Culture control system, culture control method, culture system, and culture method

Abstract

The present invention provides a culture control system that reduces the time and effort for a user to monitor the culture state when controlling culture of cells or the like. In a culture control system for controlling culture of a culture vessel housing a culture object, when conditions for transitioning to the next step have been established within a predetermined step among various steps created by dividing culture into a plurality of steps, control is exerted to automatically transition to the next step when the setting to automatically transition to the next step is set and to continue the predetermined step when the setting to automatically transition to the next step is not set.

Description

Cultivation control system, culture control method, culture system, and culture method

[0001] The present invention relates to a technique for controlling the operation of a culture vessel.

[0002] BACKGROUND ART Mass culture of culture targets such as microorganisms, insect cells, plant cells, and animal cells is widely used for producing various substances useful as pharmaceuticals, foods, cosmetics, or raw materials for these.

[0003] Conventionally, a culture vessel has been proposed that accommodates a culture bag containing a liquid (culture medium) containing a culture target and a gas, and performs culture by adjusting the temperature, adjusting the gas flow rate, and shaking (see Patent Document 1). Furthermore, culture involves multiple steps, and when proceeding to the next step among the multiple steps, the user checks the temperature inside the culture vessel and measurements taken by a flow rate sensor, or visually checks the culture state inside the culture vessel.

[0004] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-126172

[0005] However, among the multiple processes, there are some processes in which, as long as certain conditions are met, such as the temperature inside the culture vessel, the user can proceed to the next process without having to take the trouble of visually checking the culture state inside the culture vessel. Conventionally, even in such cases, the user had to wait near the culture vessel and monitor the culture state, which was time-consuming.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to reduce the effort required by a user to monitor the culture state when controlling the culture of cells or the like.

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is a culture control system that controls the culture of a culture vessel containing a culture object, and is characterized in that when a condition for transitioning to the next step is met within a predetermined step among the steps into which the culture is divided into multiple processes, if a setting for automatic transition to the next step has been made, the system automatically transitions to the next step, and if a setting for automatic transition to the next step has not been made, the system continues to perform the predetermined step.

[0008] According to the culture control system of the present invention, when controlling the culture of cells or the like, it is possible to reduce the effort required by the user to monitor the culture state.

[0009] FIG. 1 is an electrical hardware configuration diagram of a culture control device, which is an overall configuration diagram of a culture system. FIG. 2 is an electrical hardware configuration diagram of a communication terminal. FIG. 3 is a functional configuration diagram of the culture system. FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing the processing of the culture system. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a setting screen for culture step control information displayed by a communication terminal. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a display screen for the operating status displayed by a communication terminal. FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram showing the processing of displaying a screen showing the satisfaction status of a transition condition. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a display screen for the satisfaction status of a transition condition. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the control of each step in culture.

[0010] Hereinafter, a culture system 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0011] [Overall Configuration of Culture System] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a culture system 10. As shown in FIG.

[0012] As shown in FIG. 1 , a culture system 10 is constructed by a culture vessel 30, a culture control device 50, and a communication terminal 70. The culture control device 50 and the communication terminal 70 can communicate with each other via a communication network 100 such as the Internet, a LAN (Local Area Network), or a cable. The communication may be wired or wireless. The communication terminal 70 may be attached to the culture control device 50. The culture control device 50 and the communication terminal 70 constitute a culture control system 20. This culture control system 20 controls the culture process of the culture vessel 30 in which the culture object is accommodated.

[0013] <Culture Vessel> The culture vessel 30 is mainly composed of a vessel body 31 and a drive mechanism 35 for driving the vessel body 31. A culture bag 40 is housed inside the vessel body 31.

[0014] The culture bag 40 is made of a soft packaging material such as a thermoplastic resin, such as polystyrene, polyamide, polyester, or polyolefin, or a film of a laminate of these. Therefore, the material of the culture vessel 30 is a composite material such as a metal, such as stainless steel, resin, wood, laminated wood, or fiber-reinforced plastic, and has hardness (rigidity) sufficient to protect the culture bag 40.

[0015] The capacity (size) of the culture bag 40 is not particularly limited, but may be, for example, 0.1 to 5000 L, and preferably 1 to 2000 L. The culture bag 40 may be single-use (disposable). Therefore, a culture vessel 30 that matches the size of the culture bag 40 is used.

[0016] The lower part of the culture bag 40 contains a liquid (culture medium), and the upper part of the culture bag 40 contains a gas. The volume ratio of the gas to the liquid (gas-liquid volume ratio) is not particularly limited, and the liquid may be more than the gas, the gas may be more than the liquid, or it may be about 50:50. The gas-liquid volume ratio is preferably in the range of 1:9 to 9:1, for example.

[0017] The liquid in the culture bag 40 contains living organisms to be cultured, such as microorganisms, insect cells, plant cells, animal cells, tissues, cell sheets, cell clumps, etc. The gas in the culture bag 40 may be an aerobic atmosphere containing air (or an oxygen-containing gas), or an anaerobic atmosphere with a low concentration of oxygen. The composition of this gas is not particularly limited, but is generally a mixed gas of two or more types. The components of this gas include, for example, oxygen (O ２ ), nitrogen (N ２ ), inert gases such as argon (Ar), carbon dioxide (CO ２ ), acid gases such as ammonia (NH ３ ), and hydrogen sulfide (H ２ S) and other reducing gases.

