Syringe holding tool and liquid discharge device

Abstract

To provide a technique that can accurately locate a syringe, and can hold the syringe while preventing deformation of a cylindrical part of a barrel.SOLUTION: A syringe holding tool 20 comprises a block 50 and a pressing part 60. The block 50 has a first groove 51 and a second groove 52. An end on one side of an axial direction of a cylindrical part 811 of a barrel 81 is inserted into the first groove 51. A flange part 813 of the barrel 81 is inserted into the second groove 52. The width of the first groove 51 is gradually reduced from a front side toward a back side. Consequently, when the cylindrical part 811 is inserted into the first groove 51, the cylindrical part 811 is guided to a certain position. This allows the cylindrical part 811 to be accurately located with respect to the block 50. The pressing part 60 is a ball plunger, and presses the end on one side of the axial direction of the cylindrical part 811 inserted into the first groove. This can fix the barrel 81 to the block 50, while preventing deformation of the cylindrical part 811.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a syringe holder that holds a syringe and a liquid ejection device that includes the syringe holder. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, in an inspection device that handles liquid, a disposable syringe may be used to dispense liquid into a sample container. This type of inspection device holds the syringe above the sample container and applies pressure to the syringe rod to dispense liquid from the syringe into the sample container. A conventional device equipped with a function for holding a syringe is described in, for example, Patent Document 1. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2017-070223 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in conventional devices, the cylindrical part of the syringe barrel is held by being clamped by a chuck part such as a leaf spring. Therefore, when the syringe is set in the device, a pressing force is applied to the cylindrical part of the barrel, which may cause some of the liquid in the barrel to leak out. In addition, the cylindrical part of the barrel is deformed by being held by the chuck part, which makes it difficult to uniformly discharge the liquid from the syringe.

[0005] In addition, simply clamping the cylindrical portion of the barrel makes it difficult to precisely maintain the position and orientation of the syringe relative to the frame of the device. In particular, when the pressure of the chuck is set to a low value in order to suppress deformation of the cylindrical portion, the position and orientation of the syringe relative to the frame of the device becomes easily misaligned.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and has an object to provide a technology that can hold a syringe while accurately positioning the syringe and suppressing deformation of the cylindrical portion of the barrel. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a first invention of the present application is a syringe holder that holds a syringe having a barrel having a cylindrical portion extending in an axial direction and a flange portion extending outward from one axial end of the cylindrical portion, and a rod inserted inside the cylindrical portion, the syringe holder comprising: a block having a first groove into which the one axial end of the cylindrical portion is inserted and a second groove into which the flange portion is inserted; and a pressing portion that presses the one axial end of the cylindrical portion inserted into the first groove, the first groove extending in the axial direction on a front side of the block, and a width of the first groove gradually narrowing from the front side to a rear side, the pressing portion having a contact surface that contacts the cylindrical portion, and an elastic member that urges the contact surface toward the cylindrical portion inserted into the first groove, and the pressing portion is a ball plunger.

[0008] A second invention of the present application is the syringe holder of the first invention, wherein the first groove includes a curved surface that is arcuate when viewed in the axial direction.

[0009] A third invention of the present application is a syringe holder of the first or second invention, wherein the elastic member biases the contact surface in a left-right direction perpendicular to the front-to-back direction, which is the insertion direction of the syringe into the block.

[0010] A fourth invention of the present application is a syringe holding device of any one of the first to third inventions, wherein the syringe has a plurality of scale lines on the cylindrical portion, and the pressing portion presses a portion of the cylindrical portion on one axial side of the plurality of scale lines.

[0011] A fifth invention of the present application is a liquid ejection device comprising a syringe holding device of any one of the first to fourth inventions, and a pressurizing mechanism that ejects liquid from the barrel by pressurizing the rod of the syringe held by the syringe holding device. Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to the first to fifth inventions of the present application, when the cylindrical portion is inserted into the first groove, the width of the first groove gradually narrows, so that the cylindrical portion is guided to a fixed position. This allows the cylindrical portion to be positioned with high precision relative to the block. Also, the pressing portion presses one axial end of the cylindrical portion. This allows the barrel to be fixed to the block while suppressing deformation of the cylindrical portion. As a result, liquid can be uniformly discharged from the syringe.

