Seiko Instruments Inc

Sii Nanotechnology Inc.

Gl Science Inc.

Ryoichi Kinoshita

Nobutaka Nakamura

Rintaro Nakatani

Shinya Nishimura

Masafumi Take

Masahiro Furuno

Shoji Komaya

Keiko Ooshiro

Yoshizumi Takigawa

Yoshiyuki Takei

Masatsugu Kawasaki

Keiko Ohshiro

To enable the reduction in working efforts by hand by performing control a drying operation by appropriately selecting dry conditions depending on the connection mode of the cooling device, and removal of moisture and the like without fail. The thermal analysis system uses a heater and a cooling device to raise and decrease the temperature inside the purge box. In the drying method for the thermal analysis system, the drying operation is performed by: previously setting dry conditions depending on the connection mode of the cooling device; starting control of an opening time dry process upon activation of the thermal analysis system; supplying a predetermined amount of dry gas into the purge box in accordance with the dry conditions corresponding to the selected connection mode of the cooling device with the cooling device kept off; and making the temperature control module control the temperature of the dry gas.

Thermal analysis system and method of drying the same

There is provided a differential scanning calorimeter in which a base line stability and a responsiveness are improved. There is made a constitution in which the stability is ensured by making a neck-like part in a heat passage from a heat reservoirto a sensor plateand, at the same time, a two-dimension heat flow passage to a sample holderis ensured.

Heat flow flux type differential scanning calorimeter

A differential scanning calorimeter has a heat sink for accommodating therein a measurement sample and a reference material, and a differential heat flow detector that detects a temperature difference between the sample and the reference material. A cooling mechanism cools the heat sink, and a thermoconductor is disposed between the cooling mechanism and the heat sink and forms a heat flow path between the two. A first heater heats the heat sink, and a second heater heats the thermoconductor to thereby heat the heat sink. The second heater begins operating before the first heater nears its rated maximum output power.

Differential scanning calorimeter with a second heater

In order to provide means for suppressing vibration of a balance arm of a thermogravity apparatus when changing a sample at low cost and with a minimal footprint, there is therefore provided a balance arm having a sample holder, a detector for detecting an amount of shift of the balance arm from an equilibrium position, a control circuit for carrying out feedback control towards the equilibrium position of the balance arm, a driver for driving the balance arm towards the equilibrium position, an exchange stage detector for detecting when a sample is being changed, and a fixed output holding circuit for maintaining the output of the driver at a fixed level while the exchange stage is indicated by the exchange stage detector, wherein output of the driver is fixed during the sample exchange stage.

Thermogravimetry apparatus

An insulating substrate provided with two types of metallic or alloy circuit patterns for detecting temperature difference between a sample side and a reference side, and also a metallic resistance circuit pattern, is fixed to a heat sink, and the heat sink is temperature controlled. If a temperature difference between the sample and the reference is detected, electrical power supplied to a compensation heater using metallic resistors is adjusted by a differential heat compensation circuit so that the temperature difference is immediately returned to zero, and a difference in supplied power is output as a differential heat flow.

Differential scanning calorimeter

A sample holder and a reference holder are arranged coaxially. Heat conductors making heat exchange with a heat sink are joined to the heat sink at the same position. The inside diameter of the heat sink can be made close to the diameter of the sample container without spoiling the stability of the baseline that is a feature of heat-flux DSC. The heat capacity of the heat sink can be decreased. Therefore, the response to the temperature as it is elevated and lowered can be improved greatly.

A heat flux type differential scanning calorimeter has a heat reservoir made of a thermal conducting material. A thermally conductive plate is disposed in the heat reservoir for supporting an unknown sample and a reference sample symmetrically with respect to a center of the reservoir. A thermally conductive support member is disposed in contact with the thermally conductive plate and supports the thermally conductive plate in the heat reservoir. A heat buffer plate is disposed between the thermally conductive support member and the heat reservoir so that the thermally conductive support member and the heat reservoir are contacted only through the heat buffer plate.

Heat flux type differential scanning calorimeter

An integral structure is formed having a downstream opening portion of the first furnace tube joined with a second cylindrical furnace tube side face. A structure is provided by a light transmissive window provided in the opening portions at respective ends of the second furnace tube, and a gas discharge section provided in at least one position in the second furnace tube side face.

Thermal analyzing apparatus

The DSC (DTA) signal waveform measured under an experimental heating rate condition is separated into a base line and individual basic peak elements, and the respective activation energies are calculated corresponding to each of basic peak elements separated. A DSC (DTA) signal that should be obtained at an another heating rate is estimated from the data obtained from the experimental heating rate and it is outputted. In this process, the temperature shift caused by heating rate difference is corrected using the values of activation energies obtained.

