阅读说明：本技术 换板器以及包括此换板器的色谱仪 (Plate changer and chromatograph comprising same ) 是由 今枝航大 沢田拓也 于 2018-11-02 设计创作，主要内容包括：换板器包括：框体,收容样本板；以及一个或多个第一搁板,支撑样本板。在框体内,设有将一个或多个第一搁板分别支撑在不同高度的一个或多个板支撑部。各第一搁板是在一个或多个板支撑部的任一个上能支撑且能拆卸地构成。换板器还包括检测在各板支撑部上是否支撑有第一搁板的检测部。(The plate changer includes: a frame for accommodating the sample plate; and one or more first shelves supporting the sample plate. One or more plate support portions for supporting the one or more first shelves at different heights are provided in the frame body. Each first shelf is configured to be supported and detachable by one or more of the plate support portions. The plate changer further includes a detection portion that detects whether the first shelf plate is supported on each of the plate support portions.)

1. A plate changer that performs supply and recovery of a sample plate for an auto sampler, comprising:

a frame for accommodating the sample plate;

one or more first shelves supporting the sample plate;

one or more board support parts supporting the one or more first shelves at different heights, respectively, within the frame; and

a first detection part for detecting whether the first shelf board is supported on each board support part,

each of the first shelf boards is configured to be supported and detachable by any one of the one or more board support portions.

2. The plate exchanger according to claim 1, wherein the first detection part includes one or more shelf detection parts provided in correspondence with the one or more plate support parts, respectively,

each shelf detection unit includes:

a first movable member configured to be able to shift between a first state and a second state; and

a first sensor that detects which of the first state and the second state the first movable member is in,

the first movable member is provided to be brought into a first state when the first shelf panel is not supported by the corresponding panel support portion, and to be brought into a second state when the first shelf panel is supported by the corresponding panel support portion.

3. The plate changer of claim 2, wherein

The first sensor is an optical sensor that emits light to a predetermined first detection region, receives light from the first detection region, and outputs a signal according to the amount of received light,

the first movable member has a first light shielding body capable of shielding light emitted from the first sensor, and is provided so that the first light shielding body is located in the first detection region when in one of the first state and the second state, and the first light shielding body is located outside the first detection region when in the other of the first state and the second state.

4. The plate changer of claim 3, wherein the first movable member is transitionable to the first state and the second state by rotating about a predetermined first rotation axis, is not in contact with the first shelf when the first shelf is not supported by the corresponding plate support portion, and is held in the first state, and is in contact with the first shelf when the first shelf is supported by the corresponding plate support portion, and is held in the second state.

5. The plate changer of any of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: and a second detection unit that detects whether or not a sample plate is placed on each of the one or more first shelf plates supported by the one or more plate support units.

6. The plate exchanger according to claim 5, wherein the second detection portion includes one or more first plate detection portions provided respectively corresponding to the one or more plate support portions,

each first plate detection unit includes:

a second movable member configured to be able to shift between a third state and a fourth state; and

a second sensor that detects which of the third state and a fourth state the second movable member is in,

the second movable member is provided to be in a third state when the first shelf is not supported by the corresponding plate support portion and when the first shelf is supported by the corresponding plate support portion and the sample plate is not supported by the first shelf, and to be in a fourth state when the first shelf is supported by the corresponding plate support portion and the sample plate is supported by the first shelf.

7. The plate changer of claim 6, wherein

The second sensor is an optical sensor that emits light to a predetermined second detection region, receives light from the second detection region, and outputs a signal according to the amount of received light,

the second movable member has a second light shielding body capable of shielding light emitted from the second sensor, and is provided so that the second light shielding body is located in the second detection region when in one of the third state and the fourth state, and the second light shielding body is located outside the second detection region when in the other of the third state and the fourth state.

8. The plate changer of claim 7, wherein at each first shelf, an elastic member is provided that is deformed by the sample plate being supported to the first shelf,

the second movable member is configured to be capable of shifting to the third state and the fourth state by rotating about a second rotation axis that is predetermined in advance, and is not in contact with the elastic member when the first shelf is not supported by the corresponding plate support portion and when the first shelf is supported by the corresponding plate support portion and the sample plate is not supported by the first shelf, and is held in the third state, and is in contact with the deformed elastic member provided on the first shelf when the first shelf is supported by the corresponding plate support portion and the sample plate is supported by the first shelf, and is held in the fourth state.

9. The plate changer of any of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: one or more second shelves fixed at a different height from the one or more plate supporting parts within the frame and supporting the sample plate.

10. The plate changer of claim 9, further comprising: and a third detection unit that detects whether or not a sample plate is placed on each of the one or more second shelf plates.

11. The plate exchanger according to claim 10, wherein the third detection part includes one or more second plate detection parts provided respectively corresponding to the one or more second shelves,

each second plate detection unit includes:

a third movable member configured to be able to shift between a fifth state and a sixth state; and

a third sensor that detects which of the fifth state and a sixth state the third movable member is in,

the third movable member is provided so as to be in a fifth state when the sample plate is not supported by the corresponding second shelf and to be in a sixth state when the sample plate is supported by the corresponding second shelf.

12. The plate changer of claim 11, wherein

The third sensor is an optical sensor that emits light to a predetermined third detection region, receives light from the third detection region, and outputs a signal according to the amount of received light,

the third movable member has a third light shielding body capable of shielding light emitted from the third sensor, and is provided so that the third light shielding body is located in the third detection region when in one of the fifth state and the sixth state, and the third light shielding body is located outside the third detection region when in the other of the fifth state and the sixth state.

13. The plate changer according to claim 12, wherein the third movable member is capable of shifting to the fifth state and the sixth state by rotating about a third rotation axis that is predetermined, and is held in the fifth state without abutting against the sample plate when the sample plate is not supported by the corresponding second shelf, and is held in the sixth state by abutting against the sample plate when the sample plate is supported by the corresponding second shelf.

14. The plate changer of any of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: and a presentation unit that presents the detection result obtained by the first detection unit.

15. A chromatograph, comprising:

an automatic sampler; and

a plate changer according to any of claims 1 to 4.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a plate changer (plate changer) for supplying and collecting a sample plate (sample plate) to and from an auto sampler (auto sampler), and a chromatograph (chromatograph) including the plate changer.

