JPS62215383A - Apparatus for inspecting microscopic life - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable automatic inspection of the growing or distribution state of microorganisms or other microscopic lives, by picking up the image of a microscopic life with an arbitrary visual means in plural visual means while retreating the other visual means from the visual field of the former visual means. CONSTITUTION:A proper visual means A is selected to pick up the image of the growing state of microscopic lives on a medium. When detailed data relating to individual microscopic lives are to be required, a lower visual means A2 is used. On the other hand, an upper visual means A1 is used in the case of inspecting the distribution state of the microscopic lives over the whole medium. The lower visual means A2 can be used as it is. On the contrary, in the case of using the upper visual means A1, a motor 19 is rotated 180 deg. by a signal transmitted from a controlling mechanism, a check plate 25 is pressed with a protrusion 28 and the lower visual means A2 is horizontally displaced together with a base plate 24. The lower visual means A2 is retreated from the visual field of the upper visual means A1 by the above procedure. The present position of the retreated lower visual means A2 is controlled by photo-sensors 31, 32 and a light-shielding plate 30 and transmitted to the controlling mechanism.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention is applicable to microorganisms such as bacteria and filamentous fungi that are cultured on Petri dish culture media, insect eggs, fish eggs, tissue culture cells, etc. that are attached to preparations. microorganisms (hereinafter, these are collectively referred to as microorganisms).

) Microorganism testing equipment that automatically tests the growth status and distribution state of microorganisms. The present invention relates to a microorganism inspection device that can perform local inspection to inspect shape, size, and measurement of inhibition circle and minimum inhibitory concentration without sacrificing accuracy.

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, the work of inspecting the distribution and growth state of microorganisms cultured on a Petri dish medium or attached to a preparation has mostly been done manually. In other words, skilled researchers and workers can determine the number of microorganisms distributed on the surface of the test object by visually observing the test object, such as a petri dish or preparation, with the naked eye or using a magnifying glass or microscope. The size and even shape were inspected. However, these tasks not only cause great fatigue to workers, but also the inspection accuracy varies depending on the skill and fatigue level of the worker. Therefore, researchers are looking for a device that can automatically perform these inspection processes without relying on human hands. Automated devices have long been desired in the industry, but recently automated devices have been developed one after another to meet these challenges.

The configuration of these devices includes, for example, a visual means for capturing an image of the surface of a subject, such as a petri dish, placed vertically above the surface of the subject, and information output from the visual means placed at a later stage. It is common to use a computer to analyze and process the size and number of microorganisms on the surface of the culture medium, as well as to identify microorganisms that meet specific conditions.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

These devices generally use a solid-state image sensor (hereinafter referred to as COD) or an image pickup tube as visual means. Describe the size. ), and its resolution is fundamentally determined by the number of pixels, so it is impossible to image the entire surface of the subject at once with the same accuracy while imaging the details of a microscopic organism with enough precision to recognize it. One possible method for solving this inconvenience is to attach a zoom lens to the visual means and change the enlargement/contraction magnification of this zoom lens as appropriate to obtain the field of view size and resolution as required. This method allows imaging in a so-called narrow field of view, which has a narrow field of view but allows inspection of the shape and size of individual microorganisms with high accuracy, and imaging of microorganisms on the entire surface of the object, although the resolution is low. So-called wide-field imaging in which the state of body distribution can be overviewed can be realized within a certain range. However, there is a limit to the range that can be enlarged or reduced with a zoom lens, and at high magnifications, it is also affected by aberrations, so the light that passes through the lens periphery is distorted, making it difficult to always make highly accurate measurements over the entire field of view size. That is impossible.

On the other hand, it is also conceivable to replace the lens each time the field of view size changes, such as when the field of view is wide or narrow. With this method, it is relatively easy to design a lens with the desired magnification and few aberrations, and by using such a lens, it is possible to capture highly accurate images over the entire field of view. It is necessary to manually replace a predetermined lens each time the image is enlarged or reduced, and this is too complicated and impractical in microorganism inspection work where repetitive work is the principle.

Furthermore, another problem is that conventionally, petri dishes are fixedly placed, so if you want to image adjacent microorganisms in a narrow field of view, it is necessary to move the visual means and the illumination light source that illuminates the petri dish. There was also the problem that the positional relationship with the visual means was not constant and measurement conditions could not be made uniform. In addition, conventionally, petri dishes have been placed on an exposed table to monitor the measurement status and be easy to maintain, or housed in transparent cases to prevent contamination with germs. On the other hand, this means that external light rays enter the visual means as disturbance light, which affects the illumination conditions of the culture medium on the petri dish and is one of the factors that prevents uniformity of measurement conditions. It has not been done.

