Chemical apparatus and process disinfecting – deodorizing – preser – Analyzer – structured indicator – or manipulative laboratory... – Sample mechanical transport means in or for automated...
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-12
2001-11-20
Bhat, Nina (Department: 1761)
Chemical apparatus and process disinfecting, deodorizing, preser
Analyzer, structured indicator, or manipulative laboratory...
Sample mechanical transport means in or for automated...
C422S067000, C422S105000, C422S105000, C435S286300
Reexamination Certificate
active
06319470
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to the field of haematological analyses, and more specifically to the preparation of blood smears on plates.
In this particular field, it is known to deposit a drop of a blood sample on a plate, such as a glass plate for analysis under a microscope, and to spread this drop on the plate in order to produce what is known as a blood smear. The latter is then dried, then coloured by at least one appropriate reagent, in order to permit subsequent analysis under the microscope. In fact, analysis of plates of this type makes it possible to determine the composition of the blood sample concerned, which is of great importance for the diagnosis of specific pathologies.
Blood smears of this type can be prepared by automated devices, which, on the basis of a stock of new plates, carry out a multiplicity of operations of depositing and spreading of blood on plates and miscellaneous subsequent processing operations such as drying and colouring. The plates thus processed are then collected in appropriate containers.
Devices of this type are already known, in particular from publications U.S. Pat. No. 4,034,700, EP 0 735 358, and WO 97/18457.
However, automatic preparation of plates of this type poses various problems, in particular concerning spreading of the blood, which must be perfectly controlled in order to obtain regular distribution of the cells on the plate, irrespective of the quantity of cells present in the blood.
It is also necessary for this spreading to be carried out without any risk of contamination from a previous spreading operation.
Another problem is associated with handling of the plates themselves, which consist of thin, relatively fragile glass plates, which also have the disadvantage that they have a natural tendency to adhere to one another when they are new, and are disposed in stacks.
Yet another problem is associated with the use of toxic products in order to carry out the operations of colouring of the plates, from bottles of reagents, and also with the rinsing operations which are carried out by solvents. It is thus essential to be able to prevent the migration of toxic vapours.
All of these problems, and others, have not yet been solved satisfactorily by the devices for preparation of bloods smears which are known according to the prior art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In particular, the object of the invention is to solve the above-described problems.
For this purpose, the invention proposes a device for automatic preparation of blood smears on plates, which comprises:
a storage unit, which can store new plates disposed horizontally, and superimposed in a vertical stack;
an extractor unit, which can extract a plate from the stack, and comprises a thruster, which can be displaced in a selected direction of extraction, and can act on the plate which is disposed at the base of the stack, in order to transfer the plate to a depositing unit, the thruster being in the form of a blade, which can act on a longitudinal edge of the plate, such that this edge forms an acute angle relative to the level which is perpendicular to the direction of extraction, the said acute angle advantageously having a value of between 1 and 30°;
a depositing unit, which can deposit a drop of blood on a plate extracted from the stack;
a spreading unit, which can spread the drop of blood in controlled conditions, in order to produce a regularly distributed blood smear;
a marking unit, comprising a marking head which can add means of identification on a reserved area of the plate;
a drying unit, which can dry the blood smear;
a colouring unit, which can colour the blood smear;
an output unit, to unload the plate thus coloured; and
transfer means, which can displace the plate between the aforementioned units, according to a pre-determined path.
The device according to the invention thus makes it possible to carry out the various operations required, by means of specific units to which the plate is transferred in succession, by the transfer means. At these units, the plate undergoes a particular operation, in perfectly controlled conditions.
In particular, the extractor unit makes it possible to extract a plate from the stacking unit, without the aforementioned problems of adhesion.
In addition, the spreading unit spreads the drop of blood in controlled conditions, which makes it possible to produce a regularly distributed blood smear.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the spreading unit comprises a counter-block which can be applied at a predetermined angle, against the surface of the plate on which the drop of blood has been deposited, and means for imparting relative displacement in translation between the plate and the counter-block, in order to produce a blood smear with controlled thickness, and this counter-block is covered with a flexible strip of plastics material, which is supported by means for winding and unwinding, such that the said strip has a part which is in contact with the blood, which strip is displaced between two successive spreading operations, thus making it possible to avoid any risk of contamination.
These means for winding and unwinding advantageously comprise a first bobbin, from which the new strip is unwound, and a second bobbin, onto which the strip which is soiled by the blood is wound, these bobbins preferably being contained in a case.
The spreading unit advantageously comprises a measuring unit, which can measure the optical transmission of the drop of blood deposited on the plate, in order to deduce a measured value, which can be used in order to adjust the spreading speed, and thus the thickness.
The aforementioned measuring unit advantageously comprises an electro-luminescent diode and a photo-diode, which are disposed on both sides of the plate, when the drop of blood is put into place.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the colouring unit comprises a turntable, which is mounted such as to rotate around a vertical axis, and is provided with a plurality of wells which are distributed around the circumference, and can each receive a plate in a vertical position, means to ensure angular rotation of the turntable sequentially from well to well, and also filling and emptying means, in order to fill a well with a processing fluid, and then empty the contents from it.
These filling and emptying means advantageously comprise at least two plunger needles, which are supported by a support which is displaceable in translation, parallel to the axis of rotation of the turntable, between a high position, in which the needles are extracted from the well, and a low position, in which the needles are plunged into the well.
According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, in the position in which a plate is received in a well, the means of identification of the plate are disposed in the upper part, such that they are outside the fluid which is contained in the well.
According to another advantageous characteristic of the invention, the colouring unit comprises a closed enclosure, which contains the turntable and the wells.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the output unit comprises storage and displacement means, which can store and advance empty containers, which can receive plates output from the colouring unit.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the transfer means comprise a carriage, which can displace the plates one by one in a horizontal position, from the storage unit as far as the drying unit.
In addition, these transfer means advantageously comprise a tilter, which is disposed in the vicinity of the drying unit, and can bring the plate into a vertical position.
Advantageously, the transfer means additionally comprise a handling bracket, which can displace a plate which is in a vertical position, between the drying unit, the colouring unit and the output unit, the bracket comprising a fixed support, a horizontal beam which can be displaced vertically relative to the fixed support, a slide which can be displaced in translation alo
Champseix Henri
Champseix Serge
Le Comte Roger
LeFevre Didier
Morel Ghislain
ABX
Bhat Nina
Dennison, Scheiner Schultz & Wakeman
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