CENTRIFUGE
20210039114 ยท 2021-02-11
Assignee
Inventors
Cpc classification
International classification
Abstract
Provided is a centrifuge capable of improving user operability. The centrifuge has a rotor chamber and a door for opening and closing the rotor chamber, wherein the centrifuge includes a presence and absence detection part for detecting presence or absence of a rotor, a door locking mechanism capable of switching between a locked state for inhibiting opening of the door and an unlocked state for allowing opening of the door, and a first control part configured to perform an operation of setting the door locking mechanism to be the unlocked state when the rotor is accommodated in the rotor chamber and configured to set the door locking mechanism to be the unlocked state when an unlocking passcode is input.
Claims
1. A centrifuge, comprising: a rotor chamber that accommodates a rotor which supports a sample; a door that opens and closes the rotor chamber; a presence and absence detection part, detecting whether the rotor is accommodated in the rotor chamber or not; a locking mechanism, switching between a locked state that opening of the door is prevented and an unlocked state that the opening of the door is allowed; and a control part, setting the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state when an operation for setting the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state is performed and a passcode is input, wherein the control part is able to select whether or not to request an input of the passcode for setting the unlocked state when the operation for setting the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state is performed.
2. The centrifuge according to claim 1, wherein the control part sets the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state without requesting the input of the passcode when the operation for setting the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state is performed in a case that the rotor is not accommodated in the rotor chamber.
3. The centrifuge according to claim 1, comprising a stop detection part, detecting whether or not the rotor accommodated in the rotor chamber is stopped, wherein the control part sets the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state when the operation for setting the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state is performed and the passcode is input in a case that the rotor accommodated in the rotor chamber is stopped is determined by a signal from the stop detection part.
4. The centrifuge according to claim 1, wherein the control part is able to select whether or not to request the input of the passcode when the rotor is accommodated in the rotor chamber and the door is closed.
5. The centrifuge according to claim 4, wherein the control part sets the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state without requesting the input of the passcode when the operation for setting the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state is performed in a case that no request is selected in a selection of whether or not to request the input of the passcode.
6. The centrifuge according to claim 4, wherein when the operation for setting the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state is performed, the passcode is input and the locking mechanism is set to be in the unlocked state, the control part clears the passcode.
7. The centrifuge according to claim 1, comprising a storage part, storing an input history of the passcode.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
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DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
[0024] Hereinafter, an embodiment of a centrifuge according to the invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
[0025] A centrifuge 10 shown in
[0026] The accommodation container 13 is provided in an inside F1 of the main body 11. The accommodation container 13 is made of a metal, and the accommodation container 13 has a tubular portion 21 and a bottom portion 22. A rotor chamber 23 is formed inside the accommodation container 13. The accommodation container 13 is disposed so that an opening portion 24 of the rotor chamber 23 faces upward in the vertical direction. A shaft hole 25 is provided to pass through the bottom portion 22. When the door 12 is operated with the hinge 20 as a fulcrum, the door 12 opens and closes the opening portion 24.
[0027] A seal member is provided to surround the opening portion 24. The seal member may be provided on any one of the main body 11 and the accommodation container 13. When the door 12 closes the opening portion 24 as shown by a solid line, the seal member comes into contact with a surface of the door 12 and forms a seal surface. That is, the rotor chamber 23 is sealed. When the door 12 opens the opening portion 24 as indicated by a two-dots dashed line, the seal member is separated from the surface of the door 12. That is, the rotor chamber 23 opens, and the user can perform an operation in which the rotor 14 is moved into and out of the rotor chamber 23.
[0028] The rotor 14 supports, specifically accommodates a sample. The rotor 14 may be made of a metal, a synthetic resin, glass, or the like. Rotors 14 of a plurality of types may be provided according to a type of centrifugal treatment, a type of sample, and the like, and an identifier is provided for each of the rotors 14. Samples may include a mixture of liquids and solids, and a mixture of liquids. The electric motor 15 is provided in the inside F1 of the main body 11, and a rotation shaft 26 of the electric motor 15 is disposed in the rotor chamber 23 through the shaft hole 25. The rotation shaft 26 is connected to the rotor 14, and the rotation shaft 26 and the rotor 14 rotate integrally.
[0029] The cooling device 17 is provided in the inside F1 of the main body 11. The cooling device 17 includes a cooling pipe 27, a first pipe 28, a second pipe 29, a third pipe 30, a condenser 31, and a compressor 32. The cooling pipe 27 is wound around an outer periphery of the tubular portion 21 of the accommodation container 13. The first pipe 28 connects the cooling pipe 27 to the condenser 31. The third pipe 30 connects the cooling pipe 27 to the compressor 32. The second pipe 29 connects the compressor 32 to the condenser 31. The compressor 32 compresses a refrigerant into a gaseous state. The refrigerant compressed by the compressor 32 is sent to the condenser 31 via the second pipe 29. The condenser 31 is a heat exchanger which cools and liquefies the refrigerant. The liquid refrigerant coming out of the condenser 31 is sent to the cooling pipe 27 through the first pipe 28, and heat of the rotor chamber 23 is transmitted to the refrigerant through the accommodation container 13 and the cooling pipe 27, and a temperature of the refrigerant in the cooling pipe 27 increases and the refrigerant vaporizes. The vaporized refrigerant is sent to the compressor 32 through the third pipe 30.
