Measuring instrument for bioluminescence and chemilumnescence or turbidimetry

Claim 1

An instrument for measuring bioluminescence and chemiluminescence, comprising: a generally horizontal surface; a plurality of holders coupled to one another; a plurality of specimen pans in said holders; a front window formed in each holder; a guide means for guiding the movement of said holders on said surface, said guide means including a first guide channel having a lateral guide element, said lateral guide element having a generally semi-circular surface at a measurement point; a drive means for driving said plurality of coupled holders through said guide means, said drive means including a central star-shaped wheel disposed within said semi-circular surface for driving said plurality of holders therebetween, wherein said star-shaped wheel includes radially extending blades which project into interstices between adjacent coupled holders for driving said holders along said guide channel; and an optical detector positioned at said point of measurement at a level corresponding with the front window of each holder and in a light-tight area for individually detecting bioluminescence or chemiluminescence in one of said specimen pans in one of the plurality of the coupled holders, wherein longitudinal axis of said optical detector is aligned with a bearing axis of said star-shaped wheel, and further wherein, when one of said specimen pans is at said measurement point, said blades of said star-shaped wheel provide a screen to screen out extraneous radiation from adjacent specimen pans and from an entrance or exit opening of said first guide channel.