Conventionally, there has been known an automatic analyzer which analyzes a sample by use of a reagent, and which has, in order to avoid suspension of measurement due to occurrence of reagent shortage during operation of the analyzer, a function (hereinafter, also referred to as automatic reagent switching) of automatically switching a reagent to be used in measurement to a reagent of the same kind in another reagent bottle, so as to continue measurement (for example, see Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2009-36512).
When automatic reagent switching has occurred, the reagent is not always switched to a reagent for which calibration has been performed, and may be switched to a reagent for which calibration has not been performed. In such a case, a target analysis parameter cannot be obtained due to lack of a calibration curve. Thus, after measurement has been performed, it is necessary to execute calibration to create a calibration curve, and then to apply measurement data to the created calibration curve, to recalculate an analysis parameter.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-196005 discloses an analyzer in which: by performing measurement, reaction process of a specimen is detected to be stored, and even in a case of a specimen measured with calibration having failed, calibration is performed again after the measurement, and the data of the stored reaction process is applied to a new calibration curve, thereby allowing recalculation of an analysis parameter to be performed. By utilizing the function as disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-196005, it is possible to create a calibration curve after measurement and to recalculate an analysis parameter.
When an analysis parameter is to be recalculated by performing calibration after measurement of a sample, it is necessary to perform the calibration by use of the reagent that was actually used in the measurement. Thus, when performing calibration, a user needs to designate the reagent used in the measurement. However, in a case of analysis in which a plurality of kinds of reagents are used in combination for measuring one measurement item, a calibration curve needs to be created for each combination of reagent lots, and thus, there exist many combinations of reagent lots serving as targets for creation of a calibration curve, including combinations of unused lots. Conventionally, the user searches, among such many combinations, for a reagent set for which no calibration curve has been created and which includes the reagent lots used in the measurement, and thus, the work is complicated and improvement of convenience has been desired.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds