Plasma irradiation device and method for producing plasma-treated liquid

Abstract

An atmospheric-pressure plasma irradiation apparatus 10 includes: a storage section 184 where a culture solution is stored; a plasma generator 20 that generates plasma to irradiate the culture solution stored in the storage section 184; a lifting device 100 capable of moving the storage section 184 either toward the plasma generator 20 or away from the plasma generator 20 to adjust the distance between the culture solution stored in the storage section 184 and the plasma generator 20; and a scale unit 110 that outputs position information indicating the amount of movement of the storage section 184 moved by the lifting device 100.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a technique for irradiating a workpiece with plasma. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent document 1 describes a plasma irradiation device that includes a plasma generating device that ejects plasma toward the inside of a cover housing, a gas supply device that supplies gas into the inside of the cover housing, a stage that is arranged inside the cover housing and on which an object to be treated is placed, and a moving device that moves the stage and arbitrarily changes the distance between the stage and the plasma ejection port into the inside of the cover housing of the plasma generating device.

[0003] In this plasma irradiation device, the distance between the stage and the plasma nozzle is adjusted by visually checking the scale on a graduated measuring rod that is erected next to the stage. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6697470 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in the plasma irradiation device described in Patent Document 1, the distance between the stage and the plasma nozzle is adjusted by visually checking the scale on the measuring rod. Therefore, when a component is removed or attached for maintenance, for example, the distance between the stage and the plasma nozzle changes before and after the component is removed or attached, which can result in a deterioration in the quality of the plasma-irradiated treated liquid. The main cause of this is the inevitable occurrence of errors due to misalignment during distance adjustment and parallax when reading the scale. Therefore, in the plasma irradiation device described in Patent Document 1, it is very difficult to return the distance to the properly adjusted distance after removing or attaching a component.

[0006] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a technique that makes it possible to adjust the distance between the liquid to be treated and the plasma generator appropriately and then return the distance to that appropriate distance. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve the above object, the plasma irradiation device of the present disclosure comprises a storage container for storing the liquid to be treated, a plasma generating device for generating plasma to be irradiated onto the liquid to be treated stored in the storage container, a moving mechanism capable of moving the storage container in either a direction toward or away from the plasma generating device in order to adjust the distance between the liquid to be treated stored in the storage container and the plasma generating device, and an encoder for outputting position information indicating the amount of movement of the storage container moved by the moving mechanism. a stage for placing the storage container thereon, and a shaft connected to the back surface of the stage; Equipped with a movement mechanism for adjusting the distance between the liquid to be treated stored in the storage container and the plasma generation device by moving the shaft in the vertical direction; an encoder for outputting position information indicating the amount of movement of the shaft moved by the movement mechanism, the storage container having a storage section for storing the liquid to be treated, a liquid feed tube attachment section for attaching a liquid feed tube for feeding the liquid to be treated from the outside of the plasma irradiation device to the storage section, a drain hole provided in the bottom surface of the storage section for draining the liquid to be treated stored in the storage section, and a discharge section formed by protruding downward from the storage container from a position including the drain hole, the discharge section having a through hole communicating with the drain hole and a drain tube attachment section for attaching a drain tube for discharging the drained liquid passing through the through hole to the outside of the plasma irradiation device; and a notch for fitting the discharge section formed in the stage, and the storage container is placed on the stage by fitting the discharge section of the storage container into the notch of the stage. . [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to appropriately adjust the distance between the liquid to be treated and the plasma generation device. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of an atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the plasma generating device in FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the plasma generating device in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the plasma generating device in FIG. [Figure 5] 1A is a perspective view of an irradiation block, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional perspective view taken along line BB of the irradiation block. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a control device in FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an atmospheric plasma irradiation device according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a block diagram of a control device in FIG. 7. [Figure 9] 9 is a flowchart showing the procedure of a process for resetting an appropriate distance executed by a controller included in the control device of FIG. 8. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0011] (First embodiment) 1 shows an atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation apparatus 10 according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. The atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation apparatus 10 is an apparatus for irradiating a culture solution (an example of a "liquid to be treated") with plasma under atmospheric pressure, and includes a plasma generator 20, a cover housing 22, an opening / closing mechanism 24, a stage 26, an elevating device 100, a purge gas supply mechanism 32 (see FIG. 6), a concentration detection mechanism 34 (see FIG. 6), and a control device 38. The width direction of the atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation apparatus 10 is referred to as the X direction, the depth direction of the atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation apparatus 10 is referred to as the Y direction, and the direction perpendicular to the X direction and Y direction, i.e., the up-down direction, is referred to as the Z direction.

