Self-locking cell culture plate holder
By installing self-locking components around the cell culture plate placement rack, and using claws and limiting rods to automatically correct the position of the cell culture plate, the problem of robotic arm clamping failure was solved, and accurate placement and stable clamping of the cell culture plate were achieved.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- JINAN KAICHEN BIOTEC
- Filing Date
- 2025-08-13
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-14
AI Technical Summary
In a fully automated cell drug screening system, when the robotic arm is holding a cell culture plate, the change in gripping direction causes the cell culture plate to fail to be accurately placed into the temporary plate holder, resulting in operation failure.
A self-locking cell culture plate holder was designed, which uses a self-locking component around the plate, including claws and limiting rods, to automatically correct the position of the cell culture plate by gravity, ensuring accurate placement.
It enables automatic locking and position correction of cell culture plates, improving the success rate of robotic arm gripping and avoiding operation failures.
Smart Images
Figure CN224494164U_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This utility model relates to the field of cell culture plate placement technology, specifically a self-locking cell culture plate placement rack. Background Technology
[0002] Cell culture plates are indispensable experimental tools in cell biology, molecular biology, and biomedical research. Their core purpose is to provide a standardized growth environment for cells and support a variety of experimental procedures.
[0003] In fully automated cell drug screening systems, when the robotic arm is holding cell culture plates, it sometimes needs to switch the clamping direction of the standard plates to be compatible with different devices. When switching the clamping direction, a temporary plate holder is needed. Currently, the plate positions of the temporary plate holders on the market are all fixed. When the robotic arm is holding cell culture plates, due to shaking or movement errors, the cell culture plates sometimes cannot be accurately placed into the plate positions of the temporary plate holder, which leads to the failure of the next operation. Utility Model Content
[0004] To address the technical problems existing in the background art, the present invention provides a self-locking cell culture plate holder.
[0005] The technical solution of this utility model is as follows:
[0006] A self-locking cell culture plate holder includes a flat placement plate, the outer edge of which has an opening and a self-locking component is provided inside the opening;
[0007] The self-locking assembly includes a pawl, the pawl includes a middle rod that is rotatably disposed in the opening and whose rotation axis is horizontal, and a locking rod is vertically provided on the upper side of the outer end of the middle rod;
[0008] The rotation axis of the intermediate rod is located on the side of the jaw's center of gravity away from the locking rod;
[0009] A connecting rod is vertically provided on the lower inner side of the intermediate rod, and a limiting rod is provided at the lower end of the connecting rod to limit the excessive rotation of the chuck.
[0010] When no cell culture plate is placed, the middle rod tilts inward and upward due to the shift in the center of gravity. After the cell culture plate is placed, the middle rod rotates, and the locking rod contacts the cell culture plate, locking the cell culture plate in place.
[0011] The upper side of the intermediate rod is configured to rotate to be flush with the upper surface of the placement plate.
[0012] When the upper side of the middle rod is flush with the placement plate, it ensures that the height of the clamping rod is greater than the thickness of the placement plate, thus correcting the position of the cell culture plate. Furthermore, when no cell culture plate is placed, the corner height at the connection between the middle rod and the connecting rod is greater than the surface of the placement plate, ensuring that the clamping claw can rotate when the cell culture plate is pressed against the corner.
[0013] The lower part of both sides of the opening is provided with grooves; the claw is provided with a rotating shaft on both sides, and the rotating shaft is pressed into the groove by a limiting plate.
[0014] It has a simple structure, low production cost, stable rotation of the two rotating shafts, and strong practicality.
[0015] The width of the intermediate rod is adapted to the opening size.
[0016] The width of the connecting rod and the limiting rod is the same as the width of the intermediate rod.
[0017] This design ensures that the jaws do not wobble when rotating within the opening, resulting in good overall structural stability.
[0018] The limiting rod is vertically disposed at the lower end of the connecting rod, and at least one end protrudes from the connecting rod.
[0019] The function of the limit rod is to prevent the chuck from rotating excessively and to limit the chuck's movement.
[0020] The self-locking components are arranged in several sets around the placement plate.
[0021] A single self-locking component has poor locking performance and poor effect on correcting cell culture plates, so several sets of self-locking components are set up.
[0022] The placement plate is square, and the self-locking components are located on both sides of the corners of the placement plate.
[0023] The shape of the placement plate is designed according to the shape of the cell culture plate to ensure a good fit, and the symmetrical design on both sides ensures that the cell culture plate is subjected to balanced forces.
[0024] The self-locking cell culture plate holder also includes a support assembly located under the plate, which is configured to adjust the height of the plate.
[0025] The support assembly includes a base platform, on which a first adjusting rod is vertically mounted. A second adjusting rod is vertically mounted on the upper inner side of the first adjusting rod. The upper part of the second adjusting rod is connected to the placement plate. A fastening sleeve capable of spirally adjusting the height of the support assembly is also provided on the outer side of the first adjusting rod.
