Droplet ejection device

Abstract

To prevent an ejection part that ejects droplets from colliding with a storage container, while accurately arranging droplets in a droplet storage part formed in the storage container.SOLUTION: A liquid ejection device which ejects droplets to a droplet storage part of a storage container, comprises: a droplet ejecting part that ejects a predetermined amount of droplets through a nozzle hole; a storage container holding part that holds the storage container; a moving part that moves the droplet ejection part relative to the storage container held by the storage container holding part; and a detecting part that detects a shape of a surface of the storage container held by the storage container holding part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a droplet ejection device. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 listed below discloses a technology for precisely positioning droplets in wells formed in a well plate, in which a nozzle hole in a membrane is placed inside the well and droplets are ejected from the nozzle hole. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] However, with the technology of Patent Document 1, if a well plate of a different type than the set well plate is installed, there is a risk that the ejection head will collide with the well plate when inserting the nozzle hole into the well, causing damage to the device.

[0004] In order to solve the problems of the conventional technology described above, the present invention aims to be able to precisely position droplets within a droplet storage section formed in a storage container while preventing the ejection section that ejects the droplets from colliding with the storage container. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, one embodiment of a droplet ejection device is a droplet ejection device that ejects droplets into a droplet storage section of a storage container, and includes a droplet ejection section that ejects a predetermined amount of droplets from a nozzle hole, a storage container holding section that holds the storage container, a movement section that moves the droplet ejection section relative to the storage container held by the storage container holding section, and a detection section that detects the shape of the surface of the storage container held by the storage container holding section. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] According to one embodiment of the droplet ejection device, droplets can be precisely positioned within a droplet storage section formed in a storage container, while preventing the ejection section that ejects the droplets from colliding with the storage container. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a droplet ejection device according to a first embodiment; [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a storage container used in a droplet ejection device according to a first embodiment; [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of a control unit included in a droplet ejection device according to a first embodiment; [Figure 4] 1 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure performed by a control unit included in the droplet ejection device according to the first embodiment; [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of distance detection by the droplet ejection device according to the first embodiment; [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of shape data generated by the droplet ejection device according to the first embodiment; [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of a control unit included in a droplet ejection device according to a second embodiment; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0009] [First embodiment] (An example of the configuration of the droplet ejection device 100) Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a droplet discharge device 100 according to a first embodiment. The droplet discharge device 100 shown in Fig. 1 is a device that can discharge droplets from a nozzle hole 101A at the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101, with the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 being placed inside a concave droplet storage unit 11 formed in a surface 10A of a storage vessel 10. This allows the droplet discharge device 100 to improve the accuracy of droplet placement inside the droplet storage unit 11 compared to when droplets are discharged from above the droplet storage unit 11.

[0010] The droplet ejection device 100 can be used as, for example, a bioprinter. In this case, the droplet ejection device 100 can eject a cell-containing liquid (an example of a "droplet") into a well (an example of a "droplet storage unit") of a well plate (an example of a "storage container").

[0011] As shown in FIG. 1, the droplet discharge device 100 includes a droplet discharge unit 101, a detection unit 102, a holding unit 103, a storage container holding unit 104, a moving unit 105, a frame 106, and a control unit 110.

[0012] The droplet ejection unit 101 has a nozzle hole 101A at its tip (lower end) and can eject a predetermined amount of droplets downward (in the negative Z-axis direction) from the nozzle hole 101A. The droplet ejection unit 101 may be, for example, an inkjet head.

[0013] For example, when an inkjet head is used as the droplet ejection unit 101, the droplet ejection unit 101 is configured to include a liquid chamber, a nozzle hole 101A, an inlet, and an actuator (e.g., a piezoelectric element). In this case, in the droplet ejection unit 101, a storage container that stores liquid is pressurized by a pressurizing means, and liquid is supplied from the storage container through the inlet into the liquid chamber. Furthermore, in the droplet ejection unit 101, a voltage is applied to the actuator, and the liquid in the liquid chamber is pressurized by the actuator, causing a predetermined amount of droplets to be ejected from the liquid chamber through the nozzle hole 101A.

