Cassette opener for medical inspection

Abstract

To provide a cassette opener for medical inspection capable of simply opening a lid body from a cassette body in a cassette for medical inspection that stores a specimen having been subjected to chemical solution treatment.SOLUTION: A cassette opener for medical inspection of the present invention comprises a base portion having a flat surface, a cassette body locking part provided on the base portion, and a lid body locking release part erected on the base portion at a distance from the cassette body locking part in a longitudinal direction of the base portion. According to the present invention, it is possible to open a lid body of a cassette for medical inspection from a cassette body with a relatively light force. At that time, it is also possible to prevent a specimen stored in the cassette body from being scattered vigorously.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a medical examination cassette opener, and more particularly to an opener for separating a body and a cover of a medical examination cassette used for preparing a medical examination microscope specimen. [Background technology]

[0002] In medical testing, specimens taken from living organisms are used to prepare microscopic specimens for various diagnoses. The specimens are prepared by subjecting the living organism to various treatments, such as washing with water, removing moisture with alcohol, and treating with an organic solvent such as xylene, embedding the specimen in paraffin to solidify it into a paraffin block, and slicing the block together with the specimen.

[0003] A container called a medical testing cassette is used until the collected specimen is used to prepare a microscope specimen (for example, Patent Document 1). A medical testing cassette is composed of a cassette body that contains the specimen and a lid that covers the cassette body, and is provided with a number of through holes that communicate between the outside and inside of the cassette. The collected specimen is stored inside the cassette and undergoes the above-mentioned chemical solution treatment through the through holes, reducing the opportunities for clinical laboratory doctors to directly touch the specimen.

[0004] When preparing a paraffin block, it is necessary to remove the lid from the cassette and take out the specimen from the cassette body. However, the lids of many of these medical testing cassettes are tightly locked to the cassette body via a locking claw. For this reason, forcibly opening the lid carries the risk of the specimen inside scattering, so careful work is required. As a result, removing each lid is very cumbersome for those involved in the test, who handle many specimens. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2012-194021 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The present invention is directed to solving the above problems, and its object is to provide a medical testing cassette opener that can easily open a lid from a cassette body in a medical testing cassette that contains a specimen that has been treated with chemicals, etc. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention includes a base portion having a flat surface; a cassette body locking portion attached to the base portion; a cover release portion provided on the base portion at a distance from the cassette body locking portion; A medical testing cassette opener comprising:

[0008] In one embodiment, the distance between the cassette body locking portion and the lid body unlocking portion is adjustable.

[0009] In a further embodiment, the cassette body locking portion is fixed to the base portion, and adjustment of the distance between the cassette body locking portion and the lid body unlocking portion is achieved by engaging at least one positioning pin protruding from a bottom surface of the lid body unlocking portion with a plurality of pin holes provided along the longitudinal direction of the base portion.

[0010] In one embodiment, the medical testing cassette opener of the present invention also includes two cassette side supports arranged at a second interval in the width direction of the base portion to correspond to the width of the medical testing cassette.

[0011] In a further embodiment, the spacing between the two cassette side supports is adjustable.

[0012] In yet a further embodiment, adjustment of the spacing between the two cassette side support portions is achieved by engaging at least one second positioning pin protruding from the bottom surfaces of the two cassette side support portions with a plurality of second pin holes provided along the width direction of the base portion. Effect of the Invention

[0013] According to the present invention, the lid of the medical testing cassette can be opened from the cassette body with a relatively light force, and at that time, the specimen contained in the cassette body can be prevented from scattering violently. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 1A is a perspective view showing an example of a cassette opener for medical testing according to the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of the cassette opener shown in FIG. [Diagram 2] 2 is a perspective view of the cassette opener shown in FIG. 1, illustrating a state in which a lid lock release part is removed from a base part in the cassette opener. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1A is a perspective view showing an example of a medical testing cassette in which the cassette opener of the present invention can be used, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of the medical testing cassette shown in FIG. [Figure 4] 2 is a cross-sectional view of the cassette opener shown in FIG. 1 for illustrating the relationship between a base portion, a cassette body locking portion, and a lid body locking release portion in the cassette opener. [Diagram 5] 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining a state in which the engagement of a lid body with a cassette body of a medical testing cassette is released by using the cassette opener shown in FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 6] 1. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the arrangement of a lid body locking release portion on a base portion is changed in the cassette opener shown in FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of another example of the medical test cassette opener of the present invention. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of another example of a medical testing cassette opener according to the present invention. [Figure 9] 9 is a perspective view of the cassette opener shown in FIG. 8, illustrating a state in which a lid body lock release portion and a cassette side support portion are removed from a base portion in the cassette opener. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] The present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to designate like elements that are similar to those shown in the other drawings.

