Chemical analysis apparatus

A chemical analysis apparatus comprises a slide loading section for holding chemical analysis slides, a section for applying a sample material to the chemical analysis slide, and an incubator provided with housing compartments for housing the chemical analysis slides side by side in a transverse direction on the same plane. The apparatus also comprises a read-out head slideable in the transverse direction and disposed to face the chemical analysis slide housed in the housing compartment via a readout opening formed in each housing compartment, thereby emitting light to the chemical analysis slide and measuring the reflection optical density thereof. A conveyance and feed-in system is disposed for conveying the chemical analysis slide held at the slide loading section to the sample applying section, conveying the chemical analysis slide having a reagent layer with the sample material applied thereon to a position facing an inlet opening of the housing compartment, and then feeding the chemical analysis slide into the housing compartment from the inlet opening thereof.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
This invention relates to a chemical analysis apparatus for applying a 
sample material to a chemical analysis slide, i.e. a slide type chemical 
analysis device, provided with a single reagent layer or a plurality of 
reagent layers, maintaining the chemical analysis slide at a predetermined 
temperature (i.e. conducting incubation) for a predetermined time, and 
then optically measuring the degree of color formation in the chemical 
analysis slide for analysis of the sample material. 
2. Description of the Prior Art 
Qualitative or quantitative analysis of a specific chemical constituent in 
a liquid sample is generally conducted for various industrial purposes 
Particularly, it is very important in biochemical and clinical categories 
to quantitatively analyze chemical constituents or physical constituents 
in body fluid such as blood or urine. 
In recent years, as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Publication 
No. 53(1978)-21677 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 
55(1980)-164356, there has been developed and put into practice a dry type 
chemical analysis slide for quantitatively analyzing a specific chemical 
constituent or a specific physical constituent contained in a sample 
solution simply by applying a droplet of the sample solution With the 
chemical analysis slide, it is possible to analyze a sample solution more 
simply and more quickly than when the conventional wet type analysis 
method is used. Therefore, the use of the chemical analysis slide is 
desirable particularly in medical organizations, research laboratories, or 
the like where many samples are to be analyzed. 
In order to analyze a chemical constituent or the like contained in a 
sample solution by use of the chemical analysis slide, a measured amount 
of the sample solution is put on the chemical analysis slide and is 
maintained at a predetermined temperature (i.e. incubated) for a 
predetermined time in an incubator to cause a color reaction, and the 
reflection optical density is measured by exposing the chemical analysis 
slide to measuring light having a wavelength selected in advance in 
accordance with the combination of the constituent of the sample solution 
with a reagent contained in the reagent layer of the chemical analysis 
slide. In this manner, it is possible to achieve quantitative analysis of 
the chemical constituent or the like. 
In the medical organizations, research laboratories or the like, since many 
samples are to be analyzed, it is desirable that the analysis be conducted 
automatically and continuously. To satisfy this need, there have been 
proposed various chemical analysis apparatuses for carrying out sample 
analysis automatically and continuously by use of the aforesaid chemical 
analysis slides. 
For example, it has been proposed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication 
No. 56(1981)-77746 to constitute a chemical analysis apparatus so that 
chemical analysis slides are disposed in an equally spaced relation to 
each other in the circumferential direction between two rotatable disks 
provided with an incubation heater for conducting incubation by the 
heater, the chemical analysis slide incubated for a predetermined time is 
positioned by rotation of the disks to face a read-out head disposed below 
the disks, and exposure of the chemical analysis slide to measuring light 
and measurement of reflection optical density are conducted by the 
read-out head via an opening in the bottom surface of the disk. With the 
proposed chemical analysis apparatus, it is possible to dispose a 
plurality of the chemical analysis slides in the circumferential direction 
between the two disks, and therefore to conduct analysis efficiently and 
quickly. However, the proposed chemical analysis apparatus has the 
drawbacks that the configurations of the disk rotation system and the 
control system for controlling the disk rotation system become complicated 
and the chemical analysis apparatus cannot be made very small and cheaply. 
Also, as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 
58(1983)-21566, there has been proposed a chemical analysis apparatus 
wherein a conveyance path in a U-shaped form or the like is formed in an 
incubator, a plurality of chemical analysis slides supported by a carrier 
having a predetermined shape are sequentially fed into the conveyance path 
and conveyed along the conveyance path, and exposure of the chemical 
analysis slide, which has been incubated for a predetermined time in the 
conveyance path, to measuring light and measurement of reflection optical 
density are conducted by a read-out head disposed midway of the conveyance 
path. Also with the proposed chemical analysis apparatus, it is possible 
to conduct analysis efficiently and quickly by use of a plurality of the 
chemical analysis slides. However, since it is necessary to provide the 
mechanism for conveying the carriers supporting the chemical analysis 
slides along the conveyance path, the proposed chemical analysis apparatus 
is not completely suitable for making the apparatus small and decreasing 
the cost. Further, the proposed chemical analysis apparatus is not easily 
adaptable for measurement of the change rate of the reflection optical 
density conducted by measuring the reflection optical density of the same 
chemical analysis slide many times at predetermined time intervals. 