[0012] As shown in Figures 2 to 4, the plasma generator 20 includes a cover 50, an upper block 52, a lower block 54, a pair of electrodes 56, and a nozzle block 58. The cover 50 is generally shaped like a covered rectangular cylinder, and the upper block 52 is disposed inside the cover 50. The upper block 52 is generally shaped like a rectangular parallelepiped and is made of ceramic. A pair of cylindrical recesses 60 are formed on the lower surface of the upper block 52.

[0013] The lower block 54 also has a generally rectangular parallelepiped shape and is molded from ceramic. A recess 62 is formed in the upper surface of the lower block 54. The recess 62 is composed of a pair of cylindrical recesses 66 and a connecting recess 68 that connects the pair of cylindrical recesses 66. The lower block 54 is fixed to the lower surface of the upper block 52 while protruding from the lower end of the cover 50, and the cylindrical recesses 60 of the upper block 52 and the cylindrical recesses 66 of the lower block 54 are connected to each other. The cylindrical recesses 60 and 66 have approximately the same diameter. A slit 70 is formed in the bottom surface of the recess 62, penetrating the lower surface of the lower block 54.

[0014] Each of the pair of electrodes 56 is disposed in a cylindrical space defined by a cylindrical recess 60 in the upper block 52 and a cylindrical recess 66 in the lower block 54. The outer diameter of the electrode 56 is smaller than the inner diameters of the cylindrical recesses 60, 66. The nozzle block 58 is generally flat and is fixed to the lower surface of the lower block 54. The nozzle block 58 is formed with an ejection port 72 that communicates with the slit 70 in the lower block 54, and the ejection port 72 passes through the nozzle block 58 in the vertical direction.

[0015] The plasma generator 20 further includes a processing gas supply device 74 (see FIG. 6). The processing gas supply device 74 is a device that supplies processing gas obtained by mixing an active gas such as oxygen and an inert gas such as nitrogen at an arbitrary ratio, and is connected to the cylindrical space defined by the cylindrical recesses 60, 66 and to the upper part of the connecting recess 68 via piping (not shown). As a result, the processing gas is supplied into the recess 62 from the gap between the electrode 56 and the cylindrical recess 66 and from the upper part of the connecting recess 68.

[0016] With this structure, the plasma generator 20 ejects plasma from the nozzle 72 of the nozzle block 58. More specifically, a processing gas is supplied into the recess 62 by the processing gas supply device 74. At this time, a voltage is applied to the pair of electrodes 56 in the recess 62, and a current flows between the pair of electrodes 56. This causes a discharge between the pair of electrodes 56, which converts the processing gas into plasma. The plasma is then ejected from the nozzle 72 through the slit 70.

[0017] 1, the cover housing 22 includes an upper cover 76 and a lower cover 78. The upper cover 76 is generally cylindrical with a lid, and a through-hole (not shown) having a shape corresponding to the lower block 54 of the plasma generator 20 is formed in the lid of the upper cover 76. The cover 50 of the plasma generator 20 is fixed in an upright state to the lid of the upper cover 76 so as to cover the through-hole. Therefore, the lower block 54 and the nozzle block 58 of the plasma generator 20 protrude toward the inside of the upper cover 76, extending in the Z direction. As a result, plasma generated by the plasma generator 20 is ejected in the Z direction from the ejection port 72 of the nozzle block 58 toward the inside of the upper cover 76.

[0018] Furthermore, roughly rectangular through-holes (not shown) are formed at three equally spaced positions on the side of the upper cover 76, and transparent glass plates 80 are disposed to cover the through-holes. This makes it possible to view the inside of the upper cover 76 through the glass plates 80.

[0019] The lower cover 78 of the cover housing 22 is generally disk-shaped and is fixed to a housing 79 of a mounting portion on which the atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation device 10 is mounted. The outer diameter of the lower cover 78 is larger than the outer diameter of the upper cover 76, and an annular gasket (not shown) of the same diameter as the upper cover 76 is disposed on the upper surface of the lower cover 78. When the upper cover 76 is slid downward by the opening / closing mechanism 24, the upper cover 76 comes into close contact with the gasket, and the interior of the cover housing 22 is sealed.

[0020] The opening / closing mechanism 24 includes a pair of slide mechanisms 86 and an air cylinder (not shown). Each slide mechanism 86 includes a support shaft 90 and a slider 92. The support shaft 90 is erected on the housing 79 of the mounting unit so as to extend in the Z direction. The slider 92 has a generally cylindrical shape and is fitted onto the support shaft 90 so as to be slidable in the axial direction of the support shaft 90. The upper cover 76 is held to the slider 92 by an upper bracket 96 and a lower bracket 98. This allows the upper cover 76 to slide in the Z direction, i.e., in the up-and-down direction.

