Patent ID: 8611634

Claim:
A blood aggregation ability measuring apparatus for determining an order of an aggregation ability for each type of a plurality of types of blood cells in blood flowing in a constant direction, the blood aggregation ability measuring apparatus comprising: an image-taking device for taking an image of a flow of the blood; a blood cell type identification device for identifying blood cells of each type among the plurality of types of blood cells contained in a blood cell retention part where a blood cell is retained, from the image of the blood flow taken by the image-taking device; an aggregation ability calculation device for calculating at least one of an area, a number and positions of the blood cells of each type contained in the blood cell retention part, from the image of the blood flow taken by the image-taking device, based on a result of identification by the blood cell type identification device; and an aggregation order determination device configured to determine the order of the aggregation ability for the each type of the plurality of types of blood cells contained in the blood cell retention part based on chronological change related to the aggregation ability, calculated by the aggregation ability calculation device, wherein the image-taking device takes the image until any given elapsed time and the aggregation ability calculation device repeats the calculation of a plurality of blood cells in a prescribed calculation area at prescribed time intervals until the elapsed time and thereby calculates the chronological change related to the aggregation ability in the blood cell retention part, and wherein the prescribed calculation area is identical every time the calculation is repeated.