[0016] As shown in FIG. 1( a ), a medical testing cassette opener 100 of the present invention includes a base portion 120 , a cassette body locking portion 140 , and a lid body locking release portion 160 .

[0017] The base portion 120 has a flat surface 122 (e.g., on the upper side) and is made of a relatively hard material. The base portion 120 is designed to be larger than a medical test cassette, which will be described later, in the direction of the flat surface 122, for example, and a plurality of pin holes 126 are provided on the flat surface 122. In FIG. 1B, the pin holes 126 are arranged in a row in the length direction of the base portion 120, and are designed so that the interval between each pin hole 126 adjacent thereto is constant. In the present invention, the pin holes 126 may be provided in two or more rows on the base portion 120.

[0018] Materials that can be used to form the base portion 120 include, but are not limited to, synthetic resins such as polypropylene, polycarbonate, polystyrene, acrylic resin, ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) resin, AS (acrylonitrile styrene) resin, phenolic resin, epoxy resin, melamine resin, and urea resin; metals such as stainless steel, steel plate, aluminum, titanium, and copper; wood such as solid wood, laminated wood, and laminated wood; glass; ceramics; and materials made of combinations thereof (e.g., laminates). Polypropylene is preferred because it is widely used and easy to mold or process.

[0019] 1A, the base portion 120 is illustrated as an independent component, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the base portion 120 may be a member that constitutes a part of an article such as a workbench, a laboratory table, an office desk, or a work jig.

[0020] The cassette body locking portion 140 is attached to the base portion 120. For example, as shown in (b) of FIG. 1, the cassette body locking portion 140 is attached to the base portion 120 such that a locking end portion 142 of the cassette body locking portion 140 is positioned above a plane 122 of the base portion 120.

[0021] 1(b), the cassette body locking portion 140 is firmly attached to, for example, the longitudinal end portion 124 of the base portion 120 by a fixing means (not shown). Such fixing means is not particularly limited, but may be, for example, an adhesive, a screw, or a combination thereof.

[0022] In one embodiment, in the present invention, the angle θ between one surface 144 of the cassette body locking portion 140 (i.e., the inner surface 144 facing the lid body locking portion 160) and the flat surface 122 of the base portion 120 is preferably an acute angle or a right angle, more preferably 45° to 110°, and even more preferably 70° to 90°. Alternatively, in one embodiment, the angle θ is preferably an acute angle or a right angle. This makes it easier for a portion of the cassette body to be locked to the inner surface 144 of the cassette body locking portion 140 when releasing the engagement of the lid from the cassette body of the medical testing cassette described below, thereby making it easier to remove the lid from the cassette body.

[0023] The cassette body locking portion 140 is also made of a relatively hard material. The material from which the cassette body locking portion 140 can be made is not necessarily limited, but is similar to the material from which the base portion 120 can be made. Furthermore, in the present invention, the cassette body locking portion 140 may be made of the same material as the material from which the base portion 120 can be made.

[0024] The cover body lock release portion 160 is provided on the base portion 120 at a distance from the cassette body lock portion 140 .

[0025] 1(b), the lid lock-releasing portion 160 has an L-shape composed of a base portion 162 and an upright wall portion 164. Alternatively, the lid lock-releasing portion may have a shape in which at least a portion is curved (for example, C-shaped or inverted C-shaped) on the base portion along the length direction of the base portion.

[0026] The base portion 162 can be disposed on the flat surface 122 of the base portion 120 via a bottom surface 166, and the bottom surface 166 is provided with at least one positioning pin 168. The positioning pin 168 has the shape of, for example, a cylinder, a rectangular prism, or a polygonal prism. Furthermore, the positioning pin 168 can be fitted into a pin hole 126 provided in the flat surface 122 of the base portion 120.

[0027] In the present invention, it is preferable that a plurality of positioning pins 168 are arranged in a row on the bottom surface 166 of the pedestal portion 162 along the longitudinal direction of the base portion 120. By providing a plurality of positioning pins 168 in such an arrangement, the pedestal portion 162 of the lid locking release portion 160 can be more reliably fixed on the flat surface 122 of the base portion 120 without wobbling or rotating.