[0021] The stage 26 is generally disk-shaped, and an irradiation block 180 is placed on the upper surface of the stage 26. The outer diameter of the stage 26 is smaller than the outer diameter of the lower cover 78.

[0022] The irradiation block 180 is used to store the culture solution delivered by the delivery tube 122 and to generate a plasma-treated culture solution by irradiating the stored culture solution with plasma emitted from the plasma generator 20. The generated plasma-treated culture solution is discharged from the irradiation block 180 by the drainage tube 124.

[0023] The culture medium is supplied to the irradiation block 180 in the cover housing 22 from a culture medium supply unit (not shown) provided outside the cover housing 22 via a liquid supply tube 122 using a pump (not shown). The plasma-treated culture medium produced in the irradiation block 180 is drained from the irradiation block 180 via a liquid drain tube 124 using a pump (not shown) and stored in a temporary storage bottle (not shown) provided outside the cover housing 22. Therefore, through-holes 123 and 125 are formed in the side surface of the lower cover 78, through which the liquid supply tube 122 and the liquid drain tube 124 pass, respectively.

[0024] Fig. 5 shows a schematic configuration of the irradiation block 180. Fig. 5(a) is a perspective view showing the overall appearance of the irradiation block 180, and Fig. 5(b) is a cross-sectional perspective view taken along line BB in Fig. 5(a). The direction from left to right is the direction in which the culture medium flows.

[0025] The irradiation block 180 is made of ceramic and includes an irradiation block main body 181 having a generally rectangular parallelepiped shape. The long side direction of the irradiation block 180 is the X direction, and the short side direction is the Y direction. The irradiation block main body 181 is formed with a groove portion 183 and a storage portion 184, the surfaces of which facing the plasma generator 20 are open when the irradiation block 180 is installed in the cover housing 22.

[0026] The groove 183 has a U-shape in YZ cross section that opens upward. A bottom surface 183a that constitutes the groove 183 is curved. The YZ cross section of the groove 183 is slightly narrower than the cross-sectional shape of the liquid supply tube 122 (see FIG. 1), and the flexible liquid supply tube 122 is fitted into the groove 183 to fix the liquid supply tube 122.

[0027] Storage section 184 stores the culture solution for plasma irradiation. Storage section 184 is configured as a cylindrical recess having side surface 184a and bottom surface 184b. Bottom surface 184b of storage section 184 is formed to be located lower than bottom surface 183a of groove section 183. Bottom surface 184b of storage section 184 is further formed with drainage hole 184c for discharging the plasma-treated culture solution produced by plasma irradiation of the culture solution from storage section 184. Bottom surface 184b is an inclined surface that slopes downward from side surface 184a toward drainage hole 184c. This is to achieve the functions of quickly discharging the plasma-treated culture solution from storage section 184 and preventing, as much as possible, a state in which part of the plasma-treated culture solution remains in storage section 184 without being discharged.

[0028] In addition to the above configuration, the irradiation block main body 181 has a discharge portion 186. The discharge portion 186 is formed on the lower surface 181a of the irradiation block main body 181, protruding downward from a position including the drainage hole 184c of the storage portion 184. The discharge portion 186 has a base 186a, a flange portion 186b, and a discharge locking portion 186c, and is integrally formed with the respective components 186a to 186c connected downward. Furthermore, a through-hole 186d is formed in the center of the discharge portion 186 in the Z direction, and communicates with the drainage hole 184c of the storage portion 184.

[0029] The portion of the outer peripheral surface of the discharge part 186 that is continuous with the lower surface 181a of the irradiation block main body part 181 is the base part 186a. The diameter of the outer periphery of the discharge locking part 186c, which is formed below the base part 186a with the flange part 186b sandwiched therebetween, is larger than the diameter of the drainage tube 124 (see FIG. 1). The outer diameter of the upper part 186c1 of the discharge locking part 186c is smaller than the outer diameter of the discharge locking part 186c. As a result, when the flexible drainage tube 124 is fitted up to the upper part 186c1, the drainage tube 124 deforms along the outer periphery of the discharge locking part 186c, and the drainage tube 124 is fixed. The base part 186a is fitted into the notch part 26a of the stage 26 (see FIG. 1), whereby the irradiation block 180 is fixed to the stage 26. In this way, since the irradiation block 180 is not fixed using a fixture, it can be easily attached to and detached from the stage 26 .

