Reagent filling system for an in-vitro diagnostic device

Abstract

The utility model discloses a reagent filling system for in-vitro diagnostic equipment, including reagent container, waste liquid unit, reagent filling unit and negative pressure suction unit, and negative pressure suction unit includes the filling room of closed setting, the air extraction pump of the air extraction pipeline with the filling room connection, and the liquid injection spare is located in the filling room, and negative pressure suction unit still includes the pressure regulating valve and pressure monitoring spare of setting on the air extraction pipeline between the filling room and air extraction pump, and is provided with third valve on the breather pipe of filling room one side, the utility model discloses utilize negative pressure suction unit to establish negative pressure and the liquid injection spare is located in the negative pressure environment, and provide power for reagent filling, realize reagent's negative pressure perfusion and fill, when needing to discharge waste liquid, open third valve to fill the room with gas, then start waste liquid unit can realize the discharge waste liquid, and the logic is simple, only needs an air extraction pump to realize the same volume filling of different reagent, and the system is simple, and the cost is low.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of reagent dispensing in the IVD industry, and in particular to a reagent dispensing system for in vitro diagnostic equipment. Background Technology

[0002] In the IVD industry, the addition of various reagents is often involved, such as adding different reaction reagents to reaction vessels. Existing addition systems mainly include needle dosing and tip-in dosing. Needle dosing utilizes a pump (such as a plunger pump) for suction and addition; each needle requires its own pump, making the system complex, costly, and involving the discharge of large amounts of waste liquid, with a complex logic. Due to the different reagents, tip-in dosing requires frequent tip replacements, resulting in complex operations, long individual process times, and low efficiency. Therefore, many existing devices use a combination of needle dosing and tip-in dosing. This combined dosing system is even more complex, more expensive, and has a larger equipment size, negatively impacting equipment manufacturers and its widespread adoption. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In view of this, the present invention proposes a reagent dispensing system for in vitro diagnostic equipment.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0005] The reagent dispensing system for in vitro diagnostic equipment of this utility model includes at least two reagent containers, a waste liquid discharge unit, a reagent dispensing unit and a negative pressure suction unit connected to the reagent containers. The reagent dispensing unit includes a liquid injection device connected to each reagent container through a dispensing pipeline. The inlet end of the dispensing pipeline extends to the bottom of the reagent container or is connected to a suction tube inside the reagent container. Each dispensing pipeline is equipped with a first valve. Each reagent container has a vent hole that communicates with the outside atmosphere.

[0006] The negative pressure suction unit includes a sealed filling chamber, an air pump connected to the filling chamber via an air extraction pipeline, and the liquid injection component located inside the filling chamber. The negative pressure suction unit also includes a pressure regulating valve and a pressure monitoring component on the air extraction pipeline between the filling chamber and the air pump, and a third valve is provided on the vent pipe on one side of the filling chamber. The waste liquid discharge unit is connected to the filling chamber.

[0007] The beneficial effects are: This utility model utilizes a negative pressure suction unit to establish negative pressure and the injection component is located in a negative pressure environment to provide power for reagent injection, thereby realizing negative pressure filling and injection of reagents; when waste liquid needs to be discharged, the third valve is opened to introduce air into the injection chamber, and then the waste liquid discharge unit is started to achieve waste liquid discharge, which is simple in logic; only one air pump is needed to achieve the same volume injection of different reagents, making the system simple and low in cost.

[0008] Preferably, a filter is also installed on the air extraction pipeline located between the pressure regulating valve and the filling chamber. The beneficial effect is that by installing a filter on the air extraction pipeline, the extracted air can be filtered.

[0009] Preferably, the waste liquid discharge unit includes a waste liquid pipeline and a waste liquid container. A second valve is provided on the waste liquid pipeline, and the discharge of waste liquid can be controlled by controlling whether the second valve is open or closed.

[0010] Preferably, the negative pressure suction unit further includes a negative pressure tank installed on the suction pipeline. In actual operation, the negative pressure tank can store a certain amount of negative pressure.