Background

In an automatic sampler used in an analysis apparatus such as a liquid chromatograph, for example, a sample plate is positioned at a predetermined position. A sample plate is a plate that holds multiple sample vials (sample visals) or multiple samples themselves. In this state, the sample held by the sample plate is injected into the analysis channel of the analyzer (see, for example, patent document 1).

As an apparatus attached to an auto-sampler, there is a plate changer for automatically feeding a sample plate to the auto-sampler. The plate changer includes a plate storage and a plate transfer device. The plate storage house stores a plurality of sample plates. The plate conveying device conveys the sample plate between the plate storage and the automatic sampler.

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2016-70695

Disclosure of Invention

[ problems to be solved by the invention ]

In the plate storage, for example, a plurality of shelf plates on which a plurality of sample plates are placed are arranged at a fixed interval in the vertical direction. However, the plurality of sample plates stored in the plate storage do not necessarily have the same height (vertical dimension). Therefore, the intervals between the plurality of shelf plates are set so that the sample plate having the maximum height can be placed. Therefore, the number of sample plates that can be accommodated in the plate storage is limited by the vertical dimension of the plate storage and the size of the sample plate having the maximum height.

On the other hand, the plate storage house accommodates a larger number of sample plates, thereby achieving efficiency of analysis work. Therefore, if the height of the plurality of sample plates to be used is small, the plurality of sample plates can be accommodated by adding a new shelf. At this time, if the position of each shelf in the board storage is not accurately grasped, the sample board cannot be accurately conveyed.

The invention aims to provide a plate changer which can change the number of shelves and can easily grasp the position of each shelf and a chromatograph comprising the plate changer.

[ means for solving problems ]

(1) A plate changer of an aspect of the present invention performs supply and recovery of a sample plate for an auto sampler, the plate changer including: a frame for accommodating the sample plate; one or more first shelves supporting the sample plate; one or more plate support portions supporting the one or more first shelves at different heights, respectively, within the frame; and a first detection unit for detecting whether or not the first shelf is supported by each of the plate support units, wherein each of the first shelf is configured to be supported by one or more of the plate support units and to be detachable.

In the plate changer, a user can support the first shelf plate on any one of the one or more plate support portions in the housing. Further, the user can detach the first shelf supported by any one of the one or more panel supporting parts in the frame body. In this way, by varying the number of first shelf plates in the housing, the user can effectively utilize the internal space of the housing in accordance with the vertical dimension of the sample plate to be used and the vertical dimension of the housing.

Whether or not the first shelf is supported on each of the plate supporting portions is detected. This makes it possible to accurately grasp the position of the first shelf in the frame. Therefore, the reliability of the conveyance of the sample plate in the plate changer is improved.

(2) The first detection unit may include one or more shelf detection units provided corresponding to the one or more plate support units, respectively, and each shelf detection unit may include: a first movable member configured to be able to shift between a first state and a second state; and a first sensor that detects which of a first state and a second state the first movable member is in, the first movable member being configured to be in the first state when the first shelf is not supported by the corresponding plate support portion and to be in the second state when the first shelf is supported by the corresponding plate support portion.

In this case, whether or not the first shelf is supported by each of the plate support portions can be detected with a simple configuration.

(3) The first sensor may be an optical sensor that emits light to a predetermined first detection region, receives light from the first detection region, and outputs a signal according to a received light amount, and the first movable member may include a first light blocking body that blocks light emitted from the first sensor, and may be disposed such that the first light blocking body is located in the first detection region in one of the first state and the second state, and the first light blocking body is located outside the first detection region in the other of the first state and the second state.

In this case, it is possible to easily and accurately detect which of the first state and the second state the first movable member is in based on the signal output from the first sensor.

(4) The first movable member may be configured to be capable of shifting to the first state and the second state by rotating about a first rotation axis, and may be configured to be held in the first state without abutting against the first shelf panel when the first shelf panel is not supported by the corresponding panel support portion, and may be configured to abut against the first shelf panel when the first shelf panel is supported by the corresponding panel support portion, and to be held in the second state.

At this time, the first movable member is transitioned between the first state and the second state in conjunction with the case where the first shelf is mounted on the corresponding panel support portion and the case where the first shelf is detached from the corresponding panel support portion. Therefore, the reliability of detection of whether or not the first shelf is supported by each of the plate supporting portions is improved.

(5) The plate changer may further include: and a second detection unit that detects whether or not a sample plate is placed on each of the one or more first shelf plates supported by the one or more plate support units.

At this time, it is detected whether or not the sample plate is placed on each first shelf. This makes it possible to accurately grasp the storage state of one or more sample plates in the housing.

(6) The second detection unit may include one or more first plate detection units provided corresponding to the one or more plate support units, respectively, and each of the first plate detection units may include: a second movable member configured to be able to shift between a third state and a fourth state; and a second sensor that detects which of a third state and a fourth state the second movable member is in, the second movable member being configured to be in the third state when the first shelf is not supported by the corresponding plate support portion and when the first shelf is supported by the corresponding plate support portion and the sample plate is not supported by the first shelf, and to be in the fourth state when the first shelf is supported by the corresponding plate support portion and the sample plate is supported by the first shelf.

In this case, whether or not the sample plate is supported on each of the first shelf plates can be detected with a simple configuration.

(7) The second sensor may be an optical sensor that emits light to a predetermined second detection region, receives light from the second detection region, and outputs a signal according to the amount of received light, and the second movable member may have a second light blocking body that blocks light emitted from the second sensor, and may be disposed such that the second light blocking body is located in the second detection region in one of the third state and the fourth state, and the second light blocking body is located outside the second detection region in the other of the third state and the fourth state.

At this time, it is possible to easily and accurately detect which of the third state and the fourth state the second movable member is in based on the signal output from the second sensor.

(8) Each of the first shelf plates may be provided with an elastic member that is deformed by the sample plate being supported by the first shelf plate, the second movable member may be configured to be capable of shifting to a third state and a fourth state by rotating about a predetermined second rotation axis, the second movable member may be configured not to abut against the elastic member when the first shelf plate is not supported by the corresponding plate support portion and when the first shelf plate is supported by the corresponding plate support portion and the sample plate is not supported by the first shelf plate, and may be configured to be held in the third state, and may abut against the deformed elastic member provided on the first shelf plate when the first shelf plate is supported by the corresponding plate support portion and the sample plate is supported by the first shelf plate, and may be held in the fourth state.

