JPH049670A - Analyzing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve analysis performance and to shorten the time for the analysis by generating ultrasonic oscillation in washing water. CONSTITUTION:A washing tank 12 is filled with the washing water from a dispensing nozzle (N) 46 and a washing water supplying pipe when the N 46 is inserted into the tank 12. The washing water is internally irradiated with the powerful ultrasonic waves from an ultrasonic generating section 16 by the sinusoidal wave voltage from a driving circuit 44 and the deposits in the N 46 are pulverized to fine powder and are dispersed into the washing water by the impact pressure arising from large acceleration and cavitation. The N 46 is washed internally by the washing water discharged therefrom and externally by the washing water from the washing water supplying pipe 20. The deposits made into the fine powder from the N 46 are admitted from the tank 12 into a liquid discharge tank 14 by the incessantly flowing in washing water and are discharged from a discharge pipe 18 to the outside. The supply of the washing water and the generation of the ultrasonic waves are preferably executed while the N 46 exists in the tank 12. The wasteful use of the washing water is thus prevented and the generation of heat and sound by oscillation is prevented. The analysis performance is improved in this way and the time for the analysis is shortened.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a medical analyzer, more specifically, an analyzer having a dispensing nozzle that sucks and holds a sample or reagent in a nozzle, transfers it, and then discharges it. Regarding equipment.

[Prior art] One conventional example of such an analyzer is the Utility Model Application No. 57-5405.
It is shown in Publication No. 9. This analyzer is provided with a cleaning tank having a first chamber and a second chamber separated by a partition wall, and the first chamber has a cleaning liquid injection pipe that sprays cleaning liquid,
A drain port communicating with the second chamber is formed at the bottom,
The second chamber is formed at the outlet or the bottom of the outlet for discharging the waste liquid out of the cleaning tank. The nozzle that requires cleaning is immersed in the cleaning liquid in the first chamber, the deposits on the nozzle are removed by the cleaning liquid sprayed from the cleaning liquid injection tube, and the draining liquid overflows the bottom drainage port and the partition wall to the first chamber. The water flows into the second chamber and is discharged out of the cleaning tank from the outlet of the second chamber.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] Nozzle cleaning is performed by causing a cleaning liquid to circulate in a cleaning tank, and water is mainly used as the cleaning liquid. but,
Depending on the type of reagent to be dispensed, deposits are often not completely removed by such cleaning. especially,
Removal of deposits such as latex is difficult, requires a long time to clean, and requires periodic maintenance by equipment managers.

If the dispensing nozzle is not completely cleaned, carryover of samples and reagents may occur, leading to incorrect analysis results and degrading the performance of the analyzer. Furthermore, due to contamination due to deposits on the dispensing nozzle,
Reagent deterioration also occurs.

For this reason, various proposals have been made, such as using detergent in the cleaning solution and improving the amount of water and convection method, but these have created other problems such as complicating the cleaning process and lengthening the cleaning time.
There was nothing suitable.

An object of the present invention is to provide an analysis device in which a dispensing nozzle can be completely cleaned without complicating the cleaning process or lengthening the cleaning time.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The analyzer of the present invention includes a nozzle for inhaling, holding, and discharging a liquid sample, a cleaning section to which a cleaning liquid is supplied, and a cleaning section that is connected to the nozzle or the cleaning section and that generates ultrasonic waves in the cleaning liquid. and an ultrasonic vibration generator that irradiates the ultrasonic vibration.

[Function] In the analyzer of the present invention, cavitation is generated in the cleaning water by the ultrasonic vibration of the ultrasonic vibration generator connected to the nozzle or the cleaning unit, and the resulting strong shock wave removes dirt attached to the nozzle. Smash. Dirt stripped from the nozzle becomes fine powder and disperses in the cleaning water. During cleaning, cleaning water is constantly supplied, and dirt dispersed in the cleaning water is discharged together with the cleaning water to prevent it from adhering to the nozzle again. Preferably, the ultrasonic vibration is generated only while the nozzle is in the cleaning water, thereby suppressing heat generation in the ultrasonic vibration generating section and the cleaning section.

[Embodiments] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, the apparatus 10 includes a cleaning section, such as a cleaning tank 12, a drainage tank 14 surrounding the cleaning tank 12, and
It has a Langevin type ultrasonic vibration generating section 16 arranged below the cleaning tank 12.

