Provided is a specimen treatment system that can detect whether a specimen container is uncapped by using a simple mechanism. The specimen treatment system comprises: an automatic analyzer that analyzes a specimen; a pretreatment device that performs a pretreatment on the specimen; and a conveyance passage that conveys, in the automatic analyzer or in the pretreatment device, a specimen container that houses the specimen. The specimen treatment system is characterized by further comprising a single sensor that is disposed so as to be orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the specimen container and that detects whether the specimen container is uncapped.

The strength measuring apparatus includes: a strength measuring instrument measuring the strength of the mold on the basis of a reaction force received from the mold; a moving unit moving the strength measuring instrument; a distance sensor measuring a distance to an object on the conveyance line; and a control unit controlling the moving unit, wherein the control unit determines a measurement position of the strength measuring instrument in a horizontal direction perpendicular to a conveyance direction of the conveyance line on the basis of the distance detected by the distance sensor and controls the moving unit to move the strength measuring instrument to a position above the measurement position.

Provided are methods for the automated loading and/or automatic processing of one or more samples in an automated sample processing device. Also provided are automated sample loading systems and devices that include automated sample loading systems or devices that are utilized in such systems.

A processing unit for automated preparation of biological samples included in specimen tubes is described herein. The processing unit includes a removable sample preparation component configured to receive specimen tubes, read identifiers associated with the biological samples contained in the specimen tubes, mix reagents included in the specimen tubes, and transfer the specimen tubes to at least one of a centrifuge or a storage compartment. The processing unit further includes a centrifuge loader for automatic loading and unloading of the specimen tubes onto a centrifuge. The automated centrifuge loader includes a magnetic brake that can stop the centrifuge rotor at a precise position to facilitate loading and unloading of a specimen tube. The centrifuge includes a swing bucket designed to pivot around an axis and slide vertically to enable moving the bucket to a position in which the swing bucket can engage with the port where the specimen tube resides.

An automated sample specimen storage system including a tube holding microplate including a plate frame, a predetermined array of tube holding receptacles formed in the plate frame, the receptacles having a SBS standard pitch corresponding to the predetermined array, and being configured for holding therein sample store and transport tubes, each disposed so as to contain sample specimen in a sample storage of the storage system and to effect, with the sample tube, delivery from the sample storage to a workstation, the predetermined array of receptacles defining a volume capacity of the tube holding microplate, and each of the receptacles being shaped to conformally engage walls of the sample tubes and hold a respective one of the sample store and transport tubes, wherein the receptacles are arranged so that the tube holding microplate volume capacity defined by the predetermined array is an under optimum volume capacity.

The present disclosure relates to a method to re-identify a carrier on a laboratory transport system after a system failure. The carrier is associated with an identity and is configured to move over a transport plane of the laboratory transport system. The laboratory transport system comprises a monitoring system configured to monitor motion positions of the carrier on the transport plane when the laboratory transport system is activated. After a system failure, the identity dissociates from the carrier and the carrier keeps moving on the transport plane. After reactivation of the laboratory transport system, a predicted position of the identity is compared to an actual position of the carrier by a control unit of the laboratory transport system. The control unit assigns the identity to the carrier if the predicted position of the identity matches with the actual position of the carrier.

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.

An apparatus for determining a vertical position of at least one interface between a first component and at least one second component, the components comprised as different layers in a sample container. The apparatus comprises a first sensing unit and a first light detector configured to generate a first sensing signal, a second sensing unit comprising a second light detector configured to generate a second sensing signal, a driving unit configured to move the sample container, a position sensing unit configured to output a position sensing signal indicative of a vertical position of the sample container, a vertical position determining unit configured to match the first and the second sensing signal such that first and the second sensing signal correspond to identical vertical positions, and to determine the vertical position of the at least one interface in response to the matched sensing signals and the position sensing signal.

Method and associated system for reading machine-readable labels on a plurality of sample receptacles held by a sample rack. In the method, a machine-readable label associated each of the plurality of sample receptacles is read with a first label reader when the rack is at a first location. The sample rack is then moved from the first location to a second location, where a rack identifier on the sample rack is sensed with a sensor separate from the first label reader. Finally, the rack identifier is associated with the machine-readable labels of the plurality of sample receptacles.

The present disclosure provides a plate comprising an array of wells for chemical or biological reactions, wherein each of the wells comprises a reaction chamber with at least one opening on a surface of the plate. The array of wells consist of a plurality of adjacent blocks of wells, wherein each block of wells consists of a plurality of adjacent rows of wells, and wherein at least one void is provided in each block of wells in between the rows of wells. Here, the void is particularly part of the surface of the plate and lacks a well opening. Furthermore, a method for multiple imaging of such a plate by means of an imaging system is provided with the present disclosure.