At this time, the second movable member shifts between the third state and the fourth state in conjunction with the case where the sample plate is placed on the first shelf on the corresponding plate support portion and the case where the sample plate is removed from the first shelf on the corresponding plate support portion. Therefore, the reliability of detection of whether or not the sample plate is supported on each first shelf is improved.

(9) The plate changer may further include: and one or more second shelves fixed at a different height from the one or more plate support parts within the frame and supporting the sample plate.

In this case, the user can place the sample plate on the one or more second shelf plates without supporting the first shelf plate on the one or more plate support portions in the housing. Also, one or more second shelves are secured within the frame. Therefore, the position of the one or more second shelves in the frame can be accurately grasped.

(10) The plate changer may further include: and a third detection unit that detects whether or not a sample plate is placed on each of the one or more second shelf plates.

At this time, it is detected whether or not the sample plate is placed on each second shelf. This makes it possible to accurately grasp the storage state of one or more sample plates in the housing.

(11) The third detection unit may include one or more second plate detection units provided corresponding to the one or more second shelves, respectively, and each of the second plate detection units may include: a third movable member configured to be able to shift between a fifth state and a sixth state; and a third sensor that detects which of a fifth state and a sixth state the third movable member is in, the third movable member being provided so as to be in the fifth state when the sample plate is not supported by the corresponding second shelf and to be in the sixth state when the sample plate is supported by the corresponding second shelf.

In this case, whether or not the sample plate is supported on each of the second shelf plates can be detected with a simple configuration.

(12) The third sensor may be an optical sensor that emits light to a predetermined third detection region, receives light from the third detection region, and outputs a signal according to a received light amount, and the third movable member may have a third light blocking body that blocks light emitted from the third sensor, and may be disposed such that the third light blocking body is located in the third detection region in one of a fifth state and a sixth state, and the third light blocking body is located outside the third detection region in the other of the fifth state and the sixth state.

At this time, it is possible to easily and accurately detect which of the fifth state and the sixth state the third movable member is in based on the signal output from the third sensor.

(13) The third movable member may be configured to be capable of shifting to a fifth state and a sixth state by rotating about a third rotation axis, and may be configured to be held in the fifth state without abutting against the sample plate when the sample plate is not supported by the corresponding second shelf, and may be configured to be held in the sixth state by abutting against the sample plate when the sample plate is supported by the corresponding second shelf.

At this time, the second movable member transitions between the fifth state and the sixth state in conjunction with the case where the sample plate is mounted on the corresponding second shelf and the case where the sample plate is removed from the corresponding second shelf. Therefore, the reliability of detection of whether or not the sample plate is supported on each second shelf board is improved.

(14) The plate changer may further include: and a presentation unit that presents the detection result obtained by the first detection unit.

In this case, the user can easily and accurately grasp the position of the first shelf in the frame based on the presented detection result.

(15) A chromatograph of another aspect of the present invention includes an autosampler and the plate changer.

The chromatograph comprises the plate changer. In the plate changer, a larger number of sample plates are accommodated in the frame by effectively utilizing the internal space of the frame. Therefore, the efficiency of the analysis work is improved. In addition, in the plate changer, since the position of the first shelf can be accurately grasped, the reliability of supply and collection of the sample plate to the automatic sampler is improved.

[ Effect of the invention ]

According to the present invention, a plate changer that can change the number of shelves and easily grasp the position of each shelf, and a chromatograph including the plate changer are realized.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic external view showing an example of a liquid chromatograph according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an external perspective view of the plate changer of fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a partially enlarged front view of the board storage showing the second-stage and third-stage fixed shelves of fig. 2 and their vicinities.

Fig. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the plate detecting unit of fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a schematic side view for explaining the function of the plate detecting section.

Fig. 6 is a schematic plan view of the auxiliary shelf of fig. 2 and 3.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken along line a-a of fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a schematic perspective view of the shelf detection part and the plate detection part of fig. 3.

Fig. 9 is a schematic side view for explaining the function of the shelf detecting section.

Fig. 10 is a schematic side view for explaining the function of the plate detecting section.

Fig. 11 is a block diagram for explaining a control system of the plate changer.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, a plate changer according to an embodiment of the present invention and a chromatograph including the plate changer will be described with reference to the drawings. Hereinafter, a liquid chromatograph will be described as an example of the chromatograph.

[1] Schematic structure of liquid chromatograph

Fig. 1 is a schematic external view showing an example of a liquid chromatograph according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 1, the liquid chromatograph 1 includes a control unit 2, a liquid feeding unit 3, an auto sampler 4, a detection unit 5, a column oven (column oven) unit 6, and a plate changer 10.

The plate changer 10 supplies and collects a sample plate to and from the auto sampler 4. The plate changer 10 will be described in detail later. The liquid feeding unit 3 supplies the mobile phase stored in a mobile phase container, not shown, to the column provided in the column oven unit 6. The auto-sampler 4 receives a sample plate holding a plurality of samples to be analyzed from the plate changer 10. Then, the auto-sampler 4 injects the sample held by the sample plate into the mobile phase supplied from the liquid feeding unit 3 to the column. Further, the auto-sampler 4 delivers the used sample plate to the plate changer 10.

The column oven unit 6 contains a column, and the column and a space around the column are maintained at a substantially fixed temperature. The detection unit 5 detects each component of the sample separated by the column. The mobile phase having passed through the detection unit 5 is sent to a waste liquid container, not shown. The control Unit 2 includes, for example, a Central Processing Unit (CPU) and a memory, and controls operations of the respective units constituting the liquid chromatograph 1.

In the example of fig. 1, the detection unit 5, the auto-sampler 4, the liquid feeding unit 3, and the control unit 2 are stacked in this order from the bottom to the top. The plate changer 10 and the column oven unit 6 are arranged so as to sandwich the detection unit 5, the auto-sampler 4, the liquid feeding unit 3, and the control unit 2, which are stacked.

[2] Plate changer 10

Fig. 2 is an external perspective view of the plate changer 10 of fig. 1. As shown in fig. 2, the plate changer 10 mainly includes a plate storage 100 and a plate conveying unit 190. The board storage 100 and the board conveying unit 190 are formed to have a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and extend in the vertical direction, and are connected to each other in a state of being adjacent to each other.