[0013] In particular, according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when liquid is discharged from the syringe, the gasket of the syringe does not pass through the portion pressed by the pressing portion of the cylindrical portion. Therefore, even if the end portion on one axial side of the cylindrical portion is very slightly deformed by the pressing force of the pressing portion, the deformation is unlikely to affect the movement of the gasket. Therefore, it is possible to suppress pressure fluctuations when the gasket is moved to the other axial side. As a result, liquid can be discharged more uniformly from the syringe. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a liquid ejection device; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the syringe. [Diagram 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a front view of the syringe holder holding the syringe. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a side view of the syringe holder holding the syringe. [Figure 6] 1 is a cross-sectional view of a syringe holder holding a syringe. FIG. [Figure 7] 1 is a cross-sectional view of a syringe holder holding a syringe. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0015] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0016] <1. Liquid ejection device> 1 is a schematic diagram of a liquid ejection device 1 equipped with a syringe holder 20. This liquid ejection device 1 is used as part of an inspection device that inspects the characteristics of a liquid or a specimen contained in the liquid. The liquid ejection device 1 holds a disposable syringe 8, and ejects liquid from the syringe 8 toward a sample container 7.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 1, the liquid discharge device 1 includes a table 10, a syringe holder 20, a pressurizing mechanism 30, and a control unit 40. The table 10 is a support platform that supports a sample container 7. For example, a slide, a petri dish, or a well plate is used as the sample container 7. The syringe holder 20 holds a syringe 8 above the sample container 7 supported by the table 10. Hereinafter, the direction along the central axis 9 of the syringe 8 held by the syringe holder 20 is referred to as the "axial direction." In this embodiment, the axial direction coincides with the up-down direction.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of syringe 8. As shown in FIG. 2, syringe 8 has barrel 81 that stores liquid, and rod 82 that is inserted into barrel 81. Barrel 81 has cylindrical portion 811, discharge port 812, and flange portion 813. Cylindrical portion 811 extends cylindrically along the axial direction. Discharge port 812 is provided at the lower end of cylindrical portion 811. Flange portion 813 spreads outward from the upper end (end on one axial side) of cylindrical portion 811. Barrel 81 is formed from resin such as plastic.

[0019] The rod 82 is a columnar part extending in the axial direction. The upper end (end on one axial side) of the rod 82 is located outside the barrel 81. The lower end (end on the other axial side) of the rod 82 is inserted inside the cylindrical portion 811 of the barrel 81. The rod 82 is movable in the axial direction relative to the barrel 81. A gasket 83 is fixed to the lower end of the rod 82. The gasket 83 moves in the axial direction together with the rod 82 while contacting the inner circumferential surface of the cylindrical portion 811 of the barrel 81.

[0020] Returning to FIG. 1, the syringe holder 20 holds the syringe 8 in a vertical position so that the outlet 812 of the barrel 81 faces downward. The pressurizing mechanism 30 pressurizes the upper end of the rod 82 of the syringe 8 held by the syringe holder 20 downward in accordance with a command from the control unit 40. This causes the gasket 83 to move downward within the barrel 81. As a result, the liquid stored between the gasket 83 and the outlet 812 is discharged from the outlet 812 toward the sample container 7.

[0021] <2. Syringe holder> Next, the detailed structure of the syringe holder 20 will be described. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the syringe holder 20. Fig. 4 is a front view of the syringe holder 20 holding the syringe 8. Fig. 5 is a side view of the syringe holder 20 holding the syringe 8. Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in Fig. 4. Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in Fig. 5. As shown in Figs. 3 to 7, the syringe holder 20 includes a block 50 and a pressing portion 60.

[0022] The block 50 is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped member. The block 50 is fixed to the frame of the liquid ejection device 1. For example, a highly rigid metal is used as the material of the block 50. Hereinafter, of the six outer faces of the substantially rectangular parallelepiped block 50, the face into which the syringe 8 is inserted is referred to as the front face 501. The face of the block 50 opposite the front face 501 is referred to as the back face 502. The insertion direction of the syringe 8 into the block 50 is referred to as the "front-rear direction". The direction perpendicular to the axial direction and the front-rear direction is referred to as the "left-right direction".

[0023] As shown in FIG. 3, the block 50 has a first groove 51 and a second groove 52. The first groove 51 and the second groove 52 are recessed from the front surface 501 of the block 50 toward the back surface side. The first groove 51 extends in the axial direction on the front surface side of the block 50. The first groove 51 also penetrates the block 50 in the axial direction. The second groove 52 is a groove whose axial dimension is smaller than that of the first groove 51 and whose dimensions in the left-right direction and the front-rear direction are larger than those of the first groove 51. In the barrel 81 of the syringe 8, the upper end (the end on one axial side) of the cylindrical portion 811 is inserted into the first groove 51. In the barrel 81 of the syringe 8, the flange portion 813 is inserted into the second groove 52.