[0030] As shown in FIG. 1 , the lifting device 100 includes a rotary operator 101, a gear 102, a rotation shaft 103, a pinion holder 105, a support rod 106, a rack 107, and a pinion (not shown). The rotary operator 101 is an operator that can rotate both clockwise and counterclockwise around the Y direction as its rotation axis. A bevel gear (not shown) is provided on the end of the rotation shaft of the rotary operator 101 that faces the gear 102. The gear 102 is also configured as a bevel gear, and the two gears are meshed. As a result, rotation of the rotary operator 101 around its rotation axis in the Y direction is converted, via the gear 102, into rotation around a rotation axis in the X direction.

[0031] The gear 102 is provided with a rotation shaft 103 in the X direction, and the rotation of the gear 102 directly results in the rotation of the rotation shaft 103. The end of the rotation shaft 103 opposite to the gear 102 is connected to the rotation shaft of the pinion.

[0032] A through-hole (not shown) that penetrates the lower cover 78 in the vertical direction is formed, and a support rod 106 is inserted into this through-hole. The outer diameter of the support rod 106 is smaller than the inner diameter of the through-hole, and the support rod 106 is movable in the vertical direction, i.e., in the Z direction. The lower surface of the stage 26 is fixed to the upper end of the support rod 106.

[0033] Furthermore, rack 107 is fixed to the outer peripheral surface of the portion of support rod 106 that extends downward from lower cover 78 so as to extend in the axial direction of support rod 106. The pinion is meshed with rack 107 and rotates with the rotation of rotary shaft 103. Pinion holder 105 rotatably holds the pinion in housing 79 of the mounting portion.

[0034] With this structure, when the operator rotates the rotary controller 101, the rotation of the rotary controller 101 around its axis of rotation in the Y direction is converted via the gear 102 into rotation around its axis of rotation in the X direction. The rotation of the gear 102 then rotates the rotation axis 103, which rotates the pinion accordingly, causing the support rod 106 to move in the Z direction and the stage 26 to rise and fall. In this embodiment, when the rotary controller 101 is rotated clockwise, the support rod 106 moves upward, bringing the top surface of the stage 26 closer to the nozzle 72, and when the rotary controller 101 is rotated counterclockwise, the support rod 106 moves downward, bringing the top surface of the stage 26 away from the nozzle 72; however, the relationship between the rotation direction of the rotary controller 101 and the direction in which the stage 26 and the nozzle 72 approach or move away from each other may be reversed.

[0035] The lower end of the support rod 106 is connected to an encoder section 112 of a scale unit 110 via a connecting member 108. In this embodiment, the scale unit 110 is configured by a so-called linear encoder, and is mainly composed of an encoder section 112 and a scale section 114. The encoder section 112 moves in the Z direction on the scale section 114, and outputs a pulse signal according to the amount of movement during the movement. In this embodiment, the scale unit 110 uses an encoder section 112 that outputs one pulse for every 1 / 100 mm of movement, for example, but the detection accuracy is not limited to this and may be slightly less accurate or more accurate.

[0036] As described above, the encoder unit 112 is connected to the support rod 106, so when the support rod 106 moves in the Z direction, the encoder unit 112 also moves in the Z direction by the same amount of movement. Therefore, the encoder unit 112 detects and outputs the amount of movement of the support rod 106, that is, the amount of elevation of the stage 26.

[0037] There are two types of linear encoders (similar to rotary encoders): incremental and absolute. The incremental type outputs a number of pulse signals corresponding to the amount of movement of the scale unit 114 by the encoder unit 112, while the absolute type outputs the absolute position of the detection point. In this embodiment, an incremental type is used as the scale unit 110.

[0038] 1, the purge gas supply mechanism 32 includes an air joint 130 and a purge gas supply device 132 (see FIG. 6). The air joint 130 is provided on the lid portion of the upper cover 76. The purge gas supply device 132 is a device that supplies an inert gas such as nitrogen, and is connected to the air joint 130 via piping (not shown). With this structure, the purge gas supply mechanism 32 supplies the inert gas to the inside of the upper cover 76.

[0039] 6, the control device 38 includes a controller 170 and a plurality of drive circuits 172. The plurality of drive circuits 172 are connected to the electrode 56, the process gas supply device 74, the purge gas supply device 132, and the display 120. The controller 170 includes a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc., and is mainly a computer, and is connected to the plurality of drive circuits 172. As a result, the operation of the plasma generator 20 and the purge gas supply mechanism 32 is controlled by the controller 170. The controller 170 is also connected to the detection sensor 144 and the encoder unit 112. As a result, the controller 170 obtains the detection result of the detection sensor 144, i.e., the oxygen concentration inside the cover housing 22, and also obtains the pulse signal output by the encoder unit 112.

