Patent ID: 8105535

Claim:
A pipette tip supplier for supplying a pipette tip used in a dispensing device, comprising: a plurality of pipette tips; a container for configured to contain the pipette tips; a separator for configured to separate the pipette tips supplied from the container one by one; a first transporting section configured to transport the pipette tips separated by the separator to a insertion part position via a suspended position and configured to drop the pipette tips from the insertion part position, wherein a first pipette is transported first followed by a second pipette tip; a first detector configured to detect a second pipette tip at the suspended position before the second pipette tip arrives at the insertion part position; a second transporting section configured to receive, at a receiving position, the pipette tip dropped from the first transporting section through the insertion part position, and configured to transport the pipette tip; a second detector configured to detect the pipette tip at the receiving position; and a controller for controlling configured to control, responsive to a detection of the second pipette tip by the first detector, the first transporting section so as to suspend transporting operation of the second pipette tip, and configured to control the first transporting section so as to resume the suspended transporting operation of the second pipette tip when the second detector does not detect the first pipette tip at the receiving position; the controller is further configured to execute a reverse transport control for controlling the first transporting section so as to transport the second pipette tip in a direction opposite to a transporting direction of the first transporting section and a forward transport control for controlling the first transporting section so as to transport the second pipette tip in the transporting direction of the first transporting section, when the second pipette tip is not detected by the second detector after controlling the first transporting section so as to resume the suspended transporting operation to transport the second pipette tip to the insertion part position from the suspended position and drop the second pipette tip.