A system for automated microorganism identification and antibiotic susceptibility testing comprising a reagent cartridge, a reagent stage, a cassette, a cassette, stage, a pipettor assembly, an optical detection system, and a controller is disclosed. The system is designed to dynamically adjust motor idle torque to control heat load and employs a fast focus process for determining the true focus position of an individual microorganism. The system also may quantify the relative abundance of viable microorganisms in a sample using dynamic dilution, and facilitate growth of microorganisms in customized media for rapid, accurate antimicrobial susceptibility testing.

An automated analyzer capable of continuously performing supply of consumables is realized while continuing measurement is performed, by a simple and small amount of mechanism. An automated analyzer includes a unit that executes processing necessary for sample analysis; a consumable supply unit that supplies consumables necessary for the sample analysis to the unit; and a control device that controls operations of the unit and the consumable supply unit, in which the consumable supply unit includes a consumable container holding portion that holds a consumable storage container in which consumables is aligned and accommodated, a preliminary storage portion that temporarily holds the consumables taken out from the consumable storage container, and a transport mechanism that transports the consumables to the unit, and in which the control device transports and stores at least a portion of the consumables taken out from the consumable storage container in the preliminary storage portion.

A sample analyzer comprises a container setting part on which a liquid container is to be set, a liquid supplying part configured to supply a liquid to the liquid container, an aspiration tube configured to aspirate a sample or a reagent, a movement mechanism configured to move the aspiration tube, a liquid surface sensor configured to detect contact of the aspiration tube with a liquid surface, and a controller configured to execute an aspiration tube adjustment operation. The aspiration tube adjustment operation comprises supplying the liquid to the liquid container by the liquid supplying part, lowering the aspiration tube by the movement mechanism toward the liquid container set on the container setting part, and obtaining information regarding a position in a height direction of the aspiration tube at a time when the aspiration tube has come into contact with the liquid surface.

A reagent-bottle lid opening mechanism is disclosed, which has a needle for piercing a lid of a reagent bottle to be delivered to a reagent disk, has an aligning mechanism of automatically adjusting a position of the needle with respect to the lid such that a needle body of the needle can stick in the center of the lid, and accurately and repeatedly makes an incision in the center of the lid. As a result, an automatic analyzer is provided that is capable of unsealing the center of the lid of the reagent bottle with accuracy even if the central axis of the needle and the central axis of the lid are offset from each other.

An automatic analysis apparatus includes: a driving rotor configured such that a rotational center extends vertically; a reaction disk mounted on the driving rotor; a plurality of reaction cells installed in the reaction disk and configured to form a circular row concentric with the driving rotor; a circular reaction chamber configured to accommodate the reaction cells; and a guide configured to guide an elevation trajectory of the reaction disk with respect to the driving rotor.

The automatic analysis device includes: a reagent tank that holds a reagent container that contains a reagent; and a lid opening/closing device including a lid opening/closing member configured to be movable in a first direction parallel to a vertical direction and a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. The lid opening/closing member having a first member for opening a lid of the reagent container and a second member for closing the lid and configured to be movable between a first position and a second position, the first position located above the reagent container and the second position located below the first position in the first direction such that the bottom surface of the lid opening/closing member comes into contact with the reagent container and configured to be movable between the second position and a third position that is away from the second position in the second direction.

According to one embodiment, an automatic analyzing apparatus includes a dispenser, a rod, and control circuitry. The dispenser supplies at least one of a reagent and a specimen. The rod adheres at least one of the reagent and the specimen supplied from the dispenser. The control circuitry inserts the rod to which said at least one of the reagent and the specimen is adhered into a liquid contained in a vessel.

The present disclosure relates to a sample analyzer, including: an incubation mechanism, which is used for performing incubation on liquid in a reaction vessel; and a uniform mixing mechanism, which is independently arranged relative to the incubation mechanism and has a transport station and a uniform mixing station, wherein the uniform mixing mechanism includes a carrying member for carrying the reaction vessel, and the carrying member drives the reaction vessel to circularly move between the transport station and the uniform mixing station; and the carrying member conveys the reaction vessel, which is input from the transport station, to the uniform mixing station, so as to uniformly mix the liquid, and conveys the reaction vessel from the uniform mixing station to the transport station, so as to output the reaction vessel to the incubation mechanism.

Provided is an automatic analyzer which does not require a preparation operation of disposing of a reaction vessel on the apparatus in advance and is capable of efficiently performing shifting to an analysis operation.

In a reaction promotion unit 108, a holding position located at a reaction vessel disposal position 202 during a first operation cycle is moved to a reaction vessel setting position 201 after an n (n: integer) operation cycle, and from a first operation cycle to an n-th operation cycle, an expendable item transport unit 112 performs an operation of disposing of a reaction vessel from a disposal position without performing an operation of setting the reaction vessel at a setting position in each operation cycle, and performs an operation of setting the reaction vessel at the setting position and an operation of disposing of the reaction vessel from the disposal position in each operation cycle after an (n+1)-th operation cycle.

A method for distribution of supports impregnated with antibiotics includes a step of positioning of a plurality of tubular containers, each one containing a plurality of supports impregnated with antibiotics and stacked, in a corresponding plurality of seats of a dispenser. Extraction of at least a first support from a first container is performed using an extractor, the step of extraction being performed in correspondence of an upper end of the first container and comprising a movement of the first support between a first position inside of the first container and a second position extracted from the first container, said first position and said second position lying substantially in correspondence of an upper surface of the dispenser. Collection of the first support from the second position is performed using a collector. Transportation of the first support towards a culture plate by the collector is performed.