[0040] When the controller 170 receives a pulse signal from the encoder unit 112, it counts up or down by one, for example, a count value stored in a count area (not shown) secured in the RAM. That is, the controller 170 counts up when the encoder unit 112 is moving upward, and counts down when the encoder unit 112 is moving downward. Then, at the timing when the controller 170 executes the count up / down, it calculates the amount of movement of the encoder unit 112 corresponding to the new count value, and rewrites the display area (not shown) that the display 120 refers to when displaying with that amount of movement. As a result, the updated amount of movement is displayed on the display 120.

[0041] Because irradiating a culture solution with plasma activates the culture solution, plasma is expected to be utilized in the medical field, such as in cancer treatment using plasma-irradiated culture solution. For this reason, plasma-irradiated culture solutions are produced, and it is preferable that the culture solution be irradiated with plasma under controlled conditions. With the above-described configuration, the atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation device 10 can irradiate the culture solution with plasma under predetermined conditions by placing the irradiation block 180 on the stage 26 and sealing the cover housing 22. A method for irradiating the culture solution with plasma under predetermined conditions will be described in detail below.

[0042] Specifically, first, irradiation block 180 is placed on stage 26. Next, stage 26 is raised or lowered to a desired height by elevator device 100. This makes it possible to arbitrarily set the distance between plasma nozzle 72 and the culture solution as the plasma irradiation target. Note that the elevation height of stage 26 is displayed on display 120 in 1 / 100 mm increments as described above, so there is no visual error, unlike in the plasma irradiation device described in Patent Document 1.

[0043] Next, the upper cover 76 is lowered to seal the cover housing 22. Then, the purge gas supply mechanism 32 supplies an inert gas into the cover housing 22. At this time, the concentration detection mechanism 34 detects the oxygen concentration inside the cover housing 22. After the detected oxygen concentration drops below a preset threshold, the plasma generator 20 ejects plasma into the cover housing 22. Note that the supply of inert gas into the cover housing 22 continues even during plasma irradiation. Furthermore, the culture solution, adjusted to a constant flow rate, flows through the liquid supply tube 122 into the reservoir 184 of the irradiation block 180. The culture solution stored in the reservoir 184 is activated by irradiating it with plasma gas from the plasma generator 20. It has been found that irradiating the culture solution with plasma gas for a predetermined period of time can exert a therapeutic effect of the plasma-irradiated culture solution. The culture solution is stored in the reservoir 184, where it is irradiated with plasma gas for a predetermined period of time. Furthermore, when the culture solution is irradiated with plasma gas, natural convection occurs within the reservoir 184. This allows the culture solution to become a homogeneous, activated culture solution that exerts a therapeutic effect.

[0044] In this way, by supplying an inert gas to the inside of the cover housing 22, the air inside the cover housing 22 is exhausted to the outside of the cover housing 22. At this time, the oxygen concentration inside the cover housing 22 is adjusted to control the conditions that affect the plasma irradiation. Specifically, because plasma contains active radicals, when it reacts with oxygen it becomes ozone, reducing the effectiveness of the plasma irradiation. Therefore, by adjusting the oxygen concentration inside the cover housing 22, it is possible to examine the influence of oxygen concentration on the effectiveness of plasma-irradiated culture solution. Furthermore, it is possible to irradiate plasma to the culture solution under the same conditions. This makes it possible to efficiently produce plasma-treated culture solution.

[0045] Furthermore, as described above, the distance between the plasma nozzle 72 and the culture solution can be set arbitrarily in the atmospheric plasma irradiation device 10. This makes it possible to examine the influence of the irradiation distance on the effect of the plasma-irradiated culture solution, and to efficiently produce a plasma-treated culture solution.

[0046] When a predetermined time has elapsed since plasma irradiation began, the plasma-treated culture solution stored in reservoir 184 is discharged via drainage tube 124. When a predetermined time has elapsed since discharge of the plasma-treated culture solution from reservoir 184 began, it is determined that no plasma-treated culture solution remains in reservoir 184, and discharge of the plasma-treated culture solution from reservoir 184 is completed. Then, the culture solution to be plasma-treated next flows via drainage tube 122 into reservoir 184 of irradiation block 180. This plasma treatment process, which includes plasma irradiation of the culture solution stored in reservoir 184 for a predetermined time, drainage of the plasma-treated culture solution, supply of new culture solution to irradiation block 180, and plasma irradiation of the culture solution, is repeated until a predetermined amount of plasma-treated culture solution is produced.

[0047] Now, suppose that the distance between plasma nozzle 72 and the culture solution is set to an appropriate distance, and then, for example, liquid supply tube 122 or liquid drainage tube 124 must be replaced for maintenance. This replacement operation will inevitably cause the distance between plasma nozzle 72 and the culture solution to deviate from the appropriate distance. However, if the operator makes a note of the amount of movement displayed on display 120 before the operation, the operator can simply operate rotary control 101 after the operation so that the amount of movement that matches the amount of movement displayed on display 120 is displayed, thereby easily and quickly restoring the distance to the appropriate distance before the operation.

