Patent ID: 6321609
Filing Date: 2001-11-27
Classification: G01N

Abstract:
A magazine that is adapted for use with a gas sampling system, said system including a power supply and a pump for drawing gas samples, said magazine comprising:a housing having ports that define a sampling location;a plurality of sample tubes, each said sample tube having a tubular body portion and a tube cap closing each body portion end, the cap of each said sample tube having a diameter that is greater than is the diameter of said body portion;rack means contained within said housing to hold and position said sample tubes, said rack means comprising a carousel that is adapted to incrementally rotate about a central axis, said carousel having a circular upper sample tube holding plate and a circular lower sample tube holding plate, said upper and lower plates held in a parallel, spaced apart relationship, both said upper and lower plates having a plurality of equi-spaced sample tube holding slots extending inwardly from the plate circumference toward the plate centers, each slot in said upper plate oriented directly above a corresponding slot in said lower plate so that sample tubes in said slots are arranged parallel one to another and to the rotational axis of said carousel;door means on a side of said housing, said door means arranged to allow insertion of sample tubes into said slots and removal of sample tubes therefrom;means to sequentially move individual sample tubes into and out of said sampling location;a non-volatile electronic memory integral with said magazine that stores instructions for directing the operation of said gas sampling system, said memory further adapted to receive an d to store data from said gas sampling system;means to mechanically connect the rack means of said magazine to said gas sampling system; andmeans to electrically connect the electronic memory of said magazine to said gas sampling system.