Separable Vacuum Chamber Layout for Mass Spectrometer Maintenance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mass spectrometer maintenance techniques face challenges in securing sufficient working space for removing multipole electrodes, leading to potential damage and cumbersome operations due to space restrictions and interference with vacuum chamber walls.
Innovation Solution
A mass spectrometer design that allows the first vacuum chamber to be separably connected from the second vacuum chamber, enabling independent access and maintenance of multipole electrodes, with detachable connections and a common working space for easy disassembly and cleaning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of repair
If the mass spectrometry unit is removed for maintenance, then maintenance operations can be performed, but the optical element may impinge on the wall surface and break
Solution Approach 1:
The mass spectrometry unit is divided into separable vacuum chambers (first vacuum chamber and second vacuum chamber) that can be independently removed. This allows maintenance of specific components without removing the entire unit, reducing the risk of damage during removal operations.
Solution Approach 2:
A third vacuum chamber is introduced as an intermediate space between the first and second vacuum chambers. This additional chamber provides buffer space that prevents direct contact between optical elements and chamber walls during maintenance operations, thereby preventing damage.
2Ease of repair
If a second multipole electrode is removed from the side surface of the second vacuum chamber, then parts exchange can be performed, but sufficient working space cannot be secured due to space restrictions
Solution Approach 1:
The vacuum system is segmented into multiple separable chambers, allowing the second vacuum chamber to be detached from the first vacuum chamber. This provides access to the second multipole electrode from a direction with sufficient working space, eliminating the constraint of limited side surface area.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of accessing the second multipole electrode only from the constrained side surface, the separable chamber design enables access from the axial direction (another dimension) where sufficient working space is available for parts exchange operations.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A
AI summary
The present invention makes it possible to avoid damaging an optical element during maintenance or component replacement work of a mass spectrometer, while enabling easy maintenance work and the like. The present disclosure proposes a mass spectrometer which is provided with: a first vacuum chamber which houses a first multipolar electrode that transports sample ions ionized at an ion source; a second vacuum chamber which is adjacent to the first vacuum chamber and houses a second multipolar electrode that transports the sample ions output from the first vacuum chamber; a latter-stage vacuum chamber which houses at least a third multipolar electrode that transports the sample ions output from the second vacuum chamber; and a detector which is provided in the succeeding stage of the latter-stage vacuum chamber so as to detect the sample ions. This mass spectrometer is configured such that the first vacuum chamber can be separated from the second vacuum chamber, which is in the succeeding stage of the first vacuum chamber (see Fig. 2).