Capillary tube cleaning device

Abstract

The utility model discloses a capillary tube cleaning device which comprises an injection pump, a switching valve, a confluence plate and a liquid storage unit. The switching valve is provided with a common port and a plurality of branch ports, and one branch port is communicated with the common port; the confluence plate is provided with at least one liquid input port and a cleaning port, and an adapter connected with a capillary tube is mounted at the cleaning port; the liquid storage unit comprises a plurality of liquid storage bottles; the output end of the injection pump is communicated with the public port, and the plurality of branch ports are respectively communicated with the liquid input port or the plurality of liquid storage bottles through pipelines; the device needs little manual maintenance after being installed and used once, so that the labor cost can be greatly saved; the cleaning liquid can be partially recycled, and the reagent cost can be saved for the cleaning liquid with high price; the cleaning program can be edited and customized, and the cleaning process is automatically operated, so that the capillary tube is automatically cleaned.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of medical device cleaning, and particularly relates to a capillary cleaning device. Background Art

[0002] This capillary cleaning device is mainly applicable to the cleaning of capillaries used in capillary electrophoresis instruments, and can also be applicable to the cleaning of pipelines or liquid paths of other similar capillaries, but mainly applicable to the cleaning of capillaries used in medical device equipment.

[0003] After the capillary is used for a specified number of times, it needs to be cleaned. Otherwise, capillary contamination and blockage will occur, affecting the experimental test results. The capillary cleaning frequency is mainly related to the experimental frequency, sample type, and experimental repeatability. If the capillary electrophoresis instrument is used frequently, such as conducting experiments daily or multiple times a week, the risk of capillary contamination and blockage will increase. Therefore, it is recommended to clean the capillary after each experiment or regularly during the experimental interval. Different samples have different degrees of adsorption and contamination on the inner wall of the capillary. For example, experiments using surfactants such as SDS or CTAB may increase the contamination of the inner wall of the capillary, so more frequent cleaning is required. If the experimental repeatability is poor, it may be due to the contamination or adsorbents on the inner wall of the capillary. At this time, the number of cleaning times should be increased, and different cleaning methods should be tried to improve the experimental repeatability.

[0004] There are mainly the following several capillary cleaning methods:

[0005] 1: Positive pressure cleaning with a syringe. Draw the cleaning solution with a syringe, then connect the syringe and the capillary with an adapter, and generate high pressure in the syringe by pushing the syringe manually or electrically. The high-pressure cleaning solution will flow through the capillary interior through the adapter, and clean the capillary by positive pressure cleaning.

[0006] 2: Negative pressure cleaning. Negative pressure cleaning is just the opposite of positive pressure cleaning. Connect the syringe and the capillary with an adapter, and generate negative pressure inside the syringe by pulling the syringe manually or electrically. The other end of the capillary is connected to the cleaning solution. Due to the negative pressure effect, the cleaning solution will flow through the capillary to the syringe, and clean the capillary by negative pressure cleaning.

[0007] 3: Ultrasonic cleaning. For severely contaminated or blocked capillaries, ultrasonic cleaners can be considered for cleaning. Immerse the capillary in the cleaning solution and use the cavitation effect and rectilinear flow of ultrasonic waves to remove dirt.

[0008] Although the above three methods can clean the capillary to a certain extent, they have defects and drawbacks in terms of cleaning cost, operation convenience, cleaning thoroughness, and automation.

[0009] In addition to the above methods, there are physical cleaning methods and chemical solution cleaning methods, but such methods generally can only clean the outside of the capillary tube and cannot clean the inside of the capillary tube. Summary of the Utility Model

[0010] The utility model provides a capillary cleaning device, which can solve at least one problem pointed out in the background technology.

[0011] A capillary cleaning device includes: an injection pump;

[0012] A switching valve having a common port and a plurality of branch ports, and one of the branch ports is communicated with the common port;

[0013] A manifold having at least one liquid input port and a cleaning port, and a adapter connected to the capillary tube is installed at the cleaning port; and

[0014] A liquid storage unit including a plurality of liquid storage bottles;

[0015] Wherein, the output end of the injection pump is communicated with the common port, and several branch ports are respectively communicated with the liquid input port or a plurality of liquid storage bottles through pipelines.

[0016] Preferably, the manifold further has an interface communicated with the outside, and a solenoid valve I is installed on the interface.

[0017] Preferably, the manifold further has a waste discharge port, and a solenoid valve II is installed on the waste discharge port, and the waste discharge port is communicated with a waste liquid bottle in the liquid storage unit through a pipeline.

