# US 12,050,230 B2 · Automatic device for the automated conduct of analyses, notably medical analyses > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,050,230 B2 - Document ID: US12050230B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/050,674 - Filed: 2022-10-28 - Published: 2023-04-06 - Granted: 2024-07-30 - Earliest claimed: 2017-05-10 - Assignees: Diagnostica Stago - Applicants: Diagnostica Stago - Inventors: Serge Andrade; Christophe Villain - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12050230B2 ## CPC - G01N 35/04: Details of the conveyor system {(G01N35/021 - G01N35/028 take precedence)} - B01L 3/50855: {using modular assemblies of strips or of individual wells} - B01L 9/06: Test-tube stands; Test-tube holders - B60P 1/00: Vehicles predominantly for transporting loads and modified to facilitate loading, consolidating the load, or unloading (vehicles for carrying harvested crops with means for self-loading or self-unloading A01D90/00; peculiar to refuse collecting-vehicles B65F; loading or unloading vehicles by means not incorporated therein B65G) - B65G 47/26: arranging the articles, e.g. varying spacing between individual articles - B65G 54/02: electrostatic, electric, or magnetic - G01N 1/14: Suction devices, e.g. pumps; Ejector devices - G01N 35/00: Automatic analysis not limited to methods or materials provided for in any single one of groups G01N1/00 - G01N33/00; Handling materials therefor - G01N 35/021: {having a flexible chain, e.g. "cartridge belt", conveyor for reaction cells or cuvettes} - G01N 2035/00326: {Analysers with modular structure} - G01N 2035/00534: {Mixing by a special element, e.g. stirrer} - G01N 2035/00752: {bar codes} - G01N 2035/0406: {Individual bottles or tubes} - G01N 2035/0408: {connected in a flexible chain} - G01N 2035/0465: {Loading or unloading the conveyor} - G06F 17/00: Digital computing or data processing equipment or methods, specially adapted for specific functions (information retrieval, database structures or file system structures therefor G06F16/00) - G07F 11/00: Coin-freed apparatus for dispensing, or the like, discrete articles - H05B 1/00: Details of electric heating devices - G01N: INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES (measuring or testing apparatus or processes other than immunoassay, involving enzymes or microorganisms C12M, C12Q) - B01L: CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL LABORATORY APPARATUS FOR GENERAL USE - B60P: VEHICLES ADAPTED FOR LOAD TRANSPORTATION OR TO TRANSPORT, TO CARRY, OR TO COMPRISE SPECIAL LOADS OR OBJECTS (vehicles with special provisions for transporting patients or disabled persons, or their personal conveyances A61G3/00) - B65G: TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS (packaging B65B; handling thin or filamentary materials, e.g. paper sheets or thread, B65H; cranes B66C; portable mobile or lifting or hauling appliances, e.g. hoists, B66D; devices for lifting or lowering goods for loading or unloading purposes, e.g. fork-lift trucks, B66F9/00; emptying bottles, jars, casks, barrels or similar containers, not otherwise provided for, B67C9/00; delivering or transferring liquids B67D; filling or discharging vessels for liquefied, solidified or compressed gases F17C; pipe-line systems for fluids F17D) - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) - G07F: COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS (coin sorting G07D3/00; coin testing G07D5/00; {handling coins or paper currencies apart from payment activated apparatus G07D; payment architectures, schemes or protocols G06Q20/00}) - H05B: ELECTRIC HEATING; ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENTS FOR ELECTRIC LIGHT SOURCES, IN GENERAL ## Abstract Automatic device for the automated conduct of analyses, notably medical analyses, including: 43. a storage zone for bottles, 44. an automated sampling system for selectively sampling the content of a bottle among those present in the storage zone, 45. a loading zone for introducing a new bottle into the automatic device, 46. an unloading zone for collecting a bottle previously present in the storage zone, 47. a bottle conveyor and storage system, configured selectively and individually to transport a bottle from a location in the storage zone to the unloading zone or from the loading zone to a location in the storage zone. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method of managing a set of bottles in an automatic device, the automatic device including: a storage zone for storing the set of bottles, an automated sampling system for selectively sampling contents of respective bottles among the set of bottles stored in the storage zone, an access opening to a loading zone, the loading zone being configured to introduce a new bottle that was not already stored in the automatic device into the automatic device, an access opening to an unloading zone, the unloading zone configured to enable recovery of empty bottles or bottles that are no longer to be used by the automatic device, a bottle conveyor and storage system, configured selectively and individually to transport the bottles among the set of bottles stored in the storage zone from a first location in the storage zone to the unloading zone and the new bottle from the loading zone to a second location in the storage zone, the bottle conveyor and storage system including an at least one storage module defining at least a part of the storage zone and a bottle entry/exit zone to the at least one storage module, the at least one storage module being provided with means for driving the set of bottles within the at least one storage module in a loop, to enable selective positioning of a bottle among the set of bottles in the entry/exit zone, the at least one storage module including a module belt, carrying separators defining between housings receiving bottles among the set of bottles, the method including: transporting a bottle among the set of bottles from the loading zone to the storage zone and disposing the bottle at a predefined location thereof, or transporting the bottle from the predefined location of the storage zone to the unloading zone, the bottle conveyor and storage system including a rear belt, the rear belt providing at least a part of the transport from the loading zone to the at least one storage mod ule to receive the new bottle, the method including the step consisting in combined movement of the bottles of the at least one storage module by driving the module belt in one direction, until a bottle among the set of bottles to be removed from the at least one storage module is moved onto the rear belt, then moving the module belt in the opposite direction to move away the separator that has pushed the bottle onto the rear belt and to free the bottle to allow the bottle to continue on its path by being driven by the rear belt. