A pump unit comprises a primary piston pump, a secondary piston pump, and a flow path adapted for fluidically connecting in series the primary piston pump and the secondary piston pump. The pump unit's duty cycle comprises a delivery-and-fill phase, in which the primary piston pump supplies a flow of liquid to the secondary piston pump, and during the delivery-and-fill phase, the flow of liquid supplied by the primary piston pump is partly used for filling up the secondary piston pump and partly used for maintaining another flow of liquid dispensed across the secondary piston pump. The flow path comprises a heat exchanger, wherein liquid supplied by the primary piston pump passes through the heat exchanger before being supplied to the secondary piston pump. The heat exchanger is adapted for reducing a temperature difference between a temperature of liquid supplied to heat exchanger and a temperature of the secondary piston pump, in that the heat exchanger is kept at a temperature of the secondary piston pump, so that after having passed the heat exchanger, liquid supplied to the secondary piston pump has substantially the same temperature as the secondary piston pump itself.

There are provided a sample cooling device capable of effectively removing moisture in the air inside an accommodating chamber where a sample container is accommodated, and of preventing a problem caused by occurrence of frost, an autosampler provided with the same, and a sample cooling method. A first driving process of setting a set temperature of a dehumidifier section to at or below the freezing point, and a second driving process of stopping driving of the dehumidifier section or of raising the set temperature of the dehumidifier section to above the freezing point after the first driving process is performed over a predetermined period of time are performed. Thus, the set temperature of the dehumidifier section may be made to at or below the freezing point by the first driving process, and moisture in the air inside the accommodating chamber may be made to temporarily attach to the dehumidifier section as frost and then be melted by the second driving process and be collected as water.

In an analyzing system including a commanding unit for sending a command and an executing unit for executing a processing upon receiving the command, a processing instruction may not be executed at the right time due to a heavy traffic of information and other factors. In order to solve this problem, in a preparative separation system 1 according to the present invention, a PC 20 provides the execution time for starting/finishing the fractionation processing to a controller 18. Therefore, even in the case where the time of the PC 20 and that of the controller 18 are not synchronized, the controller 18 can accurately set the execution time for starting/finishing the fractionation in a preparative separation unit 16. A piping 17 may be placed so that the traveling time of sample components is sufficiently larger than the delay time of signals due to the signal transfer lag and other reasons. This can absorb the delay time, allowing the units to cooperate with each other at a correct timing.

In an analyzing system including a commanding unit for sending a command and an executing unit for executing a processing upon receiving the command, a processing instruction may not be executed at the right time due to a heavy traffic of information and other factors. In order to solve this problem, in a preparative separation system 1 according to the present invention, a PC 20 provides the execution time for starting/finishing the fractionation processing to a controller 18. Therefore, even in the case where the time of the PC 20 and that of the controller 18 are not synchronized, the controller 18 can accurately set the execution time for starting/finishing the fractionation in a preparative separation unit 16. A piping 17 may be placed so that the traveling time of sample components is sufficiently larger than the delay time of signals due to the signal transfer lag and other reasons. This can absorb the delay time, allowing the units to cooperate with each other at a correct timing.

The present invention provides a processing device with a high degree of flexibility in setting of preprocessing and which is capable of increasing the preprocessing efficiency, and an analysis system provided with the same. Setting receiving means (84d) receives, for each sample, setting of a plurality of types of preprocessing and a parameter for each preprocessing. A preprocessing execution section (84e) controls a plurality of preprocessing sections and a transport arm (24) so that a plurality of types of preprocessing set for each of different samples is performed simultaneously in parallel. The preprocessing execution section (84e) performs control in such a way that preprocessing is not to be performed on different samples at the same preprocessing section at the same.

The present invention provides a processing device with a high degree of flexibility in setting of preprocessing and which is capable of increasing the preprocessing efficiency, and an analysis system provided with the same. Setting receiving means (84d) receives, for each sample, setting of a plurality of types of preprocessing and a parameter for each preprocessing. A preprocessing execution section (84e) controls a plurality of preprocessing sections and a transport arm (24) so that a plurality of types of preprocessing set for each of different samples is performed simultaneously in parallel. The preprocessing execution section (84e) performs control in such a way that preprocessing is not to be performed on different samples at the same preprocessing section at the same.

The present invention provides a preprocessing device of a more compact structure, and an analysis system provided with the same. A preprocessing device (1) includes a container holding section (12), a filtration port (30), and a transport arm (24). The container holding section (12) holds a separation container (50) and a collection container (54). The filtration port (30) separates a sample by applying pressure to a sample in the separation container (50). The transport arm (24) transports the separation container (50) and the collection container (54) held by the container holding section (12) from a predetermined transport position. The container holding section (12) holds the separation container (50) and the collection container (54) in an annular or arch-shaped holding region formed on an outer circumference of the filtration port (30), and sequentially moves the separation container (50) and the collection container (54) to the transport position by shifting the separation container (50) and the collection container (54) in the circumferential direction of the holding region.

The present invention provides a preprocessing device of a more compact structure, and an analysis system provided with the same. A preprocessing device (1) includes a container holding section (12), a filtration port (30), and a transport arm (24). The container holding section (12) holds a separation container (50) and a collection container (54). The filtration port (30) separates a sample by applying pressure to a sample in the separation container (50). The transport arm (24) transports the separation container (50) and the collection container (54) held by the container holding section (12) from a predetermined transport position. The container holding section (12) holds the separation container (50) and the collection container (54) in an annular or arch-shaped holding region formed on an outer circumference of the filtration port (30), and sequentially moves the separation container (50) and the collection container (54) to the transport position by shifting the separation container (50) and the collection container (54) in the circumferential direction of the holding region.

A plate changer is provided with a plate storage and a transport mechanism. The plate storage is provided with an installation window portion and a transport window portion arranged to face to each other. The plate storage is further provided with a plate stopper at the transport window portion. The plate stopper stops the sample plate by being arranged at an interfering position where the plate stopper comes into contact with a transport window portion-side end face of the sample plate when the sample plate inserted from the installation window portion has reached a predetermined position in the one direction. The the plate stopper is configured to be arranged at a non-interfering position where the plate stopper does not interfere with the transport mechanism and the sample plate when the sample plate on the plate installation stand is taken out from the transport window portion by the gripping portion.

An injection valve switches between a first state in which a sample loop is connected to a separation flow path through which a mobile phase from a liquid sender flows and a second state in which the sample loop is disconnected from the separation flow path. A pump speed determiner, in a case where a sample intake operation by a syringe pump is started immediately after the injection valve is switched from the second state to the first state, and a filling operation of filling the sample loop with the sample by the syringe pump is started after the intake operation is completed, determines an intake operation speed of the syringe pump that is required in order for the filling operation to complete immediately before the injection valve is switched from the second state to the first state next time using a set injection interval time. The syringe pump operates at the intake operation speed determined by the pump speed determiner while performing the intake operation. The sample is injected by the injector at intervals of the set injection interval time.