Olympus Optical Company, Ltd.

Ikuo Tawara

Shinroku Sogi

Makoto Yoshinaga

Toshio Shinohara

Takayuki Aihara

Shinichiro Hattori

Masao Izawa

Daizo Shinohara

Sachiko Tachikawa

Biological substances such as tissues, cells, vaccines and viruses are cultured by the steps of: introducing a culture solution having the substances suspended therein into a closed culture vessel having a plurality of disc-like implantation plates arranged horizontally with a certain space between successive plates so that a predetermined number of the implantation plates is immersed in the culture solution; culturing the substances on the surface of the implantation plates; removing the substances from the implantation plates; suspending the removed cultured substances in a new culture solution; and successively repeating the steps of culturing, removing the cultured substances and suspending in a new culture solution while each time increasing the amount of newly supplied culture solution to progressively increase the number of implantation plates immersed in the culture solution. This process enables production of a large amount of biological substance from a small amount of seed substance by mass production in a simple operation without any contamination.

Method of culturing biological substances

An endoscope ocular accessory mounting device comprises a mounting body provided at its forward end with a flanged section having a truncated conical cavity for mounting an ocular accessory on an endoscope ocular section. A pair of axially extending slits are formed in the peripheral wall diametrically facing each other across the circular flanged section. A cam plate is swingably fitted into each of the slits. This cam plate is so urged that its inner end cam surface is engaged with the truncated conical rear part of the endoscope ocular section. A pair of push rods penetrate the peripheral wall of a ring member surrounding the flanged section. Each push rod is urged radially to the outside of the ring member and provided with a release button at the outer end. Where the paired push rods are pushed, the inner end of each push rod pushes the outer end cam surface of the cam plate, causing the cam plate to be rotated out of a passage formed in the endoscope ocular section, and consequently enabling the mounting device to be released from the endoscope ocular section. The endoscope ocular accessory mounting device has a simple arrangement and can be operated quickly, easily and unfailingly substantially without failure and manufactured at low cost.

Endoscope ocular accessory mounting device

A mounting device for accessories of endoscope oculars comprises a mount body having a central through hole and a hollow cylindrical rim secured to one end of the body. Within the rim there is provided a cavity in the form of a truncated cone for receiving an ocular of an endoscope. Plate cams are rockably supported in axially elongated slits formed in the rim. The plate cams are urged by springs stretched between them and the rim, and their inner faces can contact an ocular inserted in the cavity so loosely that the ocular may be rotated. About the rim a fixing cam ring and a release cam ring are provided rotatably with respect to the mount body. The inner periphery of the fixing cam ring provides such cam surfaces that the fixing cam ring causes the inner faces of the plate cams to push the rear face of the ocular thereby to connecting the ocular immovably to the mounting body when it is rotated in one circumferential direction. The inner periphery of the release cam ring provides such cam surfaces that the release cam ring moves the plate cams from the passage of the ocular when it is rotated in one circumferential direction. When both cam rings are selectively rotated, the ocular is connected immovably to the mounting body, can be rotated with respect to the body or can be disconnected from the body. Therefore, the ocular can be connected to, and disconnected from, the mounting body both easily and unfailingly.

Mounting device for accessories of endoscope oculars

A liquid feeder comprises a liquid suction and delivery pump which withdraws a liquid such as a culture solution, buffer solution, enzyme solution or the like which is retained in a liquid storage container as refrigerated or at a reduced temperature and delivers it through a flexible tube for injection into a culture vessel located within an incubator. The tube is inserted into an inner pipe and is sealingly secured thereto. The inner pipe is detachably and hermetically mounted in an outer pipe which extends through and is secured to a wall forming an environment isolating layer of the incubator. An eccentric crankpin which is driven by a motor is connected through a link with another crankpin having a greater eccentricity, the latter crankpin being driven for rotation to cause a reciprocatory rotating motion of a driven shaft about its own axis through an angular extent of less than 180.degree.. The motion of the driven shaft is effective to selectively switch the discharge port of a pair of liquid supply tubes to a position over a single vessel. The motor also drives a cam which causes a vertical motion of a drive shaft which is also angularly driven by a cam groove, the drive shaft being effective to cause a three dimensional motion of the discharge port of a single liquid supply tube for injection into a pair of vessels.

Liquid feeder for automatic culture apparatus

A liquid feeder comprises a motor which drives a cam causing a vertical motion of a drive shaft which is also angularly driven by a cam groove, the drive shaft being effective to cause a three dimensional motion of the discharge port of a single liquid supply tube for injection into a pair of vessels.

An apparatus for liquid disposal and distribution in automatic culture system comprises a first turntable carrying a plurality of culture vessels disposed in an array on a common circle thereon, and a second turntable carrying a plurality of centrifuge tubes disposed in an array on a common circle thereof. The apparatus comprises a pipette holding arm which is disposed so that its free end is angularly movable between one of the culture vessels and one of the centrifuge tubes. The free end of the arm has attached thereto a tapered cylinder which detachably receives a pipette. A fixed displacement pump is connected with the cylinder, which is movable along the path of rotation, along which are disposed a pipette holder, a pipette remover and a liquid disposal pot. The apparatus also comprises a rotary and elevating mechanism associated with the arm. In this manner, the apparatus is capable of transferring a specimen being cultured from a culture vessel to a centrifuge tube, distributing grown cells from the tube into culture vessels and disposing unnecessary liquid. In addition, the apparatus is capable of agitating a culturing solution within the culture vessel to render the cells into suspension.

Apparatus for liquid disposal and distribution in automatic culture

An apparatus for handling a centrifuge tube in an automatic culture system includes a centrifuge, above which is disposed a centrifuge tube carrying turntable which is intermittently driven through a given angular increment. Disposed at an equal spacing on and around the periphery of the turntable are centrifuge tube holder mechanisms each carrying a centrifuge tube holder. Also disposed in surrounding relationship with the turntable and at given positions where the latter comes to a stop are a plurality of processing stations including a centrifuge delivery unit which automatically delivers a centrifuge tube into the holder, a liquid disposal unit for disposing unnecessary culture solution from the centrifuge tube which has been subjected to the action of the centrifuge, a discharge unit for discharging a used centrifuge tube subsequent to the completion of the culturing operation, a transfer unit for transferring a centrifuge tube between the centrifuge holder mechanism and a holder receiver located within the centrifuge. As the turntable is incremently driven, the centrifuge tube is successively conveyed through a culture treatment and a centrifuge tube processing position.

Apparatus for handling centrifuge tubes in automatic culture system

A pipette exchange apparatus for use in a system for automatically culturing a biotissue or a cell includes a pipette mounting device for mounting a dividing and injecting means, a pipette supply device and a pipette feeding device.

Pipette exchange apparatus

An automatic culture apparatus includes an airtight casing, a culture vessel platform, a culture observation platform and a separation/distribution work platform disposed in layered configuration with suitable vertical spacings between them. A drive system for the apparatus comprises an opening formed centrally in each of the platforms; a culture vessel carrier for conveying a culture vessel to each of the platforms through the openings; a transfer arm for loading and unloading a culture vessel on or from the carrier and any one of the platforms; a first drive mechanism for operating the carrier and the transfer arm; and a second drive mechanism for driving any one of the platforms. The second drive mechanism is mounted hermetically in the casing. By operating suitable drive mechanisms to actuate the various parts, a culture vessel may be automatically transferred and distributed on each of the platforms without causing contamination in a safe and efficient manner, for automatic growth of the medium being cultured under an optimum environment.

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Hachioji, Japan

Ikuo Tawara