[0014] The detection unit 102 detects the shape of the containment vessel 10 held by the containment vessel holding unit 104. In this embodiment, the detection unit 102 is a distance measurement sensor that uses infrared rays or the like to detect the distance from the detection unit 102 to the surface 10A of the containment vessel 10 held by the containment vessel holding unit 104. As the distance measurement sensor, for example, a laser sensor, a TOF (Time of Flight) sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a millimeter wave radar, or the like can be used.

[0015] The holding unit 103 holds the droplet discharge unit 101 and the detection unit 102. The holding unit 103 is movable in the horizontal direction (X-axis direction) and the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) by the movement unit 105 (first horizontal movement unit 105B and vertical movement unit 105C). By moving the holding unit 103 in the horizontal direction, the droplet discharge unit 101 and the detection unit 102 can be moved in the horizontal direction. In the droplet discharge device 100 according to the first embodiment, by holding the droplet discharge unit 101 and the detection unit 102 with the holding unit 103, the droplet discharge unit 101 and the detection unit 102 can be moved horizontally together and simultaneously, thereby realizing miniaturization and cost reduction of the device.

[0016] The storage vessel holding unit 104 holds the storage vessel 10. For example, in the example shown in Fig. 1, the storage vessel holding unit 104 has a horizontal, planar mounting surface 104A and can hold the storage vessel 10 placed on the mounting surface 104A. The storage vessel holding unit 104 is provided so as to be movable in the horizontal direction (Y-axis direction) by a moving unit 105 (second horizontal moving unit 105A).

[0017] The moving unit 105 moves the holding unit 103 relatively to the storage container 10 held by the storage container holding unit 104, thereby relatively moving the droplet discharge unit 101 and the detection unit 102 held by the holding unit 103. Here, "relative movement" includes relative movement in the horizontal direction (including the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction) and relative movement in the vertical direction (the Z-axis direction). These relative movement units may be independent for the relative movement in each axial direction, or one movement unit may control the relative movement in multiple axial directions. The moving unit 105 has a vertical movement unit 105C, a first horizontal movement unit 105B, and a second horizontal movement unit 105A. The vertical movement unit 105C can move the holding unit 103 up and down (in the Z-axis direction). The first horizontal movement unit 105B can move the holding unit 103 left and right (in the X-axis direction). The second horizontal moving part 105A can move the storage container holding part 104 in the front-rear direction (Y-axis direction).

[0018] The frame 106 supports each component. In the example shown in Fig. 1, the frame 106 is configured to have a horizontal, flat base plate 106A and multiple support columns 106B vertically erected on the upper surface of the base plate 106A. The containment vessel holding section 104 and the second horizontal movement section 105A are installed in the center of the upper surface of the base plate 106A. The multiple support columns 106B support both left and right ends of the first horizontal movement section 105B at a predetermined height.

[0019] The control unit 110 controls the ejection of droplets by the droplet ejection unit 101, the movement of the holding unit 103 in the horizontal direction (X-axis direction) and vertical direction (Z-axis direction) by the moving unit 105, the movement of the storage container holding unit 104 in the horizontal direction (Y-axis direction) by the moving unit 105, and the detection of the shape of the storage container 10 by the detection unit 102.

[0020] (An example of the configuration of the containment vessel 10) 2A and 2B are diagrams showing an example of the configuration of the storage container 10 used in the droplet discharge device 100 according to the first embodiment. Fig. 2A is a plan view of the storage container 10. Fig. 2B is a cross-sectional view of the storage container 10 taken along line AA.

[0021] As shown in Fig. 2, a plurality of droplet storage sections 11 are formed on the surface 10A of the storage container 10. In the example shown in Fig. 2, the plurality of droplet storage sections 11 are formed in a matrix on the surface 10A of the storage container 10, with a plurality of columns in the X-axis direction and a plurality of rows in the Y-axis direction. In the example shown in Fig. 2, each of the plurality of droplet storage sections 11 has a concave shape that is concave downward (in the negative Z-axis direction), and has a circular shape in a plan view.

[0022] It should be noted that the droplet discharge device 100 uses a plurality of types of storage containers 10. The specifications of the storage containers 10 (for example, the size of the storage container 10, the number of droplet storage sections 11, the arrangement pattern, shape, size, etc.) vary depending on the type of storage container 10.