[0018] An inlet of an alkali tube 41 is connected to the upper side of the culture vessel 30, for supplying an alkaline solution from the culture control device 50 into the culture bag 40. Similarly, an air inlet of an upper aeration tube 42 is connected to the upper side of the culture vessel 30, for supplying at least one gas, such as air or carbon dioxide, from the culture control device 50 to the gas portion in the culture bag 40. Furthermore, an air inlet of a lower aeration tube 43 is connected to the lower side of the culture vessel 30, for supplying at least one gas, such as nitrogen, air, or oxygen, from the culture control device 50 to the liquid portion in the culture bag 40.

[0019] The culture vessel 30 is provided with a drive mechanism 35 for shaking the main body of the culture vessel 30 including the culture bag 40, and a temperature adjustment mechanism 36 for adjusting the temperature of the culture bag 40 and its contents (culture medium). A control cord 45 for communicating control signals from the culture control device 50 is connected to the drive mechanism 35 and the temperature adjustment mechanism 36.

[0020] The drive mechanism 35 repeatedly rotates and stops the container body 31 including the culture bag 40 under control of the culture control device 50. This allows the contents in the culture bag 40 to be cultured while being stirred and mixed. The drive mechanism 35 can detect the weight of the container body 31 including the culture bag 40.

[0021] Examples of the temperature adjustment mechanism 36 include, but are not limited to, a jacket structure that allows a heat medium such as circulating water to pass through, a heating device such as a rubber heater, etc. The culture temperature depends on the type of organism being cultured, but for example, in the case of microorganisms, 4 to 40°C is preferable, and 25 to 37°C is particularly preferable. When the culture vessel 30 is used as an agitator for culture medium or the like without culturing, it may be cooled (for example, 4 to 20°C).

[0022] The culture bag 40 is also provided with a sensor group 37, including a sensor for measuring DO (dissolved oxygen concentration), a sensor for measuring pH (hydrogen ion exponent) of the contents, and a sensor for measuring temperature. The measured values ​​of the sensor group 37 are transmitted to the culture control device 50 via a sensor group code 47, and are used from the culture control device 50 for feedback control of the supply of gases and the like via the tubes 41, 42, and 43, and for feedback control of the drive mechanism 35 and the temperature adjustment mechanism 36 via a control code 45.

[0023] For example, for DO, the airflow rate is measured, and oxygen is supplied from the culture control device 50 to the culture bag 40 through the tube 43 by feedback control. In this case, the oxygen is preferably supplied from the tube 43 having an outlet in the liquid (below the liquid surface) so that oxygen is distributed evenly throughout the liquid in the culture bag 40.

[0024] The pH can be measured by inserting a pH electrode into the culture bag 40 or by attaching a chip that changes color depending on the pH to the inside of the culture bag 40. For example, if it is desired to make the inside of the culture bag 40 acidic, the culture control device 50 introduces CO into the culture bag 40 via the tube 42 or 43. ２ The pH can be changed to the acidic side by supplying gas or by dripping an acid solution. ２ When supplying gas, CO ２ In order to prevent the gas from dissolving in the solution more than necessary, the culture control device 50 supplies CO 2 gas from the top surface of the culture bag 40 via the tube 42. ２ It is preferable to introduce gas or supply it intermittently from the bottom of the culture bag 40 via a tube 43. When it is desired to make the inside of the culture bag 40 basic, the culture control device 50 can make the pH basic by supplying (adding) an alkaline solution from the top surface of the culture bag 40 via a tube 41.

[0025] The culture vessel 30 can be used for both fed-batch culture (fed-batch method) and perfusion culture (perfusion method). The organisms, cells, etc. to be cultured are not particularly limited, and can be used to culture fungi such as Escherichia coli, yeast, microorganisms, insect cells, plant cells, animal cells, CHO (Chinese Hamster Ovary) cells for biopharmaceutical production, HeLa cells, COS cells, iPS cells for regenerative medicine, stem cells such as mesenchymal stem cells, and animal cells such as differentiated tissue cells. In particular, the culture vessel 30 is suitable for culturing CHO cells.

[0026] The culture vessel 30 and the culture method using the same are particularly suitable for large-scale culture. The culture vessel 30 is preferably equipped with a counterbalance, especially in the case of large-scale culture. Equipping the counterbalance allows the device to operate stably even when a culture bag 40 containing a large volume of culture medium is used. Two or more culture bags 40 may be mounted on one culture vessel 30, so that they function as counterbalances to each other.

[0027] <Culture Control Device> The culture control device 50 executes each culture step (hereinafter referred to as "step"), which is a plurality of processes that divide the culture process (also simply referred to as "culture"). In each step, the culture control device 50 performs feedback control of the supply of gas and the like via the tubes 41, 42, and 43, and feedback control of the drive mechanism 35 and the temperature adjustment mechanism 36 via the control code 45, based on sensor signals received from the sensor group 37 of the culture vessel 30 via the sensor group code 47. The steps in the culture include, for example, a culture bag installation step, a culture solution conditioning step, a culture step, a sampling step, and a recovery step.