[Means for solving problems]

The present invention was developed in view of this situation, and it is possible to provide a plurality of visual means each having zoom lenses of different magnifications attached on the same vertical line above the subject, and to select the visual means to be used as appropriate. , regarding a microorganism inspection device that is capable of imaging in both a wide field of view and a narrow field of view, and that can perform highly accurate imaging with extremely little aberration in both cases. A plurality of visual means having different fields of view for imaging the surface of the subject are arranged on the same line, and when an arbitrary visual means among the visual means is used to image a microorganism, other visual means are It is characterized by retreating from the damaged field of view.

A second invention devised to further stabilize the measurement conditions and improve the measurement accuracy of the microorganism testing device according to the present invention is to eliminate the influence of external light from the microorganism testing device described above. By providing a transport means for carrying in and out of the test object that moves back and forth between the inside and outside of this box, the intrusion of external light can be prevented and the illumination of the test object can be stabilized, allowing for stable illumination of the test object and improving measurement conditions. The purpose is to increase the reliability of the measurement results by uniformizing the results. A plurality of visual means are provided on a vertical line above the petri dish, and when any of the visual means is used, it is possible to A visual means lower than the visual means of is evacuated from the imaging field of the visual means,
Further, the conveying means has an elastically biased gripping mechanism.
It consists of a Y stage, and the conveying means is characterized in that it carries petri dishes into and out of the box, and can be moved as appropriate based on control symbols below the visual means in the box.

[For production]

In such a microorganism testing device, when a subject is placed in a predetermined position, only the visual means to be used is left among the visual means arranged on the same vertical line above the subject, and the other visual means are Move away from the imaging field of view so as not to interfere with imaging. Each visual means is equipped with a zoom lens with a different magnification, and by retracting, only the visual means equipped with a zoom lens of a predetermined magnification remains in a position vertically above the surface of the subject, and the field of view is obstructed. There is no light, and the light emitted from the illumination light source and reflected on the surface of the subject directly enters the visual means.

When observing microorganisms at other magnifications, the visual means described above can be replaced with a visual means equipped with a zoom lens of a predetermined magnification. It is controlled by manual operation or by software on a computer connected to the rear stage, and all specific movements are performed automatically if a control signal is transmitted.

The zoom lenses attached to each visual means have separate wide-field lenses and narrow-field lenses, so the range of magnification covered by each zoom lens is as follows:
Since the field of view can be much narrower than when one visual means covers a wide and narrow field of view, it is easy to design and manufacture a lens with low aberrations, and the imaging of the object surface can be performed with high accuracy over the entire field of view. It is something that can be done.

Furthermore, the operation mode of the second invention, which aims to stabilize the measurement conditions and improve the reliability of the measurement results by housing each of the above-mentioned mechanisms in a box that blocks the intrusion of external light, is as follows.

After the gripping mechanism associated with the XY stage is moved outside the box through the opening, the gripping mechanism is caused to grip the petri dish. Next, the gripping mechanism moves backward while gripping the Petri dish, and carries the Petri dish into the box through the opening again. The opening is located at a position where external light does not reach the petri dish placement position in the box, and its size is the minimum size within the range that allows the petri dish to pass through, so the illumination of the petri dish introduced into the box is From now on, only the internal light source will ensure uniform illumination of the culture medium surface. In the box, the Petri dish will be slightly moved by the XY stage so that its measurement point is positioned vertically below the viewing means. However, this fine adjustment can be done while visually observing the monitor image captured by visual means, or it can be done automatically based on certain conditions on the software of a computer connected to the subsequent stage. The selection of the visual means is as described above, and an appropriate visual means is selected as necessary, and the petri dish after imaging is carried out to the outside through the opening by the XY stage again.

〔Example〕

Next, details of the present invention will be explained based on an embodiment of the second invention that includes the first invention. In the following explanation, we will describe the case where the specimen is a microorganism on a petri dish, but it is also possible to use the specimen as a microorganism on a preparation by appropriately changing the transportation means. Not even.

FIG. 1 is a simplified explanatory perspective view showing the arrangement of each mechanism in an embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure, A is a visual means, B is a conveying means, C is a petri dish, and D is a box that shields these from external light.