In a different example of the chemical analysis apparatus, chemical 
analysis slides are sequentially fed and stacked in an incubator. After a 
predetermined time has elapsed, the stacked chemical analysis slides are 
sequentially fed out starting with the lowest slide and subjected to 
measurement of the reflection optical density. With this configuration, 
since the chemical analysis slides are stacked in the incubator, it is 
easy to conduct incubation and the incubator may be made small. However, 
the chemical analysis apparatus has the drawback that gas generated by the 
color reaction between a reagent of the chemical analysis slide with a 
sample applied to the chemical analysis slide while the chemical analysis 
slide is being incubated adversely affects the color reactions in the 
other chemical analysis slides, and the analysis accuracy becomes low. 
Also, with the chemical analysis apparatus, since the chemical analysis 
slides are sequentially fed out and subjected to the measurement after a 
predetermined time has elapsed, it is not always possible to conduct the 
measurement midway during the incubation. Therefore, the chemical analysis 
apparatus is not suitable for the measurement of the change rate of the 
reflection optical density. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The primary object of the present invention is to provide a chemical 
analysis apparatus which is comparatively small and compact and has a 
simple configuration, and which conducts chemical analysis quickly and 
accurately. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a chemical analysis 
apparatus which is comparatively small and compact and has a simple 
configuration, which conducts chemical analysis quickly and accurately, 
and wherein measurement of fog of a chemical analysis slide and 
measurement of reflection optical density after a color reaction are 
conducted with a single read-out head. 
A further object of the present invention is to provide a chemical analysis 
apparatus which is provided with a plurality of incubators, which is 
comparatively small and compact and has a simple configuration, and which 
conducts chemical analysis quickly and accurately. 
The specific object of the present invention is to provide a chemical 
analysis apparatus which is provided with an incubator for securing and 
supporting a chemical analysis slide in a housing compartment and a 
feed-in and ejection means for feeding the chemical analysis slide into 
and out of the housing compartment, which is comparatively small and 
compact and has a simple configuration, and which conducts chemical 
analysis quickly and accurately. 
The present invention provides a chemical analysis apparatus comprising: 
(i) a slide loading section for holding at least one chemical analysis 
slide, 
(ii) a sample applying section for applying a predetermined amount of a 
sample material on said chemical analysis slide, 
(iii) an incubator provided with a plurality of housing compartments for 
housing a plurality of the chemical analysis slides in the form placed 
side by side in a transverse direction on the same plane, 
(iv) a read-out head slideable in said transverse direction and disposed 
for standing face to face with said chemical analysis slide housed in one 
of said plurality of the housing compartments via a read-out opening 
formed in each of said housing compartments, thereby emitting light to 
said chemical analysis slide and measuring reflection optical density of 
said chemical analysis slide, and 
(v) a conveyance and feed-in means for conveying said chemical analysis 
slide held at said slide loading section to said sample applying section, 
conveying said chemical analysis slide having a reagent layer with said 
sample material applied thereon to a position facing an inlet opening of 
one of said housing compartments, and then feeding said chemical analysis 
slide into said housing compartment from the inlet opening thereof. 
The present invention also provides a chemical analysis apparatus as 
mentioned above, 
wherein a fog measuring section for measuring the reflection optical 
density of said chemical analysis slide before said sample material is 
applied to said chemical analysis slide is disposed on the lateral side of 
said incubator in said transverse direction, said read-out head is 
slideable in said transverse direction to face said fog measuring section, 
and 
said chemical analysis slide conveyed by said conveyance and feed-in means 
from said slide loading section to said sample applying section is made to 
pass through said fog measuring section, whereby fog measurement is 
conducted by said read-out head at said fog measuring section. 
The present invention further provides a chemical analysis apparatus 
comprising: 
(i) a sample applying section for applying a predetermined amount of a 
sample material to a reagent layer of a chemical analysis slide provided 
with at least one reagent layer, 
(ii) a first incubator provided with a plurality of first housing 
compartments for housing a plurality of the chemical analysis slides in 
the form placed side by side in a transverse direction on the same plane, 
(iii) a second incubator disposed on the lateral side of said first 
incubator in said transverse direction and provided with at least one 
second housing compartment for housing at least one chemical analysis 
slide and standing side by side with said first housing compartment in 
said transverse direction on the same plane as said first housing 
compartment, 
(iv) a read-out head slideable in said transverse direction and disposed 
for standing face to face with said reagent layer of said chemical 
analysis slide housed in one of said first housing compartments via a 
read-out opening formed in each of said first housing compartments, 
thereby emitting light to said reagent layer and measuring reflection 
optical density of said reagent layer, and 
(v) a conveyance and feed-in means disposed slideably in said transverse 
direction to face inlet openings of said first housing compartments and 
said second housing compartment for conveying said chemical analysis 
slides one by one to said sample applying section, conveying said chemical 
analysis slide having said reagent layer with said sample material applied 
thereon to a position facing the inlet opening of one of said first 
housing compartments or the inlet opening of said second housing 
compartment, and then feeding said chemical analysis slide into said first 
housing compartment or said second housing compartment from the inlet 
opening thereof. 