[0028] The culture control device 50 controls the culture vessel 30 based on a request sent from the communication terminal 70. The culture control device 50 also sends various screen data to the communication terminal 70. Outside the culture control device 50, a plurality of display units 507a, 507b in a display unit group 507 and an alkali control device 512a, which is one of a meter group 512 and automatically controls the supply amount of alkaline solution, are provided.

[0029] The culture control device 50 controls the pH of the contents of the culture bag 40 to increase by supplying an alkaline solution through the tube 41. Conversely, the culture control device 50 controls the pH of the contents of the culture bag 40 to decrease by supplying carbon dioxide through the tube 42. The pH can be controlled by these up and down controls.

[0030] Furthermore, the culture control device 50 can control the dissolved oxygen concentration (DO) of the contents of the culture bag 40 by supplying nitrogen and oxygen through the tube 43. The culture control device 50 can adjust the air pressure inside the culture bag 40 by supplying air through the tubes 42 and 43, and can restore a deflated culture bag 40 to its original state, for example.

[0031] (Hardware Configuration) FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the electrical hardware configuration of the culture control device 50. As shown in FIG.

[0032] As shown in FIG. 2, the culture control device 50 is a computer that includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 501, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 502, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 503, an SSD (Solid State Drive) 504, an external device connection I / F (Interface) 505, a network I / F 506, a display group 507, an operation unit 508, a media I / F 509, a bus line 510, a pump group 511, and an instrument group 512.

[0033] Of these, the CPU 501 controls the overall operation of the culture control device 50. The ROM 502 stores programs such as an IPL (Initial Program Loader) used to drive the CPU 501. The RAM 503 is used as a work area for the CPU 501.

[0034] The SSD 504 reads or writes various data under the control of the CPU 501. Instead of the SSD 504, a hard disk drive (HDD) may be provided.

[0035] The external device connection I / F 505 is an interface for connecting various external devices. In this case, the external devices include the culture vessel 30, a display, a speaker, a keyboard, a mouse, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, a printer, etc.

[0036] The network I / F 506 is an interface for performing data communication with the communication terminal 70 and the like via the communication network 100 .

[0037] The display group 507 is a type of display means such as a liquid crystal display or an organic electroluminescence (EL) display that displays various images.

[0038] The operation unit 508 is an input unit for selecting and executing various instructions such as various operation buttons, a power switch, a shutter button, and a touch panel, selecting a processing target, moving a cursor, and the like.

[0039] The media I / F 509 controls reading and writing (storing) of data from and to a recording medium 509m such as a flash memory, etc. The recording medium 509m includes a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) and a Blu-ray Disc (registered trademark).

[0040] The pump group 511 includes, for example, a pump for supplying an alkaline solution to the culture bag 40 of the culture vessel 30 from the culture control device 50 via the alkali tube 41. The pump group 511 also includes, for example, a pump for supplying various gases to the culture bag 40 of the culture vessel 30 from the culture control device 50 via the upper aeration tube 42 or the lower aeration tube 43.

[0041] The meter group 512 includes a measuring instrument that measures the rotation speed when a predetermined pump of the pump group 511 supplies the alkaline solution. The meter group 512 also includes measuring instruments that measure the total upper airflow rate, the total lower airflow rate, etc.

[0042] The bus line 510 is an address bus, a data bus, etc. for electrically connecting the components such as the CPU 501 shown in FIG.

[0043] <Communication Terminal> The communication terminal 70 is a desktop, notebook, or tablet PC (Personal Computer), a smartphone, etc. The communication terminal 70 transmits various requests to the culture control device 50. The communication terminal 70 also receives various image data transmitted by the culture control device 50.

[0044] (Hardware Configuration) FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the electrical hardware configuration of the communication terminal 70. As shown in FIG.

[0045] As shown in Figure 3, the communication terminal 70 is a computer that includes a CPU 701, a ROM 702, a RAM 703, an SSD 704, an external device connection I / F 705, a network I / F 706, a display unit 707, an operation unit 708, a media I / F 709, and a bus line 710.

[0046] Of these, the CPU 701 controls the overall operation of the communication terminal 70. The ROM 702 stores programs such as IPL used to drive the CPU 701. The RAM 703 is used as a work area for the CPU 701.

[0047] The SSD 704 reads or writes various data under the control of the CPU 701. The SSD 704 may not be provided, or an HDD may be provided instead of the SSD 704.

[0048] The external device connection I / F 705 is an interface for connecting various external devices, such as a display, a speaker, a keyboard, a mouse, a USB memory, and a printer.

[0049] The network I / F 706 is an interface for data communication with the culture control device 50 and the like via the communication network 100 .

[0050] The display unit 707 is a type of display means such as a liquid crystal display or organic electroluminescence display that displays various images.

[0051] The operation unit 708 is an input unit for selecting and executing various instructions such as various operation buttons, a power switch, a shutter button, and a touch panel, selecting a processing target, moving a cursor, and the like.

[0052] The media I / F 709 controls reading and writing (storing) of data from and to a recording medium 709m such as a flash memory, etc. The recording medium 709m includes DVDs and Blu-ray Discs (registered trademarks).

[0053] The bus line 710 is an address bus, a data bus, or the like for electrically connecting the components such as the CPU 701 shown in FIG.