[0023] The droplet discharge device 100 according to the first embodiment can measure (scan) the shape of the surface 10A of the storage container 10 by continuously detecting the distance to the surface 10A of the storage container 10 using the detection unit 102 while moving the detection unit 102 in the horizontal direction (X-axis direction) and the storage container 10 in the front-to-back direction (Y-axis direction) using the movement unit 105. That is, the droplet discharge device 100 can determine the regions of each of the multiple droplet storage units 11 on the surface 10A of the storage container 10. However, the movement of the detection unit 102 is not limited to the above-described embodiment as long as it moves relative to the storage container 10 in the X-axis and Y-axis directions. For example, either the detection unit 102 or the storage container 10 can move in the X-axis and Y-axis directions, or the detection unit 102 can move in the front-to-back direction (Y-axis direction) and the storage container 10 can move horizontally (X-axis direction).

[0024] The droplet discharge device 100 according to the first embodiment can then insert the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 into each of the determined droplet storage units 11, and discharge a predetermined amount of droplets from the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 into the droplet storage unit 11. Therefore, the droplet discharge device 100 according to the first embodiment can insert the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 into the droplet storage unit 11 with high precision, without having to bring the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 into contact with the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10.

[0025] Therefore, according to the droplet ejection device 100 of the first embodiment, even when multiple types of storage containers 10 with different specifications are used, by measuring the shape of the surface 10A for each type of storage container 10, droplets can be ejected with high precision into each of multiple droplet storage sections 11.

[0026] (Functional configuration of control unit 110) FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the control unit 110 included in the droplet ejection device 100 according to the first embodiment.

[0027] As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 110 includes a detection control unit 111, a shape determination unit 112, and a discharge control unit 113.

[0028] The detection control unit 111 controls the detection of the shape of the storage vessel 10 by the detection unit 102. For example, the detection control unit 111 moves the holder 103 in the horizontal direction (X-axis direction) and moves the storage vessel holder 104 in the horizontal direction (Y-axis direction) while causing the detection unit 102 to continuously detect the distance to the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10. Then, the detection control unit 111 acquires distance data indicating the detected distance from the detection unit 102 every time the detection unit 102 detects a distance. That is, the detection control unit 111 continuously acquires multiple distance data for each position on the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10 in response to the detection unit 102 continuously outputting multiple distance data.

[0029] The shape determination unit 112 determines the shape of the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10 based on the plurality of distance data acquired by the detection control unit 111.

[0030] For example, the shape determination unit 112 can determine that an area on the surface 10A of the storage container 10 where the detected distance is constant at the first distance Ha and does not change is an area where the droplet storage section 11 is not formed.

[0031] On the other hand, the shape determination unit 112 can determine that an area on the surface 10A of the storage container 10 where the detected distance is a second distance Hb that is greater than the first distance Ha is an area where the droplet storage section 11 is formed.

[0032] In this way, the shape determination unit 112 can determine the formation region (that is, the position, shape, and size) of each of the plurality of droplet storage units 11 on the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10.

[0033] The discharge control unit 113 controls the discharge of droplets by the droplet discharge unit 101 based on the shape of the storage vessel 10 determined by the shape determination unit 112 .

[0034] For example, the discharge control unit 113 causes the droplet discharge unit 101 to discharge droplets onto each of the plurality of droplet storage units 11 whose formation regions have been identified by the shape determination unit 112 .

[0035] Specifically, the ejection control unit 113 controls the horizontal movement (X-axis direction) of the holding unit 103 by the moving unit 105 and the horizontal movement (Y-axis direction) of the storage container holding unit 104, thereby moving the tip of the droplet ejection unit 101 above the formation area of ​​the droplet storage unit 11.

[0036] The discharge control unit 113 then controls the movement of the holder 103 in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) by the moving unit 105, thereby inserting the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 into the droplet storage unit 11.

[0037] Furthermore, the discharge control unit 113 discharges a predetermined amount of droplets from the nozzle hole 101A at the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 while the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 is inserted into the droplet storage unit 11. By performing this control for each of the multiple droplet storage units 11, the discharge control unit 113 can arrange droplets in each of the multiple droplet storage units 11 with high precision.

