Method of attaching tip to pipette

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11052545-B2
Application number	US-201816226906-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 20, 2018
Priority date	Dec 26, 2017
Publication date	Jul 6, 2021
Grant date	Jul 6, 2021

Abstract

A method of attaching a tip to a pipette, which is executed in a robot system, includes: making an end effector of a robot hold a pipette; bringing a vicinity portion of a distal end of the pipette into contact with or close to an edge of an opening formed in a base of a tip while tilting an axis direction of the pipette by a predetermined angle with respect to an axis direction of the tip; attaching the tip to the pipette by inserting the distal end of the pipette and the vicinity portion of the distal end of the pipette into the tip while raising the pipette such that the axis direction of the pipette is aligned with the axis direction of the tip; and separating the pipette and the tip attached to the pipette from the predetermined spot.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of attaching a tip to a pipette, the method being executed in a robot system, wherein the robot system comprises: a pipette; a tip positioned in a predetermined spot; and a robot including a robot arm, an end effector attached to a leading end of the robot arm, and a robot controller that controls the robot arm and the end effector to perform operations on the pipette and the tip, the method comprising:
making the end effector hold the pipette;
bringing a vicinity portion of a distal end of the pipette into contact with or close to an edge of an opening formed in a base of the tip while tilting an axis direction of the pipette by a predetermined angle with respect to an axis direction of the tip;
attaching the tip to the pipette by inserting the distal end of the pipette and the vicinity portion of the distal end of the pipette into the tip while raising the pipette such that the axis direction of the pipette is aligned with the axis direction of the tip; and
separating the pipette and the tip attached to the pipette from the predetermined spot.

2. The method of attaching a tip to a pipette according to claim 1 , wherein
the robot system further comprises another tip in a spot adjacent or close to the predetermined spot, and
the separating the pipette and the tip comprises separating the pipette and the tip attached to the pipette from the predetermined spot such that the pipette and the tip attached to the pipette get away from the another tip in an arrangement direction of the another tip and the tip attached to the pipette.

3. The method of attaching a tip to a pipette according to claim 2 , the method further comprising:
vibrating the pipette and the tip attached to the pipette after the separating the pipette and the tip is performed.

4. The method of attaching a tip to a pipette according to claim 1 , wherein
at least a point of the tip and a vicinity portion of the point of the tip are of a hollow conical shape whose diameter increases from the point to the base of the tip, and the robot system further comprises a jig that has certain hardness and includes a hole extending therein, the hole including an opening whose diameter is smaller than that of a base of the conical shape, the method further comprising:
pressing a part of an outer surface of the tip against an edge of the opening of the hole extending in the jig by inserting the tip attached to the pipette into the hole extending in the jig from the point side of the tip, after the making the end effector hold the pipette, the bringing the vicinity portion of the distal end of the pipette, the attaching the tip to the pipette, and the separating the pipette and the tip are performed.

5. A method of attaching a tip to a pipette, comprising:
inserting a pipette held by an end effector attached to a robot arm into an opening of a tip; and
attaching the tip to the pipette by further inserting the pipette into the opening of the tip while changing tilt of the pipette held by the end effector such that an axis direction of the pipette is aligned with an axis direction of the tip.

6. The method of attaching a tip to a pipette according to claim 5 , wherein
the tip is inserted into a hole extending in a jig in a state where the pipette is inserted into the tip.

Assignees

• Kawasaki Heavy Ind Ltd
• Sysmex Corp
• Medicaroid Corp

Inventors

• Iwasaki Yukio
• Ouchi Satoshi
• Mitsui Eiji
• Matsuoka Junichi
• Hasegawa Takehiro
• Kitano Yukihiko

Classifications

• B01L3/0275 Primary

  Interchangeable or disposable dispensing tips · CPC title

• B25J11/005 Primary

  Manipulators for mechanical processing tasks · CPC title

• B01L2200/025

  Align devices or objects to ensure defined positions relative to each other · CPC title

• G01N35/1002

  Reagent dispensers · CPC title

• B01L3/0286

  Ergonomic aspects, e.g. form or arrangement of controls · CPC title