[0054] [Functional Configuration of Culture System] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the functional configuration of the culture control device 50 and the communication terminal 70 of the culture system.

[0055] <Functions of the Culture Control Device> As shown in Fig. 4, the culture control device 50 has a communication unit 51, a reception unit 52, a determination unit 53, a display control unit 54, a control unit 55, an actual measurement value acquisition unit 56, and a creation unit 57. Each of these units is a function or means realized when any of the components shown in Fig. 2 operates in response to an instruction from the CPU 501 in accordance with a program loaded from the SSD 504 onto the RAM 503. The culture control device 50 also has a storage unit 60 constructed using the ROM 502, RAM 503, or SSD 504 shown in Fig. 2. A recipe management DB 61 that manages culture recipe data is constructed in the storage unit 60.

[0056] The communication unit 51 controls transmission of various data (or information) from the network I / F 506 to the communication terminal 70 or the like via the communication network 100, and reception of various data (or information) from the communication terminal 70 or the like via the communication network 100 at the network I / F 506. The communication unit 51 is an example of a transmitting unit and a receiving unit.

[0057] The reception unit 52 receives various selections or inputs from the operation unit 508 or a keyboard, mouse, or the like connected to the external device connection I / F 505, and recognizes the contents of the selections or inputs.

[0058] The determination unit 53 performs various determinations (S101 to S104, S107) to be described later.

[0059] The display control unit 54 causes the display units 507a and 507b to display various images and information.

[0060] The control unit 55 mainly realizes processing by the CPU 501, and controls the drive mechanism 35 and the temperature adjustment mechanism 36 of the culture vessel 30 by transmitting control signals to the drive mechanism 35 and the temperature adjustment mechanism 36 via the control code 45. The control unit 55 also controls the driving of the pump group 511 and the instrument group 512.

[0061] The actual measurement value acquiring unit 56 acquires a signal indicating the actual measurement value, which is a measurement value, from the sensor group 37 of the incubation vessel 30 via the sensor group code 47. Note that wireless communication may be performed in addition to wired communication via the sensor group code 47.

[0062] The creation unit 57 creates various screen data that the communication unit 51 transmits to the communication terminal 70. Note that the culture control device 50 does not necessarily have to include the creation unit 57.

[0063] <Functions of the Communication Terminal> As shown in Fig. 4, the communication terminal 70 has a communication unit 71, a reception unit 72, and a display control unit 54. Each of these units is a function or means realized when any of the components shown in Fig. 3 operates in response to an instruction from the CPU 701 in accordance with a program loaded from the SSD 704 onto the RAM 703. The communication terminal 70 also has a storage unit 80 constructed by the ROM 702, RAM 703, or SSD 704 shown in Fig. 3.

[0064] The communication unit 71 controls the transmission of various data (or information) from the network I / F 706 to the culture control device 50, etc. via the communication network 100, and the reception of various data (or information) from the culture control device 50, etc. via the communication network 100 via the network I / F 706.

[0065] The reception unit 72 receives various selections or inputs from the operation unit 708 or a keyboard, mouse, or the like connected to the external device connection I / F 705, and recognizes the contents of the selections or inputs.

[0066] The display control unit 74 displays various images and information on the display unit 707. If the culture control device 50 does not have the creation unit 57, the communication unit 51 may transmit parameters and the like for creating a screen such as that shown in Figure 7 or 8 to the communication terminal 70, and the display control unit 74 on the communication terminal 70 side may create a screen such as that shown in Figure 7 or 8 using the parameters and the like received by the communication unit 71 and display it on the display unit 707.

[0067] [Processing or Operation of This Embodiment] Here, the processing or operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 5 to 9. Figure 5 is a sequence diagram showing the processing of the culture system.

[0068] <Display processing of setting screen> S11: First, before culturing, in order to make various settings for each step in the culturing, in the communication terminal 70, the reception unit 72 receives a user operation, and the display control unit 74 causes the display unit 707 to display a setting screen 720 for culturing step control information, as shown in Figure 6.

[0069] (Culture Step Control Information Setting Screen) FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a culture step control information setting screen displayed by the communication terminal.

[0070] The display control unit 74 creates a setting screen as shown in FIG.

[0071] 6, the setting screen 720 includes a recipe selection area 711 for a predetermined culture, a step selection area 712, a setting area 713 for selected step information, a setting area 714 for each transition condition, and a setting area 517 for control parameters. The setting screen 720 further includes a "Register" button 718 and a "CSV output" button 719.

[0072] Current Recipe Selection Area 711 is an area for selecting a recipe for culturing a predetermined cell, etc. For example, in Fig. 6, "Recipe 2" is selected.

[0073] Step Selection The selection area 712 is an area for selecting the name of a step (step name) for which a transition condition to the next step can be set in the setting areas 713 and 714 in the recipe selected in the selection area 711. This step name is set or changed in the setting area 713 of the selected step information, which will be described later. For example, FIG. 6 shows that 10 steps are performed in recipe 2. Furthermore, a transition condition to the next step can be set for each step in the setting areas 713 and 714. In other words, when the selected step is changed, the display contents of the setting areas 713 and 714 are also changed. Furthermore, the display area of ​​the setting area 715 is also changed.