[0038] Each function of the control unit 110 can be realized by one or more processing circuits. Here, the term "processing circuit" in this specification includes a processor programmed to execute each function by software, such as a processor implemented by an electronic circuit, as well as devices such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), DSP (Digital Signal Processor), FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), and conventional circuit modules designed to execute each function described above.

[0039] (Example of processing procedure by control unit 110) FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a procedure of processing by the control unit 110 provided in the droplet ejection device 100 according to the first embodiment.

[0040] First, the detection control unit 111 starts the horizontal movement of the holding unit 103 (X-axis direction) and the horizontal movement of the storage container holding unit 104 (Y-axis direction), and starts continuous detection of the distance to the surface 10A of the storage container 10 by the detection unit 102 (step S401).

[0041] Then, in response to the detection unit 102 continuously outputting the plurality of distance data, the detection control unit 111 continuously acquires the plurality of distance data for each position on the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10 (step S402).

[0042] Next, the shape determination unit 112 determines the shape of the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10 based on the plurality of distance data acquired in step S402 (step S403). The determination result includes the formation regions (positions, shapes, sizes, etc.) of the plurality of droplet storage sections 11 on the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10.

[0043] Next, the discharge control unit 113 controls the movement of the holder 103 in the horizontal direction (X-axis direction) by the movement unit 105 and the movement of the storage container holder 104 in the horizontal direction (Y-axis direction) to move the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 above the formation region of the droplet storage unit 11 determined in step S403 (step S404). At this time, the discharge control unit 113 controls the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 to be completely within the range of the formation region of the droplet storage unit 11 so that the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 does not come into contact with the surface 10A of the storage container 10.

[0044] Next, the ejection control unit 113 controls the movement of the holding unit 103 in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) by the moving unit 105, thereby inserting the tip of the droplet ejection unit 101 into the droplet storage unit 11 (step S405).

[0045] Next, the discharge control unit 113 discharges a predetermined amount of droplets from the nozzle hole 101A at the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 while the tip of the droplet discharge unit 101 is inserted into the droplet storage unit 11 (step S406).

[0046] Next, the discharge control unit 113 determines whether or not the discharge of droplets into all droplet storage units 11 has been completed (step S407).

[0047] In step S407, if it is determined that the ejection of droplets into all droplet storage units 11 has not been completed (step S407: No), the control unit 110 returns the process to step S404.

[0048] On the other hand, in step S407, if it is determined that the ejection of droplets into all droplet storage units 11 has been completed (step S407: Yes), the control unit 110 ends the series of processes shown in FIG.

[0049] The droplet ejection device 100 according to the first embodiment can place droplets with high precision in each of the multiple droplet storage sections 11 without contacting the tip of the droplet ejection section 101 with the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10 by performing the series of processes shown in FIG.

[0050] (An example of distance detection by the droplet ejection device 100) Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of distance detection by the droplet ejection device 100 according to the first embodiment. Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of shape data generated by the droplet ejection device 100 according to the first embodiment.

[0051] As shown in Figure 5(a), in the droplet ejection device 100 of the first embodiment, when the detection unit 102 detects the distance to an area on the surface 10A of the storage container 10 where the droplet storage unit 11 is not formed, a first distance Ha is detected.

[0052] On the other hand, as shown in Figure 5(b), when the droplet ejection device 100 of the first embodiment detects the distance to the area on the surface 10A of the storage container 10 where the droplet storage section 11 is formed, the detection section 102 detects a second distance Hb that is greater than the first distance Ha by the depth of the droplet storage section 11.

[0053] Therefore, the droplet ejection device 100 of the first embodiment moves the detection unit 102 horizontally while detecting the distance to the surface 10A of the storage container 10, and can generate shape data (shape data showing the relationship between position and distance) of the surface 10A of the storage container 10, in which the distance to the position where the droplet storage unit 11 is not formed is the first distance Ha, and the distance to the position where the droplet storage unit 11 is formed is the second distance Hb, as shown in Figure 6.

[0054] In this case, the droplet ejection device 100 according to the first embodiment can detect the overall shape of the surface 10A of the storage container 10 by moving the detection unit 102 horizontally (in the X-axis direction) and moving the storage container holding unit 104 horizontally (in the Y-axis direction) so as to scan the entire surface 10A of the storage container 10.