In the plate changer 10 of the present embodiment, a direction from the plate conveying unit 190 to the plate storage 100 in the horizontal plane is referred to as a front direction of the plate changer 10, and a direction opposite thereto is referred to as a rear direction of the plate changer 10. Further, a direction from the center portion to the left in a state where the plate changer 10 is viewed from the center portion of the plate changer 10 in front of the plate changer 10 is referred to as a left direction of the plate changer 10, and a direction opposite thereto is referred to as a right direction of the plate changer 10.

The board storage 100 has a left side wall 101, a right side wall 102, a top plate 103, and a plurality of (seven in this example) fixed shelves 20. The left and right side walls 101 and 102 are rectangular plate members extending in the vertical direction, and are arranged in parallel so as to face each other in the horizontal direction. In the following description, the surfaces of the left and right side walls 101 and 102 that face each other are referred to as the inner surfaces of the left and right side walls 101 and 102, respectively. The top plate 103 connects the upper end of the left side wall 101 and the upper end of the right side wall 102.

The plurality of fixed shelves 20 are formed of rectangular plate members and are arranged between the left side wall 101 and the right side wall 102 at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction. Each of the fixed shelves 20 connects and is fixed to the left side wall 101 and the right side wall 102. Each of the fixed shelves 20 is configured to support a sample plate sp to be used in the auto-sampler 4 of fig. 1. The fixed shelf 20 provided at the lowermost end also serves as a bottom plate of the board storage 100. In the board storage 100, a bottom plate may be provided in addition to the fixed shelf 20 at the lowermost end.

The board storage 100 has a front opening 111 at a front end portion thereof, and a door 109 for opening and closing the front opening 111. The door 109 is attached to the right side wall 102 rotatably about a rotation axis extending in the up-down direction. Further, the board storage 100 has a rear opening 112 at a rear end.

In a state where the user opens the door 109, as indicated by hollow arrows in fig. 2, the sample plate sp can be placed on the plurality of fixed shelves 20 through the front opening 111. Further, the user can take out the sample plate sp placed on any one of the plurality of fixed shelves 20 through the front opening 111.

The board conveying section 190 includes a conveying robot 190R (fig. 11). The transfer robot 190R takes out the sample plate sp in the plate storage 100 through the rear opening 112 and transfers the sample plate sp to the auto-sampler 4 shown in fig. 1. Thereby, the sample plate sp is supplied to the auto-sampler 4.

Then, the transfer robot 190R takes out the sample plate sp in the auto-sampler 4 and transfers it into the plate storage 100 through the rear opening 112. Thereby, the sample plate sp is recovered to the plate changer 10. An opening 191 for supplying and collecting a sample plate sp to and from the auto sampler 4 is formed in the left side of the plate conveyor 190.

Here, the sample plate sp used in the auto-sampler 4 of fig. 1 is a plate that holds a plurality of sample bottles or a plurality of samples themselves, and there are a plurality of types. The plurality of sample plates sp each have an inherent height (dimension in the up-down direction). For example, the sample plate sp holding the sample vial has a relatively large height (dimension in the up-down direction). On the other hand, the sample plate sp holding the sample itself has a relatively small height (dimension in the up-down direction).

Therefore, the intervals between the plurality of fixed shelves 20 are set to be greater than the height of the sample plate sp having the maximum height. At this time, if the sample plate sp having a relatively small height is placed on the fixed shelf 20, a surplus space is formed between the sample plate sp and the upper fixed shelf 20.

Therefore, the plate changer 10 of the present embodiment is configured to be able to add a new shelf for supporting the sample plate sp as the auxiliary shelf 30 between the plurality of fixed shelves 20. In the example of fig. 2, one auxiliary shelf 30 is installed between the first and second stage fixed shelves 20, and one auxiliary shelf 30 is installed between the second and third stage fixed shelves 20. Thus, two sample plates sp are accommodated between the first-stage and second-stage fixed shelves 20, and two sample plates sp are accommodated between the second-stage and third-stage fixed shelves 20.

Fig. 3 is a partially enlarged front view of the board storage 100 showing the second-stage and third-stage fixed shelves 20 and their vicinities in fig. 2. In fig. 3, the door 109 is not shown. As shown in fig. 3, between two fixed shelves 20 facing each other in the vertical direction, a pair of left and right panel supporting portions 130 supporting the auxiliary shelf 30 are provided at intermediate positions of the two fixed shelves 20.

The left plate support 130 protrudes a fixed distance rightward from the inner surface of the left side wall 101, and extends rearward from the front end of the plate storage 100. The right-side plate support portion 130 protrudes a fixed distance leftward from the inner surface of the right-side wall 102, and extends rearward from the front end of the plate storage 100. The left and right plate support portions 130 face each other.

The auxiliary shelf 30 includes a substantially rectangular plate member, and is configured to be supported and detachable by the pair of plate support portions 130. The user can easily place both side portions of the auxiliary shelf panel 30 (a pair of supported portions 32 in fig. 6 described later) on the pair of panel support portions 130 by inserting the auxiliary shelf panel 30 from the front opening 111 into a space between the pair of right and left panel support portions 130 and the fixed shelf panel 20 above them in a horizontal posture. Also, the user can easily take out the auxiliary shelf 30 supported on the pair of the panel supporting parts 130 from the front opening 111.

In the board storage 100 of fig. 2, seven auxiliary shelves 30 are respectively supportable and detachable at positions above the seven fixed shelves 20. Therefore, the plate stocker 100 can accommodate a maximum of 14 sample plates sp.

As shown in fig. 3, in the board storage 100, a plurality of shelf detection portions D1 are provided, and a plurality of shelf detection portions D1 are provided for detecting whether or not the auxiliary shelf 30 is supported on the plurality of pairs of board support portions 130. Further, a plurality of plate detection portions D2 are provided, the plurality of plate detection portions D2 being used to detect whether or not a sample plate sp is placed on the auxiliary shelf 30 supported by the plurality of pairs of plate support portions 130. Further, a plurality of plate detection units D3 are provided, and the plate detection units D3 detect whether or not sample plates sp are placed on the plurality of fixed shelves 20.