[0026] The support components can adjust the height of the placement plate, thereby enabling better coordination with the robotic arm.
[0027] Beneficial effects:
[0028] This application features a self-locking assembly around the placement plate to correct the position of the cell culture plate. When the cell culture plate is placed on the placement plate, the grippers rotate under the gravity of the cell culture plate, aligning the cell culture plate on the placement plate and correcting its position to prevent the robotic arm from failing to grip the cell culture plate again. Attached Figure Description
[0029] In the attached diagram:
[0030] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of this application;
[0031] Figure 2 A magnified view of a portion of the structure of a self-locking cell culture plate holder;
[0032] Figure 3 This is a partial cross-sectional view of the self-locking cell culture plate holder.
[0033] The components represented by the various reference numerals in the diagram are:
[0034] 1. Placement plate; 2. Self-locking assembly; 21. Claw; 211. Intermediate rod; 212. Snap-fit rod; 213. Connecting rod; 214. Limiting rod; 22. Limiting plate; 3. Support assembly; 31. Base platform; 32. First adjusting rod; 33. Second adjusting rod; 34. Fastening sleeve. Detailed Implementation
[0035] Example:
[0036] This embodiment provides a self-locking cell culture plate holder, combined with... Figure 1 The placement plate 1 is laid flat, and the outer edge of the placement plate 1 has an opening, and a self-locking component 2 is provided in the opening. The structure of the placement rack will be described in detail below with reference to the attached drawings.
[0037] In this embodiment, the self-locking component 2 includes a claw 21, which includes a middle rod 211 rotatably disposed in the opening and with the rotation axis horizontal, and a locking rod 212 is vertically provided on the upper side of the outer end of the middle rod 211.
[0038] The rotation axis of the intermediate rod 211 is located on the side of the jaw 21 away from the center of gravity of the locking rod 212.
[0039] The design of the axis being biased to one side amplifies the torque, increases the structural sensitivity, and enables the chuck 2 to rotate more quickly.
[0040] Furthermore, the claw 21 has rotating shafts on both sides that are rotatably connected to the placement plate 1.
[0041] A connecting rod 213 is vertically provided on the lower side of the inner end of the intermediate rod 211, and a limiting rod 214 is provided at the lower end of the connecting rod 213 to limit the excessive rotation of the pawl 21.
[0042] Furthermore, the upper side of the intermediate rod 211 is configured to be able to rotate to be flush with the upper surface of the placement plate 1, and the width of the intermediate rod 211 is adapted to the opening size.
[0043] When the upper side of the intermediate rod 211 is flush with the placement plate 1, it can ensure that the height of the clamping rod 212 is greater than the thickness of the placement plate 1, thus correcting the position of the cell culture plate. When no cell culture plate is placed, the height of the connection between the intermediate rod 211 and the connecting rod 213 is greater than the upper surface of the placement plate 1, so that the clamping claw 21 can rotate when the cell culture plate is pressed against the connection.
[0044] Here, the position of the clamp 21 when placing the cell-free culture plate can be referenced. Figure 3 After the cell culture plate is placed on the placement plate, the position of the clamp 21 can be referenced. Figure 1 .
[0045] This design also allows the contact position between the cell culture plate and the jaws 21 to be fixed, the force on the jaws 21 to be concentrated, and the continuity of the jaws 21 rotating to lock the cell culture plate to be increased.
[0046] In addition, the width design ensures that the jaw 21 rotates smoothly without shaking when it rotates within the opening, resulting in good overall structural stability.
[0047] In a preferred embodiment, the width of the connecting rod 213 and the limiting rod 214 is the same as the width of the intermediate rod 211.
[0048] With the same width, the manufacturing cost is low, and it can be molded as a single piece, simplifying the production process by machining the chuck 21.
[0049] The limiting rod 214 is vertically disposed at the lower end of the connecting rod 213, and at least one end protrudes from the connecting rod 213.
[0050] As a further preferred embodiment, the accompanying drawings of this application show an example in which both ends of the limiting rod 214 protrude from the connecting rod 213. This design enables the center of gravity of the pawl 21 to be balanced and the rotation to be more stable.
[0051] In this embodiment, the placement plate 1 is square, with openings on both sides of each corner, such as... Figure 2 As shown, a self-locking component 2 is rotatably connected in the opening.
[0052] Generally, cell culture plates are square. Therefore, the placement plate 1 is designed to fit the shape of the cell culture plate. Self-locking components 2 are set on both sides of the corner, with a total of 8 self-locking points. Compared with the single-sided locking design, the structure of this application has better stability. Even if one of the self-locking components 2 fails, it can still maintain basic functions.