Further details of the visual means A and the carrier 19B are disclosed in FIGS. 2 and 3. In this example, a CCD camera equipped with a removable zoom lens is used as the visual means A, but the zoom lens can be replaced with a microscope lens of higher magnification, or the CCD can be replaced with an image pickup tube or other visual sensor. Replacement is also optional.

In this embodiment, two visual means are provided, and the lower visual means A2 arranged below has a high magnification zoom lens 5 for a narrow field of view that can observe the growth state of individual microorganisms on the CCD 2, and a lens barrel 6. At the same time, a reflecting mirror 7 is provided in front of the lens 5 on the optical axis and vertically above the imaging point of the petri dish C arranged below.
The structure is such that the light beam incident from the CCD 2 can be guided to the CCD 2. On the other hand, the upper visual means Al located above is a CCD
1 is equipped with a large-diameter, wide-field, low-magnification zoom lens 3 that allows a panoramic view of the surface of the Petri dish C, and, like the lower visual means A2, is located in front of the low-magnification zoom lens on the optical axis and vertically above the Petri dish C. A reflecting mirror 4 is provided to guide incident light from the petri dish C to the CCDI. That is, the imaging location of the petri dish C is placed below the straight line connecting the centers of the reflecting mirrors 7 and 4. This reflective mirror 7.4 is attached to a mirror holder 11.10 that is rotatably pivoted near the tips of side plates 9 and 8 that are arranged on the sides of the high-power zoom lens 5 and the low-power zoom lens 3. , mirror presser foot lla.

10a. The mirror holders 11 and 10 can be rotated freely using the knobs 13 and 12, but normally, once set, they are not readjusted unless the main unit is moved, and are kept in a semi-fixed state. ing. In addition, a stepping motor 15.14 is provided on the side of the high-magnification zoom lens 5 and low-magnification zoom lens 3, and a rotational driving force is transmitted to the zoom lens 5.3 via a bell eye 7.16, thereby increasing the magnification of each. The zoom lens has a configuration in which the magnification can be changed stepwise within a certain range based on a control signal, and a photosensor 34.33 and a light shielding plate 36.35 are provided to limit the rotation range of the zoom lens. It is regulated. The upper visual means A1 is fixedly installed on the base 18, while the lower visual means A2 needs to be retracted horizontally from the imaging field of view when the upper visual means Al is used so as not to interfere with imaging. For example, the mechanism is as follows.

The evacuation mechanism of the lower visual means A2 is installed inside a frame-shaped base 18 on which the upper visual means A1 is fixedly installed, and the retracting mechanism of the lower visual means A2
An occlusion member 23 having a concave portion 22 that can be engaged with a convex portion 20 is engaged with a pedestal 21 having a diameter of 0 in a slidable manner in a direction perpendicular to the length direction of the lower visual means A2 via a bearing or the like. A substrate 24 to which a lower visual means A2 is attached is fixed to a member 23. and board 2
4. A backing plate 25 is erected at one off-centered position on the top surface, and a suitable motor 19 is fixed to the base 18 above the corresponding plate 25 with its rotating shaft 26 passing through the base 18. Furthermore, the rotating shaft 26 has a pressing protrusion 28 at its tip.
An arm 27 provided with is attached perpendicularly to the rotating shaft 26 to constitute a cam, and by pressing the light plate 25 according to the rotation of the motor 19, the lower visual means A2 can be moved in the horizontal direction together with the board 24. It has a structure.

This movement is performed against the biasing direction of a tension spring 29 provided on an example of the substrate 24, and the driving force for returning the group #i24 that has moved to the end is obtained from the tension of this tension spring 29. ing. The timing of retreat of the lower visual rate 1iA2 is controlled by software, and the current position of the lower visual means A2, which is one of the information sources when issuing the control signal, is detected by the photosensors 31, 32 and the rotation This is done by a device detection mechanism consisting of a light shielding plate 30 fixed to the ring 26 and set to be able to pass through the front surface of the light receiving portion of the photosensors 31 and 32, and the light shielding plate 30 rotates as the motor 19 rotates. The signals are detected by blocking the light from entering the light receiving portions of the photosensors 31 and 32.

In this embodiment, a large-diameter, low-magnification zoom lens 3 is used as the upper visual means A1, and the lower visual rate V! The iA2 is equipped with a high-magnification zoom lens 5 because it is easier to retract if the lens on the side to be retracted is smaller and lighter, but this vertical positional relationship is not limited in any way. ,
In particular, when there are three or more visual means, it may be set appropriately. In addition, as for the evacuation method of the lower visual means A2, another mechanism may be used if the COD camera 2 and high-power zoom lens 5, which are precision instruments, can be moved smoothly in a stable state without causing vibration. It is not something that can be prevented.