The present invention still further provides a chemical analysis apparatus 
comprising: 
(i) an incubator provided with a housing compartment for housing a chemical 
analysis slide having a reagent layer with a sample material applied 
thereon and maintaining said chemical analysis slide at a predetermined 
temperature, 
(ii) a read-out head for facing said reagent layer of said chemical 
analysis slide housed in said housing compartment via a read-out opening 
formed in said housing compartment, emitting light to said reagent layer, 
and measuring reflection optical density of said reagent layer, and 
(iii) a slide feed-in and ejection means for ejecting said chemical 
analysis slide housed in said housing compartment out of said housing 
compartment and feeding a new chemical analysis slide into said housing 
compartment, 
wherein said housing compartment of said incubator is provided with a 
supporting member for supporting one surface of said chemical analysis 
slide and having said readout opening, and a pushing member contacting the 
other surface of said chemical analysis slide and urged toward said one 
surface of said chemical analysis slide, thereby grasping said chemical 
analysis slide between said pushing member and said supporting member, 
said housing compartment has an inlet opening provided with a stopper 
member for allowing said chemical analysis slide to enter said housing 
compartment from said inlet opening and preventing said chemical analysis 
slide in said housing compartment from coming out of said housing 
compartment, and 
said slide feed-in and ejection means comprises: 
(a) a holding portion capable of being inserted into said housing 
compartment and supporting said new chemical analysis slide thereon, 
(b) a wedge-like insert portion disposed at a front end of said holding 
portion on the lateral side of said holding portion for releasing the 
grasping of said chemical analysis slide by said pushing member when said 
wedge-like insert portion is inserted into said housing compartment, 
(c) a slide ejecting protrusion disposed on the front side of said holding 
portion for contacting the rear end of said chemical analysis slide 
released by said wedge-like insert portion from grasping when said slide 
ejecting protrusion is inserted into said housing compartment and pushing 
said chemical analysis slide toward an outlet opening disposed on the side 
opposite to said inlet opening, thereby ejecting said chemical analysis 
slide, and 
(d) an engagement means for making said new chemical analysis slide engage 
with said stopper member when said new chemical analysis slide supported 
on said holding portion is positioned inside of said housing compartment. 
With the first and second mentioned chemical analysis apparatuses in 
accordance with the present invention, since the slide loading section, 
the sample applying section, the incubator and the read-out head are built 
in a single apparatus and the chemical analysis slide is automatically 
conveyed among said sections by the conveyance and feed-in means, it is 
possible to make the apparatus comparatively small and compact, to 
simplify the apparatus configuration, and to achieve automatic and 
continuous chemical analysis quickly and accurately. Also, with the second 
mentioned chemical analysis apparatus in accordance with the present 
invention, since the fog measuring section is provided for measuring fog 
of the chemical analysis slide by moving the read-out head to the lateral 
side of the incubator in the transverse direction and the chemical 
analysis slide conveyed by the conveyance and feed-in means from the slide 
loading section to the sample applying section is made to pass through the 
fog measuring section to conduct fog measurement, it is possible to 
conduct fog measurement and measurement of the reflection optical density 
after a color reaction with a single read-out head. 
With the third mentioned chemical analysis apparatus in accordance with the 
present invention, the first incubator and the second incubator are 
disposed side by side in the transverse direction, the housing 
compartments of the first and second incubators are disposed side by side 
in the transverse direction on the same plane, and the chemical analysis 
slide having the reagent layer with the sample material applied thereon is 
fed into a predetermined housing compartment by the conveyance and feed-in 
means slideable in the transverse direction to face the inlet opening of 
each housing compartment. Therefore, it is possible to maintain the 
chemical analysis slides at different temperatures in the respective 
incubators and to conduct different measurements. Also, since it is only 
necessary that a single conveyance and feed-in means be provided, it is 
possible to make the apparatus small and compact. 
With the fourth mentioned chemical analysis apparatus in accordance with 
the present invention, the housing compartment of the incubator for 
housing the chemical analysis slide and effecting incubation and 
measurement of optical density by the read-out head is composed of the 
supporting member having the read-out opening, the pushing member for 
holding the chemical analysis slide against the supporting member, and the 
stopper member for preventing the chemical analysis slide from coming out 
of the housing compartment. In the course of feeding of the chemical 
analysis slide into the housing compartment and ejection of the chemical 
analysis slide therefrom by the slide feed-in and ejection means, grasping 
of the chemical analysis slide by the pushing member is released by the 
wedge-like insert portion, and then the chemical analysis slide is ejected 
from the housing compartment by the slide ejecting protrusion. Also, a new 
chemical analysis slide held on the holding portion is disposed at a 
predetermined position in the housing compartment, and then the slide 
feed-in and ejection means alone is returned from the housing compartment 
with the chemical analysis slide maintained at the predetermined position 
by the stopper member. Therefore, it is possible to secure and hold the 
chemical analysis slide in the housing compartment, and to maintain a high 
accuracy of the measurement of reflection optical density conducted by the 
read-out head by maintaining the distance between the chemical analysis 
slide and the read-out head at a predetermined value. Also, it is possible 
to automatically conduct ejection of the chemical analysis slide from the 
housing compartment after the measurement is finished and feeding of a new 
chemical analysis slide into the housing compartment. It is also possible 
to conduct feed-in and ejection of the chemical analysis slide 
simultaneously or independently.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
The present invention will hereinbelow be described in further detail with 
reference to the accompanying drawings. 