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, the method including the step consisting in moving a downstream pusher member into a deployed position and an upstream pusher member into a retracted position, moving a bottle among the set of bottles coming from the loading zone until the bottle is pressed against the downstream pusher member, stopping the movement of the rear belt, moving the upstream pusher member into the deployed position, then moving the downstream pusher member to the retracted position and restarting movement of the rear belt so as to position the bottle in front of the storage module that has to integrate the bottle. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, including the storage of a table of correspondences between identifiers of the bottles among the set of bottles present in the at least one storage module and locations receiving bottles defined by the at least one storage module, and updating the table on each movement of bottles within the at least one storage module. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, the bottle conveyor and storage system including a conveyor configured to transport the new bottle from the loading zone to the at least one storage module in which the new bottle must be stored and the bottle among the set of bottles stored in the storage zone from the at least one storage module in which the bottle was stored to the unloading zone. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, the automatic device including a spacing control mechanism for controlling a space between the bottles among the set of bottles on the rear belt. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The method according to claim 5, the spacing control mechanism including an upstream pusher member and a downstream pusher member mobile between retracted positions enabling the passage of bottles among the set of bottles driven by the rear belt and deployed positions blocking the passage of the bottles, a distance between the upstream pusher member and the downstream pusher member being chosen to trap no more than a single bottle among the set of bottles between the upstream pusher member and the downstream pusher member when the upstream pusher member and the downstream pusher member are in the deployed position. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The method according to claim 6, the distance between the upstream pusher member and the downstream pusher member further being chosen such that when the single bottle abuts against the downstream pusher member, the upstream pusher member can be deployed without being blocked by the single bottle and can move away an immediately adjacent bottle on the rear belt such that the single bottle trapped between the upstream and downstream pusher members is separated from the immediately adjacent bottle by a predefined distance, corresponding to a diameter of the upstream pusher member. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, the module belt being tensioned between a front wheel and a rear wheel and the module belt having between the front wheel and the rear wheel two rectilinear portions, the at least one storage module including a casing having a curved portion guiding the set of bottles of the storage zone present between the separators in their movement around the rear wheel. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, each separator having two opposite faces that are concave on the outside, matching the curvature of a bottle among the set of bottles. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, the automatic device including a plurality of juxtaposed identical storage modules. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, the at least one storage module being removably mounted in the automatic device. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method according to claim 11, the at least one storage module being received in a housing including a locking lever on which an operator can act to release the at least one storage module for the removal of the at least one storage module from the automatic device. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, the at least one storage module including a plurality of pulleys each carrying at least one permanent magnet, the pulleys being disposed so that each generates as each pulley rotates a rotating magnetic field for driving a stirring rod present in a bottle among the set of bottles at a corresponding location on the at least one storage module, the pulleys being driven by a same belt circulating between the pulleys. ### Claim 14 (depends on 4) The method according to claim 4, the conveyor including a front belt, the front belt providing at least a part of the transport to the unloading zone. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method according to claim 14, the front belt and the rear belt extending substantially parallel to one another, mounted on drive pulleys rotating about shafts and being moved in opposite directions by a same motor, a transmission enabling coupling of the movements of the drive pulleys. ### Claim 16 (depends on 14) The method according to claim 14, the conveyor including a deflector that expels a bottle among the set of bottles driven against the deflector by the rear belt toward the front belt. ### Claim 17 (depends on 14) The method according to claim 14, the path of a bottle among the set of bottles driven around a front wheel of the at least one storage module passing over the rear belt. ### Claim 18 (depends on 14) The method according to claim 14, the front belt and the rear belt being parallel to one another. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The method according to claim 1, the automatic device comprising an adapter, at least one bottle among the set of bottles being of a smaller size and received in the adapter having an outside diameter corresponding to that of bottles of a largest size that can be used. ### Claim 20 (depends on 19) The method according to claim 19, the adapter having an inclined and off-center housing such that an opening of the at least one bottle among the set of bottles being of a smaller size remains centered.