[0028] The standing wall portion 164 is disposed on the base portion 162, and the standing wall portion 164 and the base portion 162 are connected to each other or formed integrally. The standing wall portion 164 also has a locking end portion 169 that can come into contact with a locking portion (e.g., a locking claw described later) of a lid of a medical testing cassette. In FIG. 1B, the standing wall portion 164 is shown extending straight and upward in a direction substantially perpendicular to the bottom surface 166 of the base portion 162, and the locking end portion 169 is also shown oriented in the substantially perpendicular direction, but the standing wall portion 164 is not limited to such a shape in the present invention. For example, in the direction shown in FIG. 1B, the standing wall portion 164 may extend upward from the base portion 162 while curving in an arc shape (e.g., an inverted C shape), and the locking end portion 169 may be oriented toward the inner surface 144 of the cassette body locking portion 140.

[0029] The lid unlocking part 160 is also made of a relatively hard material. The material from which the lid unlocking part 160 can be made is not necessarily limited, but is the same as the material from which the base part 120 or the cassette body locking part 140 can be made. Furthermore, in the present invention, the lid unlocking part 160 may be made of the same material as the material from which the base part 120 or the cassette body locking part 140 can be made.

[0030] In the medical testing cassette opener 100 of the present invention, the distance between the cassette body locking portion 140 and the lid body locking release portion 160 is preferably adjustable.

[0031] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the cassette opener 100 shown in FIG. 1, illustrating a state in which the lid lock release part 140 is removed from the base part 120. As shown in FIG.

[0032] As described above, the base portion 120 has a plurality of pin holes 126 arranged in a row along the length of the base portion 120 at predetermined intervals on the flat surface 122, and a plurality of positioning pins 168 arranged at predetermined intervals are provided on the bottom surface 166 of the pedestal portion 162 constituting the lid body locking part 140. With this configuration, the position of the lid body locking part 140 arranged on the flat surface 122 of the base portion 120 can be freely changed, and the distance between the cassette body locking part 140 and the lid body locking part 160 can be adjusted according to the size of the medical testing cassette to be used.

[0033] The cassette opener of the present invention is designed to be of any size depending on the size of the medical test cassette to be used.

[0034] First, the structure of a typical medical testing cassette for which the cassette opener of the present invention can be used will be described.

[0035] The medical testing cassette 200 is composed of a cassette body 210 and a cover 240 (FIGS. 3(a) and (b)).

[0036] The cassette body 210 has an opening 212 capable of accommodating the specimen 260 therein, and a number of through holes 214 for efficiently taking in a chemical solution from the outside when the specimen 260 is treated with the chemical solution are provided so as to communicate with the opening 212 from the bottom 215. Furthermore, the side of the cassette body 210 is provided with an information display surface 216 for printing individual information such as the ID number of the patient from whom the specimen 260 was collected, the name of the hospital or testing facility, and the control number, and / or a barcode or two-dimensional barcode corresponding thereto. In addition, in (a) and (b) of FIG. 3, the information display surface 216 is provided so as to protrude from a part of the cassette body 210 and form a slope, but this form is not particularly limited. In addition, the cassette body 210 is provided with a locking piece receiving hole 218 for receiving a locking piece 242 extending from a part of the lid body 240 near the opening 212, and a protrusion 220 capable of engaging with a locking claw 244 extending from another part of the lid body 240. Furthermore, in the cassette body 210, the locking piece receiving hole 218 and the projection 220 are disposed so as to face each other with the opening 212 therebetween.

[0037] The lid 240 has a size capable of covering the opening 212 of the cassette body 210, and has a plurality of through holes 226 that allow the passage of the drug solution between the outer surface 222 and the inner surface 224. The lid 240 also has a locking piece 242 that is thin and extends at an angle toward the inner surface 224, and an engagement claw 244 that is provided opposite the locking piece 242 and has an inner surface 224 bent inward. Here, the locking piece 242 of the lid 240 is inserted into the locking piece receiving hole 218 of the cassette body 210, and the locking claw 244 of the lid 240 is engaged with the protrusion 220 of the cassette body 210, so that the opening 212 of the cassette body 210 can be covered with the lid 240.