[0074] Selected Step Information The setting area 713 displays the name of the step selected in the selection area 712, whether user confirmation is required before proceeding to the next step, the step time, and the message content.

[0075] The “step name” input field is a field for the user to input the name of the step selected in the selection area 712 .

[0076] The "Step transition" selection field is a field for selecting "Confirmation required" or "Confirmation not required" as the necessity of confirmation before transitioning to the next step. When "Confirmation required" is selected, the culture control device 50 will not automatically transition the culture vessel 30 to the next step unless the user confirms the progress of the culture in the culture vessel 30 at the step to be set. In this case, the user checks the progress and, if there are no problems, presses a predetermined start button or the like to instruct manual transition to the next step.

[0077] On the other hand, even if the user does not confirm the progress of the culture in the step to be set, if the condition for reaching the step time is met (the condition is satisfied) and all of the conditions for each item in the setting area 714 are met (satisfied), the culture control device 50 automatically transitions the culture vessel 30 to the next step (automatic transition) without user intervention. For example, in Figure 6, "Confirmation required" is selected, so in the step named "STEP001," a transition condition is set such that the step will not proceed to the next step named "STEP002" unless the user confirms the progress.

[0078] The "step time" input field is one of the transition conditions to the next step and is a field for inputting the time to wait before proceeding to the next step. In other words, when a step time is set, even if all of the transition conditions for each item in the setting area 714 are met in the step to be set, the control unit 55 of the culture control device 50 will not cause the culture vessel 30 to proceed to the next step until a predetermined time (step time) has elapsed since the start of the step. On the other hand, if a step time is not set, the control unit 55 of the culture control device 50 will cause the culture vessel 30 to proceed to the next step once all of the transition conditions for each item in the setting area 714 are met. For example, in FIG. 6, the step time is set to "1 day, 2 hours, 3 minutes, 4 seconds," and the system will not proceed to the next step until this time has elapsed, even if other transition conditions are met.

[0079] The "Message Content" input field is a field where the user can input information for reference. For example, a method for the user to check the culture state in the culture vessel 30 is input.

[0080] Transition Conditions The setting area 714 displays the name (item name) of each transition condition item for transitioning to the next step in the step to be set. These item names are the same for each step and are set in advance. There are three options for each transition condition (1) to (3), and one of them can be selected. Note that (1) and (2) below indicate the relationship between the measured value of a given situation in the incubation vessel 30 and a preset setting value. (1) Disable transition condition. (2) Actual measurement value (measured value) (PV: Process Value) ≥ Setting value (SV: Setting Value). (3) Actual measurement value (measured value) ≤ Setting value. The user selects the desired transition condition from these three options for each transition condition item, and inputs the setting value SV if they do not select "disable." For example, in FIG. 6, for workflow 1, DO (dissolved oxygen concentration), the transition condition for the air volume item "WF1 DO (Air)" is "PV≧SV", and SV is set to "1.00" L / min.

[0081] (1) The culture control device 50 does not use the transition conditions of the items for which invalid is selected when determining whether to proceed to the next step. Also, if the transition conditions of (2) and (3) are selected for multiple items of the transition conditions, the culture control device 50 will not proceed to the next step unless all of these selected transition conditions are met.

[0082] The control parameter setting area 715 allows selection of whether or not to enable feedback control using a proportional-integral-differential controller (PID) for each instrument such as a thermometer. When automatic (AUTO) mode is selected, the input field for the set value (SV) becomes active, allowing the setting of the PID set value. On the other hand, when manual (MANUAL) mode is selected, the input field for the manipulated variable (MV: manipulated value) becomes active, allowing the setting of the manipulated value of the output instrument.

[0083] The "Register" button 718 is a button for registering the contents set on the setting screen 720. The "CSV Output" button 719 is a button for outputting the contents set on the setting screen 720 to the outside of the culture control device 50 as a CSV (Comma-Separated Values) file.

[0084] <Driving Condition Display Processing> Next, returning to FIG. 5, the driving condition display processing will be described.

[0085] S12: The reception unit 62 receives a setting operation selected or input by the user on the setting screen 720.

[0086] S13: When the reception unit 62 receives the user pressing the "Register" button 718, the communication unit 71 transmits culture step control information indicating the settings made by the user to the culture control device 50. As a result, the communication unit 51 of the culture control device 50 receives the culture step control information.

[0087] S14: In the culture control device 50, the communication unit 51 stores the culture step control information received in step S13 in the recipe management DB 61 of the storage unit 60.

[0088] S15: Thereafter, in the communication terminal 70, the reception unit 72 receives a command to start culture through a user operation.

[0089] S16: Based on the reception of the culture start request in process S15, the communication unit 71 transmits a culture start request by a log-on operation or the like to the culture control device 50. As a result, the culture control device 50 receives the start request.

[0090] S17: The culture control device 50 controls each step of the culture based on the start request received in step S16. The contents of this control will be explained in detail later.

[0091] S18: Depending on the content of process S17, the communication unit 51 of the culture control device 50 transmits, during process S17, to the communication terminal 70, parameters and the like for creating the display screen of the operating status shown in Fig. 7. As a result, the communication unit 71 of the communication terminal 70 receives the parameters.