The shelf detection portions D1 correspond to the plate support portions 130 provided in the left side wall 101, respectively. The plurality of board detection portions D2 correspond to the plurality of board support portions 130 provided on the left side wall 101, respectively. Further, the plurality of plate detection portions D3 correspond to the plurality of fixed shelves 20, respectively. The following description relates to the shelf detection unit D1, the plate detection units D2, D3, and the auxiliary shelf 30 in detail.

[3] Details of the board detecting section D3

Each of the panel detection portions D3 is attached to the inner surface of the left side wall 101 so as to be positioned below the corresponding fixed shelf 20. Fig. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the board detector D3 of fig. 3, and fig. 5 is a schematic side view for explaining the function of the board detector D3.

As shown in fig. 4, the board detection portion D3 includes the support shaft 122, the rotation member 123, and the photosensor SS 3. The support shaft 122 horizontally extends a fixed distance rightward from the inner surface of the left sidewall 101 below the corresponding fixed shelf 20. The rotating member 123 is an elongated plate member having one end 123a and the other end 123 b. The center portion of the rotating member 123 is attached to the support shaft 122 in such a manner that the rotating member 123 extends substantially in the front-rear direction and is rotatable about the support shaft 122. In this state, the one end 123a is positioned forward of the other end 123 b.

The front half of the rotary member 123 from the center to the one end 123a extends linearly. One end portion 123a of the rotating member 123 is bent toward the left side toward the inner surface of the left sidewall 101. A light shielding body 124 is provided at the front end portion thereof. The rear half of the rotary member 123 from the central portion to the other end portion 123b is bent obliquely upward in a state where the rotary member 123 is attached to the support shaft 122.

The rotary member 123 is formed such that the weight of the front half is greater than the weight of the rear half. Therefore, in the rotating member 123, a rotational force in one direction is generated so that the front half descends and the rear half ascends in a state where no load is applied.

The fixed shelf 20 is formed with an opening 21, and the opening 21 guides the other end 123b of the rotating member 123 from the lower space of the fixed shelf 20 to the upper space in a state where the front half of the rotating member 123 of the corresponding plate detecting portion D3 is held horizontally.

The photo sensor SS3 is a transmission type photointerrupter (photointerrupter) having a light projecting portion sa and a light receiving portion sb, and is attached to the inner surface of the left side wall 101 below the corresponding fixed shelf 20 and in front of the support shaft 122. The light receiving unit sb of the optical sensor SS3 is configured to receive the light emitted from the light projecting unit sa and to output a signal corresponding to the amount of received light. The light projecting section sa and the light receiving section sb of the optical sensor SS3 are arranged at intervals in the front-rear direction so as to sandwich the moving path of the light-shielding body 124 when the rotating member 123 is rotated about the support shaft 122. As the photo sensor SS3, a reflective photo chopper can be used.

In the plate detection unit D3, in a state where the sample plate sp is not mounted on the fixed shelf 20, as shown in fig. 5 (a), the light-shielding body 124 is positioned between the light-projecting portion sa and the light-receiving portion sb, and the rear half portion of the rotating member 123 abuts against the fixed shelf 20. At this time, in the state where the light emitted from the light projecting section sa toward the light receiving section sb in the optical sensor SS3 is blocked by the light blocking member 124, the rotation of the rotation member 123 in one direction is restricted.

On the other hand, in the plate detection unit D3, when the sample plate sp is placed on the fixed shelf 20, as shown in fig. 5 (b), the other end 123b of the rotating member 123 is pressed downward by the lower surface of the sample plate sp. Thereby, the rotating member 123 rotates, the other end portion 123b of the rotating member 123 descends to the same height as the upper surface of the fixed shelf 20, and the light blocking body 124 moves to a position above the optical sensor SS 3. Thus, in the photosensor SS3, the light emitted from the light emitter sa is incident on the light receiver sb.

The plate changer 10 shown in fig. 1 is provided with a control unit 11 (fig. 11) for controlling the operations of the respective units in the plate changer 10. According to this configuration, when no sample plate sp is mounted on the corresponding fixed shelf 20, the light receiving unit sb of the photosensor SS3 does not receive light from the light projecting unit sa. As a result of the detection that no sample plate sp is placed on the corresponding fixed shelf 20, the light receiving unit sb outputs a light receiving signal indicating the amount of light received at a predetermined threshold or less to the control unit 11 (fig. 11). On the other hand, when the sample plate sp is placed on the corresponding fixed shelf 20, the light receiving unit sb of the photosensor SS3 receives light from the light projecting unit sa. As a result of the detection of the sample plate sp placed on the corresponding fixed shelf 20, the light receiving unit sb outputs a light receiving signal indicating the amount of light received greater than the threshold value to the control unit 11 (fig. 11).

[4] Details of the auxiliary shelf 30

The auxiliary shelf 30 of fig. 2 and 3 will be described in detail. Fig. 6 is a schematic plan view of the auxiliary shelf 30 of fig. 2 and 3, and fig. 7 is a sectional view taken along line a-a of fig. 6.

As shown in fig. 6, the auxiliary shelf 30 has a plate supporting portion 31 and a pair of supported portions 32. The plate support portion 31 has a rectangular shape capable of supporting a variety of sample plates sp. The pair of supported portions 32 have shapes corresponding to the pair of plate supporting portions 130 in fig. 3, respectively, and are formed to protrude from one end portion of the plate supporting portion 31 toward the center portion by a fixed width from both side portions. The pair of supported portions 32 are supported by a pair of plate supporting portions 130 (see fig. 3) when the auxiliary shelf 30 is set in the plate storage 100. The plate supporting portion 31 and the pair of supported portions 32 are integrally formed.

The plate support portion 31 has an opening 33 formed adjacent to one of the supported portions 32 (the supported portion 32 corresponding to the plate support portion 130 provided on the left side wall 101 in fig. 3). A plate spring 34 is provided on the lower surface of the plate support portion 31 in the vicinity of the opening 33.

As shown in fig. 7, the plate spring 34 has an upper surface and a lower surface, and includes a metallic band-shaped member having high elasticity. The plate spring 34 of this example has two valley portions 34b, 34d bent so that the upper surfaces thereof face each other, and one peak portion 34c bent so that the lower surfaces thereof face each other. The valley portion 34b, the peak portion 34c, and the valley portion 34d are arranged in this order with an interval between one end portion 34a and the other end portion 34e of the plate spring 34.

