JPH043496B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (a) Industrial Application Field This invention involves adding a reagent to a reaction tube containing a sample solution to cause a chemical reaction, and continuously performing spectrophotometric measurements on the reaction solution. Regarding automatic analyzers, this is particularly used in cases such as clinical tests at hospitals, where multiple items of analysis are efficiently performed on a large number of specimens.

(b) Prior Art Conventionally, an apparatus as shown in FIG. 7 has been used as a multi-detector type automatic analyzer. That is, the reaction tubes 15 containing the sample solution to which the reagents have been added are sequentially transferred at regular intervals by a reaction tube transfer device (details not shown) to multiple positions where monochromatic lights of different wavelengths are irradiated. While the reaction tubes 15 are positioned at the same time, the photodetector 12 detects the intensity of transmitted light (in the case of absorbance measurement) passing through each reaction solution contained in the reaction tubes 15. Then, each signal is converted to a logarithmic converter 1.
9 and the signals from them to the selection switch 20
, and the arithmetic circuit 13 performs necessary arithmetic operations.
In such a conventional device, spectrophotometric measurements are performed simultaneously at a plurality of positions, and the appearance of electrical signals from each photodetector 12 over time is as shown in FIG. Therefore, each photodetector 12
The signals simultaneously output from the photodetectors 12 are input to the arithmetic circuit 13 while being sequentially switched by the selection switch 20, so that at a certain point in time, only the signal from one photodetector 12 is taken out. Therefore, when a reaction solution of 1 is irradiated with monochromatic light of a certain wavelength of 1, we can look at the number of signals per unit time taken out from the photodetector of 1 placed at a position opposite to the light irradiation position. Ba,
The more photodetectors there are, the fewer
If the number of signals that can be extracted per unit time for the entire device is N, and the number of photodetectors is n, then the number is n/N. For this reason, conventional multi-detector type devices have a drawback of low photometric signal-to-noise ratios. Furthermore, since electrical signals are output from each photodetector at the same time, multiple logarithmic converters had to be installed.

(c) Purpose This invention solves the above-mentioned problems with conventional devices and can improve the SN ratio of analysis.
Furthermore, the purpose of this invention was to provide a multi-detector type automatic analyzer that could reduce costs.

(d) Configuration In order to solve the above problems, this invention has the following features:
The relationship between the transfer interval of reaction tubes and the installation interval of photodetectors was studied to ensure that electrical signals were not emitted from each photodetector overlappingly in time. The apparatus was configured so that only one reaction tube could be positioned at the irradiation position. That is, the automatic analyzer according to the present invention is
A spectroscope separates the light from the light source, and a reaction tube containing a sample solution with reagents is sequentially or intermittently transferred to the position where each monochromatic light separated by the spectrometer is irradiated. a reaction tube transfer device, a plurality of photodetectors arranged in a row at positions opposite to each light irradiation position for the reaction tubes to be sequentially transferred, and a photodetector for each analysis item based on the photometric signal from the photodetector. In an automatic analyzer equipped with a calculation circuit that performs corresponding necessary calculations, a plurality of photometry groups are arranged such that the plurality of light irradiation positions are shifted by the effective photometry length of the reaction tubes with respect to the arrangement interval of the reaction tubes. It is characterized by having at least one.