Referring to FIG. 1, a cartridge loading section 11, a first incubator 20, 
a second incubator 27, a sample applying device 30, and a conveyance and 
feed-in means 40 are provided on a main body 10. FIG. 2 is a plan view of 
FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a front view taken along line II--II of FIG. 2. This 
embodiment is also provided with a display section 14 for displaying the 
measured values in the course of measurement or the like, operating key 
section 15 for controlling the displaying of the measured values or the 
like, and a magnetic disk inserting section 13 for recording the measured 
values or the like on a magnetic disk, which are omitted for simplicity of 
explanation in FIGS. 2 and 3. 
A cartridge 2 houses a plurality of unused chemical analysis slides 1, 1, . 
. . stacked one upon another. As shown in FIG. 5, each of the chemical 
analysis slides 1, 1, . . . loaded to the loading section 11 comprises a 
frame 1a having a circular hole for applying a liquid sample, and a dry 
type multi-layer film 1b disposed in the frame 1a and composed of a 
supporting material, a reagent layer, and a development layer, which are 
stacked in this sequence. A predetermined amount of the sample material 
such as urine or blood is fed onto the film 1b, and incubated to cause a 
color reaction. The chemical analysis slides 1, 1, . . . in the cartridge 
2 are pushed out by a pushing lever 12 one by one, starting from the 
lowest chemical analysis slide 1, to the fog measuring section 16. The fog 
measuring section 16 measures the reflection density (fog density) of the 
film 1b of the chemical analysis slide 1 before the chemical analysis 
slide 1 is provided with the sample material, and the measured fog density 
value is used for judging whether the chemical analysis slide 1 is 
acceptable or not and for correcting the measured density value of the 
chemical analysis slide 1, which is obtained after a color reaction, in 
accordance with the fog density. The fog measuring section 16 is composed 
of a frame 16a provided with a measuring opening 16b at the lower section, 
and a retaining member 16d urged by a spring 16c in the frame 16a, and a 
housing compartment 16e for housing the chemical analysis slide 1 is 
formed between the lower inner surface of the frame 16a and the retaining 
member 16d. A bar code reading means 18 for reading a bar code (not shown) 
indicated on the chemical analysis slide 1 is disposed on the slide 
insertion side of the housing compartment 16e. A white reference plate 17W 
and a black reference plate 17B for eliminating error in the measured 
reflection density value of the chemical analysis slide 1 are disposed on 
the rightward lateral side of the fog measuring section 16. Also, the 
first incubator 20 is disposed on the rightward lateral side of the white 
reference plate 17W and the black reference plate 17B. A plurality of 
housing compartments 21, 21, . . . for housing the chemical analysis 
slides 1, 1, . . . are formed in the first incubator 20 so that the 
chemical analysis slides 1, 1, . . . stand side by side on the same plane 
as the chemical analysis slide 1 in the fog measuring section 16. A 
receiving member 29 for receiving the used chemical analysis slides 1, 1, 
. . . ejected from the housing compartments 21, 21, . . . is disposed in 
front of the first incubator 20. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, a read-out 
head 50 slideable in the transverse direction as indicated by the arrow C 
to face the lower surface of the first incubator 20 is disposed below the 
first incubator 20. The read-out head 50 is slid on a rail 51 extending in 
the transverse direction below the first incubator 20 by being operated 
by, for example, a linear motor. The rail 51 extends up to the position 
below the fog measuring section 16, and therefore the read-out head 50 can 
be slid up to the fog measuring section 16 to face the chemical analysis 
slide 1 at the fog measuring section 16. 
The first incubator 20 incorporates a heater (not shown) for incubating the 
chemical analysis slides 1, 1, . . . in the housing compartments 21, 21, . 
. . . 
The second incubator 27 is disposed on the rightward lateral side of the 
first incubator 20 and provided with a housing compartment 28 for housing 
a chemical analysis slide 1'. The housing compartment 28 is placed side by 
side with the housing compartments 21, 21, . . . of the first incubator 20 
in the transverse direction on the same plane as the housing compartments 
21, 21, . . . . The first incubator 20 and the second incubator 27 are 
secured to the main body 10. Since the first incubator 20 and the second 
incubator 27 are disposed independently of each other, it is possible to 
maintain the chemical analysis slides at different temperatures. 
The fog measuring section 16 and the first incubator 20 are thermally 
insulated from each other, and the first incubator 20 and the second 
incubator 27 are thermally insulated from each other. 
In this embodiment, the chemical analysis slide 1 housed in the first 
incubator 20 is subjected to a color reaction between the sample material 
applied to the film of the chemical analysis slide 1 and the reagent of 
the film, and the extent of the color reaction is optically measured by 
the read-out head 50 via a read-out opening 21a formed in the lower 
surface of the housing compartment 21. On the other hand, the chemical 
analysis slide 1' (electrolyte slide) housed in the second incubator 27 is 
used for measuring the ionic activity of a specific ion contained in the 
sample material by measuring a difference in potential generated in 
proportion to the logarithm of the ionic activity of the specific ion. 
