Automatic analyzer
AssigneeToshiba Medical Systems Corporation
InventorsMichiaki TAKEUCHI, Tomomi MURAMATSU, Masahiro MASUBUCHI, Satoshi MATSUMOTO
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
According to one embodiment, an automatic analyzer includes dispenser, measurer, thermostat, cooler and cleaner. Dispenser dispenses a specimen and a reagent into a reaction vessel. Measurer measures a solution mixture of the specimen and the reagent in the vessel. Thermostat heats the mixture to a first temperature at which thermoresponsive polymers contained in the reagent aggregate. Cooler cools a cleaning fluid used to clean the vessel to a second temperature lower than the first temperature, at which the polymers contained in the reagent disperse. Cleaner cleans the vessel from which the mixture has been drained, using the cooled fluid.
Claims10
1-6. (canceled)
An automatic analyzer comprising:
- a storage configured to keep a reagent container storing a reagent containing thermoresponsive polymers and a cleaning fluid container storing a cleaning fluid;
- a cooler cooling the reagent container and the cleaning fluid container in the storage;
- a specimen dispenser dispensing a specimen into a reaction vessel;
- a reagent dispenser dispensing the reagent into the reaction vessel;
- a thermostat unit heating a solution mixture of the specimen and the reagent in the reaction vessel to a temperature at which the thermoresponsive polymers aggregate;
- a measurement unit measuring the solution mixture in the reaction vessel;
- and
- a cleaner discharging the cleaning fluid cooled to the temperature of the storage toward the reaction vessel from which the solution mixture has been drained, thereby dispersing the thermoresponsive polymers in the reaction vessel, and cleaning the reaction vessel.
The automatic analyzer of claim. 7, wherein the thermostat unit comprises:
- a constant temperature oven storing a heating medium used to heat the reaction vessel and the solution mixture in the reaction vessel to a measurement temperature;
- and
- a drain pump draining the heating medium from the constant temperature oven, and the cleaner cleans the reaction vessel using the cleaning fluid cooled to the temperature of the reagent container after the heating medium is drained from the constant temperature oven.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.