 to the quality control pipetting position 202. At this time, the original quality control addition position 201 presents an empty state, and the consumable clamping and transfer unit 161 can perform the transfer of the extraction consumable without interference. To ensure the relatively independent characteristics of the extraction mechanism 240 and the requirement of stable negative pressure, an extraction electric door that can automatically open and close is also configured at the top of the extraction mechanism 240. During the process of the consumable clamping and transfer unit 161 transferring the extraction consumable to the extraction consumable receiving part 241 or before the transfer, the extraction electric door driving motor 2431 can make it in the open state, so that the consumable clamping and transfer unit 161 transfers the extraction consumable to be purified into the extraction mechanism 240 through the extraction top opening 2430. After the transfer is completed, the consumable clamping and transfer unit 161 can be driven to withdraw from the extraction mechanism 240, and the extraction electric door driving motor 2431 closes the extraction electric door. The extraction consumable receiving part 241 is driven to move into the extraction mechanism 240 to complete the extraction and purification. During this process, the extraction consumables in the pipetting receiving position 231 and the extraction consumable receiving part 241 are configured in the same direction, and the axis direction of the length of the extraction consumable is parallel to the width direction of the automated extraction module. This direction is called the first direction of the extraction consumable configuration (of course, in some special cases, the axis direction of the length of the extraction consumable is basically parallel to the width direction of the automated extraction module or has an included angle not exceeding 10° can also ensure the compactness of the module). In this way, the consumable clamping and transfer unit 161 can quickly and accurately transfer the extraction consumable in place; the extraction consumable that has completed the extraction and purification can be driven out of the extraction mechanism 240 by the extraction consumable receiving part 241. The consumable clamping and transfer unit 161 can be driven to clamp the extraction consumable that has completed the purification and move it out of the extraction mechanism 240, such as Figure 3As shown, the extraction consumables removed from the extraction mechanism 240 need to be further transferred to the unloading mechanism to unload the used magnetic rod sleeves. During this process, the extraction electric door driving motor 2431 can close the extraction electric door. Under the action of negative pressure, the extraction mechanism 240 can quickly update the air in the extraction chamber, minimizing the risk of module contamination to the greatest extent. In this application, to ensure that the unloading mechanism can operate without interference in a confined space, the unloading receiving position 220 here can receive the extraction consumables that have completed extraction and purification in a second direction different from the first direction. The optimal configuration of the second direction here is a direction perpendicular to the first direction, that is, the axis direction of the length of the extraction consumables is parallel to the depth direction of the automated extraction module at this time (of course, in some special cases, the axis direction of the length of the extraction consumables is basically parallel to the depth direction of the automated extraction module or has an included angle not exceeding 10°), and perpendicular to the width direction of the automated extraction module. In this way, the unloading mechanism can be arranged side by side with the pipetting receiving position 231 and the pipetting consumables receiving area 232 without increasing the width dimension characteristics of the module. The unloading unit 141 can also be directly configured to slide on the unloading slide rail extending in the depth direction of the module, drive to slide to different positions to pick up the magnetic rod sleeves in the extraction consumables, and unload the magnetic rod sleeves at the magnetic rod sleeve recovery port. The entire movement drive does not involve the movement drive in the width direction of the module. The unloading slide rail is arranged at a lower position relative to the common slide rail 613 and the common guide rod 614 configured for the two cross beams, and the length of the unloading slide rail is less than the length of the common slide rail 613. In this way, it can also effectively avoid the first cross beam and / or the second cross beam that need to stay and operate at different positions in the depth direction of the module, and the operation drive control of the unloading mechanism is simpler. To ensure that the extraction consumables can be transferred accurately and efficiently, before the extraction consumables that have completed extraction and purification are placed at the unloading receiving position 220, the consumable clamping and transfer unit 161 can rotate a preset angle. The preset angle here can be 90°. In this way, the operation direction of the magnetic rod sleeve unloading can be changed to the greatest extent, enabling the module to configure more functions in the most compact state, and the interference risk between functional units is also smaller, such as Figures 3 - 4 During the transfer process of the extraction consumables, the consumable clamping and transfer unit 161 rotates 90° to change the configuration direction of the extraction consumables; Figure 5 and Figure 6It is shown that the consumable clamping and transferring unit 161 moves the extracted consumable to directly above the unloading receiving position 220 in the second direction. After that, the consumable clamping and transferring unit 161 is driven to drive the extracted consumable to descend, and finally the extracted consumable that has completed extraction and purification is placed thereon. The unloading mechanism can be driven to move in the depth direction to perform the uptake of the magnetic rod sleeve, and then transferred to the magnetic rod sleeve recovery port to perform the unloading operation of the taken-up magnetic rod sleeve. The extracted consumable that has completed unloading can be clamped and transferred by the consumable clamping and transferring unit 161 into the transmission channel, and then transferred to other modules for operations such as eluent transfer and extraction consumable recovery. Timely recovering the magnetic rod sleeve that has contacted the sample in this module simplifies the complexity of subsequent operations on the one hand and minimizes the risk of cross-contamination on the other hand. Similarly, before transferring into the transfer channel, the consumable clamping and transferring unit 161 can rotate a preset angle again to make the incoming and outgoing directions of the transmission of the extracted consumable the same. Here, the consumable clamping and transferring unit 161 can rotate 90° in the opposite direction to the previous rotation direction, or rotate 270° in the same direction as the previous one, so as to ensure that the extracted consumables in the system are oriented consistently and there will be no problem of hole position disorder. In this embodiment, in order to improve the processing efficiency of the extraction module, the extraction mechanism 240 includes two sub-extraction mechanisms.