[0024] 6, when the block 50 is viewed in the axial direction, the first groove 51 has a substantially U-shaped shape. That is, the first groove 51 is composed of an arc-shaped curved surface 511 and a pair of flat surfaces 512 extending from both ends of the curved surface 511 toward the front side. Therefore, the width in the left-right direction of the portion of the first groove 51 composed of the curved surface 511 gradually narrows from the front side toward the rear side. The diameter of the curved surface 511 is the same as or larger than the diameter of the cylindrical portion 811 of the syringe 8.

[0025] When the syringe 8 is set in the syringe holder 20, the cylindrical portion 811 of the barrel 81 is inserted into the first groove 51, and the flange portion 813 is inserted into the second groove 52. At this time, the cylindrical portion 811 is inserted between the pair of flat surfaces 512 of the first groove 51. Thereafter, the cylindrical portion 811 moves toward the rear side along the arc-shaped curved surface 511. Then, the cylindrical portion 811 stops in a state where the rearmost portion of the cylindrical portion 811 contacts the rearmost portion of the curved surface 511. In this way, the width of the first groove 51 in the left-right direction gradually narrows toward the rear side, so that the cylindrical portion 811 is guided to a certain position. That is, the cylindrical portion 811 is positioned not only in the front-rear direction but also in the left-right direction. As a result, the cylindrical portion 811 can be accurately positioned with respect to the block 50 while suppressing variations due to the operator and the number of times of work.

[0026] The pressing portion 60 is a mechanism for fixing the cylindrical portion 811 inserted into the first groove 51. The pressing portion 60 is located below the second groove 52 (the other axial side) and on either the left or right side of the first groove 51. As shown in Fig. 6, the pressing portion 60 is located on the front side relative to the center of the cylindrical portion 811 inserted into the first groove 51.

[0027] In this embodiment, a ball plunger is used for the pressing part 60. As shown in Figs. 6 and 7, the pressing part 60 has a sphere 61 and an elastic member 62 that presses the sphere 61. The sphere 61 is exposed in the first groove 51 from a circular hole provided in the above-mentioned plane 512 of the first groove 51. The elastic member 62 is, for example, a coil spring. The elastic member 62 is interposed between the casing of the pressing part 60 and the sphere 61 in a state in which it is compressed in the left-right direction from its natural length. Therefore, the elastic member 62 urges the sphere 61 in the left-right direction toward the inside of the first groove 51 by its repulsive force.

[0028] When the cylindrical portion 811 is inserted into the first groove 51, the sphere 61 comes into contact with the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical portion 811. That is, the surface of the sphere 61 becomes the contact surface that comes into contact with the cylindrical portion 811. Then, the sphere 61 presses the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical portion 811 due to the biasing force of the elastic member 62. At this time, the sphere 61 presses a portion of the cylindrical portion 811 that is closer to the front side than the central axis 9. Therefore, the cylindrical portion 811 is pressed against the curved surface 511 on the back side of the first groove 51. As a result, the position of the barrel 81 is determined with higher accuracy, and the barrel 81 is fixed to the block 50.

[0029] The pressing part 60 presses the upper end part (the end part on one side in the axial direction) of the cylindrical part 811, not the vicinity of the center in the axial direction of the cylindrical part 811. The upper end part of the cylindrical part 811 is adjacent to the flange part 813, and therefore has higher rigidity than the vicinity of the center in the axial direction of the cylindrical part 811. Therefore, the upper end part of the cylindrical part 811 is not easily deformed even when it receives a pressing force from the pressing part 60. Therefore, by using the syringe holder 20 of this embodiment, the barrel 81 can be fixed to the block 50 while suppressing the deformation of the cylindrical part 811. Therefore, when the syringe 8 is set in the syringe holder 20, the liquid in the barrel 81 is pressurized, and a part of the liquid leaks out from the discharge port 812. This problem is unlikely to occur. In addition, since the deformation of the cylindrical part 811 can be suppressed, the liquid can be uniformly discharged from the barrel 81.

[0030] 4, the syringe 8 has a plurality of graduation lines 814 on the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical portion 811. The graduation lines 814 are marks for measuring the amount of liquid stored in the barrel 81. The position of the upper surface of the liquid stored in the barrel 81 is set within the range of heights marked with the graduation lines 814. In other words, the upper ends of the graduation lines 814 indicate the upper limit of the amount of liquid that can be stored in the barrel 81. Therefore, when the syringe 8 is set in the syringe holder 20, the position of the lower surface of the gasket 83 is lower than the upper ends of the graduation lines 814.