The drain tank 14 communicates with a drain pipe 18, which has one end opened at its bottom and discharges the drain liquid to the outside. The cleaning tank 12 has a cleaning water supply pipe 20 communicating with the lower side surface thereof and supplying cleaning water into the cleaning tank 12, and is elastically supported inside the drain tank 14 by a packing 22 made of silicone rubber or the like. Ru.

The ultrasonic vibration generator 16 includes two resonators 24 and 26 formed of elastic members (aluminum, stainless steel, phosphor bronze, duralumin), and these resonators 24 and 26.
It has a piezoelectric element for generating ultrasonic waves interposed between the two. The resonator 24 near the cleaning tank 12 is formed into a horn shape such as an exponential function.

The piezoelectric element includes a stop plate 30 made of a copper plate fixed to an external fixing member 28, a piezoelectric body 32 with a thickness of 3 cm for generating vibrations and a copper electrode plate 34 laminated two each on the top surface of the stop plate 30. , and a piezoelectric body 36 with a thickness of 0.5 mm and an electrode plate 3 for detecting vibration state, which are laminated on the lower surface of the stop plate 30.
It has 8. This piezoelectric element includes an electrode plate 38 and a resonator 26.
It is fixed between the two resonators 24, 26 by bolts 42 together with an insulating member 40, such as a ceramic, placed between the two resonators 24, 26. The stop plate 30, the electrode plate 34, and the electrode plate 38 are electrically connected to the drive circuit 44, and a sinusoidal voltage is applied to the stop plate 30 and the electrode plate 34 to generate ultrasonic vibration, and the vibration state at this time is A signal corresponding to the voltage is output from the electrode 38, and this signal is fed back to the drive circuit 44, so that the frequency of the driving sinusoidal voltage is maintained at an optimum state.

Next, cleaning of the dispensing nozzle 46 will be explained.

When the dispensing nozzle 46 is inserted into the cleaning tank 12, cleaning water is discharged from the dispensing nozzle 46 and the cleaning water supply pipe, and the cleaning tank 12 is filled with the cleaning water. In addition, the ultrasonic vibration generating section 1
6 is supplied with a predetermined sine wave voltage from the drive circuit 44,
The cleaning tank 12 is vibrated and powerful ultrasonic waves are irradiated into the cleaning water. The deposits on the dispensing nozzle 46 are crushed by the large acceleration generated in the cleaning water by the ultrasonic waves and the impact pressure caused by cavitation, and are dispersed in the cleaning water as fine powder. The inside of the dispensing nozzle 46 is cleaned by the cleaning water discharged from the dispensing nozzle 46, and the outside is cleaned by the cleaning water jetted from the cleaning water supply pipe 20. The deposits stripped off from the dispensing nozzle and turned into fine powder overflow the cleaning tank 12 and flow into the drain tank 14 by the constantly flowing cleaning water, and are discharged to the outside from the discharge pipe 18. In this way, the continuous flow of cleaning water prevents finely divided deposits from re-adhering to the dispensing nozzle 46.

The supply of cleaning water and the generation of ultrasonic waves are preferably performed only while the dispensing nozzle 46 is inside the cleaning tank 12.

This prevents wasteful use of cleaning water and reduces the generation of heat and sound due to ultrasonic vibrations.

According to this invention, compared to cleaning using only cleaning water,
The cleaning effect is dramatically improved. Therefore, it becomes possible to completely remove reagents and samples such as latex that tend to adhere and are difficult to clean, and it is possible to eliminate defects in analysis data due to carryover and the like. As a result, the number of regular maintenance operations performed by the device administrator is reduced, and the burden on the device administrator is reduced. Furthermore, deterioration of the reagent due to deposits on the dispensing nozzle is prevented. Furthermore, the cleaning time is shortened and the analysis process can be speeded up.

In this embodiment, the ultrasonic vibration generator 16 is located below the cleaning tank 12, but the ultrasonic vibration generator 16 may be provided on the side of the cleaning tank 12, as shown in FIG. In this case, the dispensing nozzle 46 is preferably rotated, which reduces uneven cleaning and enables high-speed cleaning.

Referring to FIG. 3, the ultrasonic vibration generating section is connected to the dispensing nozzle 46
Another example added to the above will be described. here,
Only the peripheral part of the dispensing nozzle, which is a characteristic part of this embodiment, is illustrated, and the other parts are omitted because they are the same as in the above-mentioned embodiment.