[0032] Figure 7 It is a schematic diagram of two moving crossbeams and the functional units configured thereon provided by the present utility model. A common slide rail 613 and a common guide rod 614 are configured in the depth direction of the automatic extraction module. One end of each of the two lengthwise ends of the first crossbeam 10 and the second crossbeam 20 of the two crossbeams is respectively connected to the common slide rail 613 in an embedded manner, and the opposite end is connected to the common guide rod 614 in a rolling manner. The two crossbeams are respectively driven and connected by a first crossbeam driving motor 611 and a second crossbeam driving motor 612 through corresponding transmission mechanisms, so that the two crossbeams can slide along the common slide rail 613 with low resistance. A consumable clamping mechanism 160 is configured on the first crossbeam, and a consumable clamping and transferring unit 161 that can be driven to move vertically up and down is configured in the consumable clamping mechanism. In order to ensure that the consumable clamping and transferring unit 161 has sufficient stroke, its transmission mechanism is configured as a folding stroke transmission mechanism, so as to meet the demand for transferring extracted consumables in the scenario of long stroke requirements of the extraction mechanism 240 and the quality control product receiving part arranged in a stacked state; a combination mechanism 110 is also configured on the second crossbeam 20, and the combination mechanism includes a liquid transfer unit 111 and a tube clamping unit 112. The tube clamping unit 112 can perform the clamping of the sample tube, or the clamping and opening / closing of the quality control reagent tube, etc. The liquid transfer unit 111 can perform the liquid transfer operation of the sample liquid or the quality control product. Both include independent vertical driving motors and driving transmission mechanisms, so as to realize the independent up and down driving of the liquid transfer unit 111 and the tube clamping unit 112 respectively to perform operations such as liquid transfer, clamping, and opening / closing of the lid.