One end portion 34a of the plate spring 34 is joined to the lower surface of the plate support portion 31 such that the valley portion 34b and the peak portion 34c are positioned in the opening portion 33 when the auxiliary shelf 30 is viewed from above and such that the other end portion 34e contacts the lower surface of the plate support portion 31. In this state, the peak folded portion 34c of the plate spring 34 protrudes upward from the upper surface of the plate support portion 31. The other end portion 34e of the plate spring 34 is not joined to the lower surface of the plate support portion 31.

As shown by the broken line in fig. 7, when the sample plate sp is placed on the plate support portion 31, the peak folded portion 34c of the plate spring 34 is pressed downward by the sample plate sp. Thus, the portion of the plate spring 34 from the one end 34a to the peak folded portion 34c is bent downward, and the valley folded portion 34d moves downward.

In this way, in the auxiliary shelf 30, the position in the vertical direction of the lowermost end portion (the valley portion 34d) of the plate spring 34 changes between a state in which the sample plate sp is not placed on the plate support portion 31 and a state in which the sample plate sp is placed on the plate support portion 31.

[5] Details of shelf detection unit D1 and plate detection unit D2

Each shelf detection unit D1 and each plate detection unit D2 are attached to the inner surface of the left side wall 101 so as to be positioned below the corresponding plate support 130. Fig. 8 is a schematic perspective view of the shelf detecting unit D1 and the plate detecting unit D2 in fig. 3, fig. 9 is a schematic side view for explaining the function of the shelf detecting unit D1, and fig. 10 is a schematic side view for explaining the function of the plate detecting unit D3.

As shown in fig. 8, the shelf detecting unit D1 has substantially the same structure as the plate detecting unit D3, and includes a support shaft 140, a rotary member 150, and a photosensor SS 1. The support shaft 140 horizontally extends a fixed distance rightward from the inner surface of the left sidewall 101 below the corresponding plate support portion 130. The rotary member 150 is an elongated plate member having one end 150a and the other end 150 b. The center portion of the rotary member 150 is attached to the support shaft 140 in such a manner that the rotary member 150 extends substantially in the front-rear direction and is rotatable about the support shaft 140. In this state, the one end 150a is positioned forward of the other end 150 b.

The front half of the rotary member 150 extends linearly. One end 150a of the rotary member 150 is bent toward the left toward the inner surface of the left sidewall 101. A light-shielding body 151 is provided at the front end portion thereof. The rear half of the rotating member 150 is bent toward an obliquely upper direction in a state where the rotating member 150 is mounted to the support shaft 140.

The rotary member 150 is formed such that the weight of the front half is greater than the weight of the rear half. Therefore, in the rotary member 150, a rotational force in one direction is generated so that the front half descends and the rear half ascends in a state where no load is applied.

The plate support portion 130 is formed with a notch 131, and the notch 131 guides the other end portion 150b of the rotary member 150 from the lower space of the plate support portion 130 to the upper space in a state where the front half portion of the rotary member 150 of the corresponding shelf detection portion D1 is held horizontally.

The photo sensor SS1 is a transmissive photo-chopper having a light projecting portion sa and a light receiving portion sb, similar to the photo sensor SS3, and is attached to the inner surface of the left side wall 101 below the corresponding plate supporting portion 130 and in front of the supporting shaft 140. The light receiving unit sb of the optical sensor SS1 is configured to receive the light emitted from the light projecting unit sa and to output a signal corresponding to the amount of received light. The light projecting section sa and the light receiving section sb of the optical sensor SS1 are arranged at intervals in the front-rear direction so as to sandwich the movement path of the light-shielding body 151 when the rotating member 150 rotates about the support shaft 140. As the photo sensor SS1, a reflective photo chopper can be used.

In the shelf detection unit D1, in a state where the auxiliary shelf 30 is not mounted on the board support 130, as shown in fig. 9 (a), the light-shielding body 151 is positioned between the light-projecting portion sa and the light-receiving portion sb, and the rear half portion of the rotary member 150 abuts against the board support 130. At this time, in the state where the light emitted from the light projecting section sa toward the light receiving section sb in the optical sensor SS1 is blocked by the light blocking member 151, the rotation of the rotation member 150 in one direction is restricted.

On the other hand, in the shelf detection portion D1, when the auxiliary shelf 30 is placed on the board support portion 130, as shown in fig. 9 (b), the other end portion 150b of the rotating member 150 is pressed downward by the lower surface of the auxiliary shelf 30. Thereby, the rotary member 150 rotates, the other end portion 150b of the rotary member 150 descends to the same height as the upper surface of the board support portion 130, and the light blocking body 151 moves to a position above the photosensor SS 1. Thus, in the photosensor SS1, the light emitted from the light emitter sa is incident on the light receiver sb.

According to the above configuration, when the auxiliary shelf 30 is not mounted on the corresponding plate support 130, the light receiving portion sb of the photosensor SS1 does not receive the light from the light projecting portion sa. As a result of the detection that the auxiliary shelf 30 is not mounted on the corresponding plate support 130, the light receiving unit sb outputs a light receiving signal indicating the amount of light received at a predetermined threshold value or less to the control unit 11 (fig. 11). On the other hand, when the sample plate sp is placed on the corresponding fixed shelf 20, the light receiving unit sb of the photosensor SS1 receives light from the light projecting unit sa. As a result of the detection that the auxiliary shelf 30 is placed on the corresponding plate support 130, the light receiving unit sb outputs a light receiving signal indicating the amount of light received that is greater than the threshold value to the control unit 11 (fig. 11).

As shown in fig. 8, the plate detector D2 is provided adjacent to the shelf detector D1, and includes the support shaft 140, the rotary member 160, and the photosensor SS 2. The board detection unit D2 of this example is located inside (rightward in this example) the board storage 100 from the shelf board detection unit D1.

The support shaft 140 is commonly used between the adjacent shelf detecting portion D1 and the plate detecting portion D2. The rotary member 160 is an elongated plate member having one end 160a and the other end 160 b. The center portion of the rotary member 160 is attached to the support shaft 140 in such a manner that the rotary member 160 extends substantially in the front-rear direction and is rotatable about the support shaft 140. In this state, one end 160a is positioned forward of the other end 160 b.

The rotary member 160 extends substantially linearly from one end 160a toward the other end 160 b. One end 160a of the rotation member 160 is bent toward the left toward the inner surface of the left sidewall 101. A light shielding body 161 is provided at the front end portion thereof.