[0053] As a further preferred option, the self-locking components 2 on both sides of each corner are symmetrical about the midline of the corner, thereby achieving the purpose of force balance on the cell culture plate.
[0054] The lower part of both sides of the opening is provided with grooves; the claws 21 are pressed into the grooves by the limiting plate 22.
[0055] This design is simple and efficient, has low production costs, stable rotation of the two side shafts, and is highly practical.
[0056] The mechanical equilibrium principle of the self-locking mechanism in this design:
[0057] When the cell culture plate is placed in, its weight puts downward pressure on the connecting rod 213;
[0058] This pressure is converted into an upward pulling force on the locking rod 212 through the intermediate rod 2115;
[0059] Since the axis of rotation is located on the side of the jaw 21 away from the center of gravity of the locking rod 212, a torque balance is formed;
[0060] The contact between the limiting rod 214 and the lower surface of the placement plate 1 limits the maximum rotation angle, ensuring the stability of the overall structure.
[0061] This design allows the cell culture plate to lock automatically when placed in the container, correcting its position without any additional steps.
[0062] This embodiment also includes a support component 3 located on the lower side of the placement plate 1, which is configured to adjust the height of the placement plate 1.
[0063] The support assembly 3 includes a base 31, on which a first adjusting rod 32 is vertically arranged. A second adjusting rod 33 is vertically arranged on the upper inner side of the first adjusting rod 32. The upper part of the second adjusting rod 33 is connected to the placement plate 1. A fastening sleeve 34 capable of spirally adjusting the height of the support assembly 3 is also provided on the outer side of the first adjusting rod 32.
[0064] The procedure is as follows: rotate the fastening sleeve 34, adjust the height of the second adjusting rod 33 to match the height of the robotic arm, and screw the fastening sleeve 34 to stabilize the structure of the support assembly 3.
[0065] This application provides a self-locking assembly 2 around the placement plate 1 to correct the position of the cell culture plate. When the cell culture plate is placed on the placement plate 1, the gripper 21 rotates under the gravity of the cell culture plate to straighten the cell culture plate on the placement plate 1 and correct its position to prevent the robotic arm from failing to hold the cell culture plate again.
Claims
1. A self-locking cell culture plate holder, characterized in that, It includes a flat placement plate (1), the outer edge of which has an opening, and a self-locking component (2) is provided in the opening. The self-locking assembly (2) includes a claw (21), the claw (21) includes a middle rod (211) rotatably disposed in the opening and with the rotation axis horizontal, and a locking rod (212) is vertically provided on the upper side of the outer end of the middle rod (211). The rotation axis of the intermediate rod (211) is located on the side of the jaw (21) away from the center of gravity of the latching rod (212); The lower inner end of the intermediate rod (211) is provided with a connecting rod (213), and the lower end of the connecting rod (213) is also provided with a limiting rod (214) that can limit the excessive rotation of the pawl (21).
2. The self-locking cell culture plate holder according to claim 1, characterized in that, The upper side of the intermediate rod (211) is configured to be able to rotate to be flush with the upper surface of the placement plate (1).
3. The self-locking cell culture plate holder according to claim 1, characterized in that, The lower part of both sides of the opening is provided with grooves; The claw (21) has a rotating shaft on both sides, and the rotating shaft is pressed into the groove by a limiting plate (22).
4. The self-locking cell culture plate holder according to claim 1, characterized in that, The width of the intermediate rod (211) is adapted to the opening size.
5. The self-locking cell culture plate holder according to claim 4, characterized in that, The width of the connecting rod (213) and the limiting rod (214) is the same as the width of the intermediate rod (211).
6. The self-locking cell culture plate holder according to claim 5, characterized in that, The limiting rod (214) is vertically disposed at the lower end of the connecting rod (213), and at least one end protrudes from the connecting rod (213).
7. The self-locking cell culture plate holder according to claim 1, characterized in that, The self-locking components (2) are arranged in several groups around the placement plate (1).
8. The self-locking cell culture plate holder according to claim 7, characterized in that, The placement plate (1) is square, and the self-locking component (2) is located on both sides of the corner of the placement plate (1).
9. A self-locking cell culture plate holder according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, It also includes a support assembly (3) located on the underside of the placement plate (1), which is configured to adjust the height of the placement plate (1).
10. A self-locking cell culture plate holder according to claim 9, characterized in that, The support assembly (3) includes a base (31), on which a first adjusting rod (32) is vertically arranged, and a second adjusting rod (33) is vertically arranged on the upper inner side of the first adjusting rod (32). The upper part of the second adjusting rod (33) is connected to the placement plate (1), and a fastening sleeve (34) capable of spirally adjusting the height of the support assembly (3) is also provided on the outer side of the first adjusting rod (32).