[0033] Figure 8and Figure 9It is a schematic diagram of a fixed-type cross beam provided by the present utility model and different functional units configured on two sides in the width direction thereof. A third cross beam 30 is also fixedly configured near the innermost position in the depth direction of the automation module. The fixed configuration of the third cross beam 30 reduces the interference risk during the operation of the first cross beam 10 and the second cross beam 20, and can also make the operation timings of the functional units on the third cross beam 30 and the functional units on the first cross beam or the second cross beam overlap, ensuring the high efficiency of system processing. And among the two configured sides in the width direction of the third cross beam, the configured side close to the unloading mechanism includes at least 1 sample tube switch cover unit, which is shown as two sample tube switch cover units here, the first switch cover unit 121 and the second switch cover unit 122. The two switch cover units are configured on the switch cover fixing side plate fixedly connected perpendicular to the third cross beam 30, so that the operating positions of the switch cover units and the sample tube clamping units can be at a greater distance, reducing the risk of aerosol contamination that may be generated by the sample tubes in the open state.Here, the switch cover lifting drive motor 1211 can output and connect to the switch cover lifting drive lead screw 1212. The switch cover lifting drive lead screw 1212 is threadedly engaged with the switch cover lifting connection block 1213. In this way, by rotating the switch cover lifting drive motor 1211 clockwise or counterclockwise, the switch cover unit 121 connected to the switch cover lifting connection block 1213 can be driven to move up or down. Here, the switch cover unit is only configured with lifting motion drive to ensure the fixation of the switch cover position, making its control drive simpler and the reliability of the switch cover operation higher. Below the third cross beam 30, a sample tube clamping and transfer mechanism is configured, which includes a sample tube clamping and transfer unit that can be driven to move to multiple different positions to cooperate in performing sample tube transfer, sample tube switch cover operation, and sample liquid aspiration transfer. Here, it is shown that the sample tube clamping and transfer mechanism and the sample tube switch cover mechanism have the same number of transfer units. In this way, operations such as pollution-free, efficient, and rapid sample tube transfer and switch cover can be achieved. The mechanism includes a first sample tube clamping and transfer unit 251 and a second sample tube clamping and transfer unit 252. The first sample tube clamping and transfer unit 251 can be driven by the clamping and transfer motor 2511 through the clamping and transfer drive mechanism to slide along the clamping and transfer guide rail 2514. The output shaft of the clamping and transfer motor 2511 is connected to the clamping and transfer drive wheel 2512 to rotate. At a preset distance from it, a clamping and transfer driven wheel is also arranged. A clamping and transfer drive belt 2513 is wound between the drive wheel and the driven wheel. In this way, when the clamping and transfer motor 2511 outputs clockwise or counterclockwise rotational motion, the clamping and transfer unit can be driven to different positions (of course, the second sample tube clamping and transfer unit also uses a similar drive and transmission mechanism). For example, when at the sample tube receiving position deepest in the depth direction, it can receive the sample tube clamped and transferred from the sample tube rack by the sample tube transfer unit and clamp and fix it. The sample tube clamping and transfer unit that has completed the reception can be driven to the switch cover operation position to cooperate with the switch cover unit to open the sample tube. The sample tube in the open state can be driven to the sample liquid aspiration position to cooperate with the liquid aspiration unit on the second cross beam 20 to aspirate and transfer a predetermined amount of sample liquid into the sample well unit of the extraction consumable. The open sample tube that has completed the liquid aspiration can be driven back to the switch cover operation position to perform the closing operation, and finally be driven to the sample tube receiving position to be transferred back to the sample tube rack. In this way, the opening time of the sample tube in the entire operation process is very short, and the control method is simple without the possibility of incorrect sample tube lid buckling; Figure 9Another configuration side opposite to the configuration side of the sample tube switch cover unit in the width direction of the third cross beam 30 is shown, which includes a sample tube transfer unit 171. A transfer slide rail 301 is arranged in the length direction of the third cross beam 30. The transfer slide rail 301 is fitted and connected with a transfer extension beam 310 through a connecting block. In this way, the transfer extension beam 310 can slide along the transfer slide rail 301 in the length direction of the third cross beam 30 driven by a driving motor. A transfer extension driving motor 311 can output to drive the assembly substrate of the sample tube transfer unit 171 to slide along a transfer extension slide rail 313 arranged in the length direction of the transfer extension beam 310. Here, the transfer extension transmission mechanism includes a transfer extension driving wheel 312 connected to the output shaft of the transfer extension driving motor 311, a transfer extension driven wheel arranged at a preset distance from it, and a transfer extension belt wound between the two. The assembly substrate of the sample tube transfer unit 171 is provided with a transfer vertical guide rail 1716, which is fitted and connected with the sample tube transfer unit 171. A transfer vertical driving motor 1711 can output rotational drive. Its output shaft is connected to a transfer vertical driving wheel 1712. A transfer vertical driven wheel 1714 is arranged below the driving wheel at a preset distance from it. A transfer vertical belt 1713 is wound between the two wheels. One side of it is connected with a transfer vertical connecting block 1715. By the clockwise or counterclockwise rotational movement of the transfer vertical driving motor 1711, the sample tube transfer unit 171 can be driven to realize vertical up and down movement drive. In this way, the sample tube transfer unit 171 can be driven to realize omnidirectional drive operation in the X, Y, and Z directions within a certain range, ensuring that the sample tubes at any position can be accurately and efficiently transferred. Here, a diagram showing that the clamping and transfer unit is driven to the sample tube receiving position to receive the sample tube transferred by the sample tube transfer unit 171 is shown.