The dispensing nozzle 46 is made of stainless steel, and an ultrasonic vibration generator 48 is provided on the outer periphery of the portion that will not be submerged in the cleaning water when inserted into the cleaning tank 12. The ultrasonic vibration generator 48 includes a cylindrical piezoelectric body 50 and two electrodes 52 and 54 provided on the inner and outer peripheral surfaces of the piezoelectric body 50. The inner electrode 52 is folded back and a portion thereof is located on the outer peripheral surface. These electrodes 52, 54 are electrically connected to a drive circuit 56 that supplies a sinusoidal voltage to the piezoelectric element 48 to generate ultrasonic vibrations. Further, a strain gauge 58 for detecting the vibration state is provided near the ultrasonic vibration generator 48 and feeds back a signal corresponding to the vibration state to the drive circuit 56. A drive circuit 56 receiving this signal performs feedback control on the frequency of the supplied sinusoidal voltage.

Similar to the ultrasonic vibration generator 16 described in the above embodiment, the ultrasonic vibration generator 48 generates a sine wave for generating ultrasonic waves only while the cleaning part of the dispensing nozzle 46 is located in the cleaning tank 12. Voltage is supplied from drive circuit 56. The ultrasonic vibration generator 48 to which the sinusoidal voltage is supplied generates standing wave ultrasonic vibration in the radial direction of the dispensing nozzle 46 . As a result, the dispensing nozzle 46 repeats expansion and compression in the radial direction, vibrating the tip portion with deposits attached thereto. As a result, the deposits are crushed into fine powder and dispersed in the washing water. In addition, the standing wave of the dispensing nozzle 46 transports the cleaning water passing through the interior toward the outlet at a high speed, and the dispensing nozzle 46
The cleaning water discharged from the tip of the nozzle hits the bottom of the cleaning tank 12 and causes strong convection, thereby improving the effectiveness of cleaning deposits attached to the tip of the nozzle.

In this example, in addition to irradiating the cleaning water with ultrasonic waves,
Since the dispensing nozzle 46 can be directly subjected to ultrasonic vibration, debris can be removed at a higher speed and uneven cleaning can be reduced.

Yet another embodiment is shown in FIG. This example is
Compared to the first embodiment described above, only the cleaning water supply pipe 20 connected to the cleaning tank 12 is different, and only the peripheral portion thereof is illustrated. In this example, a plurality of washing water supply pipes 20 communicating with the washing tank 12 are provided on the side, and the washing water is supplied to the washing water supply pipes 2.
0 toward the dispensing nozzle 46. An ultrasonic vibration generator 60 is provided on the outer periphery of a stainless steel conduit 59 that defines the cleaning water supply pipe 20 . The ultrasonic vibration generator 60 has a cylindrical piezoelectric body 62 and two electrodes 64 and 66 provided on the inner and outer peripheral surfaces of the piezoelectric body 62.

These electrodes 64,66 are electrically connected to a drive circuit 68 that supplies a sinusoidal voltage for generating ultrasonic vibrations. Further, a strain gauge 70 for detecting the vibration state is provided near the ultrasonic vibration generator 60, and a signal corresponding to the vibration state is fed back to the drive circuit 68.
The frequency of the supplied sinusoidal voltage is controlled.

The sinusoidal voltage for generating ultrasonic vibrations is supplied only while the dispensing nozzle 46 is inside the cleaning tank 12. At this time, the dispensing nozzle 46 is rotated about the central axis or moved up and down.

The ultrasonic vibration generator 60 repeatedly expands and compresses the conduit 59 in the radial direction, thereby transporting the cleaning water toward the cleaning tank 12 at high speed. This accelerated water flow is discharged from multiple directions to the dispensing nozzle 46 to crush the deposits. Also,
By rotating or moving the dispensing nozzle 46 up and down, uneven cleaning is reduced.

In this embodiment, deposits are removed by ultrasonically vibrating cleaning water and high-speed water flow. The convection of the cleaning water generated in the cleaning tank 12 is very strong, which improves the cleaning efficiency and prevents the pulverized deposits from re-deposition.

Further, yet another embodiment is shown in FIG.