[0055] The droplet ejection device 100 according to the first embodiment inserts the tip of the droplet ejection section 101 into the droplet storage section 11 based on this shape data, thereby enabling the tip of the droplet ejection section 101 to be inserted into the droplet storage section 11 with high precision without contacting the tip of the droplet ejection section 101 with the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10.

[0056] Second Embodiment The following describes the droplet ejection device 100 according to the second embodiment, focusing on the changes from the droplet ejection device 100 according to the first embodiment.

[0057] (Functional configuration of control unit 110) FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the control unit 110 included in the droplet ejection device 100 according to the second embodiment.

[0058] As shown in FIG. 7, the control unit 110 according to the second embodiment further includes a memory unit 114, an estimation unit 115, a registration unit 116, a selection reception unit 117, a warning unit 118, a lid determination unit 119, and an abnormality processing unit 120.

[0059] The storage unit 114 stores shape data for each of a plurality of types of storage vessels 10.

[0060] The estimation unit 115 estimates the type of storage vessel 10 held by the storage vessel holding unit 104 by comparing the shape of a portion of the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10 detected by the detection unit 102 with multiple shape data stored in the memory unit 114.

[0061] For example, the estimation unit 115 estimates the type of storage container 10 based on at least one of the size of the storage container 10, the number of droplet storage sections 11, the shape of the droplet storage sections 11, the size of the droplet storage sections 11, and the formation interval of the droplet storage sections 11.

[0062] In the droplet ejection device 100 according to the second embodiment, the shape determination unit 112 can determine the overall shape of the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10 by acquiring the shape data of the storage vessel 10 estimated by the estimation unit 115 from the memory unit 114.

[0063] As a result, the droplet discharge device 100 according to the second embodiment can estimate the type of storage vessel 10 held by the storage vessel holding unit 104 based on the detection results of the shape of a portion of the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10, without measuring the entire shape of the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10, and determine the entire shape of the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10. Therefore, the control unit 110 according to the second embodiment can be downsized and reduced in cost by shortening the measurement time and simplifying the configuration.

[0064] The registration unit 116 registers the input shape data of the storage vessel 10 in the memory unit 114. As a result, even when the droplet discharge device 100 according to the second embodiment newly uses a storage vessel 10 whose shape data is not recorded in the memory unit 114, by registering the shape data of the storage vessel 10 in the memory unit 114, the estimation unit 115 can estimate the storage vessel 10.

[0065] The selection receiving unit 117 receives a selection from the user of the type of storage container 10 to be used. For example, the selection receiving unit 117 displays a plurality of types of storage container 10 stored in the memory unit on a display, and allows the user to select any one of the plurality of types of storage container 10.

[0066] The warning unit 118 issues a warning when the type of the selected storage vessel 10 differs from the type of the storage vessel 10 estimated by the estimation unit 115.

[0067] As a result, if the user makes a mistake in selecting the type of storage container 10, the droplet ejection device 100 of the second embodiment can notify the user of the mistake and can prevent droplets from being ejected using incorrect shape data.

[0068] The lid determination unit 119 determines whether or not a lid is attached to the storage container 10 based on the detection result of the shape of the surface 10A of the storage container 10 by the detection unit 102. For example, the lid determination unit 119 determines that a lid is attached to the storage container 10 when the detection unit 102 does not detect any droplet storage units 11, or when the detection unit 102 detects an insufficient number of droplet storage units 11.

[0069] When the lid determination unit 119 determines that a lid is attached to the storage vessel 10, the abnormality processing unit 120 issues a warning and controls the droplet discharge unit 101 not to discharge droplets.

[0070] As a result, the droplet ejection device 100 according to the second embodiment can notify the user that a lid is attached to the storage container 10 when the lid is attached, and can prevent the user from accidentally ejecting droplets onto a storage container 10 that has a lid attached.

[0071] Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention described in the claims.

[0072] For example, the detection unit 102 may be an imaging device (for example, a stereo camera) that captures an image of the surface 10A of the storage vessel 10. In this case, the entire surface 10A of the storage vessel 10 can be captured at once, so there is no need to capture the image while moving the detection unit 102.

