Patent Publication Number: US-2005118703-A1

Title: Control system for reaction equipment and monitoring device thereof

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      1. Field of the Invention  
      The present invention relates to a control system and a monitoring device thereof, and particularly relates to a control system used for reaction equipment and a monitoring device thereof.  
      2. Description of Prior Art  
      With the rapid progress of biochemical technology, many biochemical equipments for time-consuming chemical reaction, biologic fermentation, microbe culture and separation purification have been developed. In order to efficiently monitor important values which may vary and affect the result, such as temperature, pressure, oxygen content and pH values, during the process of chemical reaction, biologic fermentation, microbe culture and separation purification actions, many biochemical equipments as shown in  FIG. 1  are each provided with a plurality of detectors  11  to momentarily detect the above-mentioned important values for the user&#39;s reference. However, the action time of the aforesaid various actions is very tedious, and therefore it is difficult for the user to rivet his attention so that abnormal phenomenon can be momentarily noticed. Therefore, a warning device  12  (as shown in the functional block diagram of  FIG. 1 ) is disposed on the biochemical equipments  10  to momentarily give a warning signal, for example, warning sound or warning light flash etc., when predetermined abnormal phenomenon occurs, such as when the temperature is higher than a threshold value. Thus, the user may be informed to immediately take responsive measures to prevent uncurable errors occurring.  
      However, as the radiating range of warning signals is limited, the user&#39;s moving range is thus seriously restricted to cause inconvenience to the user. Accordingly, the main purpose of the present invention is to address this problem encountered in the prior art.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      One aspect of the present invention relates to a monitoring device applied to a reaction equipment. The monitoring device comprises a detector for detecting the reaction action proceeded in the reaction equipment and outputting a detected value, an abnormal state assertor in communication with the detector for giving an abnormal signal when the detected value is in the range of the abnormal state, and a wireless signal emitter in communication with the abnormal state assertor for transmitting a wireless signal after receiving the abnormal signal. A portable alarm then receives the wireless signal and gives a warning signal to inform the user who carries with the portable alarm.  
      According to the above concept, the detector of the monitoring device of the present invention may be at least one of a temperature detector, a pressure detector, an oxygen content detector, a pH value detector, a whisking speed detector, a gas flux detector, a liquid level detector, a transfusion device detector, a valve ON-and-OFF detector, a power cut detector, a cell density detector, a gas detector, a slotware or pipeline breakage detector, a dextrose or sucrose detector and an online real-time analytical sampling device detector. The detector is adapted to detect the reaction action proceeded in the reaction equipment and output at least one of a detected temperature value, a detected pressure value, a detected oxygen content value, a detected pH value, a whisking speed variation control signal, a gas flux variation control signal, a liquid level variation control signal, a transfusion device control signal, a value ON-and-OFF control signal, a power cut responsive control signal, a cell density variation control signal, a gas concentration control signal, a slotware or pipeline breakage responsive control signal, a dextrose or sucrose variation control signal or an online real-time analytical sampling device control signal.  
      According to the above concept, the abnormal state assertor of the monitoring device of the present invention gives an abnormal signal when the detected value is out of the normal range.  
      According to the above concept, the reaction equipment, which the monitoring device of the present invention is applied to, may be a chemical reaction equipment, a biologic fermentation reaction equipment, a microbe culture equipment, a polymerase chain reaction, a reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, a real time polymerase chain reaction or a separation purification equipment.  
      According to the above concept, the portable alarm, which the monitoring device of the present invention is applied to, comprises a warning signal generator for giving a warning signal in response to the abnormal signal, the warning signal being in the form of sound, ray and/or vibration, a display for displaying corresponding system abnormal information in response to the abnormal signal, an input device for allowing the user to input instructions, and a wireless control signal generator in communication with the input device for transmitting a wireless control signal to the reaction equipment in response to the instructions entered by the user so that the reaction action proceeded in the reaction equipment may be adjusted.  
      Another aspect of the present invention relates to a control system applied to reaction equipment. The control system includes a detector for detecting the reaction action proceeded in the reaction equipment and outputting a detected value, an abnormal state assertor in communication with the detector for giving an abnormal signal when the detected value is in the range of the abnormal state, a wireless signal emitter in communication with the abnormal state assertor for transmitting a wireless signal after receiving the abnormal signal, and a portable alarm for giving a warning signal after receiving the wireless signal, so that the user who carries with the portable alarm may be informed.  
