Automatic analyzer, remote maintenance system, and maintenance method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10692600-B2
Application number	US-201716332084-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 15, 2017
Priority date	Sep 21, 2016
Publication date	Jun 23, 2020
Grant date	Jun 23, 2020

Abstract

It is an object to provide a system for a service department to contact a customer for improving customer service when it is determined that the customer has difficulty in handling an alarm by themselves in the case where the alarm is generated due to abnormality of an automatic analyzer and the automatic analyzer is deactivated. The automatic analyzer includes: a display to display an alarm screen; a computer that generates alarm generation information that indicates that an alarm has been generated due to abnormality and alarm deletion information that indicates that the customer has deleted the alarm displayed on the alarm screen based on the alarm generation information; and an information sharing portion that shares the alarm generation information and alarm deletion information that are generated by the computer with an external alarm maintenance system.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A remote maintenance system comprising: an automatic analyzer including: a display that displays an alarm screen; a computer programmed to generate alarm generation information that indicates an alarm due to an abnormality and alarm deletion information indicating that a customer has deleted an alarm displayed on the alarm screen based on the alarm generation information; and an information sharing portion that shares the alarm generation information generated by the computer and the alarm deletion information with an external alarm maintenance system, wherein the external alarm maintenance system comprises an alarm monitoring terminal that includes a display and that receives the alarm generation information and the alarm deletion information, wherein the alarm monitoring terminal displays alarm information on the display based on the received alarm generation information and updates and displays the alarm information based on the received alarm deletion information, wherein the alarm generation information includes an alarm generation time indicating a time of generation of the alarm, wherein the alarm monitoring terminal stores a first threshold time, wherein upon the computer determining the time from the alarm generation time exceeds the first threshold time, display a notice indicating a need for customer support on the display, and wherein upon the computer receiving the alarm deletion information before the first threshold time elapses, the alarm monitoring terminal does not display the notice on the display even when the first threshold time elapses.

2. The remote maintenance system according to claim 1 , wherein alarm information displayed on the display by the alarm monitoring terminal indicates an alarm status that distinguishes between at least alarm generation and alarm handling completion, and the alarm monitoring terminal updates the alarm status to a status of alarm handling completion based on the received alarm deletion information to display the updated status.

3. The remote maintenance system according to claim 1 ,
wherein the alarm monitoring terminal stores in advance the first threshold time for each item of the alarm.

4. The remote maintenance system according to claim 1 ,
wherein the alarm screen of the automatic analyzer has an alarm deletion button,
wherein the computer generates the alarm deletion information based on a push of the alarm deletion button, and
the information sharing portion transmits the alarm deletion information to the external alarm maintenance system.

5. A remote maintenance system comprising: an automatic analyzer, comprising: a display that displays an alarm screen; a computer that generates alarm generation information that indicates an alarm is generated due to an abnormality and alarm deletion information indicating that an alarm displayed on the alarm screen based on the alarm generation information has been deleted; and an information sharing portion that shares the alarm generation information generated by the computer and the alarm deletion information with an external alarm maintenance system; wherein the computer generates alarm confirmation information that indicates that a customer confirms the alarm on the alarm screen, wherein the information sharing portion transfers the alarm confirmation information generated by the computer to the external alarm maintenance system, wherein the external alarm maintenance system includes an alarm monitoring terminal that includes a display and that receives the alarm generation information, analyzer state information, and the alarm deletion information that are transferred from the information sharing portion, and wherein the alarm monitoring terminal displays alarm information on the display of the alarm monitoring terminal based on the received alarm generation information and updates and displays the alarm information based on the received analyzer state information and the received alarm deletion information.

6. The remote maintenance system according to claim 5 , wherein alarm information displayed on the display of the alarm monitoring terminal indicates an alarm status that distinguishes among at least alarm generation, alarm confirmation completion, and alarm handling completion, and the alarm monitoring terminal updates the alarm status to a status of alarm confirmation completion based on the received alarm confirmation information and updates the alarm status to a status of alarm handling completion based on the received alarm deletion information to display the updated status.

7. The remote maintenance system according to claim 5 , wherein the alarm confirmation information includes an alarm confirmation time that indicates a time at which the customer confirms the alarm by pushing an alarm update button, the alarm monitoring terminal stores a second threshold time in advance, and when time from the alarm generation time exceeds the second threshold time, the alarm monitoring terminal displays a notice of need for customer support on the display of the alarm monitoring terminal.

8. A remote maintenance system comprising: an automatic analyzer, comprising: a display that displays an alarm screen; a computer that generates alarm generation information that indicates an alarm is generated due to an abnormality and alarm deletion information indicating that a customer has deleted the alarm displayed on the alarm screen based on the alarm generation information; and an information sharing portion that shares the alarm generation information generated by the computer and the alarm deletion information with an external alarm maintenance system; wherein the computer generates analyzer state information that indicates an analyzer state, wherein the information sharing portion transfers the analyzer state information generated by the computer to the external alarm maintenance system, wherein the external alarm maintenance system includes an alarm monitoring terminal that includes a display and that receives the alarm generation information, the analyzer state information, and the alarm deletion information that are transferred from the information sharing portion, wherein the alarm monitoring terminal displays alarm information on the display of the alarm monitoring terminal based on the received alarm generation information and updates and displays the alarm information based on the received analyzer state information and the received alarm deletion information, wherein alarm information displayed on the display of the alarm monitoring terminal by the alarm monitoring terminal indicates an alarm status that distinguishes among at least alarm generation, alarm handling continuation, and alarm handling completion, and wherein the alarm monitoring terminal updates the alarm status to a status of alarm handling continuation based on the received analyzer state information and updates the alarm status to a status of alarm handling completion based on the received alarm deletion information to display the updated alarm status.

9. The remote maintenance system according to claim 8 , wherein the analyzer state information includes an analyzer time indicating a time at which an analyzer state changes in a customer action required for alarm handling, the alarm monitoring terminal stores a third threshold time in advance, and when time from the analyzer time exceeds the third threshold time, the alarm monitoring terminal displays a notice of need for customer support on the display of the alarm monitoring terminal.

10. The remote maintenance system according to claim 9 ,
wherein the alarm monitoring terminal stores in advance the third threshold time for each item of the customer action.

11. A mainte

Assignees

• Hitachi High Tech Corp

Inventors

• Suzuki Kentaro
• Kaneko Yasuo
• HANAWA Toshihide

Classifications

• G01N35/00

  Automatic analysis not limited to methods or materials provided for in any single one of groups G01N1/00 - G01N33/00; Handling materials therefor · CPC title

• G01N2035/0091

  GUI [graphical user interfaces] · CPC title

• G01N2035/009

  alarms, e.g. audible · CPC title

• G08B29/10

  Monitoring of the annunciator circuits · CPC title

• G01N2035/00881

  network configurations · CPC title