Centrifuge bowl housing and latch for blood separation apparatus

A centrifuge bowl housing and cover latch comprising:

• a base having shock absorbers;
• a housing for a centrifuge having a bottom wall with a convex upper side and a circular outer edge, a generally cylindrical vertical wall portion extending up from said bottom wall to form an interior chamber with a top opening and an annular fluid receiving channel adjacent said bottom wall, and a drain port coupled to said channel for draining liquid from said housing, said housing having legs supported on said shock absorbers, said shock absorbers dampening vibrations transmitted by said housing to said base,
• a cover pivotally connected to an upper edge of said wail portion by a hinge, said cover covering and sealing said top opening when in a closed position,
• a centrifuge drive means including a drive motor attached to a lower side of said bottom wall, a drive shaft attached to said drive motor and extending through said bottom wall, a rotary plate attached to said drive shaft, and a seal attached to said upper side of said bottom wall, said upper side and said seal draining spilled liquid toward said outer edge and preventing leakage of spilled liquid between said drive shaft and said bottom wall,
• a latch connected between said housing and said cover, said latch including a first latch portion having a first latch face and mounted on said housing and a second latch portion having a second latch face and mounted on said cover, said latch faces overlapping and engaging one another in a latched position when said cover is in said closed position and retaining said cover in said closed position,
• said first latch portion including a first latch block and a latch pin on said first latch block, said latch pin having a head on one end with a conical end surface and an annular groove axially inward of said head forming a radially extending said first latch face along the back of said head,
• said second latch portion including a second latch block, a latch plate slidably mounted in said second latch block and biased to a latch position by a first spring, said latch plate having an aperture defined by a shoulder providing said second latch face, and a release button mounted to said latch plate opposite said first spring and movable with said latch plate to a release position when said release button is pressed,
• a lock pin for locking said latch when said centrifuge is spinning slidably mounted in an aperture in said first latch block, biased by a second spring to a lock position, and attached to a solenoid which moves said lock pin to an unlock position when said solenoid is actuated, said lock pin extending into said second latch block and preventing movement of said latch plate to said release position when said latch is in said latched position and said lock pin is in said lock position, said lock pin, when in said unlock position, allowing said latch plate to move to said release position,
• a closure sensor for detecting when said cover is closed and preventing said centrifuge from running when said cover is open including a flag pin slidably mounted in said first latch block and biased to a nonflag position by a third spring, a flag mounted to said flag pin, an optical sensor with a source pole and a receiver pole, and a closure sensor actuator which is a projection on said second latch block which pushes said flag pin to a flag position when said cover is closed, moving said flag between said source pole and said receiver pole, actuating said optical sensor.