Immunoagglutination measurement apparatus

Claim 1

An immunoagglutination measurement apparatus for mixing together a specimen from a specimen vessel and a reagent, said apparatus comprising: a base; a reversibly rotatable buffer solution table mounted on said base and on which a plurality of buffer solution vessels are mounted; a first temperature regulating means in thermal communication with the buffer solution vessels for maintaining the buffer solution vessels in an isothermal state; a reversibly rotatable reagent table mounted on said base and on which a plurality of reagent vessels are mounted; a second temperature regulating means in thermal communication with the reagent vessels for maintaining the reagent vessels in an isothermal state; a reversibly rotatable and shakable reaction table mounted on said base and on which a plurality of reaction vessels are supported; a third temperature regulating means in thermal communication with the reaction vessels for maintaining the reaction vessels in an isothermal state; first sampling and dispensing means mounted to said base for sampling a buffer solution from the buffer solution vessels and dispensing the buffer solution into the reaction vessels; second sampling and dispensing means mounted to said base for sampling a specimen from the specimen vessels and dispensing the specimen into the reaction vessels; third sampling and dispensing means mounted to said base for sampling a reagent from the reagent vessels and dispensing the reagent into the reaction vessels; fourth sampling an dispensing means mounted to said base for sampling a reaction solution, in which an agglutination reaction is brought about by mixing of the buffer solution, specimen and reagent, from the reaction vessels and dispensing the reaction solution into a sample chamber communicating with a detection section; a retainer; a reaction table shaft integrally attached to said reaction table, said reaction table shaft having a proximal end freely rotatably attached to said retainer and a distal end integrally attached to said reaction table to freely rotatably support said reaction table for rotation about a central axis defined by said reaction table shaft; one or more retainer shafts freely rotatably attached to said base at a proximal end of the retainer shafts, and eccentrically coupled to said retainer at a distal end thereof whereby rotation of the retainer shafts effects shaking of the retainer relative to the base, thereby shaking the reaction table; a static balancer attached to said one or more retainer shafts for rotation therewith to reduce vibrations produced by movement of the center of gravity of the retainer and reaction table; and measurement means for measuring the amount of agglutinization of the reaction solution.

Claim 4

The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 or 2, wherein said apparatus further includes cleansing means for cleaning vessels utilized with said apparatus, said cleansing means comprising: a reciprocatable shaft linearly reciprocatable in the axial direction defined by said shaft; a connecting arm having a proximal end integral with said reciprocatable shaft and a distal end; a pipette supportingly engaged by said supporting arm at said distal end thereof, and extending in said axial direction, said pipette having an intake port and a discharge port; a recovery station in fluid communication with said discharge port for receiving fluid discharged from said discharge port, said recovery station including aspirating means for withdrawing liquid from said discharge port and storage means for storing said withdrawn liquid; a cleansing retainer attached to said pipette intermediate of said intake end and said discharge end and extending about the periphery of a portion of said pipette, said retainer defining a discharge gap between said cleansing retainer and the periphery of said pipette; a cleansing fluid inlet duct integral with said cleansing retainer and in fluid communication with said cleansing fluid inlet duct, with cleansing fluid entering said inlet duct being discharged through said discharge gap and onto the periphery of said pipette; and shaft reciprocating means for axially reciprocating said shaft between a first position in which said inlet port of said pipette is adjacent the bottom of said vessel and a second position in which said inlet port is spaced from the vessel.