Automatic analyzer

摘要

Conventional automatic analyzing apparatus is disadvantageous in that if the amount of one of the reagents in respective containers (e.g., bottles) falls to zero, the operator must replace the empty container and then cause the apparatus to resume its analysis operation, meaning that it takes time for the apparatus to resume its analysis operation after an interruption due to reagent supply exhaustion. An automatic analyzer of the present invention includes a status table for storing the status of each analysis module and reagent information to allow identification of each reagent the supply of which is exhausted and allow tracking of the status of each analysis module, etc. The automatic analyzer determines, based on the status table, whether and how it can continue its current analysis operation. The analyzer stores the results of this determination in its instruction information table. More specifically, the instruction information table stores analysis-unit operating information (or analysis-module operating information) and information to be supplied to the user or operator. The analysis-unit operating information includes instructions which instruct the analysis modules to initiate an analysis in a normal manner, finish an analysis in a normal manner, omit a pre-analysis operation, omit a post-analysis operation, or stop sampling, etc. Further, the reagent information and the status of each analysis module in the status table are updated each time a reagent container is replaced by the operator. This allows the automatic analyzer to generate and store, based on the status table, information for graphically indicating on its operation unit the completion of replacement of each reagent container.