The device 10 includes a cylindrical drainage tank 78 with a hollow bottom;
A substantially cylindrical ultrasonic vibration generator is supported in the drainage tank 78 by pointed screws 80 screwed into the side walls of the drain tank 78 from four sides. The ultrasonic vibration generator has two substantially cylindrical resonators 26, 72 made of an elastic member (aluminum, stainless steel, phosphor bronze, duralumin).

The upper resonator 72 has a cleaning section 76 defined by a groove provided on the top surface, and a cleaning water supply pipe 20 for supplying cleaning water is provided in communication with one side wall of the cleaning section 76 .

Between the two resonators 26 and 72, there are two piezoelectric bodies 32 with a thickness of 3 cm for vibration generation, and a piezoelectric body 32 laminated together with the piezoelectric bodies 32.
one copper electrode plate 34, a piezoelectric body 36 with a thickness of 0.5 m111 for vibration state detection provided under the bottom electrode 34,
An electrode plate 38 for outputting a detection signal provided on the lower surface of the piezoelectric body 36 and an insulating member 40 made of ceramic or the like are provided.

These are connected to the two resonators 2 by bolts (not shown).
6.72, and its periphery is covered with an insulating material 74 such as silicone rubber. The electrode 34 is connected to a drive circuit (not shown) and is supplied with a sinusoidal voltage for generating ultrasonic vibrations.

Further, the electrode plate 38 is also connected to a drive circuit (not shown), and supplies a signal for feedback control to the drive circuit.

Next, referring to FIG. 6, draw in the reagent from the reagent bottle 84 and drop it into the reaction tube 88.
The cleaning operation of the dispensing nozzle 46 when sucking the reagent from the pipe 6 and dropping it into the reaction tube 88 will be explained. After sucking up an appropriate amount of reagent from the reagent bottle 84, the dispensing nozzle 46 moves horizontally to above the reaction tube 88.

At this time, the tip of the dispensing nozzle 46 simply passes through the cleaning section 76, and no cleaning water is supplied to the cleaning section 76.

After discharging the reagent into the reaction tube 88, the dispensing nozzle 46 is moved horizontally to the position of the apparatus 10, and the tip that requires cleaning is placed in the cleaning section 76 for a predetermined period of time. During this time, cleaning water is supplied from the cleaning water supply pipe 20, and the ultrasonic vibrating section is driven to clean the dispensing nozzle 46. Washing water spilled from the washing section 76 is received in a drainage tank 78,
The liquid is discharged to the outside through the drain pipe 82. After a predetermined period of time has elapsed, the supply of cleaning water is stopped, the vibrating section is stopped, and the cleaning is completed. After cleaning, dispensing nozzle 4
6 is moved above another reagent bottle 86, sucks in another reagent, moves again, and discharges it into the reaction tube 88. Thereafter, the dispensing nozzle 46 is cleaned again in the same manner.

In this embodiment, cleaning is performed during the movement of the dispensing nozzle 46, and the operation of inserting the dispensing nozzle 46 into the cleaning tank is omitted. Therefore, cleaning time is shortened. Furthermore, by providing a plurality of devices 10 between the reagent bottles 84, 56 and the reaction tubes 88, cleaning can be performed without stopping the horizontal movement of the dispensing nozzle 46, and high-speed cleaning can also be achieved.

[Effects of the Invention] According to the present invention, in addition to the convection of the washing water, ultrasonic vibrations are generated in the washing water, so that reagents and samples that are difficult to wash, such as latex, are completely removed. . This eliminates defective analysis data due to carryover and the like and sample deterioration due to deposits on the nozzle, improving analysis performance and shortening analysis time. Furthermore, the number of regular maintenance performed by the equipment manager is reduced, and the burden on the equipment manager is reduced.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the analysis device of the present invention, FIG. 2 shows a modification of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 shows another embodiment of the analysis device of the invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing still another embodiment of the analyzer of the present invention, FIG. 5 is a diagram showing still another embodiment of the analyzer of the present invention,
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the analyzer shown in FIG. 5. 12...Cleaning tank, 16...Ultrasonic vibration generator, 46
...Dispensing nozzle.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] A nozzle that sucks in, holds, and discharges a liquid sample, a cleaning section to which a cleaning solution is supplied, and an ultrasonic vibration generation section that is connected to the nozzle or the cleaning section and irradiates ultrasonic waves into the cleaning solution. Analyzer equipped with.