[0048] As described above, the atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation device 10 of this embodiment includes an irradiation block 180 that stores a culture solution, a plasma generator 20 that generates plasma to be irradiated onto the culture solution stored in the irradiation block 180, an elevator device 100 that can move the irradiation block 180 in either a direction toward or away from the plasma generator 20 in order to adjust the distance between the culture solution stored in the irradiation block 180 and the plasma generator 20, and a scale unit 110 that outputs position information that indicates the amount of movement of the irradiation block 180 moved by the elevator device 100.

[0049] In this way, in the atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation device 10 of this embodiment, based on the position information output from the scale unit 110, it is possible to appropriately adjust the distance between the culture solution and the plasma generator 20 and then return it to the appropriate distance.

[0050] Incidentally, in this embodiment, the atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation device 10 is an example of a "plasma irradiation device." The culture solution is an example of a "liquid to be treated." The irradiation block 180 is an example of a "storage container." The lifting device 100 is an example of a "moving mechanism." The scale unit 110 is an example of an "encoder."

[0051] Moreover, the atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation device 10 of this embodiment further includes a display 120 that displays the position information output by the scale unit 110. The display 120 is an example of an "indicator." This allows the operator to return the distance between the culture solution and the plasma generator 20 to the appropriate distance while looking at the position information displayed on the display 120, making it possible to perform this operation easily and quickly.

[0052] The lifting device 100 also has a rotary operator 101 that can rotate clockwise and counterclockwise, and a rack 107 and pinion that convert the amount of rotation rotated by the rotary operator 101 into the amount of movement of the irradiation block 180. The rack 107 and pinion are an example of a "conversion mechanism."

[0053] The atmospheric plasma irradiation device 10 of this embodiment further includes a stage 26 for placing the irradiation block 180 thereon, and a support rod 106 connected to the back surface of the stage 26. The lifting device 100 adjusts the distance between the culture solution stored in the irradiation block 180 and the plasma generator 20 by moving the support rod 106 up and down, and the scale unit 110 is connected to the support rod 106 and outputs position information indicating the amount of movement of the support rod 106 moved by the lifting device 100. Incidentally, the support rod 106 is an example of a "shaft."

[0054] The irradiation block 180 also has a reservoir 184 for storing the culture solution, a groove 183 for attaching a liquid supply tube 122 for supplying the culture solution from the outside of the plasma irradiation device 10 to the reservoir 184, a drain hole 184c provided in a bottom surface 184b of the reservoir 184 for draining the culture solution stored in the reservoir 184, and a discharge part 186 formed by protruding downward from a position including the drain hole 184c to the irradiation block 180. The discharge part 186 has a drain hole 184c. 84c, and a discharge locking portion 186c for attaching a discharge tube 124 for discharging the discharged liquid passing through the through hole 186d to the outside of the plasma irradiation device 10. The stage 26 is formed with a notch 26a for fitting the discharge portion 186. When placing the irradiation block 180 on the stage 26, the discharge portion 186 of the irradiation block 180 is fitted into the notch 26a of the stage 26. Incidentally, the discharge tube 122 is an example of a "liquid supply tube." The groove portion 183 is an example of a "liquid supply tube mounting portion." The discharge tube 124 is an example of a "liquid supply tube." The discharge locking portion 186c is an example of a "liquid supply tube mounting portion."

[0055] (Second embodiment) 7 shows an atmospheric plasma irradiation apparatus 10A according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure. The atmospheric plasma irradiation apparatus 10A differs from the atmospheric plasma irradiation apparatus 10 of the first embodiment only in a partial configuration of the lifting device 200 and a partial configuration of the control device 38. Therefore, in Fig. 7 and Fig. 8, the same components as those in Fig. 1 and Fig. 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

[0056] As shown in Fig. 7, the lifting device 200 replaces the rotary operator 101 and gear 102 included in the lifting device 100 with an electromagnetic motor 210. For this reason, a drive circuit 172 for driving the electromagnetic motor 210 is added to the control device 38A, as shown in Fig. 8. An UP key 150 for moving the stage 26 upward by a predetermined distance and a DOWN key 152 for moving the stage 26 downward by a predetermined distance are also added.

[0057] 9 shows the procedure for the appropriate distance resetting process executed by controller 170. Hereinafter, in the explanation of each process procedure, steps will be abbreviated as "S." This appropriate distance resetting process includes not only the processes of S24 to S36 that automatically reset the appropriate distance, but also the processes of S10 to S20 that set the appropriate distance that should be performed before that. However, if the appropriate distance has been set in advance, the processes of S10 to S20 may be omitted.