Differential thermal analyzer

The invention comprises a DC motor and a mechanism for converting a rotational motion of the DC motor to a linear motion in a vertical direction; a jig driven by the DC motor for performing sealing of a sample container; a DC power source; a section for controlling power supplied from the DC power source to the DC motor; a circuit for detecting a value of current flowing from the DC power source to the DC motor; a section for setting a predetermined load to be applied to the jig when the sample container is sealed by the jig; and a comparator connected to the load setting section and the current value detecting circuit. The comparator compares a target value corresponding to the predetermined load value set in the load setting section, and an actually measured value detected in said current detecting circuit, with each other, and an instruction is issued to the DC motor controlling section when the actually measured value detected by the current detecting circuit exceeds the target value corresponding to the predetermined load value. The instruction controls the jig drive. The arrangement allows the load on the sealer robe accurately controlled without resorting to an expensive load cell or the like.

Sample container sealer having function of setting load

The humidity of the atmosphere contacting a sample and the water vapor partial pressure are program controlled and measured in a device having: a sample chamber which is provided with an inlet and an outlet for water vapor and which is capable of controlling a feedback temperature along with the sample stored therein; a warm water chamber for generating saturated water vapor pressure which has a gas inlet and an outlet connected to a pipe and which is capable of controlling the feedback temperature; a humidity program function generator for outputting a target humidity value for the sample chamber for each input time interval; a memory for storing a temperature-saturated water vapor pressure curve; and a calculator for calculating a control target temperature for the warm water chamber for generating the saturated water vapor pressure on the basis of the sample chamber target temperature output from a temperature program function generator, sample chamber target humidity of the sample chamber output from the humidity program function generator and the temperature-saturated water vapor pressure curve.

Humidity control thermal analyzer

In a gas scavenging unit for gas chromatography analysis of gas generated in a thermal analyzer, the thermal analyser is equipped with a gas scavenging unit for scavenging gas generated in the thermal analyzer without usage of a carrier gas and no influence of a switching valve exists in the case of multi-stage sampling. For scavenging, there can be provided multiple sampling flow paths each have an aperture placed between the sample and the carrier gas outlet of the thermal analyzer, a flow regulator, a flow path switching valve, and a suction unit which is connected to the switching valve. The gas generated in the thermal analyzer is suctioned by the suction unit through a sampling flow path which is changed with the flow path switching valve. The appropriate volume of gas is scavenged to the GC analysis without any influence of the flow (rate) of the carrier gas even when the scavenging is done through switching to multiple scavengers.

Thermal analyser

A method for conveying a sample container from a sample tray which has a designated location for supporting the container. The container is placeable on the tray at a location separated from the designated location such that the container will have an orientation which differs from a desired orientation. The method includes the following steps executing sequentially disposing a robot mechanism having a plurality of grasping fingers above the tray so that the fingers surround the designated location; executing a first robot mechanism operation for moving the fingers horizontally toward the designated location so that the fingers grasp the container and locate the container at the designated location; executing a second robot mechanism operation for moving the fingers horizontally away from the container to leave the container on the tray at the desired location and with the desired orientation; and executing a third robot mechanism operation for moving the fingers horizontally toward the container so that the fingers grasp the container while the container has the desired orientation.

Method for automatic sample positioning

A thermal analysis instrument which is equipped with a cooling mechanism and device for blowing a drying gas so that when low temperature are being measured moisture is prevented from condensing on the upper end surface of the heating furnace and on a cover that closes the inside of the heating furnace to thereby prevent deposition of frost. Where a robot mechanism is added to this thermal analysis instrument equipped with the cooling mechanism, it is not necessary to impose additional functions on the robot mechanism. The device for blowing a drying gas presents an annular passage mounted near the upper end surface of the heating furnace for blowing the drying gas against the upper end surface and the cover to thereby prevent the deposition of frost.

Thermal analysis instrument

A cooling device provided in a thermal analyzer to cool a heating furnace by heat exchange between a cooling medium and the heating furnace based on direct and uniform gas-to-solid contact, and constructed to facilitate replacement of a sample in the cooled furnace. The cooling device includes a jacket surrounding the heating furnace to define a closed annular space, an inlet formed to introduce cooling medium into the closed space, and an outlet formed to discharge the introduced cooling medium from the closed space. Cooling of the furnace is carried out due to the heat exchange between the cooling medium and the heating surface in the closed space. A top portion of the heating furnace is not covered by the jacket, but is exposed to thereby facilitate the replacement of a sample through the exposed top portion of the heating furnace.

Growing community of inventors

Chiba, Japan

Ryoichi Kinoshita