Next, regarding the XY stage B1, which is a means of transporting the petri dish C, the XY stage B1 consists of two tracks laid in parallel along the transport direction of the petri dish C behind the opening 50 in the pond D. 52.53 and the orbit 52.5
The running section 54 mainly consists of a running section 54 that runs back and forth on the tracks 52 and 53, and the running section 54 has two shirts (55. 55.55 at both ends and allows the entire traveling section 54 to travel; and the shaft 55.55.
The movable part 59 has an insertion hole 56 into which it is inserted, and a moving part 59 having gripping forks 57 and 58 on the front side.

The caster parts 60.61 are provided with an appropriate number of wheels 62 so that the running part 54 can move on the track 52.53 in the Y direction, that is, in the front-back direction (left-right direction in FIG. 3). The wheel portion 61 is provided with a belt hanger 66 that locks one side of a belt 65 stretched between a stepping motor 63 disposed at the terminal end of the track 53 and a pulley 64 disposed at the starting end. 63, the traveling section 54 is movable in the Y direction. Further, the caster part 60 is provided with a pulley 67, and the other caster part 61 is provided with a pulley 69 fixed to a stepping motor 68. A belt 70 is stretched between the two, and a belt 70 is provided in the moving part 59. A belt hanger 71 that locks one side is provided so that the moving section 59 can move in a direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the entire traveling section 54, that is, in the X direction as the stepping motor 68 rotates. In addition, photo sensors 73a and 73b are installed near the starting and ending positions of the moving range of the traveling section 54 and the moving section 59.
, 72, 72, and a running section 5 corresponding thereto.
On the 4 side and the moving part 59 side, there are light shielding plates 74a, 74b, 7 that block light from entering the light receiving parts of the photosensors 73a, 73b, 72.72 at the start and end positions.
5.76 is provided to define the movement range and prevent the running section 54 and the moving section 59 from colliding with the starting end and the ending end. The moving part 59 is provided with forks 57 and 58 for gripping the petri dish C.
．． A holding recess 77a, ? 7b, and the fork 58 is attached to the main body of the moving part 59 via a plate spring 78, so that the fork 57, 58 can reliably hold the petri dish C and transport it into the box D.

Petri dish C, which has been transported to a predetermined position in Epox D in this way, requires illumination over the entire surface of the Petri dish in order to carry out highly technical measurements. A straight fluorescent lamp 79 is disposed opposite to an upper position a certain distance away from the imaging position of C and a lower position of a table made of a translucent material such as glass on which a petri dish C is placed. By arranging them in a substantially square shape, it is possible to uniformly illuminate the imaging position regardless of the movement of the petri dish C.

The illumination at the upper position and the illumination at the lower position can be switched as appropriate, and the illumination can be transmitted bright field illumination, transmitted dark field illumination, or reflected illumination depending on the inspection target, such as the condition of the culture medium or microorganisms. It is configured so that it can also be used.

The box D enclosing the visual means A and the transporter &B is one that can shield the visual means A and the transporter B from external light and has an opening that allows the petri dish to pass through at an appropriate position in the box. Any one can be used, and the exterior range may be limited to the visual means A and the conveyance means B, or other mechanisms may also be exteriorized as appropriate. In the illustrated example, the opening 50 is located in front of the XY stage moving unit 59 in the Y direction in the initial state, and by setting the opening 50 to the minimum size that allows passage of the Petri dish, a box D of external light rays is formed. Wedge force prevents intrusion into the interior.