In a state where the rotary member 160 is attached to the support shaft 140, at least the other end portion 160b of the rotary member 160 is positioned inside (rightward) the board storage 100 with respect to the board support portion 130.

The rotary member 160 is formed such that the weight of the front half is greater than the weight of the rear half. Therefore, in the rotary member 160, a rotational force in one direction is generated so that the front half is lowered and the rear half is raised in a state where no load is applied. The board detection unit D2 is provided with a rotation restriction mechanism, not shown, which restricts rotation of the rotation member 160 in the one direction from a state in which the rotation member extends in the horizontal direction, and allows rotation of the rotation member 160 in the opposite direction to the one direction from the state in which the rotation member extends in the horizontal direction.

The photo sensor SS2 is a transmissive photointerrupter having a light projecting portion sa and a light receiving portion sb, similar to the photo sensor SS3, and is attached to the inner surface of the left side wall 101 below the corresponding plate support portion 130 and in front of the support shaft 140 and the photo sensor SS 1. The light receiving unit sb of the optical sensor SS2 is configured to receive the light emitted from the light projecting unit sa and to output a signal corresponding to the amount of received light. The light projecting section sa and the light receiving section sb of the optical sensor SS2 are arranged at intervals in the front-rear direction so as to sandwich the movement path of the light shielding body 161 when the rotating member 160 rotates about the support shaft 140. As the photo sensor SS2, a reflective photo chopper can be used.

When the auxiliary shelf 30 is placed on the pair of plate support portions 130, the auxiliary shelf 30 is positioned so that the opening portion 33 (fig. 6) overlaps the other end portion 160b of the rotating member 160 in the vertical direction. At this time, the valley portion 34d of the plate spring 34 (fig. 6) is located lower than the plate support portion 130 and is close to the other end portion 160b of the rotary member 160. The plate spring 34 is formed so as not to press the other end 160b of the rotating member 160 downward in a state where the auxiliary shelf 30 is placed on the plate support portion 130 and the sample plate sp is not placed on the auxiliary shelf 30. Thus, in the plate detection unit D2, the rotation member 160 is held horizontally in a state where the auxiliary shelf plate 30 is not mounted on the plate support portion 130, and in a state where the auxiliary shelf plate 30 is mounted on the plate support portion 130 and the sample plate sp is not mounted on the auxiliary shelf plate 30 as shown in fig. 10 (a). At this time, the light emitted from the light projecting section sa toward the light receiving section sb in the optical sensor SS2 is blocked by the light blocking member 161.

On the other hand, in the plate detection portion D2, when the auxiliary shelf plate 30 is placed on the plate support portion 130 and the sample plate sp is placed on the auxiliary shelf plate 30, as shown in fig. 10 (b), the plate spring 34 of the auxiliary shelf plate 30 is elastically deformed by the sample plate sp. At this time, the lowermost end portion (the valley portion 34d) of the plate spring 34 descends, and the other end portion 160b of the rotary member 160 located below the plate support portion 130 is pressed downward by the plate spring 34. Thereby, the rotary member 160 rotates, and the light blocking body 161 moves to a position above the optical sensor SS 2. As a result, in the photosensor SS2, the light emitted from the light emitter sa enters the light receiver sb.

According to this configuration, when the sample plate sp is not placed on the auxiliary shelf 30 supported by the corresponding plate support 130, the light receiving unit sb of the photosensor SS2 does not receive light from the light projecting unit sa. As a result of the detection that no sample plate sp is placed on the auxiliary shelf 30 supported by the corresponding plate support 130, the light receiving unit sb outputs a light receiving signal indicating the amount of light received at a predetermined threshold value or less to the control unit 11 (fig. 11). On the other hand, when the sample plate sp is placed on the auxiliary shelf 30 supported by the corresponding plate support 130, the light receiving unit sb of the photosensor SS2 receives light from the light projecting unit sa. As a result, the light receiving unit sb outputs a light receiving signal indicating a light receiving amount larger than the threshold value to the control unit 11 (fig. 11) as a result of detecting that the sample plate sp is placed on the auxiliary shelf 30 supported by the corresponding plate support portion 130.

[6] Control system of plate changer 10

Fig. 11 is a block diagram for explaining a control system of the plate changer 10. As shown in fig. 11, the plate changer 10 includes a control unit 11, a plurality of shelf board detectors D1, a plurality of plate detectors D2, a plurality of plate detectors D3, a transfer robot 190R, and a plurality of auxiliary shelf board display IDs.

As described above, each shelf detection unit D1 outputs a signal (light reception signal) to the control unit 11 indicating whether or not the auxiliary shelf 30 is placed on the corresponding plate support unit 130. Each plate detection unit D2 outputs a signal (light reception signal) to the control unit 11 indicating whether or not a sample plate sp is placed on the corresponding plate support unit 130 together with the auxiliary shelf plate 30. Further, each plate detection unit D3 outputs a light reception signal indicating whether or not a sample plate sp is placed on the corresponding fixed shelf 20 to the control unit 11.

The plurality of auxiliary shelf display IDs correspond to the plurality of board support portions 130 provided on the left side wall 101, respectively. Each auxiliary shelf display ID includes a light emitting element such as a light emitting diode and a driving circuit thereof, and is provided on the front surface of the door 109 in fig. 1, for example.

The controller 11 includes, for example, a CPU and a memory, and controls the operation of the transfer robot 150R based on signals output from the shelf detectors D1 and the plate detectors D2 and D3. Then, the control unit 11 exchanges various information with the control unit 2, which is related to supply and collection of the sample plate sp in the auto-sampler 4.

Further, the control unit 11 controls the light emission state of the plurality of auxiliary shelf display IDs based on the signals output from the plurality of shelf detection units D1. For example, the control unit 11 turns on the auxiliary shelf display ID corresponding to one of the board support portions 130 in a state where the auxiliary shelf 30 is placed on the board support portion 130. In a state where the auxiliary shelf st is not placed on one of the plate support portions 130, the auxiliary shelf display ID corresponding to the plate support portion 130 is turned off. Thus, the user can easily grasp the attachment state of the plurality of auxiliary shelves 30 in the plate changer 10 by visually observing the light emission state of the auxiliary shelf display ID corresponding to each plate support portion 130.