[0030] As described above, the cooling device 17 forms a refrigeration cycle in which the refrigerant circulates, and curbs increase in the temperature of the rotor chamber 23. The cooling device 17 has one or both of an inverter and a flow rate adjustment valve, and an electric motor. A compression pressure or supply amount of the refrigerant can be controlled and thus the temperature of the rotor chamber 23 can be adjusted by controlling the inverter and controlling a rotation speed of the electric motor or the flow rate adjusting valve. The supply amount of the refrigerant can be controlled and the temperature of the rotor chamber 23 can be adjusted by controlling the flow rate adjustment valve.
[0031] The vacuum pump 18 is provided in the inside F1 of the main body 11. A suction port of the vacuum pump 18 is connected to the rotor chamber 23 via a suction pipe 33. When the vacuum pump 18 is driven, a pressure inside the rotor chamber 23 is reduced.
[0032] The door locking mechanism 16 includes an engaging part 34 mounted on the door 12 and a solenoid 35 provided in the inside F1 of the main body 11. The engaging part 34 includes a protrusion and a hook. The protrusion has a hole or a recessed portion. The solenoid 35 is fixed to the main body 11, and the solenoid 35 has a plunger 36. The plunger 36 is movable in an axial direction. When energization and de-energization of the solenoid 35 are switched between, the plunger 36 is moved in the axial direction. When the plunger 36 is moved in the axial direction, the plunger 36 is engaged with or released from the engaging part 34. The door locking mechanism 16 prohibits the door 12 from opening when the plunger 36 is engaged with the engaging part 34 to be in a locked state. The door locking mechanism 16 allows the door 12 to open when the plunger 36 is released from the engaging portion 34 to be in an unlocked state.
[0033] As shown in
[0034] Further, as shown in
[0035] A control part 47 is provided in the inside F1 of the main body 11. The control part 47 is a microcomputer having an input interface, an output interface, an execution processing device, a storage device, and the like. The control part 47 can exchange signals with the operation display part 37, and the signals output from the temperature sensor 43, the rotor distinguishing sensor 44, the door sensor 45, and the rotation speed sensor 46 are input to the control part 47. The control part 47 outputs a signal which rotates or stops the electric motor 15, a signal which controls the rotation speed of the electric motor 15, a signal which controls the energization and de-energization of the solenoid 35, and a signal which controls the compressor 32.
[0036] The user can set the rotation speed of the rotor 14 by operating the rotation speed display part 38 shown in
[0037] When the user operates a menu tab 49 on the normal screen A1 shown in
[0038] Next, a control example of the centrifuge 10 will be described with reference to a flowchart of
[0039] When the control part 47 determines YES in Step S4, the control part 47 proceeds to Step S5 and displays the sub-screen E1 in
[0040] In Step S8, the control part 47 determines whether or not the user has operated a start button 41 on the normal screen C1. When the control part 47 determines YES in Step S8, the control part 47 displays the normal screen B1 of
[0041] The control part 47 determines whether or not centrifugation of the sample has been completed in Step S10. Whether or not the centrifugation of the sample has been completed can be determined, for example, by determining whether or not an elapsed time since the rotor 14 started rotating has reached a set operation time of the sample. The set operation time may be any one of a value set by the user operating the operation time display part 39 in
[0042] When the control part 47 determines NO in Step S10, the process proceeds to Step S9. When the control part 47 determines YES in Step S10, the user operates a stop button 51 on the normal screen B1 in
[0043] When the control part 47 determines YES in Step S11, the control part 47 displays the normal screen C1 in
[0044] When the control part 47 determines NO in Step S12, the control part 47 continues the determination in Step S12. When the control part 47 determines YES in Step S12, the control part 47 determines whether or not a passcode is to be set in Step S13.
[0045] When the control part 47 determines YES in Step S13, the control part 47 displays the sub-screen E2 of
[0046] When the passcode set in Step S7 and the passcode input in Step S14 match each other, the control part 47 determines YES in Step S15, proceeds to Step S16 and clears, that is, invalidates the stored passcode, that is, the passcode set in Step S7. Further, the control part 47 sets the door locking mechanism 16 in the unlocked state in Step S17, displays the normal screen A1 in
[0047] When the control part 47 determines NO in Step S13, the control part 47 proceeds to Step S17. When the control part 47 determines NO in Step S8, the control part 47 proceeds to Step S12. When the control part 47 determines NO in Step S3, or when the control part 47 determines No in Step S4, or when the control part 47 determines No in Step S6, the control part 47 performs a process of no passcode setting in Step S18 and proceeds to Step S8.
