Hitachi High-tech Corporation

Hitachi-high-technologies Corporation

Daisuke Morishima

Kohshi Maeda

Wataru Sato

Terumi Tamura

Toshinari Sakurai

Nobuyuki Isoshima

Manami Nammoku

Nobuyoshi Shimane

Provided is a highly reliable temperature adjustment apparatus which uses a temperature adjustment element and quantitatively evaluates the temperature adjustment performance of the temperature adjustment element. The temperature adjustment apparatus is provided with: a temperature adjustment element; one or more temperature detection elements provided near the temperature adjustment element; a calculation unit for calculating the output of the temperature detection element; and a display unit for displaying at least one of a time calculated by the calculation unit as a time at which the temperature adjustment performance of the temperature adjustment is predicted to be below a desired level, the number of operations and the time of current conduction or a warning based on the result of calculation.

Temperature adjustment apparatus

The purpose of the invention is to provide a nucleic acid analyzer that sets and executes temperature regulation, said temperature regulation matching the characteristics of analyzing items and the configuration of the analyzer, by a simple operation while preventing deterioration in analytical performance caused by partial overheating of a liquid reaction mixture to thereby improve temperature change speed and shorten analysis time. To achieve the above purpose, provided is a method wherein, in the case of performing overshooting: as a first processing, the temperature is continuously elevated until reaching a target overshoot temperature; as a second processing, after reaching the aforesaid temperature, the overshoot target temperature is maintained for a preset period of time; and, as a third processing, the temperature is continuously lowered until reaching a target temperature of the liquid reaction mixture. By executing the first to third processings, regulation is conducted so that temperature measurement values are in a trapezoidal form.

Nucleic acid analyzer

An automatic analyzer including a function for operating control materials and its operation method are provided. The analyzer is configured to start sampling by giving priority to an entirety of control materials corresponding to all assay items required for measurement. The analyzer is also configured to automatically start sampling of a patient specimen based on a preliminarily set sampling timing after completion of sampling of the entirety of control materials. The analyzer is also configured to stop, when an abnormality is present in a measurement result of at least any one of control materials in the group of control materials, sampling of a patient specimen corresponding to a control material in which the abnormality is found, and notify a tester of the abnormality.

Operation method for control materials and automated analyzer

Provided is an automatic analysis device capable of reducing a reagent cost. In the present invention, in each mixed reagent preparation cycle, an amount of mixed reagent for N analyses is mixed and prepared, and an amount of mixed reagent for one analysis is dispensed from the amount of mixed reagent for N analyses and used to analyze one sample. Minimum (Nmin) and maximum (Nmax) values for N are determined for a control unit beforehand, and if the analysis of J samples is requested, the control unit sets the value of N at the time of a mixed reagent preparation cycle within a range from Nmin to Nmax so as to minimize the remaining mixed reagent.

Automatic analysis device

A nucleic acid analysis apparatus capable of selecting an optimal analysis method for every user and improving throughput is provided. In a genetic analyzer for measuring and analyzing amplification reaction of a nucleic acid in real time, an amplification curve is analyzed and a user can select conditions for terminating the amplification reaction upon detection of amplification. Further, a user can select conditions for selecting next processing after termination of the amplification reaction. A user can select, in situ, conditions for terminating the amplification reaction and conditions for selecting next processing upon detection of amplification and after the termination of amplification reaction. Alternatively, conditions for terminating the amplification reaction and conditions for selecting the next processing are registered previously and processing is performed automatically upon detection of amplification and after termination of the amplification reaction.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Daisuke Morishima