[0092] S19: In the communication terminal 70, the display control unit 74 uses the parameters and the like to create a display screen 730 of the driving situation as shown in Fig. 7, and displays it on the display unit 707. Note that processes S18 to S20 are repeatedly performed while process S17 is being performed.

[0093] (Display Screen of Driving Condition) FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a display screen of driving conditions displayed by the communication terminal 70. As shown in FIG.

[0094] The display screen 730 shown in FIG. 7 displays parameters indicating the operating status of the culture vessel 30. As shown in FIG. 7, the display screen 730 displays a schematic diagram 30p of the culture vessel 30 in the center, and similarly to FIG. 1, displays schematic diagrams 41p, 42p, and 43p of the tubes 41, 42, and 43 corresponding to the culture vessel 30, as well as a display field 741 displaying actual measured values ​​(PV) and set values ​​(SV) of meters described below. Note that a schematic diagram 511p of an alkali pump, which is one of the pump groups 511 in the culture control device 50, and a setting icon 512ap of the alkali control device 512a are linked to the schematic diagram 41p of the tube 41. Since the set values ​​(SV) are set for each step in the culture, as shown in FIG. 6, when the process proceeds to the next step, the display control unit 74 switches the display of the parameters on the display screen 730 to display parameters such as actual measured values ​​(PV) and set values ​​(SV) for the next step.

[0095] When all of the set transition conditions are met, the "Confirm" button 731 becomes operable (active) by the display control unit 74, and the display mode is changed. When the user checks the inside of the incubation vessel 30 and determines that the progress of the solvent is proceeding as planned, for example, and presses the "Confirm" button 731, the control unit 55 controls the incubation vessel 30 to transition to the next step. The "Confirm" button 731 is an example of a first display portion. In this case, the change in the display mode is a change in the shape, pattern, color, text, or symbol of the "Confirm" button 731.

[0096] The "forced transition" button 732 is a button that can be pressed by the user to forcibly transition to the next step even when all of the set transition conditions are not met. For example, even when the transition conditions are not met because the actual measured value (PV) by the device is not equal to or greater than the set value (SV), the button can be pressed when the user visually checks the culture state in the incubation vessel 30 and determines that it is OK to transition to the next step. The "forced transition" button 732 is an example of a second display portion.

[0097] The "Display transition conditions" button 733 is a button for displaying a display screen 770, as shown in FIG. 9, which shows whether the transition conditions at each step are met.

[0098] The display field 734 displays the message entered in the "Message Content" input field of the setting area 713 shown in FIG.

[0099] Display field 735 displays the step elapsed time (individual step), step elapsed time (total), and the name of the step currently in operation. The step elapsed time (individual step) indicates the elapsed time of the step currently in operation, and is reset to zero when the process proceeds to the next step. The step elapsed time (total) indicates the total time since the start of the batch operation.

[0100] The display field 736 shows the measured value (PV) and set value (SV) of the pH inside the culture bag 40. As described above, the measured value (PV) of pH increases with the supply of alkaline solution and decreases with the supply of carbon dioxide.

[0101] The display field 737 shows the actual value (PV) and the set value (SV) of the dissolved oxygen concentration (DO) of the contents of the culture bag 40. As described above, the actual value (PV) of the dissolved oxygen concentration (DO) is changed by controlling the supply amounts of nitrogen and oxygen.

[0102] Display fields 741 to 751 show the control parameters and setting status of each instrument such as a thermometer. Display fields 741 to 743 and 746 to 751 show whether the setting area 715 shown in Fig. 6 is set to AUTO mode (A) or MANUAL mode (M), and further show PV and SV values.

[0103] In addition, a display field 744 indicates whether the setting area 715 shown in FIG. 6 is set to AUTO mode (A) or MANUAL mode (M), and indicates the jacket temperature and bag temperature for each PV and SV.

[0104] Furthermore, the display field 745 indicates whether the setting area 715 shown in Figure 6 is set to AUTO mode (A) or MANUAL mode (M), and indicates the weight of the container body 31 for each PV and SV.

[0105] Also, the display field 747 indicates the total aeration volume of gas (at least one of air and carbon dioxide) supplied from the culture control device 50 to the culture bag 40 through the upper aeration tube 42. In FIG. 7, the MFC (flow rate controller) for "WF1 upper AIR" and the MFC for "WF2 upper CO ２ The display field 751 shows the total aeration amount of gas (at least one of nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide) supplied from the culture control device 50 to the culture bag 40 through the lower aeration tube 43. In FIG. 7, the total aeration amount of gas (at least one of nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide) supplied from the culture control device 50 to the culture bag 40 through the lower aeration tube 43 is shown. ２ " MFC, "WF3 liquid AIR" MFC, and "WF4 liquid O ２ The total flow measured by the MFC for each is shown.

[0106] When the setting icon 512ap is pressed by the user, a screen for setting the drive control (ON / OFF) of the alkali supply pump, the rotation direction of the pump, and the rotation speed is displayed, allowing the user to make settings.

[0107] Returning to FIG. 5, the display process of the driving situation will be further described.

[0108] S20: In the communication terminal 70, if the reception unit 72 receives various operations from the user during processing S17, the communication unit 71 transmits instructions corresponding to the operations to the culture control device 50. These instructions are reflected in processing S17.

