Method and apparatus for low-volume analyzer with fixed and variable indexing
AssigneesSiemens Healthcare Diagnostics Products GmbH, Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics Inc.
InventorsTimothy P. Evers, Thorsten Michels, Holger Pufahl
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Abstract
A sample analyzer with fixed and variable indexing that is structured and arranged to align reaction vessels, e.g., cuvettes, at a pre-determined, fixed point while maintaining a positional sequence using variable indexing. Variable indexing allows cuvettes to be presented to multiple, fixed point resources at multiple occasions in a systematic progression in a highly efficient manner. The presentation of cuvettes to multiple, fixed point resources at multiple times is superior to existing indexing.
Claims19
A method of controlling a sample analyzer having a fixed number of reaction vessel holding positions, which are structured and arranged in a ring that is rotatable, for accommodating reaction vessels and at least one fixed point resource, the method comprising:
- indexing the sample analyzer about a respective axis of rotation by a fixed indexing increment that exceeds the fixed number of reaction vessels, the indexing including:
- periodically dividing the fixed indexing increment into a plurality of intermediate indexing increments having variable incremental lengths.
A computer program product controlling a sample analyzer having a fixed number of reaction vessel holding positions for accommodating reaction vessels and at least one fixed point resource in the form of a computer readable media having a computer program stored thereon, the computer program being executable on a processor and comprising executable machine language or code for:
- indexing the sample analyzer about its axis of rotation by a fixed indexing increment that exceeds the fixed number of reaction vessels, indexing including:
- periodically dividing the fixed indexing increment into a plurality of intermediate indexing increments having variable incremental lengths.
A sample analyzer for analyzing concentration of a sample being tested, the sample analyzer comprising:
- a reaction vessel holding ring having a plurality of reaction vessels holder positions for holding reaction vessels and an axis of rotation;
- a reagent storage ring that is concentric and co-axial with the reaction vessel holding ring, for storing reagent vessels containing one of a plurality of reagents;
- a resource that is disposed at a fixed point for performing some process on at least one of the reaction vessels;
- a controller that is adapted to move the reaction vessel holding ring according to a fixed indexing increment and that is structured and arranged to substitute a plurality of intermediate indexing increments for the fixed indexing increment in order to transport a discrete reaction vessel to an available resource without first executing the fixed indexing increment.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.