[0018] Preferably, it further includes a pressure sensor and a microcontroller, the pressure sensor and the switching valve are electrically connected to the microcontroller, and the pressure sensor is arranged on the manifold for detecting the internal hydraulic pressure value of the manifold.

[0019] Preferably, the liquid storage unit includes a waste liquid bottle, a pure water bottle and a plurality of cleaning liquid bottles.

[0020] Preferably, the manifold has at least two liquid input ports, and the plurality of liquid input ports are respectively communicated with the plurality of branch ports in one-to-one correspondence through a plurality of pipelines.

[0021] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the utility model are:

[0022] 1. Economy: After this device is installed and used once, it rarely needs manual maintenance, which can greatly save labor costs; the cleaning liquid can be partially recycled, and the reagent cost can be saved for expensive cleaning liquids.

[0023] 2. Cleaning degree: The capillary tube can be thoroughly cleaned to restore the performance of the capillary tube to its original state.

[0024] 3: Automation. The cleaning program is editable and customizable, and the cleaning process runs automatically, enabling the automation of capillary cleaning. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] Figure 1 is the structural schematic diagram of the present utility model;

[0026] Figure 2 is the structural diagram of the switching valve of the present utility model;

[0027] Figure 3 is the structural diagram of the manifold plate of the present utility model.

[0028] DESCRIPTION OF THE REFERENCE NUMERALS:

[0029] 1 - syringe pump, 2 - switching valve, 3 - common port, 4 - branch port, 5 - waste liquid bottle, 6 - pure water bottle, 7 - cleaning liquid bottle 1, 8 - cleaning liquid bottle 2, 9 - manifold plate, 10 - liquid input port, 11 - cleaning port, 12 - waste discharge port, 13 - solenoid valve 1, 14 - solenoid valve 2, 15 - pressure sensor, 16 - microcontroller, 17 - capillary. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0030] Next, with reference to the drawings, a specific embodiment of the present utility model will be described in detail. However, it should be understood that the protection scope of the present utility model is not limited by the specific embodiment.

[0031] As Figures 1 to 3 shown, a capillary cleaning device provided by an embodiment of the present utility model includes a syringe pump 1, a switching valve 2, a liquid storage unit, and a manifold plate 9;

[0032] Among them, the switching valve 2 has a common port 3 and a plurality of branch ports 4. The switching valve 2 can connect the common port 3 to any one of the branch ports 4. The syringe pump 1 is connected to the common port 3. The plurality of branch ports 4 of the switching valve 2 in this embodiment are respectively port A, port B, port C, port D, port E, and port F;

[0033] The liquid storage unit includes a plurality of liquid storage bottles. Specifically, the plurality of liquid storage bottles in this embodiment are respectively a waste liquid bottle 5, a pure water bottle 6, and a plurality of cleaning liquid bottles. In this embodiment, two cleaning liquid bottles are taken as an example, namely cleaning liquid bottle 1 7 and cleaning liquid bottle 2 8. The above-mentioned liquid storage bottles are respectively connected to the plurality of branch ports 4 one by one through pipelines;

[0034] The manifold 9 has a cavity inside. The manifold 9 has an interface communicating with the outside world, at least one liquid inlet 10, a cleaning port 11, and a waste discharge port 12. An electromagnetic valve one 13 is installed on the interface communicating with the outside world, and an electromagnetic valve two 14 is installed on the waste discharge port 12. The waste discharge port 12 is connected to the waste liquid bottle 5 through a pipeline. A connector connected to the capillary 17 is installed at the cleaning port 11, and the liquid inlet 10 is connected to one of the multiple branch ports 4 through a pipeline.

[0035] In addition, to detect the hydraulic pressure value inside the manifold 9, this embodiment further includes a pressure sensor 15 and a microcontroller 16. The pressure sensor 15, the electromagnetic valve one 13, the electromagnetic valve two 14, and the switching valve 2 are all electrically connected to the microcontroller 16. The pressure sensor 15 is arranged on the manifold 9 to detect the hydraulic pressure value inside the manifold 9.

[0036] In addition, for redundancy, as Figure 1 shown, the manifold 9 has at least two liquid inlets 10. In this embodiment, taking two liquid inlets 10 as an example, the two liquid inlets 10 are respectively connected to the A port and the E port through multiple pipelines in a corresponding manner.