[0011] Compared with the prior art, the advantages of this utility model are:

[0012] This invention utilizes a negative pressure suction unit to create negative pressure, with the injection component located in a negative pressure environment, providing power for reagent injection and realizing negative pressure filling and injection of reagents. When waste liquid needs to be discharged, the third valve is opened to introduce air into the injection chamber, and then the waste liquid discharge unit is started to discharge the waste liquid. The logic is simple. Only one air pump is needed to achieve the same volume injection of different reagents. The system is simple and low in cost. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Figure 1 This is the piping diagram of this utility model.

[0014] Figure 2 This is a circuit block diagram of this utility model. Detailed Implementation

[0015] The embodiments of this utility model will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. These embodiments are implemented based on the technical solution of this utility model and provide detailed implementation methods and specific operation processes. However, the protection scope of this utility model is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0016] It should be noted that in the description of this utility model, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations.

[0017] In the description of this utility model, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "connected" and "linked" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; and they can refer to the internal connection of two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this utility model based on the specific circumstances.

[0018] like Figure 1 As shown, this utility model proposes a reagent dispensing system for in vitro diagnostic equipment, comprising at least two reagent containers 1 ( Figure 1 The diagram shows three units (though there could be two, four, five, etc.), a waste liquid discharge unit, a reagent filling unit connected to reagent container 1, and a negative pressure suction unit.

[0019] The reagent dispensing unit includes dispensing components connected to reagent containers 1 one by one via dispensing tubing. Each dispensing component is a steel or plastic reagent needle 2 (or a slender dispensing tube). Each reagent container 1 is connected to one reagent needle 2 to meet the dispensing needs of various reagents. Each dispensing tubing is equipped with a first valve F1 to control the connection between the reagent needle 2 and the reagent container 1. The inlet end of the dispensing tubing is connected to a suction tube 1.1 inside the reagent container 1 (or the inlet end of the dispensing tubing can extend to the bottom of the reagent container). The bottom of the suction tube 1.1 extends to the bottom of the reagent container 1, with a side inlet at its lower part and a quick connector at its upper part, enabling rapid connection between the dispensing tubing and the reagent container 1. Each reagent container 1 has a vent hole that connects to the outside atmosphere, allowing air to be replenished to the reagent container 1.

[0020] The negative pressure suction unit includes a sealed filling chamber 3 and a suction pump 4 (which can be a mechanical pump) connected to the filling chamber 3 via a suction pipeline. The filling chamber 3 has a sealed filling cavity, and multiple reagent needles 2 are located inside the filling chamber 3. The negative pressure suction unit also includes a pressure regulating valve F2 and a pressure monitoring device 5 (preferably a pressure sensor, but an electronic pressure gauge) installed on the suction pipeline between the filling chamber 3 and the suction pump 4. A third valve F3 is installed on the vent pipe on one side of the filling chamber 3. An inlet and outlet are provided on one side wall of the filling chamber 3. The reaction container is pushed into the filling chamber through its seat. After the reaction container enters the filling chamber 3, the inlet and outlet are closed to ensure negative pressure in the filling chamber. After filling, the reaction container and its seat can be pulled out, ensuring that the reaction container can freely enter and exit the filling chamber 3. Of course, in actual operation, the reaction container can also be grasped and sent into the filling chamber 3 using the instrument's mechanical gripper, and then removed using the mechanical gripper after filling.

[0021] When filling or adding is required, ensure that the third valve F3 and the waste liquid discharge unit are closed, turn on the vacuum pump 4 and the pressure regulating valve F2, and use the vacuum pump 4 to draw negative pressure into the filling chamber 3 to ensure that the pressure in the filling chamber 3 is within the design range; then open the first valve F1 on each filling pipeline, and the reagent in the reagent container 1 flows out from the reagent needle 2 under the action of negative pressure to realize filling; after filling, the third valve F3 can be opened to make the internal pressure of the filling chamber 3 normal pressure (or close to normal pressure), and the waste liquid discharge unit can be opened to drain the liquid.

[0022] When adding reagents, the vacuum pump 4 is started to draw negative pressure into the filling chamber 3 to keep the pressure within the preset range. Then, the first valve F1 corresponding to the reagent to be added is opened to add the reagent.

