Hitachi, Ltd.

Yoshio Taichi

Yoshio Watanabe

Ryuji Tao

Kasumi Yoshida

Osamu Ohno

Nobuyoshi Takano

Norimi Akimori

A flow-through cell has a body under which an ion-selective electrode is disposed. The side portion of the cell body is provided with a reference electrode. The cell body has a sample path with a crank form and also has a substantially horizontally extended path for a reference electrode solution. The crank path has a lower horizontal part, so that it is possible to suppress the undesirable flowing down of the reference electrode solution into the ion-selective electrode during an ion concentration measurement operation. The crank path has a upper horizontal part, which serve to suppress the undesirable flowing of the blood cells contained in the blood sample towards the path for the reference electrode solution. Furthermore, the crank path for the sample is designed to suppress the occurrence of bubbles in the path, with the previso that, if such bubbles should occur, these bubbles may be smoothly withdrawn.

Flow-through cell provided with reference electrode

A pressure equilibrator has a slider received slidably in a pressure accumulation chamber and partitioning the chamber into two opposing sections, and a relief port formed in the inner side surface of the chamber. The slider is inserted into the pressure accumulation chamber with a minute gap left around the slider. Two gases are respectively introduced into the sections of the pressure accumulation chamber to be equilibrated in pressure. The gap provides passageways for connecting the respective sections of the pressure accumulation chamber with the relief port so as to discharge parts of the gases. When the pressures of the two gases are unbalanced, the slider moves in accordance with a difference in the urging forces applied thereto by the gases, causing changes in the flow resistance of the passageways between the respective sections of the pressure accumulation chamber and the relief port, whereby the amounts of the parts of the gases discharged are adjusted so that the urging forces applied to the slider become equal to each other, thereby recovering equilibrium between the pressures of the gases. The pressure equilibrator may be incorporated in a gas mixing apparatus having flow rate resistors, for ensuring the stability of a ratio at which the gases are mixed to form a mixture.

Pressure equilibrator for gases

Growing community of inventors

Katsuta, Japan

Yoshio Taichi