Therefore, the chemical analysis slide 1' housed in the second incubator 
27 is basically composed of at least one pair of solid electrodes having 
an ion selective layer as the outermost layer, and a porous bridge 
exhibiting capillary action disposed between the pair of the ion selective 
layers of the solid electrodes. A reference solution is applied to an ion 
selective layer of the solid electrode pair of the chemical analysis slide 
1', and a sample solution (sample material) is applied to the other ion 
selective layer. A difference in potential generated between the 
electrodes is measured by electrode heads mounted on the lower surface of 
the second incubator 27, thereby measuring the ionic activity of a 
specific ion in the sample solution. At the first incubator 20, in order 
to cause the color reaction of the sample such as urine or blood, it is 
necessary to maintain the chemical analysis slides 1, 1, . . . at a 
temperature approximately equal to the body temperature (37.degree. C.). 
However, at the second incubator 27, the temperature need not be 
maintained at this level, and may be maintained at, for example, 
approximately 30.degree. C. This embodiment is advantageous in such a case 
since the first incubator 20 and the second incubator 27 are disposed 
independently of each other. 
On the other hand, the conveyance and feed-in means 40 slideable in the 
transverse direction as indicated by the arrow A to face one of inlet 
openings 21a, 21a, . . . of the housing compartments 21, 21, . . . and an 
inlet opening 28a of the housing compartment 28 is disposed at the rear of 
the first incubator 20 and the second incubator 27. The conveyance and 
feed-in means 40 is mounted on a rail 49 extending in the transverse 
direction and made to slide by a linear motor or the like. The conveyance 
and feed-in means 40 is slideable up to a position facing the fog 
measuring section 16 (the position as indicated by the chain line X in 
FIG. 2) besides the positions facing the first incubator 20 and the second 
incubator 27. Therefore, the chemical analysis slide 1 or 1' pushed by the 
pushing lever 12 out of the fog measuring section 16 can be received by 
the conveyance and feed-in means 40 sliding to the position as indicated 
by the chain line X. 
The sample applying device 30 is disposed at the rear of the conveyance and 
feed-in means 40. The sample applying device 30 is slideable in the 
transverse direction as indicated by the arrow A on a base plate 31, and 
provided with a sample base 34 on which sample tubes 36, 36, . . . and 
application tips 35, 35, . . . are disposed in two lines in the transverse 
direction. A pipette 32 moveable vertically as indicated by the arrow D 
and forwardly and backwardly as indicated by the arrow B with respect to 
the base plate 31 moves vertically, forwardly and backwardly to fit one of 
the application tips 35, 35, . . . to the lower end of the pipette 32, to 
draw a predetermined amount of the sample material contained in one of the 
sample tubes 36, 36, . . . by suction, and then to feed a spot of the 
sample material onto the film 1b of the chemical analysis slide 1 on the 
conveyance and feed-in means 40 at a sample applying section 19. At this 
time, the application tips 35, 35, . . . are exchanged for the respective 
sample tubes 36, 36, . . . so that the sample materials contained in the 
sample tubes 36, 36, . . . are not mixed with each other. In the case of 
the chemical analysis slide 1', since application of a reference solution 
is also necessary, the reference solution is drawn from a reference 
solution cup 33 as shown in FIG. 1 and then applied. 
The chemical analysis slide 1 or 1' with the sample material applied 
thereon is fed by the conveyance and feed-in means 40 into the 
predetermined housing compartment. The configurations of the conveyance 
and feed-in means 40 and the first incubator 20 will hereinbelow be 
described with reference to FIG. 4A which is a sectional view taken along 
line V--V of FIG. 2. 
The conveyance and feed-in means 40 is disposed below a cover plate and is 
composed of a supporting block 41a slideable in the transverse direction 
as indicated by the arrow A along the rail 49, and a supporting plate 41 
disposed on the supporting block 41a. FIG. 4B is a plan view of the 
conveyance and feed-in means 40. The supporting plate 41 is constituted by 
a holding portion 45 for supporting the chemical analysis slide 1 thereon, 
step-like portions 43, 43 formed at both ends of the holding portion 45, a 
pair of wedge-like insert portions 43a, 43a which are pointed forwardly 
and formed at the leading ends of the step-like portions 43, 43, a slide 
ejecting protrusion 42 formed at the leading end of the holding portion 
45, and a pair of recesses 44, 44 formed rearwardly of both side portions 
of the rear end face of the chemical analysis slide 1 held at the holding 
portion 45. When the conveyance and feed-in means 40 is moved in the 
transverse direction along the rail 49 up to the position as indicated in 
FIG. 4A, the film 1b of the chemical analysis slide 1 held at the holding 
section 45 stands facing an opening 19a of the sample applying section 19, 
and the sample material is applied from the pipette 32 of the sample 
applying device 30 onto the film 1b via the opening 19a. Then, the 
conveyance and feed-in means 40 is moved along the rail 49 up to the 
position facing the housing compartment 21 or 28 which is to house the 
chemical analysis slide 1. The supporting plate 41 is slideable on the 
supporting block 41a forwardly and backwardly as indicated by the arrow E, 
and the chemical analysis slide 1 held on the supporting plate 41 is fed 
into the housing compartment 21 of the first incubator 20 or the housing 
compartment 28 of the second incubator 27 by the sliding of the supporting 
plate 41. 