The microorganism inspection device having such a configuration operates as follows. For example, when a command to start an inspection is sent by operating a control key placed at a suitable location on the main body of the apparatus, this signal is transmitted to a control mechanism (not shown), and the stepping motor 63 is rotated based on this signal. This rotation is transmitted to the belt 65, which pulls the caster part 61 forward along the track 53, causing the running part 54 to travel forward in the Y direction, and the light shielding unit 1i74b blocks the incident light to the photosensor 73b. Move it forward to the desired position and then stop it. Due to the movement of the running portion 54, the forks 57 and 58 close to the opening 5.
0, advance to the petri dish mounting table 51 and stop,
Next, the fork 58 is expanded outward by hand, and the petri dish C, which has been transplanted with bacteria, is held in the fork 57.
58 to hold it. At this time, the fork 58 is biased inward by a spring and at the same time has a limit to its bending range, so it does not press too much on the Petri dish C and the Petri dish C conforms to its side shape. It can be gripped securely. Next, the traveling section 54 passes through the opening 50 with the Petri dish C gripped by the forks 57 and 58, conveys the Petri dish C to a position substantially below the viewing means A in the box D, and stops. This process is imaged by any visual means and constantly monitored on a monitor television or the like, and the position is set manually or automatically as appropriate. At the substantially lower position of the visual means A, there is almost no intrusion of external light, so the surface of the culture medium in the Petri dish C is illuminated only by the fluorescent lamps 79, 79 placed above the Petri dish C, and the surface of the culture medium is illuminated by ambient light. This ensures uniform illumination at all times without being affected by the effects of light, thereby stabilizing the measurement conditions. Next, an appropriate visual means A is selected to image the growth state of the microorganisms on the culture medium, but in this example, the area, diameter, and growth state of each microorganism are measured. Lower visual means A2 when detailed data about
When we want to know the distribution of microorganisms throughout the culture medium, we use the upper visual means AI. In the initial position, both of them are in the same horizontal position and are arranged at a constant interval in the vertical direction, and in particular, both reflection mirrors 7.4 are on the same vertical straight line above the imaged position of the culture medium on Petri dish C. It is arranged. For example, when using the lower visual means A2, images are taken as they are, but when using the upper visual means A1, the motor 19 is rotated by half a rotation in response to a signal from a control mechanism (not shown), and the projection near the tip of the arm 26 is The pressing plate 25 is pressed by the portion 28, and the lower visual means A2 is slid in the horizontal direction together with the base plate 24. In this way, the lower visual means A2 retreats from the imaging field of view of the upper visual means A1, but the current position of the lower visual means A2 is located at the photo sensor 31.32.
and are managed by the light shielding plate 30 and transmitted to the control mechanism.

After the imaging by the upper visual means A1 is completed, the lower visual means A
When using 2, turn the motor 19 half a turn again,
The substrate 24 is returned to the initial position by the tension of the tension spring 29. Since this return operation is performed while being inhibited by the rotational operation of the motor 19, the lower visual means A2 is not damaged by vibrations and measurement errors are not caused.

Since the lower visual means A2 has a large magnification, in order to image the entire culture medium surface, it is necessary to divide the culture medium surface into several to tens of imageable visual fields and sequentially capture the images. The movement between them is performed by moving the petri dish C on the XY stage B1.

The movement of the petri dish C in the Y direction (the horizontal direction in FIG. 3(A)) during this field of view movement is performed using the stepping motor 63 as the driving source as described above, and on the other hand, the movement of the petri dish C in the X direction (in the vertical direction in the figure) ) is moved by transmitting the rotation of a stepping motor 68 provided on the caster section 61 to the moving section 59 via a belt 70. Since the XY stage B1 has a movement accuracy of approximately ±0.05 mm, it is easy to position the target microorganism in the imaging field of the lower visual means A2, and the visual means A Since they do not move when the field of view is changed, the positional relationship between the fluorescent lamps 79, 79, .

In this way, the upper visual means A1 and the lower visual means A2 are used as appropriate, and in this embodiment, switching between them is accomplished by simply sending a control signal to the motor 19, and their movement is also carried out by the photosensor 31°. 32 without giving any impact to the lower visual means A2, there is no optical distortion caused by moving the lower visual means A2, and the image is extremely stable.

When all the predetermined inspections are completed, the XY stage B1 carries the Petri dish C out of the box D through the opening 50, replaces the Petri dish C with the next Petri dish, and repeats the same operation as described above.

〔Effect of the invention〕

The microorganism inspection device according to the present invention has a configuration in which a plurality of visual means with different visual field sizes are arranged and images are taken by separate visual means for a wide field of view and a narrow field of view. It is possible to narrow the range of magnification, and it is easy to reduce the aberration of the lens used for the visual means, so it is easy to reduce the aberrations around the lens, which was difficult when conventionally using one visual means and one zoom lens. It is now possible to measure the shape and area of microorganisms in the area, making it possible to capture images with high precision over the entire imaging field of view. Furthermore, this device can measure the inhibition circle and minimum inhibitory concentration by simply changing the software of the computer connected internally or externally, making it possible to perform various tests on microorganisms with a single device. It is possible. Furthermore, compared to the method of replacing the lens each time the field of view size changes, it can significantly save time and effort, and greatly streamline microorganism inspection work.