(E) Example Below, with reference to Figures 1 to 6,
Examples of this invention will be described.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the general configuration of an automatic analyzer that is an embodiment of the present invention. This device is composed of a spectrometer 11, a reaction tube transfer device (details not shown), a photodetector 12, an arithmetic circuit 13, etc., and the spectrometer 11 separates light from a light source 14. The reaction tube 15 containing the sample solution (reaction solution) to which the reagent has been added is sequentially transferred at regular intervals to the position where each of the monochromatic lights is irradiated by the reaction tube transfer device, and the reaction tube 15 is transferred at regular intervals to the light irradiation position. Irradiating the reaction solution contained in the positioned reaction tube 15 with monochromatic light,
Information on the transmitted light is detected by a photodetector 12, and the electrical signal thereof is guided to a logarithmic converter 19 and an arithmetic circuit 13.
In this device, the photodetector 12 is l+d(m
= 1), and n≦l/d+2a (number of photometry groups = 1) were arranged in a row at positions facing the light irradiation position. Here, l is the transfer interval of the reaction tubes 15, and d is the effective photometry length in the reaction tubes 15. In other words, when one reaction tube 15 passes in front of the photodetector 12, effective and accurate photometry is possible. Possible width dimensions (see Figure 2), where n is an integer and a is the edge of the photometric zone in the reaction tube, i.e. between the photometric end point of one reaction solution and the photometric start point of another reaction solution, the photodetector 12 Width dimension to prevent electrical signals from being emitted overlappingly in time (see Figure 2)
It is. In such an apparatus, as shown in FIG. 1, while the photodetector 12-1 measures the light of the reaction liquid A, the reaction liquids B, C, D, etc. are not photometered, and the reaction tube 15 When the column advances by d+2a, the photometry of the reaction liquid A has been completed, and the photodetector 12-2 is in a state where the photometry of the reaction liquid B is being performed. In this way, the reaction liquids C, D, . Fig. 3 shows the photodetector 12-
1, 12-2, 12-3, and 12-4 over time. As shown in the figure, each photodetector 1
Since there is a time lag between the output states of the second photodetector 12, the number of signals per unit time taken out from the first photodetector 12 does not decrease even if the number of photodetectors 12 increases; When viewed as the device 12 or the device as a whole, the number of signals that can be extracted per unit time is n times that of a conventional multi-detector type device (n is the number of photodetectors).

Note that the number of photodetectors 12 in the automatic analyzer according to the present invention must be an integer equal to or less than l/d+2a since the output of the photodetectors 12 needs to be shifted in time. , when a plurality of photometry groups exist, the outputs of each group overlap in time.

Furthermore, since there is no temporal overlap in the output from each photodetector 12 within each photometry group,
As shown in FIG. 1, one logarithmic converter 19 can be used in a time-sharing manner.

In FIG. 1, one of the preset wavelengths is sent to each photodetector 12.
However, as shown in FIG. 4, a filter device 21 is provided, and, for example, a photodetector 12-1 receives monochromatic light of wavelengths λ ₁ , λ ₂ , and λ ₃ . Monochromatic light having wavelengths λ ₄ , λ ₅ , and λ ₆ may be incident on the detector 12-2. In this case, the outputs of the photodetectors 12-1 and 12-2 are as shown in FIG.

Furthermore, although FIG. 1 shows a case in which the reaction tube 15 is transferred linearly, the gist of the present invention will not be changed even if the transfer path is made into a circular path as shown in FIG.

In the figure, 16 is a reflective concave mirror, 17 is an optical fiber, 18 is an amplifier, and 22 is a lens.

(F) Effect The present invention has the configuration as explained above, and the multi-detector type automatic analyzer according to the present invention can extract a larger number of signals from each photodetector than conventional devices. Therefore, photometry
We were able to significantly improve the signal-to-noise ratio. Also,
Since there is a time lag in the output of each photodetector, only one logarithmic converter needs to be installed, reducing costs.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the general configuration of an automatic analyzer that is an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the effective photometric length in a reaction tube, etc., and FIG.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a change over time in the output from a photodetector in the device shown in FIG. 1, and FIG.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing changes over time in the output from the photodetector in the apparatus shown in FIG. 4, and FIG.
It is a schematic diagram which shows the schematic structure of yet another Example apparatus. Further, FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of a conventional device, and FIG. 8 is a diagram showing changes over time in the output from a photodetector in the conventional device. 11... Spectrometer, 12... Photodetector, 13...
Arithmetic circuit, 14... light source, 15... reaction tube.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A spectroscope that separates the light from the light source, and a position where each monochromatic light separated by the spectrometer is irradiated,
a reaction tube transfer device that sequentially or intermittently transfers a reaction tube containing a sample solution to which a reagent has been added;
A plurality of photodetectors are arranged in a row opposite each light irradiation position for the reaction tubes that are sequentially transferred, and necessary calculations corresponding to each analysis item are performed based on the photometric signals from the photodetectors. The automatic analyzer comprises at least one photometry group in which the plurality of light irradiation positions are shifted by the effective photometry length of the reaction tubes with respect to the arrangement interval of the reaction tubes. Features of automatic analysis equipment.