The first incubator 20 is composed of a supporting member 24 for supporting 
the chemical analysis slide 1 fed into the first incubator 20 and having a 
read-out opening 21a, a pushing member 22 facing the supporting member 24 
and moveable vertically, a spring 23 for urging the pushing member 22 
downwardly, a main body member 25 for moveably supporting the pushing 
member 22, and a stopper leaf spring 26 secured to the inlet opening 21a 
of the housing compartment 21. Feeding of the chemical analysis slide 1 
into the housing compartment 21 conducted by the conveyance and feed-in 
means 40 will be described hereinbelow with reference to FIGS. 6A, 6B, 6C 
and 6D. 
The case wherein the chemical analysis slide 1 on which read-out by the 
read-out head 50 via the read-out opening 21a has been finished is housed 
and held in the housing compartment 21 and is to be replaced by a new 
chemical analysis slide 1 on the conveyance and feed-in means 40 will be 
described below. The chemical analysis slide 1 in the housing compartment 
21 is grasped between the supporting member 24 and the pushing member 22 
by the urging force of the spring 23. Therefore, when the supporting plate 
41 is moved forwardly as indicated by the arrow E1, the wedge-like insert 
portion 43a first enters between the pushing member 22 and the supporting 
member 24, and pushes the pushing member 22 up to release grasping of the 
chemical analysis slide 1 as shown in FIG. 6B. Then, the slide ejecting 
protrusion 42 comes into contact with the rear end of the chemical 
analysis slide 1 in the housing compartment 21, pushes the chemical 
analysis slide 1 forwardly in the direction as indicated by the arrow E1, 
and ultimately ejects the chemical analysis slide 1 out of the housing 
compartment 21 into the receiving member 29 as shown in FIG. 6C. At this 
time, the new chemical analysis slide 1 held at the holding portion 45 of 
the supporting plate 41 is disposed at a predetermined position in the 
housing compartment 21, and the stopper leaf spring 26 enters the recesses 
44, 44 formed rearwardly of the both side portions of the rear end face of 
the chemical analysis slide 1. The leaf spring 26 is forked into two 
branches or split into two portions to fit into the recesses 44, 44. 
Thereafter, the supporting plate 41 is returned backwardly as indicated by 
the arrow E2. At this time, since the stopper leaf spring 26 contacts the 
rear end face of the chemical analysis slide 1 and prevents the chemical 
analysis slide 1 from moving, the supporting plate 41 alone is returned 
backwardly and, as a result, the chemical analysis slide 1 is grasped 
between the supporting member 24 and the pushing member 22 in the housing 
compartment 21. 
The conveyance and feed-in means 40 should preferably be preheated by a 
heater or the like for preventing the temperature of the first incubator 
20 from changing (heat shock) when the supporting plate 41 is inserted 
into the housing compartment 21 of the first incubator 20. 
In the case where the aforesaid conveyance and feeding means 40 is used, 
the operation of inserting a new chemical analysis slide 1 into the 
housing compartment 21 when no chemical analysis slide 1 is present in the 
housing compartment 21 or the operation of ejecting the chemical analysis 
slide 1 out of the housing compartment 21 can be conducted independently 
by the aforesaid operation of the supporting plate 41. 
The operations of the aforesaid embodiment will be described hereinbelow. 
First, the lowest chemical analysis slide 1 among the chemical analysis 
slides 1, 1, . . . stacked in the cartridge 2 loaded to the cartridge 
loading section 11 is pushed out by the pushing lever 12, and housed in 
the housing compartment 16e at the fog measuring section 16. At this time, 
the bar code of the chemical analysis slide 1 is read by the bar code 
reading means 18. Thereafter, the read-out head 50 is moved to the 
position facing the measurement opening 16b of the fog measuring section 
16, and fog measurement is conducted on the chemical analysis slide 1 
before it is provided with the sample material. When the read-out head 50 
is moved, it stands facing the white reference plate 17W and the black 
reference plate 17B, and photometric error is eliminated. After the fog 
measurement is conducted, the chemical analysis slide 1 is pushed by the 
pushing lever 12 onto the holding portion 45 of the conveyance and feed-in 
means 40 moved to the position as indicated by the chain line in FIG. 2. 
In the case where the chemical analysis slide is found to be the 
electrolyte slide 1' by bar code reading, the fog measurement is not 
conducted, and the chemical analysis slide 1' is directly pushed by the 
pushing lever 12 onto the holding portion 45 of the conveyance and feed-in 
means 40. 
Then, the conveyance and feed-in means 40 is moved rightwardly along the 
rail 49 up to the position as indicated by the solid line Y in FIG. 2 
facing the pipette 32 of the sample applying device 30. The pipette 32 is 
moved vertically, forwardly and backwardly to fit the application tip 35 
to the lower end of the pipette 32, and draws a predetermined amount of 
the sample material contained in the sample tube 36 into the application 
tip 35. The sample material is then fed onto the film lb of the chemical 
analysis slide 1 or the chemical analysis slide 1' held on the conveyance 
and feed-in means 40. 
