SLIDE FEEDER WITH AIR BEARING CONVEYOR

摘要

A slide loading mechanism utilizes compressed air as the transport medium to move the slides (34) from a magazine (14) to the stage (22) of a microscope. The stage (22) is provided with a carriage (26) moving horizontally along a direct path between the stage and the magazine. A conveyor (30) coupled to the carriage includes a tongue (38) suitable for positioning under the slide of interest in the magazine (14) when the carriage is at one end of its travel path, so that the slide may be picked up for translation to the stage of the microscope. When the carriage (26) is moved to the opposite end of its travel path, the tongue (38) is completely removed from the magazine, which may be freely moved vertically by an elevator (12) to align another slide for processing. Directional air flow is used to suspend and transport the slide back and forth between the two ends of the conveyor.