[0037] The following are the usage steps of this embodiment:

[0038] Step 1: Clean the capillary 17 with pure water:

[0039] Connect the capillary 17 to the cleaning port 11 of the manifold 9 with a connector. The microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch the passage to the B port. The microcontroller 16 controls the syringe pump 1 to extract a certain volume of pure water. The microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch to the A port. The microcontroller 16 controls the electromagnetic valve two 14 to open. The microcontroller 16 controls the syringe pump 1 to inject the just-extracted pure water into the manifold 9 through the pipeline. Repeat the same fixed steps to extract another tube of pure water and inject it into the manifold 9. Then the microcontroller 16 closes the electromagnetic valve two 14. The microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch the passage to the B port. The microcontroller 16 controls the syringe pump 1 to extract a certain volume of pure water. The microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch to the A port. The microcontroller 16 controls the syringe pump 1 to inject the just-extracted pure water into the manifold 9 through the pipeline. Repeat the same fixed steps to collect another tube of pure water and inject it into the manifold 9. Under the filling of pure water, the pressure inside the manifold 9 continuously rises. When the pressure value reaches the upper threshold, the microcontroller 16 controls the syringe pump 1 to stop working. The pure water, under the action of the internal pressure, passes through the cleaning port 11 of the manifold 9 to the connector and then to the capillary 17. When the pressure inside the manifold 9 reaches the lower threshold, the microcontroller 16 controls the syringe pump 1 to continue working and inject pure water into the manifold 9. The volume of the injected pure water can be edited and customized.

[0040] Step 2

[0041] Remove pure water in the bus bar 9:

[0042] When the pure water cleaning process ends, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch the passage to port A, the microcontroller 16 controls the solenoid valve 13 to open, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to extract the pure water in the bus bar 9, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to port F, and the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to inject the extracted pure water into the waste liquid bottle 5. Repeat this process until there is no pure water in the bus bar 9;

[0043] Step Three

[0044] Clean the capillary 17 with the cleaning liquid in the second cleaning liquid bottle 8

[0045] The microcontroller 16 controls the solenoid valve 13 to close, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch the passage to port C, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to extract a certain volume of cleaning liquid from the second cleaning liquid bottle 8, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch to port A, the microcontroller 16 controls the solenoid valve 14 to open, and the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to inject the just-extracted cleaning liquid into the bus bar 9 through the pipeline. Repeat the same fixed steps to collect another tube of cleaning liquid and inject it into the bus bar 9. Then the microcontroller 16 closes the solenoid valve 14, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch the passage to port C, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to extract a certain volume of cleaning liquid, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch to port A, and the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to inject the just-extracted cleaning liquid into the bus bar 9 through the pipeline. Repeat the same fixed steps to collect another tube of cleaning liquid and inject it into the bus bar 9. At this time, the internal pressure in the bus bar 9 continuously rises under the filling of the cleaning liquid. When the pressure value reaches the upper threshold, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to stop working. The cleaning liquid, under the action of the internal pressure, passes through the cleaning port 11 of the bus bar 9 to the adapter and then to the capillary 17. When the pressure in the bus bar 9 reaches the lower threshold, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to continue working and injects the cleaning liquid into the bus bar 9. The volume of the injected cleaning liquid can be edited and customized;

[0046] When the cleaning liquid cleaning process ends, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch the passage to port A, the microcontroller 16 controls the solenoid valve 13 to open, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to extract the cleaning liquid in the bus bar 9, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to port F, and the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to inject the extracted cleaning liquid into the waste liquid bottle 5. Repeat this process until there is no cleaning liquid in the bus bar 9;

[0047] After there is no cleaning liquid in the bus bar 9, repeat Step One again. This step not only cleans the capillary 17 but also cleans the bus bar 9 to prepare for the subsequent cleaning steps. After the cleaning is completed, repeat Step Two to empty the pure water in the bus bar 9.