[0023] This invention utilizes a negative pressure suction unit to establish negative pressure, with the injection component located in a negative pressure environment, providing power for reagent injection and realizing negative pressure filling and injection of reagents. When waste liquid needs to be discharged, the third valve F3 is opened to introduce air into the injection chamber 3, and then the waste liquid discharge unit is started to discharge the waste liquid. The logic is simple. Only one air pump 4 is needed to achieve the same volume injection of different reagents. The system is simple and low in cost.

[0024] In actual installation, a filter 6 is installed on the air extraction pipeline between the pressure regulating valve F2 and the filling chamber 3 to filter the extracted air and protect the air extraction pump 4. Additionally, a negative pressure tank 9 is installed on the air extraction pipeline between the pressure monitoring device 5 and the pressure regulating valve F2 to store negative pressure. See details... Figure 1 .

[0025] The waste liquid discharge unit includes a waste liquid pipeline and a waste liquid container 7. A second valve F4 is installed on the waste liquid pipeline, and the discharge of waste liquid can be controlled by controlling the opening and closing of the second valve F4. In actual installation, the waste liquid can be automatically discharged based on the height difference and gravity, or a waste liquid pump 8 can be installed on the waste liquid pipeline to pump out the waste liquid.

[0026] In actual installation, combined with Figure 2 It is known that both waste liquid container 7 and reagent container 1 are equipped with level sensors to monitor the liquid level. The signal output terminal of the level sensor is connected to the signal input terminal of the instrument's control system. When the liquid level in reagent container 1 is too low, the staff is reminded to add liquid; when the waste liquid container 7 contains too much waste liquid, the staff is reminded to empty the liquid in time. The level sensor can also be a float switch, a weight sensor can be installed under each container, or it can be a laser sensor, a vision camera, etc.

[0027] In addition, the first valve F1, the second valve F4 and the third valve F3 of this utility model are all solenoid valves. The control input terminals of these valves are connected to the control output terminals of the control system. The control input terminals of the air pump 4 and the waste liquid pump 8 are connected to the control output terminals of the control system. The output terminal of the pressure monitoring device 5 is connected to the input terminal of the control system. The control system can be used to control the opening and closing of each valve and the start and stop of the air pump 4, thereby realizing automatic filling.

[0028] Finally, it should be emphasized that the above description is merely a preferred embodiment of this utility model and is not intended to limit this utility model. Although this utility model has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art can still make modifications to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments without creative effort, or make equivalent substitutions for some of the technical features. Therefore, any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this utility model should be included within the protection scope of this utility model.

Claims

1. A reagent dispensing system for in vitro diagnostic equipment, comprising at least two reagent containers and a waste liquid discharge unit, characterized in that: It also includes a reagent dispensing unit and a negative pressure suction unit connected to the reagent container. The reagent dispensing unit includes a liquid injection device connected to each reagent container through a dispensing pipeline. The inlet end of the dispensing pipeline extends to the bottom of the reagent container or is connected to a suction tube inside the reagent container. Each dispensing pipeline is equipped with a first valve. Each reagent container has a vent hole that communicates with the outside atmosphere. The negative pressure suction unit includes a sealed filling chamber, an air pump connected to the filling chamber via an air extraction pipeline, and the liquid injection component located inside the filling chamber. The negative pressure suction unit also includes a pressure regulating valve and a pressure monitoring component on the air extraction pipeline between the filling chamber and the air pump, and a third valve is provided on the vent pipe on one side of the filling chamber. The waste liquid discharge unit is connected to the filling chamber.

2. The reagent dispensing system for in vitro diagnostic equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: A filter is also installed on the air extraction pipeline located between the pressure regulating valve and the filling chamber.

3. The reagent dispensing system for in vitro diagnostic equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: The waste liquid discharge unit includes a waste liquid pipeline and a waste liquid container, and a second valve is installed on the waste liquid pipeline.

4. The reagent dispensing system for in vitro diagnostic equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: The negative pressure suction unit also includes a negative pressure tank installed on the suction pipeline.

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