Slide transport system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9927332-B2
Application number	US-201314439788-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 1, 2013
Priority date	Nov 1, 2012
Publication date	Mar 27, 2018
Grant date	Mar 27, 2018

Abstract

A slide transport system for an automated slide treatment apparatus having slide treatment modules for receiving slides and a fluid dispensing robot configured by a controller to dispense reagents to the slides is disclosed. The slide transport system includes a slide transport robot configured by the controller to move the slides to and from the slide treatment modules and a slide transport device disposed on the slide transport robot and configured by the controller to releasably hold the slides. A slide handling head on the slide transport robot moves a closure body of a slide treatment module from a normally closed to an open position to move slides in the slide treatment module. The slide transport device is configured by the controller to release a slide when located in the slide treatment module, when the closure body is in the open position.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A slide transport system for an automated slide treatment apparatus for treating one or more tissue samples disposed on slides including a plurality of slide treatment modules arranged to receive ones of the slides and at least one fluid dispensing robot configured by a controller to dispense a plurality of reagents to said ones of the slides received in the slide treatment modules to treat said one or more tissue samples respectively, the slide transport system comprising:
a slide transport robot configured by the controller to move the slides to and from the slide treatment modules, each slide treatment module comprising a closure body which covers a face of the associated slide thereby extending substantially parallel to the face of the slide; and
a slide transport device disposed on the slide transport robot and configured by the controller to releasably hold the slides,
the slide transport robot including a slide handling head arranged to move the closure body of one of the slide treatment modules so as to move the closure body from a closed position to an open position as the slide transport robot approaches the closure body,
wherein the slide transport device is configured by the controller to release the slide so as to locate the slide in the slide treatment module when the closure body is in the open position and,
wherein the slide handling head is further arranged to contact against a bearing surface of the closure body to move the closure body to the open position.

2. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the slide handling head contacts against the bearing surface of the closure body of said one of the slide treatment modules whilst a bias, provided by a spring, of the closure body moves the closure body to the closed position when the slide transport robot moves in linearly after the slide transport robot locates or removes the slide in the slide treatment module.

3. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the slide handling head contacts against the bearing surface of the closure body of said one of the slide treatment modules to pivot the closure body to the open position about a pivot disposed on the slide treatment module.

4. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 3 , wherein, in use, when the closure body is pivoted from the closed to the open position, one end of the closure body extends into the gap between the spaced apart protruding contact member and the slide transport device, and part of the protruding contact member extends into the gap provided between an arm and a cam roller on the closure body.

5. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the closure body is detained in the closed position with a detent protruding from a detention arm that is arranged to cooperate with a recess in the closure body in the closed position.

6. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 5 , wherein a bearing surface is disposed at one end of the detention arm.

7. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 6 , wherein the slide handling head contacts against the bearing surface of the closure body of said one of the slide treatment modules to release the closure body from the detent so as to pivot the closure body to the open position about a pivot disposed on the slide treatment module.

8. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 7 , wherein the slide treatment module further includes an opening biasing means for applying biasing force to the closure body to pivot the closure body to the open position.

9. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 7 , wherein the slide treatment module further includes a closing biasing means for applying biasing force to the closure body to pivot the closure body to the closed position.

10. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the slide transport device includes a suction device to releasably hold the slides.

11. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the slide handling head includes an indicia reader configured to read a label disposed on the slides, wherein indicia reader is configured to read the label to receive information indicative of instructions for the controller to treat the one or more tissue samples disposed on the corresponding slides.

12. A method of transporting slides for treatment of one or more tissue samples disposed on the slides whereby ones of the slides are received in a plurality of slide treatment modules and a plurality of reagents are dispensed by at least one fluid dispensing robot to said ones of the slides received in the slide treatment modules to treat said one or more tissue samples respectively, each slide treatment module comprising a closure body which covers a face of the associated slide thereby extending substantially parallel to the face of the slide when in a closed position, the closure body including a bearing surface, the method comprising:
releasably holding the slides with a slide transport device disposed on a slide transport robot;
moving the slides to and from the slide treatment modules with the slide transport robot;
moving a slide handling head of the slide transport robot to move the closure body by contacting against the bearing surface of the closure body to move the closure body to the open position of at least one of the slide treatment modules from the closed position as the slide transport robot approaches the closure body; and
releasing said one of the slides so as to locate the slide in the slide treatment module when the closure body is in the open position.

13. A slide treatment apparatus, comprising:
a plurality of slide treatment modules configured to receive slides thereon, said slides having slide surfaces for receiving tissue samples thereon, the slide surfaces being covered by closure bodies respectively which cover respective faces of the slides to thereby extend parallel thereto when in a closed position;
a fluid dispensing robot configured by a controller to dispense a plurality of reagents to the slides received in the slide treatment modules to treat the tissue samples respectively disposed on the slides;
a slide transport robot configured by the controller to move the slides to and from the slide treatment modules, the slide transport robot including:
a slide transport device configured by the controller to releasably hold the slides;
a slide handling head arranged to move the closure bodies of the associated slide treatment modules from the closed position to an open position when the slide transport robot is instructed by the controller to move a selected one of the slides to the associated slide treatment module; and
wherein, the slide handling head is arranged to contact against a bearing surface of the closure body to move the closure body to the open position.

14. The slide treatment apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the slide transport robot is combined with said fluid dispensing robot.

15. The slide transport system as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the controller is configured to control the slide transport robot such that the slide handling head moves the closure body of one of the slide treatment modules to the open position as the slide transport robot approaches the closure body by interacting the slide handling head with an arm protruding from the closure body.

Assignees

• Leica Biosystems Melbourne Pty

Inventors

• Dockrill Mark Brian
• Limon Martin
• Wilcock Mark
• Collins Steve
• Rodgers Brendyn

Classifications

• G01N1/312 Primary

  for samples mounted on planar substrates · CPC title

• G01N35/1002

  Reagent dispensers · CPC title

• G01N35/0099

  comprising robots or similar manipulators (robots per se B25J) · CPC title

• G01N35/00732

  Identification of carriers, materials or components in automatic analysers · CPC title

• G01N2035/00851

  process control parameters · CPC title