      According to the above concept, the detector of the control system of the present invention may be at least one of a temperature detector, a pressure detector, an oxygen content detector, a pH value detector, a whisking speed detector, a gas flux detector, a liquid level detector, a transfusion device detector, a valve ON-and-OFF detector, a power cut detector, a cell density detector, a gas detector, a slotware or pipeline breakage detector, a dextrose or sucrose detector and an online real-time analytical sampling device detector. The detector is adapted to detect the reaction action proceeded in the reaction equipment and output a detected temperature value, a detected pressure value, a detected oxygen content value, a detected pH value, a whisking speed variation control signal, a gas flux variation control signal, a liquid level variation control signal, a transfusion device control signal, a value ON-and-OFF control signal, a power cut responsive control signal, a cell density variation control signal, a gas concentration control signal, a slotware or pipeline breakage responsive control signal, a dextrose or sucrose variation control signal or an online real-time analytical sampling device control signal.  
      According to the above concept, the abnormal state assertor of the control system of the present invention gives an abnormal signal when the detected value exceeds the normal range.  
      According to the above concept, the reaction equipment, which the control system of the present invention is applied to, may be a chemical reaction equipment, a biologic fermentation reaction equipment, a microbe culture equipment or a separation purification equipment.  
      According to the above concept, the portable alarm of the control system of the present invention comprises a warning signal generator for giving a warning signal in response to the abnormal signal. The warning signal may be in the form of sound, ray and/or vibration.  
      According to the above concept, the portable alarm of the control system of the present invention further comprises a display for displaying corresponding system abnormal information in response to the abnormal signal.  
      According to the above concept, the portable alarm of the control system of the present invention further comprises an input device for allowing the user to input instructions, and a wireless control signal generator in communication with the input device for transmitting a wireless control signal to the reaction equipment in response to the instructions entered by the user so that the reaction action proceeded in the reaction equipment may be adjusted.  
      According to the above concept, the control system of the present invention is connected to a computer for receiving and recording the detected value and the abnormal signal.  
      According to the above concept, the control system of the present invention is connected to the computer by means of wired signal transmission or wireless signal transmission.  
      A further aspect of the present invention relates to a monitoring device used between a reaction equipment and a portable alarm. The monitoring device comprises a detector for detecting the reaction action proceeded in the reaction equipment and outputting a detected value, and a wireless signal emitter in communication with the detector for transforming the detected value into a wireless signal and transmitting the wireless signal to the portable alarm. The portable alarm displays the signal after receiving the wireless signal for the user&#39;s reference who carries with it.  
      Yet another aspect of the present invention relates to a control system applied to a reaction equipment. The control system comprises a detector for detecting the reaction action proceeded in the reaction equipment and outputting a detected value, a wireless signal emitter in communication with the detector for transforming the detected value into a wireless signal and transmitting the wireless signal, and a portable alarm for displaying the signal after receiving the wireless signal for the user&#39;s reference who carries with it. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      The present invention may best be understood through the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:  
       FIG. 1  is a functional block diagram of a conventional biochemical equipment;  
       FIG. 2  is a schematic view of a control system configuration in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
       FIG. 3  is a functional block diagram of a portable alarm; and  
       FIG. 4  is a schematic view of a control system configuration in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       FIG. 2  shows a schematic view of a control system in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention. The control system is primarily applied to biochemical equipment  20  which takes a long time to react, such as chemical reaction equipment, biologic fermentation equipment, microbe culture equipment or separation purification equipment. The control system  2  primarily includes a detector  21 , an abnormal state assertor  22 , and a wireless signal emitter  23 . A signal transmission channel  4  between the control system  2  and a computer  3  may be achieved by wired signal transmission or wireless signal transmission. Accordingly, the signal transmission channel  4  may be select from existing data transmitting bus, such as USB, IEEE 1394, LAN or CAN bus, and the computer may receive, record and control the signal value outputted by the control system  2 . The wired signal transmission may be accomplished by using the existing plug and play devices, such as USB or IEEE1394 devices, and the wireless signal transmission may be accomplished by using Bluetooth, IEEE 802.11, IrDA communication or mobile signal communication means such as WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) and GPRS (General Packet Radio Service).  