Furthermore, since the light-receiving part of each visual means is placed vertically above the position of the subject's gymnastics image during imaging, the positional relationship between the visual means and the illumination light source is always kept constant, and measurements due to differences in the amount of incident light or the angle of incidence can be avoided. There is no error.

In addition, in the second invention, since the visual means and the Petri dish transport means are constructed in a box that blocks external light, the influence of ambient light during measurement can be completely eliminated, and the surface of the culture medium can be uniformly illuminated. Therefore, the reliability of the measurement results can be increased.

Furthermore, since the Petri dish is transported by an XY stage, it is possible to finely adjust the Petri dish position below the visual means, and it is possible to appropriately select the divided culture medium surface according to the field of view size. This enables highly accurate measurement over the entire surface of the culture medium.

As described above, by using the microorganism testing device according to the present invention, it is possible to automate the microorganism testing process that was conventionally performed by skilled researchers and workers, and it not only saves a great deal of time and effort. (There will be no germs transmitted by workers, and we can expect an improvement in measurement accuracy, as well as a marked increase in the reliability of test results.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the arrangement of each means in an embodiment of the microorganism testing device according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 (A)
is a plan view showing the main part of the lower visual means in the same embodiment,
FIG. 2(b) is an explanatory side view showing the arrangement of the upper visual means and lower visual means in the same embodiment, and FIG. 2(c)
is an explanatory plan view of the upper visual means in the same embodiment;
Figure (d) is an explanatory rear view showing the evacuation mechanism of the lower visual means in the same embodiment, Figure 3 (a) is an explanatory plan view of the petri dish conveying means in the same embodiment, and Figure 3 (b) is an explanatory rear view showing the evacuation mechanism of the lower visual means in the same embodiment. FIG. 4 is an explanatory side view of the conveying means, FIG. 4 is an explanatory perspective view showing how to attach the reflecting mirror in the same embodiment, and FIG. 5 is an explanatory perspective view showing the method of illuminating the petri dish in the same embodiment. . A: Visual means, B: Transport means, C: Petri dish, D: Box, A is upper visual means, A2: Lower visual means, Bt: xy stage, L2: CCD. 3; low magnification zoom lens, 4.7: reflective mirror, 5: high magnification zoom lens, 6: lens barrel, 8, 9: side plate, 10.11: mirror holder 10a, lla: mirror holder, 12.13: knob , 14, 15 Nis tipping motor, 16.17: Belt, 18: Base, 19: Motor, 20; Convex portion, 21: Pedestal, 22: Recessed portion, 23: Occlusal member, 24: Substrate,
25: Backing plate, 26: Rotating shaft, 27
: Arm, 28: Protrusion, 29: Tension spring, 3
0: Light shielding plate, 31.32.33.34: Photo sensor, 35.
36: Light shielding plate, 50; Opening, 51: Petri dish mounting table, 52.53: Track, 54: Running part, 55: Shaft, 56: Insertion hole, 57.58: Fork,
59: Moving part, 60.61: Caster part, 6
2:Wheel, 63Nippon motor, 65:Belt, 66:Belt hanger, 67:
Pulley, 68 Tipping motor, 69; Pulley, 70: Belt, 71: Belt hanger, 72.
73a, 73b: Photo sensor, 74a, 74b
, 75.76=shading plate, 77a, 77b: clamping recess,
78: Leaf spring, 79: Fluorescent light, (d) j1211 (c)

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1) In a microorganism testing device that automatically recognizes the growth state and distribution state of microorganisms distributed on the surface layer of a test object such as a petri dish or a preparation, A plurality of visual means having different imaging fields of view are arranged, and when a microscopic organism is imaged by any visual means among the visual means,
A microorganism inspection apparatus characterized in that the other visual means is evacuated from the imaging field of the visual means. 2) When the uppermost visual means is fixedly arranged vertically above the surface of the subject and any of the other visual means are used, the visual means below the visual means can be placed on the side as appropriate. The microorganism testing device according to claim 1, wherein the microorganism testing device is retracted to 3) A visual means for imaging the surface of the subject and a transport means for transporting the petri dish are provided in a box that blocks external light and has an opening at an appropriate place in the front for loading and unloading the petri dish, and the visual means When a plurality of visual means with different imaging fields are arranged on the same vertical line above and any visual means among the visual means is used, the visual means lower than the visual means in use is the same as the visual means mentioned above. The transport means is made up of an XY stage having an elastically biased gripping mechanism, and the transport means transports the Petri dish into and out of the box, and is controlled below the visual means inside the box. A microorganism testing device characterized in that it can be moved appropriately based on a signal.