Patent ID: 7934416

Claim:
A method of determining whether a liquid amount and quality of a liquid reagent held in a reagent holding portion are normal in a liquid-reagent-containing microchip utilizing centrifugal force to analyze or test a sample, the microchip including, at least, two or more reagent holding portions for holding two or more types of liquid reagents respectively, two or more first measuring portions for measuring said two or more types of liquid reagents respectively, and a first mixing portion for mixing the two or more types of liquid reagents measured with said first measuring portions, the method comprising the steps of: (A) measuring each liquid reagent held in said reagent holding portions of the microchip with said first measuring portions; (B) mixing, at least, two or more types of measured liquid reagents in said first mixing portion of the microchip; and (C) evaluating a liquid amount and quality of a liquid mixture obtained in said step (B) and determining whether the liquid amount and quality of the liquid reagents held in said reagent holding portions of the microchip are normal, based on the evaluation, wherein evaluating the liquid amount of the liquid mixture in said step (C) includes detecting whether a liquid level of the liquid mixture matches a predetermined liquid level.