[0058] 9, first, controller 170 determines whether an appropriate distance has been set (S10). The determination of whether the distance is appropriate is made, for example, by actually irradiating plasma onto the culture solution while changing the distance between plasma nozzle 72 and the culture solution, checking the quality of the plasma-treated culture solution each time, and determining the distance at which the best quality is obtained as the optimal distance.

[0059] If the determination in S10 is that the appropriate distance has not been set (S10: NO), the controller 170 determines whether the UP key 150 has been pressed (S12). If the UP key 150 has been pressed (S12: YES), the controller 170 outputs a command to the drive circuit 172 to rotate the electromagnetic motor 210 forward a predetermined number of times (S14). This causes the support rod 106 to move upward a predetermined distance, thereby reducing the distance between the plasma nozzle 72 and the culture solution by the predetermined distance. The controller 170 then reads out the count value stored in the count area described above in the first embodiment, obtains the current distance based on the read count value (S20), and returns the process to S10.

[0060] On the other hand, if the determination in S12 above is that the UP key 150 has not been pressed (S12: NO), the controller 170 determines whether the DOWN key 152 has been pressed (S16). If the DOWN key 152 has been pressed (S16: YES), the controller 170 outputs an instruction to the drive circuit 172 to rotate the electromagnetic motor 210 in the reverse direction by a predetermined number of rotations (S18). As a result, the support rod 106 moves downward by a predetermined amount, and the distance between the plasma nozzle 72 and the culture solution increases by the predetermined amount. The controller 170 then proceeds to S20 above, reads out the count value stored in the count area, obtains the current distance based on the read count value, and returns to S10 above.

[0061] On the other hand, if the judgment in S10 above is that the appropriate distance is set (S10: YES), the controller 170 stores the current distance acquired in S20 above as the appropriate distance, for example, in an appropriate distance storage area (not shown) secured in RAM (S22).

[0062] Next, the controller 170 determines whether an instruction to automatically reset the appropriate distance has been issued (S24). The instruction to automatically reset the appropriate distance may be issued, for example, by an instruction button (not shown) provided and the operator pressing the instruction button. If the determination in S24 indicates that an instruction to automatically reset the appropriate distance has not been issued (S24: NO), the controller 170 waits until such an instruction is issued, and if such an instruction is issued (S24: YES), the controller 170 acquires the current distance in the same manner as in S20 above (S26).

[0063] The controller 170 continues to operate the controller 170 until the current distance matches the appropriate distance stored in S22 (S36: YES). If the current distance is greater than the appropriate distance (S28: YES), the controller 170 outputs an instruction to the drive circuit 172 to rotate the electromagnetic motor 210 in the reverse direction by a predetermined number of rotations (S30), as in S18 above. If the current distance is less than the appropriate distance (S32: YES), the controller 170 outputs an instruction to the drive circuit 172 to rotate the electromagnetic motor 210 in the forward direction by a predetermined number of rotations (S34), as in S14 above. In this way, while there is a difference between the current distance and the appropriate distance, the controller 170 moves the support rod 106 in a direction that reduces the difference, so that the distance between the plasma nozzle 72 and the culture solution converges to the appropriate distance. When the current distance matches the appropriate distance (S36: YES), the controller 170 terminates the automatic resetting process of the appropriate distance.

[0064] In the processes of S14, S18, S30, and S34, the electromagnetic motor 210 is instructed to rotate at a predetermined number of rotations, but the predetermined number of rotations may be the same for each process or may be different for each process. Alternatively, the number of rotations may be the same for S14 and S18, and the same for S30 and S34, but different for S14 and S30.

[0065] As described above, in the atmospheric plasma irradiation apparatus 10A of this embodiment, the lifting device 200 has the electromagnetic motor 210, and the rack 107 and pinion that convert the rotation amount of the rotation shaft of the electromagnetic motor 210 into the movement amount of the storage part 184. Incidentally, the electromagnetic motor 210 is an example of a "motor".

[0066] Moreover, the atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation device 10A of this embodiment further includes a controller 170 that controls the electromagnetic motor 210 so that the distance between the culture solution stored in the irradiation block 180 and the plasma generator 20 becomes a designated distance. The controller 170 is an example of a "control unit." This allows the electromagnetic motor 210 to automatically return the distance between the culture solution and the plasma generator 20 to an appropriate distance again.