[0073] In this specification, the "moving unit that moves the droplet discharge unit relatively to the storage container held by the storage container holding unit" can be expressed as "a moving unit that moves the droplet discharge unit horizontally and vertically relative to the storage container held by the storage container holding unit," or can be expressed separately as "a horizontal moving unit that moves the droplet discharge unit horizontally relative to the storage container held by the storage container holding unit, and a vertical moving unit that moves the droplet discharge unit vertically relative to the storage container held by the storage container holding unit." In this case, the first horizontal moving unit 105B and the second horizontal moving unit 105A in the embodiment correspond to the "horizontal moving unit," and the vertical moving unit 105C in the embodiment corresponds to the "vertical moving unit." It can also be expressed as "a first horizontal movement unit that moves the droplet discharge unit in a first horizontal direction relative to the storage container held by the storage container holding unit, a second horizontal movement unit that moves the droplet discharge unit in a second horizontal direction that is perpendicular to the first horizontal direction relative to the storage container held by the storage container holding unit, and a vertical movement unit that moves the droplet discharge unit in a vertical direction relative to the storage container held by the storage container holding unit." [Explanation of symbols]

[0074] 10 Containment Vessel 10A surface 11 Droplet storage unit 100 Droplet discharge device 101 Droplet discharge part 101A Nozzle hole 102 detection unit (distance measuring sensor) 103 Holding part 104 Containment vessel holder 104A Placement surface 105 Mobile Unit 105A 2nd horizontal moving section 105B 1st horizontal movement section 105C Vertical moving part 106 frames 106A board 106B Post 110 control section 111 Detection control unit 112 Shape determination section 113 Discharge control section 114 Storage section 115 Estimation Department 116 Registration Department 117 Selection Reception Department 118 Warning section 119 Lid determination section 120 Abnormality Processing Unit [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0075] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2021-137792

Claims

1. A droplet ejection device that ejects droplets into a droplet storage section of a storage container, a droplet ejection unit that ejects a predetermined amount of the droplets from a nozzle hole; a containment vessel holder that holds the containment vessel; a moving unit that moves the droplet ejecting unit relatively to the storage container held by the storage container holding unit; a detection unit that detects a shape of a portion of a surface of the containment vessel held by the containment vessel holding unit; a storage unit that stores shape data of each of a plurality of types of storage vessels; an estimation unit that estimates the type of the containment vessel held by the containment vessel holding unit by comparing the shape of the part of the surface of the containment vessel detected by the detection unit with a plurality of shape data stored in the memory unit; Equipped with The estimation unit The type of the storage vessel is estimated based on at least one of the size of the storage vessel, the number of the droplet storage sections, the shape of the droplet storage sections, the size of the droplet storage sections, and the intervals at which the droplet storage sections are formed. A droplet ejection device characterized by:

2. a registration unit that registers input shape data in the storage unit; The droplet ejection device according to claim 1 , further comprising:

3. a selection receiving unit that receives a selection of the type of storage container to be used from a user; a warning unit that issues a warning when the selected type of containment vessel differs from the type of containment vessel estimated by the estimation unit; and 3. The droplet ejection device according to claim 1, further comprising:

4. The detection unit is a distance measurement sensor that detects the distance to the surface of the containment vessel in a non-contact manner.

4. The droplet ejection device according to claim 1, wherein the droplet ejection device is a liquid ejection device.

5. The detection unit is an imaging device that captures an image of the surface of the storage vessel.

4. The droplet ejection device according to claim 1, wherein the droplet ejection device is a liquid ejection device.

6. a holding part that integrally holds the droplet ejection part and the detection part; 5. The droplet ejection device according to claim 4.

7. The droplet storage section has a concave shape.

7. The droplet ejection device according to claim 1, wherein the droplet ejection device is a liquid ejection device.

8. a lid determination unit that determines whether a lid is attached to the storage container based on a result of detection of the surface shape of the storage container by the detection unit; an abnormality processing unit that issues a warning and controls so as not to eject the droplets when the lid determination unit determines that a lid is attached to the storage container; The droplet ejection device according to claim 7, further comprising:

9. a discharge control unit that inserts a tip end of the nozzle hole of the droplet discharge unit into the droplet storage unit of the storage container and discharges a predetermined amount of the droplets from the tip end of the nozzle hole; 9. The droplet ejection device according to claim 7, further comprising:

10. The droplet ejection unit is an inkjet head. The droplet ejection device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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