[0031] The pressing portion 60 of the syringe holder 20 presses a portion of the cylindrical portion 811 above the upper end of the multiple graduation lines 814 (on one axial side). In this way, when liquid is discharged from the syringe 8, the gasket 83 does not pass through the portion of the cylindrical portion 811 that is pressed by the pressing portion 60. Therefore, even if the upper end of the cylindrical portion 811 is very slightly deformed by the pressing force of the pressing portion 60, the deformation is unlikely to affect the movement of the gasket 83. For this reason, it is possible to suppress pressure fluctuations when the gasket 83 is moved downward (to the other axial side). As a result, the liquid can be discharged more uniformly from the barrel 81.

[0032] <3. Modifications> Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment.

[0033] <3-1. First modified example> In the above-described embodiment, the first groove 51 of the block 50 is a U-shaped groove composed of a curved surface 511 and a pair of flat surfaces 512. However, the first groove 51 may have another shape. For example, the pair of flat surfaces 512 may be omitted, and the first groove 51 may be composed of only the arc-shaped curved surface 511. In that case, the sphere 61 of the pressing portion 60 may be exposed in the first groove 51 from a circular hole provided in the curved surface 511 of the first groove 51. The first groove 51 may also be a V-shaped groove composed of a pair of inclined flat surfaces. That is, the width of the first groove 51 in the left-right direction may be gradually narrowed from the front side to the back side.

[0034] <3-2. Second modified example> In the embodiment described above, the syringe holder 20 includes one pressing portion 60. However, the syringe holder 20 may include a plurality of pressing portions 60. For example, two pressing portions 60 may be provided symmetrically on both sides of the first groove 51 in the left-right direction.

[0035] <3-3.Third modified example> In the above-described embodiment, a ball plunger is used for the pressing portion 60. However, a mechanism other than a ball plunger may be used for the pressing portion 60. For example, a leaf spring or high-resilience rubber may be used for the pressing portion 60. In that case, the leaf spring or rubber may be brought into contact with the cylindrical portion 811 via another part, or the surface of the leaf spring or rubber may be brought into direct contact with the cylindrical portion 811. In other words, a part of the surface of the leaf spring or rubber, which is an elastic member, may be the contact surface that comes into contact with the cylindrical portion 811.

[0036] <3-4. Fourth modified example> The syringe holder 20 in the above embodiment holds the syringe 8 in a vertical orientation. However, the syringe holder 20 may hold the syringe 8 in another orientation. For example, the syringe holder 20 may hold the syringe 8 in a horizontal orientation.

[0037] <3-5.Other> The detailed shape and structure of the syringe holder 20 may be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Furthermore, the elements appearing in the above-described embodiments and modifications may be selected as appropriate without causing any inconsistency. [Explanation of symbols]

[0038] 1 Liquid discharge device 7. Sample Container 8 Syringe 9 Center axis 10 Tables 20 Syringe holder 30 Pressurizing mechanism 40 Control section 50 blocks 51 First groove 52 2nd groove 60 Pressing part 61 Sphere 62 Elastic member 81 barrels 82 Rod 83 Gasket 501 Front 502 Back 511 Curved surface 512 plane 811 Cylindrical part 812 Discharge port 813 Tsuba 814 Scale lines

Claims

1. A syringe holder for holding a syringe having a barrel including a cylindrical portion extending in an axial direction and a flange portion extending outward from one axial end of the cylindrical portion, and a rod inserted into the cylindrical portion, a block having a first groove into which one axial end of the cylindrical portion is inserted and a second groove into which the flange portion is inserted; a pressing portion that presses an axial end portion of the cylindrical portion inserted into the first groove; Equipped with the first groove extends in the axial direction on a front side of the block, and a width of the first groove gradually narrows from the front side to a rear side, The pressing portion is a contact surface that contacts the cylindrical portion; an elastic member that biases the contact surface toward the cylindrical portion inserted into the first groove; having The syringe holder, wherein the pressing portion is a ball plunger.

2. 2. The syringe holder of claim 1, The syringe holder, wherein the first groove includes a curved surface that is arcuate when viewed in the axial direction.

3. The syringe holder according to claim 1 or 2, The elastic member biases the contact surface in a left-right direction perpendicular to a front-rear direction that is an insertion direction of the syringe into the block.

4. The syringe holder according to any one of claims 1 to 3, The syringe has a plurality of graduations on the cylindrical portion, The pressing portion presses a portion of the cylindrical portion on one axial side of the plurality of scale lines.

5. A syringe holder according to any one of claims 1 to 4, a pressurizing mechanism that applies pressure to the rod of the syringe held by the syringe holder to eject liquid from the barrel; A liquid ejection device comprising:

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