[0034] Figure 10This is the transfer and unloading state diagram of the unloading mechanism for the magnetic rod sleeve provided by the present utility model. In this embodiment, in order to simplify the control complexity of the unloading mechanism and ensure that more functional units can be integrated within the module, the unloading mechanism includes an unloading extension beam 180 configured along the depth direction of the module, and an unloading extension guide rail 184 is fixed on the unloading extension beam 180. The unloading extension drive motor 181 is fixedly connected to the unloading extension beam 180, and its output shaft is connected to an unloading extension drive wheel 182. At a preset distance from it in the length direction of the unloading extension beam 180, an unloading extension driven wheel 186 is also fixed. An unloading extension belt 183 is wound between the two wheels, and an unloading extension connection block 185 is connected to one side of it. The longitudinal substrate connected to the unloading unit 141 is fitted and connected with the unloading extension guide rail 184 and fixedly connected to the unloading extension connection block 185. Thus, when the unloading extension drive motor 181 rotates clockwise or counterclockwise, the longitudinal substrate connected to the unloading unit 141 can be driven to slide along the unloading extension guide rail 184. An unloading lifting drive motor 1411 is configured on the longitudinal substrate, and the motor output is connected to an unloading lifting drive lead screw 1412. The unloading lifting drive lead screw 1412 is threadedly connected to an unloading lifting connection block 1414, and the unloading lifting connection block 1414 is connected to the unloading unit 141 of the magnetic rod sleeve. Thus, the unloading unit 141 can be driven to slide in the depth direction of the module and can be driven to move up and down to drive the intake and unloading operations of the magnetic rod sleeve. In order to achieve the unloading of the magnetic rod sleeve, an unloading drive motor 1415 is configured, which can cooperate with the position change of driving the unloading gear cutting movement to perform the unloading of the magnetic rod sleeve. The unloading mechanism does not require the movement drive in the width direction of the module, making its motion control simpler and not interfering with the operation of the first cross beam 10 and the second cross beam 20. The unloading unit 141 can be driven to perform the transfer and unloading operation of the magnetic rod sleeve between the unloading receiving position 220 and the magnetic rod sleeve recovery channel 2701.

[0035] It should be noted that the term "including", "comprising" or any other variant thereof is intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements not only includes those elements, but also includes other elements not expressly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. Without further limitation, an element defined by the statement "including a..." does not exclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the said element.

[0036] In the description of the present application, it should also be noted that, unless otherwise clearly specified and defined, the terms "arranged", "installed", "connected", and "coupled" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, it may be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it may be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it may be directly connected or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, and it may be the communication inside two components. For those of ordinary skill in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present application can be understood according to specific circumstances.