[0048] Step Three

[0049] Clean the capillary 17 with the cleaning liquid in the first cleaning liquid bottle 7

[0050] The microcontroller 16 controls the solenoid valve 13 to close, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch the passage to port D, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to extract a certain volume of cleaning liquid from the first cleaning liquid bottle 7, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch to port A, the microcontroller 16 controls the solenoid valve 14 to open, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to inject the just-extracted cleaning liquid into the manifold 9 through the pipeline. Repeat the same fixed steps to collect another tube of cleaning liquid and inject it into the manifold 9. Then the microcontroller 16 closes the solenoid valve 14, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch the passage to port C, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to extract a certain volume of cleaning liquid, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch to port A, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to inject the just-extracted cleaning liquid into the manifold 9 through the pipeline. Repeat the same fixed steps to collect another tube of cleaning liquid and inject it into the manifold 9. At this time, the internal pressure in the manifold 9 continuously rises under the filling of the cleaning liquid. When the pressure value reaches the upper threshold, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to stop working. The cleaning liquid, under the action of the internal pressure, passes through the cleaning port 11 of the manifold 9, then through the adapter to the capillary 17. When the pressure in the manifold 9 reaches the lower threshold, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to continue working and inject cleaning liquid into the manifold 9. The volume of the injected cleaning liquid can be customized and edited;

[0051] When the cleaning liquid cleaning process ends, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch the passage to port A, the microcontroller 16 controls the solenoid valve 13 to open, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to extract the cleaning liquid in the manifold 9, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to port F, and the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to inject the extracted cleaning liquid into the waste liquid bottle 5. Repeat this process until there is no cleaning liquid in the manifold 9;

[0052] The above is a cleaning process. The capillary 17 is cleaned once with pure water and two kinds of cleaning liquids respectively. The number of cleaning times, the volume of the cleaning liquid, and the order of the cleaning liquid of this device can all be customized and edited, which is applicable to the cleaning of various capillaries 17;

[0053] For expensive cleaning liquids, this device can also recycle the cleaning liquid. After cleaning the capillary 17 with the cleaning liquid, if you want to recycle the cleaning liquid in the manifold 9, the following are the steps to recycle the cleaning liquid into the first cleaning liquid bottle 7: The microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to switch the passage to port A, the microcontroller 16 controls the solenoid valve 13 to open, the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to extract the cleaning liquid in the manifold 9, the microcontroller 16 controls the switching valve 2 to port D, and the microcontroller 16 controls the injection pump 1 to inject the extracted cleaning liquid into the cleaning liquid bottle. Repeat this process until there is no cleaning liquid in the manifold 9.

[0054] For those skilled in the art, it is obvious that the present utility model is not limited to the details of the above-mentioned exemplary embodiments, and without departing from the spirit and basic characteristics of the present utility model, the present utility model can be implemented in other specific forms. Therefore, from any point of view, the embodiments should be regarded as exemplary and non-restrictive. The scope of the present utility model is defined by the appended claims rather than the above description. Therefore, all changes falling within the meaning and scope of the equivalent elements of the claims are intended to be embraced within the present utility model. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the claims involved.

[0055] In addition, it should be understood that although this specification is described according to embodiments, not every embodiment only contains an independent technical solution. This narrative manner of the specification is only for clarity. Those skilled in the art should regard the specification as a whole, and the technical solutions in each embodiment can also be appropriately combined to form other embodiments that can be understood by those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A capillary cleaning device, characterized in that, Comprising: An injection pump (1); A switching valve (2) having a common port (3) and a plurality of branch ports (4), one of the branch ports (4) being in communication with the common port (3); A manifold (9) having at least one liquid inlet port (10) and a cleaning port (11), and a adapter connected to a capillary (17) is installed at the cleaning port (11); and A liquid storage unit including a plurality of liquid storage bottles; Wherein, the output end of the injection pump (1) is in communication with the common port (3), and several branch ports (4) are respectively in communication with the liquid inlet port (10) or a plurality of liquid storage bottles through pipelines.

2. The capillary cleaning device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The manifold (9) further has an interface communicating with the outside, and a first solenoid valve (13) is installed on the interface.

3. The capillary cleaning device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The manifold (9) further has a waste discharge port (12), a second solenoid valve (14) is installed on the waste discharge port (12), and the waste discharge port (12) is in communication with a waste liquid bottle (5) in the liquid storage unit through a pipeline.

4. The capillary cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein, It further includes a pressure sensor (15) and a microcontroller (16), the pressure sensor (15) and the switching valve (2) are electrically connected to the microcontroller (16), and the pressure sensor (15) is arranged on the manifold (9) for detecting the internal hydraulic pressure value of the manifold (9).

5. The capillary cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein, The liquid storage unit includes a waste liquid bottle (5), a pure water bottle (6) and a plurality of cleaning liquid bottles.

6. The capillary cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein, The manifold (9) has at least two liquid inlet ports (10), and the plurality of liquid inlet ports (10) are respectively in one-to-one correspondence communication with the plurality of branch ports (4) through a plurality of pipelines.

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