[0038] The cassette body 210 and the lid 240 are each independently made of a relatively hard material (for example, resin such as polypropylene, polycarbonate, polystyrene, acrylic resin, ABS resin, AS resin, phenol resin, epoxy resin, melamine resin, urea resin, polyacetal, etc.).

[0039] The cassette opener of the present invention is designed for such a medical test cassette 200 to satisfy, for example, the following size.

[0040] First, in the cross section of the cassette opener 100 of the present invention shown in FIG. 4, the shortest distance L2 from the contact point P between the flat surface 122 of the base portion 120 and the cassette body locking portion 140 to the locking end 169 of the lid body locking release portion 160 is set to be equal to or shorter than the entire length of the medical testing cassette 200 shown in FIG. 3(b) (i.e., the end S of the information display surface 216 of the cassette body 210 in FIG. 3(b)). a from the end S of the locking claw 244 of the lid body 240 b As a result, when the cover 240 of the medical testing cassette 200 is facing upward, the end S of the cassette 100 is approximately equal to or slightly smaller than the horizontal length L1 (L2≦L1). a The lid body 240 can be easily removed from the cassette body 210 by aligning the locking tab 244 of the lid body 240 of the cassette 100 with the locking end 169 of the lid body locking portion 160 and then lightly pushing the cassette 100 in (Figure 5).

[0041] 4, the intervals T between the pin holes 126 provided on the flat surface 122 of the base portion 120 are designed to be the same. As a result, when using a medical testing cassette of a different size (for example, a total length shorter than L1 shown in FIG. 3), the shortest distance from the portion P to the engagement end 169 of the cover body locking release portion 160 can be changed to L3 (from L2 shown in FIG. 4) by temporarily removing the cover body locking release portion 160 of the cassette opener 100 from the base portion 120 from the state shown in FIG. 4, and then fitting the positioning pin 168 of the cover body locking release portion 160 into another pin hole 126 (for example, a pin hole 126 located closer to the cassette body locking portion 140) as shown in FIG. 6.

[0042] In this manner, the medical testing cassette opener 100 of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 can easily remove the lid from the cassette body for medical testing cassettes of various sizes.

[0043] FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of another example of the cassette opener for medical testing according to the present invention.

[0044] In the medical test cassette opener 300 shown in FIG. 7, a plurality of pin holes 326 are arranged on a flat surface 322 of a base portion 320 such that the individual intervals T' between the pin holes 326 are the same.

[0045] A lid body unlocking portion 360 having an locking end 369 is attached to such a base portion 320 by a fixing means not shown, while a cassette body locking portion 340 is erected on the base portion 320 at a distance from the lid body unlocking portion 360.

[0046] The cassette body locking portion 340 is composed of a base portion 342 and a vertical wall portion 344, and the base portion 342 and the vertical wall portion 344 are connected to each other or formed integrally. A plurality of positioning pins 348 protruding downward are provided on a bottom surface 346 of the base portion 342, and can be fitted into a plurality of pin holes 326 provided on the flat surface 322 of the base portion 320.

[0047] The medical testing cassette opener 300 shown in Figure 7 is also capable of adjusting the distance between the cassette body locking portion 340 and the lid body forming / releasing portion 360 by varying the engagement positions of multiple positioning pins 348 of the cassette body locking portion 340 relative to multiple pin holes 326 provided on the flat surface 322 of the base portion 320.

[0048] With the medical testing cassette opener 300, the lid of the medical testing cassette is faced upward, and the above-mentioned end of the cassette, i.e., the end without the locking claw, is aligned with part P1 where the flat surface 322 of the base portion 320 and the cassette body locking portion 340 come into contact, and the locking claw of the lid of the cassette is brought into contact with the locking end portion 369 of the lid lock release portion 360, and the cassette is then lightly pushed in, thereby easily removing the lid from the cassette body.

[0049] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a cassette opener showing another example of the medical test cassette opener of the present invention.

[0050] The medical testing cassette opener 400 shown in FIG. 8 comprises a base portion 420 having a flat surface 422, a cassette body locking portion 440, and a lid body locking release portion 160 provided in an upright position, similar to the cassette opener 100 shown in FIG.

[0051] 8 is designed to be wider than the base portion 120 shown in (a) of Fig. 1. The width of the cassette body locking portion 440 is also designed to be wider in accordance with the width of the base portion 420.