[7] Effect

(a) In the plate changer 10, the shelf detection unit D1 detects whether or not the auxiliary shelf 30 is supported by the respective plate support portions 130 arranged in the vertical direction. This makes it possible to accurately grasp the position of the auxiliary shelf 30 provided in the board storage 100. Therefore, the reliability of conveyance of the sample plate sp in the plate changer 10 is improved.

(b) In the plate changer 10, the user can easily support the auxiliary shelf 30 on any one of the plurality of plate support portions 130 in the plate storage 100. Also, the user can easily detach the auxiliary shelf 30 supported at any one of the plurality of panel supporting parts 130. In this way, the number of auxiliary shelves 30 in the board storage 100 is variable, so that the user can effectively use the internal space of the board storage 100 according to the vertical dimension of the sample board sp to be used and the vertical dimension of the board storage 100.

(c) Further, in the plate changer 10, the plate detection unit D2 detects whether or not the sample plate sp is placed on each auxiliary shelf plate 30. The plate detection unit D3 detects whether or not a sample plate sp is placed on each of the fixed shelves 20. This makes it possible to accurately grasp the storage states of the plurality of sample plates sp in the plate storage 100.

(d) The liquid chromatograph 1 of fig. 1 includes the plate changer 10. This improves the efficiency of the analysis operation and improves the reliability of the supply operation and the collection operation of the sample plate sp to the auto-sampler 4.

[8] Other embodiments

(a) In the above-described embodiment, the photo sensors SS1, SS2, and SS3 are used to detect whether or not the auxiliary shelf 30 is placed on the plate support 130, whether or not the sample plate sp is placed on the plate support 130, and whether or not the sample plate sp is placed on the fixed shelf 20. As a configuration for detecting the above-described mounting states, other electronic devices such as proximity sensors and switches may be used instead of the optical sensors SS1, SS2, and SS 3.

(b) In the above embodiment, the plurality of shelf detectors D1, the plurality of plate detectors D2, and the plurality of plate detectors D3 are provided on the inner surface of the left side wall 101, but the present invention is not limited thereto. A part or all of the shelf detectors D1, the board detectors D2, and the board detectors D3 may be provided on the inner surface of the right side wall 102.

(c) In the above embodiment, the shelf detecting portion D1 and the plate detecting portion D2 corresponding to one plate supporting portion 130 are provided adjacent to each other on the left side wall 101, and the support shaft 140 is used as a common constituent element of the shelf detecting portion D1 and the plate detecting portion D2, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The shelf detection part D1 and the plate detection part D2 corresponding to one plate support part 130 may be separately provided at positions spaced apart from each other. At this time, the shelf detecting portion D1 and the plate detecting portion D2 corresponding to one plate supporting portion 130 have respective support shafts.

(d) In the plate changer 10 of the above embodiment, a plurality of fixed shelves 20 are provided in the plate storage 100, but a plurality of fixed shelves 20 may not be provided. For example, a plurality of pairs of plate support portions 130 may be provided instead of the plurality of fixed shelves 20 of fig. 3. In this case, the degree of freedom in mounting the auxiliary shelf 30 in the board storage 100 is improved.

(e) In the plate changer 10 of the above embodiment, the mounting state of the plurality of auxiliary shelves 30 in the storage 100 is displayed by the plurality of auxiliary shelf display IDs, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The plate changer 10 may include a presentation device (e.g., a display device or an audio output device) for presenting the placement states of the sample plates sp on the plurality of auxiliary shelves 30 and the plurality of fixed shelves 20 to the user.

At this time, for example, by presenting the detection results of the plurality of plate detection units D2 and D3 to the user, the user can easily grasp the storage states of the plurality of sample plates sp in the plate storage 100.

(f) In the plate changer 10 of the above embodiment, a plurality of pairs of plate supporting portions 130 are provided in the plate storage 100, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Only one pair of plate support portions 130 may be provided in the plate storage 100.

(g) In the above embodiment, the plate changer 10 is used for a liquid chromatograph, but may be used for other chromatographs such as a supercritical fluid chromatograph and a gas chromatograph.

[9] Correspondence relationship between each constituent element of claims and each portion of the embodiments

Hereinafter, examples of correspondence between the components of the claims and the respective portions of the embodiments will be described.

In the above embodiment, the board storage 100 is an example of a housing, the auxiliary shelf 30 is an example of a first shelf, the pair of board support portions 130 is an example of a board support portion, the plurality of shelf detection portions D1 are examples of a first detection portion, the rotary member 150 is an example of a first movable member, the optical sensor SS1 is an example of a first sensor, the state of the rotary member 150 when the other end portion 150b is located above the board support portion 130 is in a first state, the state of the rotary member 150 when the other end portion 150b is located at the same height as the upper surface of the board support portion 130 is in a second state, the region between the light projecting portion sa and the light receiving portion sb in the optical sensor SS1 is an example of a first detection region, the light shielding body 151 is an example of a first light shielding body, and the support shaft 140 is an example of a first rotation shaft and a second rotation shaft.

The plurality of plate detectors D2 are examples of second detectors, the plate detector D2 is an example of a first plate detector, the rotary member 160 is an example of a second movable member, the optical sensor SS2 is an example of a second sensor, the state in which the rotary member 160 is held horizontally is an example of a third state, the state of the rotary member 160 when the other end 160b is located below the support shaft 140 is an example of a fourth state, the region between the light projecting section sa and the light receiving section sb in the optical sensor SS2 is an example of a second detection region, the light blocking body 161 is an example of a second light blocking body, and the plate spring 34 is an example of an elastic member.

The fixed shelf 20 is an example of a second shelf, the plurality of plate detectors D3 are examples of third detectors, the plate detector D3 is an example of a second plate detector, the rotary member 123 is an example of a third movable member, the optical sensor SS3 is an example of a third sensor, the other end 123b is an example of a fifth state of the rotary member 123 when it is positioned above the fixed shelf 20, the other end 123b is an example of a sixth state of the rotary member 123 when it is positioned at the same height as the upper surface of the fixed shelf 20, the region between the light emitter sa and the light receiver sb in the optical sensor SS3 is an example of a third detection region, and the light shield 124 is an example of a third light shield.

Further, the auxiliary shelf display ID is an example of a presentation unit, and the liquid chromatograph 1 is an example of a chromatograph.

As each component of the claims, various other components having the structures and functions described in the claims can be used.