Automatic decapper

Abstract

An automatic decapper removes caps from capped test tubes by gripping the cap on a test tube with the upper grippers and holding the cap stationary while the test tube is rotated and translated downward with lower grippers. In a preferred embodiment, the upper grippers comprise three jaws coupled to a cam to be moved, as appropriate, from a first position in which a test tube cap may be inserted between the jaws to a second position in which the jaws grip the inserted cap. The upper grippers are mounted to a decapping arm that is pivotable between a first position above the lower grippers, in which the decapping takes place, to a second position above the exterior of the decapper, where it remains while the test tube is inserted into or removed from the lower grippers and where a removed cap may be released into a container for disposal or reuse. The lower grippers comprise a pair of lever arms for holding the test tube. The lower grippers form part of a rotatable assembly that moves up towards the upper grippers and down away from the upper grippers along a lead screw. A pair of half-gears mounted at a fixed vertical position are used to separate the lever arms for insertion and removal of the test tube when the rotatable assembly is vertically positioned with the lever arms adjacent the half-gears. An ultrasonic sensor may be positioned on the decapping arm above the upper grippers to detect the liquid level of the sample in the test tube after the cap has been removed and the decapping arm is returned to its first position. A liquid sensor comprising a prism and two fiber optic cables is mounted in a reservoir under lower grippers and is used to detect if there has been spillage from a test tube in the lower grippers.