      In order to efficiently monitor state variations during the reaction, the biochemical reaction equipment  20  has been furnished with various detectors  21  which include a temperature detector, a pressure detector, an oxygen content detector, a pH value detector, a whisking speed detector, a gas flux detector, a liquid level detector, a transfusion device detector, a valve ON-and-OFF detector, a power cut detector, a cell density detector, a gas detector, a slotware or pipeline breakage detector, a dextrose or sucrose detector or an online real-time analytical sampling device detector. The value detected by the detector  21 , such as a temperature value, a pressure value, an oxygen content value, a pH value, a whisking speed variation control signal, a gas flux variation control signal, a liquid level variation control signal, a transfusion device control signal, a value ON-and-OFF control signal, a power cut responsive control signal, a cell density variation control signal, a gas concentration control signal, a slotware or pipeline breakage responsive control signal, a dextrose or sucrose variation control signal or an online real-time analytical sampling device control signal, is transmitted to an abnormal state assertor  22 . The abnormal state assertor  22  presets respective normal value ranges corresponding to various kinds of values, such as the above temperature value, pressure value, oxygen content value, pH value, and so on. When one detected value exceeds a corresponding normal value range, the abnormal state assertor  22  transmits a corresponding abnormal signal to the wireless signal emitter  23 . The wireless signal emitter  23  then sends a wireless signal to a portable alarm  24 , and the portable alarm  24  gives a warning signal after reception, so that the user who carries with it may be informed. Accordingly, the user&#39;s moving range may be largely extended, thereby eliminating serious restriction and inconvenience. The wireless signal emitter  23  can be integrated into a computer  3  as well as the control system. Alternatively, the existing wireless transmission module of the computer  3  may be used to perform the wireless signal transmission function.  
       FIG. 3  is a schematic view of the portable alarm  24 , wherein a warning signal generator  241  thereof gives a warning signal, such as sound, vibration or light flash, when triggered by the abnormal signal. A display  242  displays corresponding system abnormal information in response to the abnormal signal, such as when exceeding a normal temperature value range. An input device  243  is used for allowing the user to input instructions. A wireless control signal generator  244  communicates with the input device  243  and transmits a wireless control signal to the biochemical reaction equipment  20  in response to the instructions, so that the reaction action proceeded in the biochemical reaction equipment may be adjusted, and continuous occurrence of abnormal state may be further suppressed by remote control, thereby eliminating the cause of warning signal presence.  
      The wireless transmission of the wireless signal emitter  23  and the portable alarm  24  may be accomplished by the existing wireless transmission architecture, such as Bluetooth, IEEE 802.11, IrDA communication, wireless call system, or mobile signal communication such as WAP and GPRS. The portable alarm  24  may be in the form of an existing mobile phone, a personal digital assistant, and so on.  
       FIG. 4  shows a schematic view of a control system in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the present invention. The difference between the control systems of the first and second embodiments relies in the addition of an insertable and removable data storage device  25  (such as various flash memory modules). The insertable and removable data storage device  25  communicates with the detector  21  and the abnormal state assertor  22  for storing the data outputted by the detector  21  and the abnormal state assertor  22  and for allowing insertion and removal by the user. The data stored by the insertable and removable data storage device  25  is transmitted to the computer for storage via a signal transmission channel  4 . The signal transmission channel  4  is identical to that of the first embodiment, and may also be achieved by wired signal transmission or wireless signal transmission. The wired signal transmission may be accomplished by using the existing plug and play devices, such as USB or IEEE1394 devices, to support the plug and play function of the computer  3 . The wireless signal transmission may be accomplished by using Bluetooth, IEEE 802.11, IrDA communication or mobile signal communication such as WAP and GPRS.  
      As described above, since the control system developed by the present invention and the monitoring device thereof perform the warning and control actions by means of wireless transmission, disadvantages encountered in the prior art are efficiently overcome and the main object of the present invention is thus achieved. The wired signal transmission channel is accomplished by existing USB, IEEE1394, LAN or CAN bus, which facilitates the insertion and removal actions of the user and thus eliminates the need for restarting the computer.  
      It is to be understood, however, that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.