Claims

1. An automated nucleic acid extraction module, characterized in that: It comprises at least one extraction mechanism, which is arranged in an extraction chamber including an independent air duct, and the top of the extraction chamber is provided with an extraction electric door which can open and close automatically; it also comprises a quality control product receiving part, which is at least partially stacked with the extraction mechanism, and the quality control product receiving part comprises a quality control receiving plate, and the quality control receiving plate can be driven to move between a quality control addition position and a quality control transfer position; it also comprises a transmission channel which runs through the width direction of the extraction module, as well as a consumable clamping and transferring unit, a transfer unit, a tubular clamping unit, a sample tube switch cover unit and a sample tube transfer unit.

2. The automated nucleic acid extraction module according to claim 1, wherein: The consumable material clamping and transferring unit is arranged on a first span beam capable of sliding along the depth direction of the module, and the pipetting unit and the tubular clamping unit are arranged on a second span beam capable of moving along the depth direction of the module.

3. The automated nucleic acid extraction module according to claim 2, wherein: A common slide rail and a common guide rod are arranged in the depth direction of the module. One end of the two ends in the length direction of the first span beam and the second span beam is respectively connected to the common slide rail in an engaging manner, and the other end opposite thereto is rollingly connected to the common guide rod. The two span beams are respectively driven and connected by the first span beam driving motor and the second span beam driving motor through corresponding transmission mechanisms, so that the first span beam and the second span beam can slide along the common slide rail with low resistance.

4. The automated nucleic acid extraction module according to claim 2, wherein: It also includes a third span beam fixed in the module, and two configuration sides in the width direction of the third span beam are respectively provided with a sample tube switch cover unit and a sample tube transfer unit.

5. The automated nucleic acid extraction module according to claim 4, wherein: The sample tube switch cover unit is arranged on a switch cover fixing side plate which is fixedly connected vertically to the third span beam.

6. The automated nucleic acid extraction module according to claim 4, wherein: A sample tube clamping and transferring mechanism is arranged below the third span beam, which includes a sample tube clamping and transferring unit that can be driven to move to a plurality of different positions to cooperate in executing sample tube transfer, sample tube cover opening and closing, and sample liquid aspiration.

7. The automated nucleic acid extraction module according to claim 1, wherein: It also includes an unloading mechanism, which includes an unloading extension beam arranged in the module along the depth direction thereof, and an unloading extension guide rail is fixed on the unloading extension beam, and an unloading extension drive motor is fixedly connected to the unloading extension beam, and its output shaft is connected to an unloading extension drive wheel, and an unloading extension driven wheel is also fixed at a preset distance from the unloading extension drive wheel in the length direction of the unloading extension beam; an unloading extension belt is wound between the unloading extension drive wheel and the unloading extension driven wheel, and an unloading extension connecting block is connected to one side of the unloading unit, and the longitudinal substrate connected to the unloading unit is engaged and connected to the unloading extension guide rail, and is fixedly connected to the unloading extension connecting block.

8. The automated nucleic acid extraction module according to claim 7, wherein: An unloading lifting drive motor is arranged on the longitudinal substrate, the output shaft of the unloading lifting drive motor is connected with an unloading lifting drive screw rod, the unloading lifting drive screw rod is threadedly connected with an unloading lifting connection block, and the unloading lifting connection block is connected with the unloading unit.

9. The automated nucleic acid extraction module according to claim 1, wherein: A pipetting consumables receiving area is also arranged adjacent to the transmission channel, and an unloading receiving position and a pipetting receiving position of an unloading mechanism are arranged in parallel with the pipetting consumables receiving area in the width direction of the module.

10. The automated nucleic acid extraction module according to claim 1, wherein: It also comprises a sample tube rack conveying part, which can receive the sample tube rack to be pipetted from other modules through the sample tube rack input port, and can output the sample tube rack on which the sample liquid pipetting has been completed to other modules through the sample tube rack output port.

Citation Information

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