Thereafter, the conveyance and feed-in means 40 is moved along the rail 49 
in the transverse direction as indicated by the arrow A to the position 
facing the predetermined housing compartment 21 of the first incubator 20 
or the housing compartment 28 of the second incubator 27 in accordance 
with the code read by the bar code reading means 16. As mentioned above, 
the chemical analysis slide 1 or 1' is fed into the housing compartment 21 
or 28 by the operations as shown in FIGS. 6A, 6B, 6C and 6D. For the 
chemical analysis slide 1 incubated in the first incubator 20, emission of 
light and measurement of the reflection optical density are conducted via 
the read-out opening 21a by the read-out head 50 moved to the position 
below the housing compartment 21. On the other hand, at the second 
incubator 27, the difference in potential between the electrodes of the 
chemical analysis slide 1' is measured. When the measurement is finished, 
the chemical analysis slide 1 or the chemical analysis slide 1' is ejected 
from the housing compartment 21 or the housing compartment 28 into the 
receiving member 29 by the conveyance and feed-in means 40. It is possible 
to conduct chemical analysis automatically and continuously by using many 
chemical analysis slides and repeating the aforesaid operations. 
In the aforesaid embodiment, though the measurement of the electrolyte 
slide is conducted at the second incubator 27, measurement of any other 
item may be conducted at the second incubator 27. In the case where 
measurement of the reflection optical density is to be conducted at the 
second incubator 27 like the first incubator 20, the read-out head 50 may 
be constituted to slide up to the position facing the second incubator 27 
for conducting measurement. Also, the number of the housing compartments 
of the second incubator 27 is not limited to one, and a plurality of the 
housing compartments may be disposed at the second incubator 27. Further, 
instead of automatically applying the sample material by the sample 
applying device 30 at the sample applying section 19, the sample material 
may be manually applied by use of a micropipette or the like at the sample 
applying section 19. 
Another embodiment of the chemical analysis apparatus in accordance with 
the present invention will hereinbelow be described with reference to 
FIGS. 7, 8 and 9. 
In the embodiment of FIG. 7, an incubator, a slide conveyance means, a 
slide feed-in means and the like are disposed in a main body 110, and 
covered with a cover 111. An insertion opening 112 for insertion of a 
magnetic disk for recording the measured values or the like, a display 
section 113 for displaying the measured values or the like, and an 
operating key section 114 for controlling the displaying or the like are 
disposed on the outer side of the chemical analysis apparatus. A slide 
guide 115 for holding an unused chemical analysis slide is disposed on the 
right side of the upper surface of the chemical analysis apparatus, and 
chemical analysis slides loaded from the exterior are held one by one or 
together in the stacked form by the slide guide 115. Or, a cartridge 
housing a plurality of the chemical analysis slides may be fitted to the 
slide guide 115. A sample applying means 120 for applying a predetermined 
sample solution onto the film lb of the chemical analysis slide is 
disposed at the rear of the slide guide 115. The sample applying means 120 
is composed of a sample applying arm 121 projecting forwardly and 
vertically rotatable around its rear end, a sample applying pipette 122 
extending downwardly from the front end of the sample applying arm 121, 
and operating push-buttons 123, 123 for controlling the vertical movement 
of the sample applying arm 121 and the drawing-in and discharging of the 
sample solution in the sample applying pipette 122. In the course of 
application by the sample applying means 120, the sample applying arm 121 
is rotated up to move the sample applying pipette 122 up by the operation 
of the operating buttons 123, 123, a sample solution contained in a vessel 
is made to contact the lower end of the sample applying pipette 122, and a 
predetermined amount of the sample solution is drown into the sample 
applying pipette 122. Then, the sample applying arm 121 is rotated down, 
and the predetermined amount of the sample solution is applied from the 
sample applying pipette 122 onto the film 1b of the chemical analysis 
slide disposed below the sample applying pipette 122. 
FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the internal configuration of the embodiment 
of FIG. 7, and FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line IX--IX of FIG. 
8. The internal configuration of the embodiment of FIG. 7 will hereinbelow 
be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9. An incubator 130 for 
incubating the chemical analysis slide provided with the sample solution 
by the sample applying means 120, an optical reading means 140 for 
optically detecting the extent of a color reaction in the incubated 
chemical analysis slide, and a conveyance and feed-in means 150 for 
conveying the chemical analysis slide to the incubator 130 and feeding it 
into one of housing compartments 133, 133, . . . of the incubator 130 are 
disposed inside of the chemical analysis apparatus. This embodiment is 
also provided with an electric power source 116, a printed circuit board 
117 for a control circuit, a light source 118a for the optical reading 
means 140, and a magnetic disk drive mechanism 118b. In the description 
below, the direction as indicated by the arrow F is referred to as the 
forward direction or the front side, the direction as indicated by the 
arrow R is referred to as the backward direction or the rear side, and the 
right side and the left side are referred to with respect to FIG. 8. 
The incubator 130 extends in the rightward-leftward direction, and a 
plurality of the housing compartments 133, 133, . . . are disposed side by 
side in the rightward-leftward direction in the incubator 130. The housing 
compartments 133, 133, . . . are provided with inlet openings and outlet 
openings. The inlet openings are disposed side by side in the 
rightward-leftward direction along a lower rear and face 130a of the 
incubator 130, and the outlet openings are disposed side by side in the 
rightward-leftward direction along a front end face 130b of the incubator 
130. Therefore, the chemical analysis slide 1 is fed into the housing 
compartment 133 from its inlet opening, and ejected from its outlet 
opening. The chemical analysis slide 1 ejected from the outlet opening is 
discharged into an ejection box 180 disposed in front of the incubator 
130. Also, the housing compartment 133 is provided with a lower member 132 
for supporting the chemical analysis slide 1 thereon, and an upper member 
131 for holding the chemical analysis slide 1, which is supported on the 
lower member 132, from above. The chemical analysis slide 1 is incubated 
by the upper member 131 and the lower member 132. 