[0067] The atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation apparatus 10A of this embodiment further includes a stage 26 for placing the irradiation block 180 thereon, and a support rod 106 connected to the back surface of the stage 26. The lifting device 200 moves the support rod 106 up and down to adjust the distance between the culture solution stored in the irradiation block 180 and the plasma generator 20, and the scale unit 110 is connected to the support rod 106 and outputs position information indicating the amount of movement of the support rod 106 moved by the lifting device 200.

[0068] The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure.

[0069] In the above embodiments, a culture medium is used as the object to be treated, but a liquid other than a culture medium can be used as the object to be treated. Furthermore, the present disclosure can be applied not only to the medical field but also to various fields such as the industrial field. [Explanation of symbols]

[0070] 10, 10A...atmospheric pressure plasma irradiation device, 20...plasma generator, 26...stage, 38, 38A...controller, 72...nozzle, 100, 200...lifting device, 101...rotary operator, 102...gear, 103...rotating shaft, 105...pinion holder, 106...support rod, 107...rack, 110...scale unit, 112...encoder section, 114...scale section, 120...display, 132...purge gas supply device, 150...UP key, 152...DOWN key, 170...controller, 180...irradiation block, 184...storage section, 210...electromagnetic motor.

Claims

1. a storage container for storing the liquid to be treated; a plasma generating device that generates plasma to be irradiated onto the liquid to be treated stored in the storage container; a moving mechanism that can move the storage container in either a direction toward the plasma generator or a direction away from the plasma generator in order to adjust the distance between the liquid to be treated stored in the storage container and the plasma generator; an encoder that outputs position information indicating the amount of movement of the storage container moved by the movement mechanism; a stage for placing the storage container; a shaft connected to the rear surface of the stage; A plasma irradiation device comprising: the moving mechanism adjusts the distance between the liquid to be treated stored in the storage container and the plasma generator by moving the shaft up and down; the encoder is coupled to the shaft and outputs position information indicating a movement amount of the shaft moved by the movement mechanism; The storage container has a storage section for storing the liquid to be treated, a liquid feed tube attachment section for attaching a liquid feed tube for feeding the liquid to be treated from the outside of the plasma irradiation device to the storage section, a drain hole provided in the bottom surface of the storage section for draining the liquid to be treated stored in the storage section, and a discharge section formed to protrude downward from a position including the drain hole of the storage container, The discharge portion is formed with a through hole communicating with the drain hole and a drain pipe attachment portion for attaching a drain pipe for discharging the drained liquid passing through the through hole to the outside of the plasma irradiation device, The stage is formed with a notch into which the discharge portion is fitted, When the storage container is placed on the stage, the storage container is placed by fitting the discharge portion of the storage container into the notch of the stage. Plasma irradiation device.

2. a display that displays the position information output by the encoder; The plasma irradiation device according to claim 1 , further comprising:

3. The moving mechanism includes: A rotary operator that can rotate clockwise and counterclockwise; a conversion mechanism that converts a rotation amount rotated by the rotary operator into a movement amount of the storage container; have The plasma irradiation device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The moving mechanism includes: A motor; a conversion mechanism that converts the rotation amount of the rotation shaft of the motor into the movement amount of the storage container; have The plasma irradiation device according to claim 1 or 2.

5. a control unit that controls the motor so that the distance between the liquid to be treated stored in the storage container and the plasma generating device is a designated distance; The plasma irradiation device according to claim 4, further comprising:

6. a moving mechanism that can move the storage container in either a direction toward or away from the plasma generator in order to adjust the distance between the liquid to be processed stored in the storage container and the plasma generator; an encoder that outputs position information that indicates the amount of movement of the storage container moved by the movement mechanism; a stage for placing the storage container; and a shaft connected to the back surface of the stage, wherein the movement mechanism moves the shaft in a vertical direction to adjust the distance between the liquid to be processed stored in the storage container and the plasma generator; the encoder that is connected to the shaft and outputs position information that indicates the amount of movement of the shaft moved by the movement mechanism; a storage container having a storage section for storing the liquid to be treated, a liquid delivery pipe attachment section for attaching a liquid delivery pipe for delivering the liquid to be treated from outside the plasma irradiation device to the storage section, a drain hole provided on the bottom surface of the storage section for draining the liquid to be treated stored in the storage section, and a discharge section formed protruding downward from a position including the drain hole, the discharge section having a through hole communicating with the drain hole and a drain pipe attachment section for attaching a drain pipe for discharging the drained liquid passing through the through hole to the outside of the plasma irradiation device, the stage having a notch for fitting into the discharge section, and when the storage container is placed on the stage, the discharge section of the storage container is placed by fitting the discharge section of the storage container into the notch of the stage, a plasma treatment liquid production method for producing a plasma treatment liquid by irradiating plasma to the liquid to be treated stored in the storage container using a plasma irradiation device.

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