[0109] <Control process of culture vessel> S21: Depending on the content of process S17, the control unit 55 of the culture control device 50 transmits a control signal for operation to the temperature adjustment mechanism 36 or drive mechanism 35 of the culture vessel 30 via the control code 45 during process S17, as shown in Figure 1.

[0110] S22: During process S17, the sensor group 37 of the culture vessel 30 transmits the actual measurement value (PV) to the actual measurement value acquisition unit 56 of the culture control device 50 via the sensor group code 47, as shown in Fig. 1. This allows the culture control device 50 to perform feedback control in process S21. Note that processes S21 and S22 are repeatedly performed while process S17 is being performed.

[0111] <Display Process of Establishment Status of Transition Condition> FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram showing a process of displaying a display screen 770 of establishment status of transition conditions.

[0112] S31: The reception unit 72 of the communication terminal 70 receives a press of the "Display transition conditions" button 733, thereby receiving a request to display a display screen showing the status of whether the transition conditions are met.

[0113] S32: The communication unit 71 transmits a request for the actual measured values ​​(PV) and set values ​​(SV) related to the transition conditions to the culture control device 50. As a result, the communication unit 51 of the culture control device 50 receives this request.

[0114] S33: The communication unit 51 transmits each data of the transition conditions based on the actual measurement values ​​(PV) acquired from the actual measurement value acquisition unit 56 and the set values ​​(SV) acquired from the recipe management DB 61 to the communication terminal 70. As a result, the communication unit 71 of the communication terminal 70 receives each data of the transition conditions.

[0115] S34: In the communication terminal 70, the display control unit 74 uses the data received in process S33 to create a display screen 770 showing the status of whether the transition conditions are met, as shown in FIG. 9, and causes the display unit 707 to display the display screen 770.

[0116] (Display Screen of Firmness Status) FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a display screen 770 of the firmness status of the transition conditions.

[0117] The display screen 770 displays the transition condition item name 771, transition condition 772, set value (SV) 773, and whether or not the transition condition is met for a given step. For example, FIG. 9 shows that the transition conditions for the MF1 DO (Air) and back (culture bag 40) pressure items are not met (satisfied). However, if the user presses the "Forced Transition" button 732, the process proceeds to the next step even if the transition conditions for the MF1 DO (Air) and back (culture bag 40) pressure items are not met. This allows the user to understand the status of the transition conditions for moving to the next step at each step.

[0118] <Control of Each Cultivation Step> FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the control of each step in the culture, and below, step S17 will be described in detail.

[0119] S101: At each step in the culture, the judgment unit 53 judges whether the communication unit 51 has received a forced transition instruction from the communication unit 71 when the reception unit 72 receives a press of the “forced transition” button 732 for a specified step.

[0120] S102: When the communication unit 51 receives a forced transition request (S101; NO), the determination unit 53 determines whether all transition conditions within the predetermined step are met. As described above, the determination of whether a transition condition is met is based on whether the step time set in the setting area 713 shown in FIG. 6 has elapsed, and whether the transition conditions for items that are not set to "invalid" in the transition condition setting area 714 are met. If all transition conditions within the predetermined step are not met (S102; NO), the process returns to S101.

[0121] S103: If all transition conditions within a specified step are met (S102; YES), the judgment unit 53 refers to the recipe management DB 61 and determines whether automatic transition has been set by selecting “No confirmation required” in the setting area 713 of the selected step information on the setting screen 720 shown in FIG. 6 .

[0122] S104: If automatic transition has been set (S103; YES), the determination unit 53 determines whether all steps in the culture have been completed. If 10 steps are set as shown in Figure 6, it is determined whether all 10 steps have been completed. Then, if all steps have been completed (S104; YES), the control of each step in the culture shown in Figure 10 ends.

[0123] S105: If all steps have not been completed (S104; NO), the control unit 55 controls the incubation container 30 to move to the next step, and returns to process S101.

[0124] S106: In process S103, if automatic transition has been set, i.e., if manual transition has been set by selecting "Confirmation Required" in the setting area 713 of the selected step information on the setting screen 720 shown in FIG. 6 (S103; YES), the control unit 55 causes the incubation vessel 30 to continue the predetermined step. For example, if the drive mechanism 35 is shaking the vessel body 31, it continues shaking it. In addition, the communication unit 51 transmits an instruction to the communication terminal 70 to change the display mode of the "Confirm" button 731 to activate it. As a result, the communication unit 71 of the communication terminal 70 receives the activation instruction, and the display control unit 74 changes the display mode of the "Confirm" button 731 shown in FIG. 7 to activate it.

[0125] S107: When the reception unit 72 receives a press of the "Confirm" button 731 shown in Fig. 7, the determination unit 53 determines whether the communication unit 51 has received an instruction to manually transition from the communication unit 71. Then, transition to the next step is put on hold until the "Confirm" button 731 is pressed (S107; NO). On the other hand, if the "Confirm" button 731 has been pressed (S107; YES), the process proceeds to step S104.

