Laboratory instrument with safety indicator
AssigneeRoche Molecular Systems, Inc.
InventorsFabian Baggio, Felix Geiselbrecht, Roger Spescha, Ivo Daniel Vicente Leitao
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Abstract
A laboratory instrument for processing at least one sample is disclosed. The laboratory instrument includes at least one housing having at least one sample processing device disposed therein, at least one reagent storage compartment reversibly removable from the housing, and at least one safety indicator. The safety indicator is configured for indicating if the reagent storage compartment has been removed from the housing and reinserted into the housing. The laboratory instrument is configured for automatically altering a detectable state of the safety indicator during the process of removing and reinserting the reagent storage compartment.
Claims8
A laboratory instrument for processing at least one sample, the laboratory instrument comprising:
- a. at least one housing having at least one sample processing device disposed therein;
- b. at least one reagent storage compartment reversibly removable from the housing, and
- c. at least one safety indicator, the safety indicator being configured for indicating if the reagent storage compartment has been removed from the housing and reinserted into the housing, wherein the laboratory instrument is configured for automatically altering a detectable state of the safety indicator during the process of removing and reinserting the reagent storage compartment,
- wherein the laboratory instrument is electrically operable in a powered state, wherein the reagent storage compartment is reversibly removable from the housing in an unpowered state, and wherein the safety indicator is configured for indicating if the reagent storage compartment has been removed from the housing and reinserted into the housing during a period in which the laboratory instrument was unpowered;
- wherein the safety indicator comprises at least one movable indicator element configured for being brought into at least one armed position and into at least one disarmed position, and at least one readout unit for detecting whether the movable indicator element is in the armed position or in the disarmed position;
- wherein the laboratory instrument further comprises at least one compartment actuator configured for bringing the movable indicator element from the armed position into the disarmed position when the reagent storage compartment is removed from the housing, and configured for leaving the movable indicator element in the disarmed position when the reagent storage compartment is reinserted into the housing;
- and wherein the laboratory instrument further comprises at least one control unit configured for receiving and evaluating a readout signal indicating a state of the safety indicator and configured for performing at least one automatic teaching procedure when the readout signal indicates that the reagent storage compartment has been removed from the housing and reinserted into the housing.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.