Patent ID: 8241568

Claim:
A reaction tank for causing a reaction for analyzing a specimen in a humidity-applied atmosphere, comprising: a storage vessel containing the humidity-applied atmosphere, the storage vessel having a carry-in opening and a carry-out opening, each opening having a respective door operable to be opened and closed; a humidifying unit that includes a water reservoir reserving water and a humidifier releasing moisture of the water reservoir to an inside of the storage vessel, the humidifying unit humidifying the inside of the storage vessel; a transport mechanism configured for carrying a microplate holding the specimen into the storage vessel through the carry-in opening and for carrying the microplate out of the storage vessel through the carry-out opening; and a humidity detector that detects humidity inside the storage vessel, an operation of the humidifier of the humidifying unit being turned ON when the humidity inside the storage vessel becomes lower than the predetermined suitable humidity whereas the operation of the humidifier of the humidifying unit being turned OFF when the humidity inside the storage vessel exceeds the predetermined suitable humidity, wherein the reaction tank maintains a predetermined suitable humidity within the storage vessel even when the microplate is frequently carried in and out of the storage vessel.