[0126] [Major Effects of the Embodiment] As described above, according to the present embodiment, some steps in the culture process may proceed automatically to the next step if the transition conditions are met. Therefore, by selecting "No confirmation required" in FIG. 6 , the transition of such steps can be automated. Furthermore, by displaying the display screen 770 shown in FIG. 10 , the user can proceed to the next step without actually checking the solvent state in the culture vessel 30 if the user knows that each transition condition is met (the transition conditions are met). In such cases, the user can make a transition decision simply by looking at the display screen 770 shown in FIG. 10 . On the other hand, even in cases where it is not desirable to proceed to the next step until the user actually checks the solvent state in the culture vessel 30, the user can use the screen shown in FIG. 10 as a reference for determining whether to proceed to the next step if the user knows that each transition condition is met (the transition conditions are met).

[0127] This has the effect of saving the user the trouble of monitoring the culture state in the culture vessel 30 near the culture vessel 30. It also has the effect of preventing the occurrence of human error, such as the user mistakenly proceeding to the next step or not proceeding at all due to inexperience or the like.

[0128] Although the embodiments have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0129] (1) Each of the above-mentioned programs can be recorded on a (non-transitory) recording medium and distributed, or can be provided via a communication network such as the Internet.

[0130] (2) In the communication between the culture vessel 30 and the culture control device 50, other devices (servers, routers, etc.) may relay data, etc. For example, for the sake of simplicity, this specification describes that the culture vessel 30 receives data (information) from the culture control device 50 and that the culture vessel 30 transmits data (information) to the culture control device 50, but the intent is that each of these receiving and transmitting processes also includes cases where other devices relay data, etc.

[0131] (3) The CPUs 501 and 701 serving as processors may each be single or multiple.

[0132] (4) In the above embodiment, the culture control device 50 has the judgment unit 53 and has constructed the recipe management DB 61 in the storage unit 60, but this is not limited to this. For example, the communication terminal 70 may have a judgment unit equivalent to the judgment unit 53. Furthermore, the communication terminal 70 may construct the recipe management DB 61 in the storage unit 80. Furthermore, a server (database server) other than the communication terminal 70 may manage the recipe management DB 61, and the communication unit 51 may access the recipe management DB 61 to send and receive data.

[0133] 10...culture system, 20...culture control system, 30...culture vessel, 50...culture control device (also called "control device"), 51...communication unit (an example of a transmitting unit, an example of a receiving unit), 52...receiving unit, 53...judgment unit, 54...display control unit, 55...control unit, 56...actual measurement value acquisition unit, 57...creation unit, 60...storage unit, 61...receipt management DB, 70...communication terminal (also called "display terminal"), 71...communication unit (an example of a terminal transmitting unit, an example of a terminal receiving unit), 72...receiving unit, 74...display control unit, 507...group of display units, 707...display unit.

Claims

A culture control system that controls the culture of a culture vessel in which a culture object is accommodated, A culture control system having a control unit that, when a condition for transitioning to the next step is met within a specified step among the steps into which the culture is divided into multiple processes, automatically transitions to the next step if a setting for automatic transition to the next step has been made, and controls the specified step to continue if a setting for automatic transition to the next step has not been made. 　 The culture control system according to claim 1, further comprising a display control unit that displays parameters indicating the operating status of the culture vessel and, when the system proceeds to the next step, switches to displaying parameters indicating the operating status of the culture vessel in the next step. 　 The culture control system of claim 2, wherein the display control unit changes the display format of the first display portion selected when allowing transition to the next step if no setting has been made to automatically transition to the next step. 　 The culture control system according to claim 3 , wherein the control unit controls the culture vessel to transition to the next step when the first display portion is selected. 　 The culture control system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the condition for transitioning to the next step is satisfied when multiple transition conditions are set and all of the multiple transition conditions are satisfied. 　 The culture control system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the transition condition is that a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the predetermined step in the predetermined step. 　 The culture control system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the transition condition indicates a relationship between a measured value of a predetermined situation in the culture container and a preset set value in the predetermined step. 　 The culture control system according to any one of claims 2 to 7, wherein the display control unit displays a display screen showing the status of the transition condition in each step. 　 the display control unit displays a second display portion that is selected when forcibly transitioning to the next step when controlling culture in the culture container at the predetermined step, The culture control system according to any one of claims 2 to 8, wherein the control unit controls the culture vessel to forcibly transition to the next step based on the selection of the second display portion. 　 A culture control method executed by a culture control system that controls the culture of a culture vessel in which a culture object is accommodated, comprising: A culture control method in which, when a condition for transitioning to the next step is met within a specified step among the steps into which the culture is divided into multiple processes, if a setting for automatic transition to the next step has been made, the culture is automatically transitioned to the next step, and if a setting for automatic transition to the next step has not been made, the culture is controlled to continue the specified step. 　 The culture control system according to any one of claims 1 to 9, The culture vessel; A culture system having: 　 A culture method carried out by a culture system having a culture vessel in which a culture object is accommodated and a culture control system that controls the culture of the culture vessel, When a condition for transitioning to the next step is met within a predetermined step among the steps into which the culture is divided into a plurality of processes, if a setting for automatically transitioning to the next step is made, the culture control system automatically transitions to the next step, and if a setting for automatically transitioning to the next step is not made, the culture control system performs control to continue the predetermined step, The culture vessel performs culture under the control of the culture control system. Culture method.

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