A maintenance method in an automatic analysis apparatus includes: a recognition step of recognizing an integrated rack 301A, 301B, 301C mounted with a cleaning solution container containing a cleaning solution, and a calibrator container containing a calibrator or a QC specimen container containing a QC specimen containing a sample having a known concentration; a cleaning solution supply step of aspirating a cleaning solution; and a supply step of aspirating the calibrator or aspirating the QC specimen, in which the cleaning solution supply step and the supply step are continuously performed from the cleaning solution container and the calibrator container or the QC specimen container mounted on the integrated rack 301A, 301B, 301C. Accordingly, an automatic analysis apparatus and a maintenance method in the automatic analysis apparatus that can reduce a burden on a user in calibration and the like during maintenance are provided.

Methods and systems are provided for the identification of sample cells in a sample tray that is placed in a chromatography autosampler. A cell gripper and labels are also provided to facilitate such identification.

Methods and systems are provided for the identification of sample cells in a sample tray that is placed in a chromatography autosampler. A cell gripper and labels are also provided to facilitate such identification.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide an automatic analysis device capable of efficiently performing a plurality of analyses, while reducing the footprint and cost of the device. Provided is an automatic analysis device characterized by being provided with containers for containing samples, one rack for placing the containers thereon, and a control unit, the control unit generating, with respect to the one rack, a plurality of registration patterns in which information of the positions where the containers are disposed, and information of the samples contained in the containers are correlated with each other, storing the registration patterns thus generated, applying, to the one rack, one registration pattern selected from among the registration patterns thus stored, and analyzing the samples. Also provided is an analysis method using the device.

An analyzer is disclosed. The analyzer comprises a rack slot configured to receive at least one rack, wherein the rack slot comprises a front end, at which the rack is manually loadable into the rack slot, and a rear end, which is opposite to the front end and at which the rack is fully receivable in the rack slot, and a spring device arranged at the rear end, wherein the spring device is configured to provide a biasing force towards the front end, wherein the biasing force is adapted to move the rack towards the front end if not fully received in the rack slot, wherein the spring device is configured to fix the rack in a final position if the rack is fully received in the rack slot. Further, a method for loading a rack into a rack slot of an analyzer and a system comprising an analyzer and a computer controller are disclosed.

A sample identification system for an automated sampling device is described. A system embodiment includes, but is not limited to, a sample holder having a plurality of apertures configured to receive a plurality of sample vessels therein, the sample holder having one or more corresponding sample holder identifiers positioned proximate to the sample holder; and an identifier capture device configured to detect the one or more sample holder identifiers positioned proximate to the sample holder and generate a data signal in response thereto, the data signal corresponding to at least an orientation of the sample holder relative to a surface on which the sample holder is positioned.

A measurement system according to one or more embodiments may include a measurement unit that measures a sample contained in a sample container; a transport unit including a first transporter that transports a rack holding sample containers in a longitudinal direction of the rack to the measurement unit, and a second transporter that transports the rack from the measurement unit; and a rack export-import unit that sets racks thereon, that is capable of transferring each of the set racks in a lateral direction of the rack, that exports the rack to the first transporter from one end side of the rack export-import unit, and that imports the rack transported by the second transporter from another end side of the rack export-import unit. The rack export-import unit includes a transfer prevention section that prevents the rack imported from the other end side from being transferred from the one end side.

An automatic analyzer having no limitation on a range of a placeable position on a sample placement disk for patient specimens, emergency specimens, quality control samples, and calibration samples, and being capable of performing analysis while changing the number of simultaneously-measurable samples for each type of each specimen is provided. In the automatic analyzer, either a calibration sample dedicated disk or a patient specimen dedicated disk is placed in an analyzing unit 8 as a sample placement disk 19, and the analyzing unit 8 has a disk identifying unit 24 which identifies a type of the sample placement disk 19, and a computer 22 identifies the type of the sample placement disk 19 based on an identification result of the disk identifying unit 24, and performs analysis on a liquid sample based on the identified type of the sample placement disk 19.

A parallel preceding system for processing samples is described. In one embodiment, the parallel processing system includes an instrument interface parallel controller to control a tray motor driving system, a close-loop heater control and detection system, a magnetic particle transfer system, a reagent release system, a reagent pre-mix pumping system and a wash buffer pumping system.

A sample processing or assay instrument includes a moveable support. The moveable support defines a first pocket configured to receive a first object having a first machine-readable mark. The moveable support defines a second pocket configured to receive a second object having a second machine-readable mark. The moveable support also includes a first fiducial machine-readable mark and a second fiducial machine-readable mark. The instrument also includes an image capture device that captures a first image including the first fiducial machine-readable mark and the first machine-readable mark of the first object. The image capture device captures a second image that includes the second fiducial machine-readable mark and the second machine-readable mark of the second object. The instrument also includes a processor configured to associate information decoded from the first and second machine-readable marks with first and second locations on the moveable support.