[0048] Although not shown in the control example of
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[0050]
[0051] The rotation speed of the rotor is controlled to be constant after time t4. When the user operates the stop button at time t5, the rotation speed of the rotor decreases. The rotor is stopped at time t6. When the user operates the open button at time t7 and the user inputs a passcode at time t8, the door locking mechanism is controlled to be in the unlocked state. The user opens the door at time t9.
[0052] As described above, when the rotor 14 accommodated in the rotor chamber 23 is stopped, in Step S12, the control part 47 detects that the user has operated the open button 42 as a preliminary operation of setting the door locking mechanism 16 to be in the unlocked state. Additionally, when the passcode is input in Step S14, the control part 47 sets the door locking mechanism 16 to be in the unlocked state. Further, when the control part 47 determines NO in Step S3, proceeds to Step S12 via Step S18 and detects that the open button 42 is operated, the control part 47 determines NO in Step S13, proceeds to Step S17 and sets the door locking mechanism 16 to the unlocked state. Therefore, the door 12 can be opened without inputting the passcode while the rotor 14 is not in the rotor chamber 23, and user operability is improved.
[0053] Also, when the control part 47 determines NO in Step S6 and determines NO in Step S13 via Step S18, the door 12 can be opened without inputting the passcode, and the user operability is improved.
[0054] Furthermore, even in the case in which the rotor 14 is stopped, when the passcode input in Step S7 does not match the passcode input in Step S14, the control part 47 holds the door locking mechanism 16 in the locked state. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a person who does not know the passcode from opening the door 12 when the rotor 14 is accommodated in the rotor chamber 23. That is, security against theft and foreign matter contamination of the sample in the rotor to be centrifuged is improved. In addition, the security of the rotor 14 can be improved only by software, and an increase in cost due to addition of hardware devices can be minimized.
[0055]
[0056] When the door is closed at time t1 and the passcode is input at time t2, the door locking mechanism is in the locked state. The start button is operated at time t3, and the first rotation of the rotor starts. The stop button is operated at time t4, and the rotor is stopped for the first time. The open button is operated at time t5, the passcode is input at time t6, and the door locking mechanism is in the unlocked state.
[0057] Thereafter, when the user opens the door and the door is closed at time t7, the door locking mechanism is in the locked state. A passcode is input at time t8. The passcode input at time t8 may be the same as or different from the passcode input at time t2. When the passcode input at time t8 is different from the passcode input at time t2, the passcode input at time t8 is valid, and the passcode input at time t2 is invalid.
[0058] When the start button is operated at time t9, the second rotation of the rotor starts. The stop button is operated at time t10, and the rotor is stopped for the second time. When the open button is operated at time t11 and the passcode is input at time t12, the door locking mechanism is in the unlocked state.
[0059] Furthermore, when the user opens the door and the door is closed at time t13, the door locking mechanism is in the locked state. A passcode is input at time t14. The passcode input at time t14 may be the same as or different from the passcode input at time t8. When the passcode input at time t14 is different from the passcode input at time t8, the passcode input at time t14 is valid, and the passcode input at time t8 is invalid.
[0060] When the start button is operated at time t15, the third rotation of the rotor starts. The stop button is operated at time t16, and the rotor is stopped for the third time. When the open button is operated at time t17 and the passcode is input at time t18, the door locking mechanism is in the unlocked state. In addition, all passcodes input before time t18 are invalid.
[0061] In the example of the treatment process shown in
[0062] Furthermore, even when the first operation of the stop button is performed at time t4 in
[0063]
[0064] The meaning of the items described in the embodiment will be described. The rotor distinguishing sensor 44 and the control part 47 are examples of presence and absence detection parts, and the rotation speed sensor 46 and the control part 47 are examples of stop detection parts. The operation of the open button is an example of an operation of setting the locking mechanism to be in the unlocked state. The passcode input by the user in Step S7 is an example of a passcode for locking. The passcode input by the user in Step S14 is an example of a passcode for unlocking. The control part 47 is an example of a first control part, a second control part, a third control part, a fourth control part, and a storage part.
[0065] The centrifuge is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the program operation may be a treatment process in which each of the rotation and stop of the rotor is performed twice to complete the centrifugation, and a treatment process in which each of the rotation and stop of the rotor is performed four times or more to complete the centrifugation.
[0066] The passcode input by the user may be a five-digit number or more in addition to a four-digit number. The passcode may be a character or a symbol in addition to a number. Further, the passcode may be a combination of at least two types of numbers, characters, and symbols.
[0067] A passcode input and release format may be a second input format using a non-contact medium in addition to a first input format in which the user operates the operation display part. In the second input format, a receiving part is provided in the main body of the centrifuge, and the receiving part recognizes a readable and writable IC card. In the case of the second input format, passcode information in the IC card may be renewed whenever the passcode is input and released.
[0068] The centrifuge shown in
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST
[0069] 10 Centrifuge [0070] 12 Door [0071] 14 Rotor [0072] 16 Door locking mechanism [0073] 23 Rotor chamber [0074] 44 Rotor distinguishing sensor [0075] 46 Rotation speed sensor [0076] 47 Control part