[0052] 8, two cassette side support parts 482, 484 are arranged at a predetermined interval (also referred to as a second interval) in the width direction of the base part 420 so as to correspond to the width of the medical testing cassette. The second interval is preferably adjustable on the base part 420 by changing the arrangement of the cassette side support parts 482, 484 as described below.

[0053] In FIG. 8, each of the cassette side support portions 482, 484 has an L-shape constituted by second base portions 492, 493 and second standing wall portions 494, 495.

[0054] The second pedestal portions 492, 493 can be disposed on the flat surface 422 of the base portion 420 via bottom surfaces 496, 497, and at least one second positioning pin 498 is provided on each of the bottom surfaces 496, 497. The second positioning pin 498 has the shape of, for example, a cylinder, a rectangular prism, or a polygonal prism. Furthermore, the second positioning pin 498 can be fitted into a second pin hole 499 provided on the flat surface 422 of the base portion 420.

[0055] 9, for example, in the cassette opener 400, it is preferable that a plurality of second positioning pins 498 are arranged in a row along the width direction of the base portion 420 on bottom surfaces 496, 497 of the second pedestal portions 492, 493. By providing the plurality of second positioning pins 498 in such an arrangement, the second pedestal portions 492, 493 of the cassette side support parts 482, 484 can be more reliably fixed on the flat surface 422 of the base portion 420 without wobbling or rotating.

[0056] 9, the second standing wall portions 494, 495 are disposed on the second base portions 492, 493, respectively, and the second standing wall portions 494, 495 and the second base portions 492, 493 are connected to each other or formed integrally. The second standing wall portions 494, 495 also have wall surfaces 502, 504 that can come into contact with the side surfaces of the medical testing cassette. The wall surfaces 502, 504 hold the medical testing cassette from the side surfaces and can prevent the cassette body from shifting laterally in the width direction of the base portion 420 when the lid body is released from the cassette body.

[0057] With this configuration, the positions of the cassette side support parts 482, 484 positioned on the flat surface 422 of the base portion 420 can be freely changed, and the spacing between the cassette side support parts 482, 484 can be adjusted depending on the size of the medical testing cassette being used.

[0058] The medical testing cassette opener of the present invention can easily release the lock of the lid from the cassette body of various sizes of medical testing cassettes. This release can be performed with little force, and it is also possible to prevent the specimen inside the cassette body from accidentally flying out. [Explanation of symbols]

[0059] 100,300,400 Medical Test Cassette Opener 120,320,420 Base part 122,322,422 plane 126,326 Pinhole 140,340,440 Cassette body locking part 142 Locking end 144 Inner surface 160,360 Lid body lock release part 162,342 Pedestal 164,344 Standing wall part 166,346 Bottom 168,348 Locating pin 169,369 Locking end 200 Medical Test Cassettes 210 Cassette body 212 Opening 214,226 Through hole 215 Bottom 216 Information display screen 218 Locking piece receiving hole 220 protrusion 222 External surface 224 Inner surface 240 Lid 242 Locking piece 244 Locking claw 260 specimens 482,484 Cassette side support 492,493 Second pedestal 494,495 Second wall section 498 Second Locating Pin 499 Second pinhole 502,504 Wall

Claims

1. a base portion having a flat surface; a cassette body locking portion attached to the base portion; a cover release portion provided on the base portion at a distance from the cassette body locking portion; A medical testing cassette opener comprising:

2. 2. The medical testing cassette opener according to claim 1, wherein the distance between the cassette body locking portion and the lid body unlocking portion is adjustable.

3. 3. A medical testing cassette opener as described in claim 2, wherein the cassette body locking portion is fixed to the base portion, and the adjustment of the gap between the cassette body locking portion and the lid body unlocking portion is performed by engaging at least one positioning pin protruding from a bottom surface of the lid body unlocking portion with a plurality of pin holes provided along the longitudinal direction of the base portion.

4. 2. The medical testing cassette opener of claim 1, further comprising two cassette side supports arranged at a second interval in a width direction of the base portion to correspond to a width of the medical testing cassette.

5. 5. The medical testing cassette opener of claim 4, wherein the spacing between the two cassette side supports is adjustable.

6. 6. The medical testing cassette opener of claim 5, wherein adjustment of the spacing between the two cassette side support portions is performed by engaging at least one second positioning pin protruding from the bottom surfaces of the two cassette side support portions with a plurality of second pin holes provided along the width direction of the base portion.

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