The optical reading means 140 is disposed under the incubator 130 and is 
composed of an upper guide rod 143a and a lower guide rod 143b which 
extend in the rightward-leftward direction a drive rod 144 having threads 
on the outer circumference and extending in the rightward-leftward 
direction between the guide rods 143a and 143b, a drive motor 145 for 
rotating the drive rod 144, a supporting base 142 slideable on the guide 
rods 143a and 143b and engaged by threads with the drive rod 144, and a 
read-out head 141 mounted on the supporting base 142. The supporting base 
142 is moveable together with the read-out head 141 in the 
rightward-leftward direction on the guide rods 143a and 143b as the drive 
rod 144 is rotated by the drive motor 145. The read-out head 141 stands 
facing the lower surface of the lower member 132 of the incubator 130, 
emits measuring light to the film 1b of the chemical analysis slide 1, 
which is housed in the housing compartment 133, via a measuring hole 
formed in the lower member 132 at each housing compartment 133, and 
measures the reflection optical density of the film 1b. For this purpose, 
the read-out head 141 moving together with the supporting base 142 in the 
rightward-leftward direction can be moved to the position facing the 
measuring hole of each housing compartment 133 and can measure the extent 
of the color reaction in the chemical analysis slide 1 housed in an 
arbitrary housing compartment 133. The measuring light is emitted by the 
light source 118a and guided to the read-out head 141 through an optical 
fiber 141a. The read-out head 141 can be moved in the rightward-leftward 
direction to the position facing each housing compartment 133 and to the 
position facing the lower surface of a conveyance compartment 119 through 
which the chemical analysis slide 1 conveyed from the slide guide 115 to 
the conveyance and feed-in means 150 passes, thereby conducting fog 
measurement at the conveyance compartment 119. 
The conveyance and feed-in means 150 is disposed at the rear of the 
incubator 130 for conveying the chemical analysis slide 1 with the sample 
solution applied thereon by the sample applying means 120 to the position 
facing the inlet opening of each housing compartment 133 and feeding the 
chemical analysis slide 1 into the housing compartment 133. The conveyance 
and feed-in means 150 is composed of an upper guide rod 156a and a lower 
guide rod 156b which extend in the rightward-leftward direction, a 
conveyance rod 157 having threads on the outer circumference and extending 
in the rightward-leftward direction between the guide rods 156a and 156b, 
a conveyance motor 158 for rotating the conveyance rod 157, a conveyance 
base 151 slideable on the guide rods 156a and 156b and engaged by threads 
with the conveyance rod 157, and a slide receiving base 152 secured to the 
conveyance base 151. The conveyance base 151 is moveable together with the 
slide receiving base 152 in the rightward-leftward direction on the guide 
rods 156a and 156b as the conveyance rod 157 is rotated by the conveyance 
motor 158. In FIG. 8, the conveyance base 151 is moveable between the 
position as indicated by the chain line at the rear of the slide guide 115 
and the position as indicated by the solid line facing the housing 
compartment 133 at the left end of the incubator 130. The slide receiving 
base 152 is disposed so that its front end faces the inlet opening of each 
housing compartment 133 in the course of movement in the 
rightward-leftward direction. A pair of guides 152a and 152b for holding 
the chemical analysis slide 1 is formed on the front upper surface of the 
slide receiving base 152. The slide receiving base 152 is moveable 
forwardly and backwardly with respect to the conveyance base 151 like the 
supporting plate 41 shown in FIG. 4A. Therefore, when the slide receiving 
base 152 is moved to the position at the rear of the slide guide 115 as 
indicated by the chain line in FIG. 8, the chemical analysis slide 1 held 
at the slide guide 115 is conveyed onto the slide receiving base 152 by a 
pushing lever, a conveyor belt or the like, and placed on the slide 
receiving base 152 by being guided by the guides 152a and 152b. In the 
course of the conveyance, the bar code of the chemical analysis slide 1 is 
read by a bar code sensor 125. Also, when the chemical analysis slide 1 is 
made to pass through the conveyance compartment 119 disposed side by side 
with the housing compartments 133, 133, . . . on the lateral side on the 
same plane as the housing compartments 133, 133, . . . , the reflection 
optical density (fog density) of the chemical analysis slide 1 prior to 
the sample solution being applied thereto is measured by the read-out head 
141 moved to the position facing the lower surface of the conveyance 
compartment 119. On the chemical analysis slide 1 thus conveyed and placed 
on the slide receiving base 152 is applied the sample solution, onto the 
reagent layer, by the sample applying means 120 at that position. Then the 
slide receiving base 152 is moved together with the conveyance base 151 
leftwardly, and the chemical analysis slide 1 placed on the slide 
receiving base 152 is conveyed up to the position facing the inlet opening 
of the predetermined one of the housing compartments 133, 133, . . . . 
Thereafter, the slide receiving base 152 is moved forwardly on the 
conveyance base 151 to feed the chemical analysis slide 1 into the housing 
compartment 133. The feeding operations are the same as mentioned with 
reference to FIGS. 6A to 6D.