US-12622682-B2 - Tissue cassette reader

US12622682B2US 12622682 B2US12622682 B2US 12622682B2US-12622682-B2

Abstract

An apparatus including: a base; a carriage coupled to the base and projecting a distance above the base, the carriage operable to contain a mobile phone comprising a camera array in a position such that the camera array faces in a direction of the base; and a controller including machine-readable instructions operable to direct a movement of one of the carriage and the base in a direction with respect to the other along an axis. A method including: placing a mobile phone in a carriage; placing a container below the carriage, the container comprising a plurality of tissue cassettes; and capturing by the mobile phone of an image of the identifier on each of the plurality of tissue cassettes while the plurality of tissue cassettes remain in the container. Also, a machine-readable medium including instructions to cause a mobile to stitch successive captured images of identifiers into an overall image.

Inventors

Hwai-Jyh Michael Yang

Assignees

SAKURA FINETEK U.S.A., INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20221116

Claims (20)

1 . An apparatus to identify an identifier on a tissue cassette in an assembly of a plurality of tissue cassettes comprising: a base operable to be mounted on a tabletop; a carriage coupled to the base and projecting a distance above the base; and a controller coupled to the carriage, the controller comprising machine-readable instructions operable to direct a movement of one of the carriage and the base in a direction with respect to the other along an axis; and a mobile phone contained in the carriage, the mobile phone comprising (1) a camera array in a position such that the camera array faces in a direction of the base and (2) machine-readable instructions to: direct an automatic capture of images of an identifier on each tissue cassette contained in a container of an assembly of a plurality of tissue cassettes arranged in the base at a rate providing for more than one image of an identifier on each tissue cassette in the plurality of tissue cassettes to be successively captured and wherein each capture of images encompasses a field of view that is less than an area of the container; and read the identifier on each tissue cassette in each captured image; and discard or ignore any identifier in a captured image that has been read from a previous image.
2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the base comprises an orientation designation for a container operable to contain an assembly of a plurality of cassettes.
3 . The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the direction of movement of the one of the carriage and the base is operable to allow the capture of images by the camera of the mobile phone of identifiers on a plurality of tissue cassettes in a container positioned below the mobile phone in the carriage.
4 . The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a sensor bar coupled to the carriage, the sensor bar comprising one or more photoelectric sensors, the one or more photoelectric sensors comprising an emitter for emitting light in a field of view of a camera array of a mobile phone contained in the carriage and a receiver for receiving reflected emitted light.
5 . The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the sensor bar comprises a plurality of photoelectric sensors arranged linearly on the sensor bar and spaced to correspond to a spacing of tissue cassettes arranged in rows in a basket positioned below a mobile phone in the carriage.
6 . The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the carriage is operable to move in the direction with respect to the base and the sensor bar is operable to be moved with the carriage.
7 . The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising at least one light source coupled to the carriage operable to emit light from the at least one light source at the base.
8 . The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a tray operable to be removably positioned in the base, the tray comprising dimensions to accommodate a container operable to contain an assembly of a plurality of cassettes.
9 . The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein in the tray is operable to move in a direction along an axis orthogonal to the axis of the movement of one of the carriage and the base.
10 . The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a charger coupled to the carriage and operable to charge a mobile phone contained in the carriage.
11 . The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the charger is operable to provide a wireless charging connection for a mobile phone.
12 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the machine-readable instructions associated with the controller comprise instructions to move the one of the carriage and the base in a direction with respect to the other along the axis based on instructions received from the mobile phone contained in the carriage.
13 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the mobile phone comprises non-transitory machine-readable instructions operable to direct the one of the carriage and the base to move in a direction with respect to the other along the axis.
14 . A method comprising: placing a mobile phone in a carriage that is coupled to and projects a distance above a base; placing a container below the carriage, the container comprising a plurality of tissue cassettes, wherein each of the plurality of tissue cassettes comprises an identifier on a front face thereof, with the front face of each of the plurality of tissue cassettes facing the carriage; successively capturing by the mobile phone of more than one image of the identifier on each of the plurality of tissue cassettes while the plurality of tissue cassettes remain in the container while one of the carriage and the base move with respect to the other such that each of the more than one image of the identifier on each of the plurality of tissue cassettes is captured in a distinct field of view of the mobile phone that is less than an area of the container; reading each of the successively captured more than one image of the identifier on each of the plurality of tissue cassettes; and discarding or ignoring any identifier that has been read by a previously captured image.
15 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising: reading by the mobile phone of the captured identifier on each of the plurality of tissue cassettes.
16 . The method of claim 14 , wherein successively capturing more than one image comprises capturing a first image of a first area of the container before capturing a second image of a second area of the container and a portion of the second area overlaps a portion of the first area.
17 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising stitching by the mobile phone of an overall image of the one or more cassettes in the container from the successively captured images.
18 . A machine-readable medium comprising non-transitory instructions that when executed by a mobile phone comprise a method comprising: directing an apparatus comprising a carriage coupled to and projecting a distance above a base to move one of the carriage and the base in a direction with respect to the other along an axis; in response to the movement, capturing successive images by the mobile phone in the carriage of an area below the carriage comprising a container, the container comprising a plurality of tissue cassettes, wherein each of the plurality of tissue cassettes comprises an identifier on a front face thereof, with the front face of each of the plurality of tissue cassettes facing the carriage, and wherein capturing successive images comprise more than one image of each of the plurality of tissue cassettes in the container captured while the one of the carriage and the base move with respect to the other such that each of the more than one image of the identifier on each of the plurality of cassettes is captured in a distinct field of view of the mobile phone that is less than an area of the container; reading each of the successively captured more than one image of the identifier on each of the plurality of tissue cassettes; discarding or ignoring any identifier that has been read by a previously captured image; and stitching the successive images into an overall image.
19 . The machine-readable medium of claim 18 , wherein capturing successive images comprises capturing a first image of a first area before capturing a second image of a second area and a portion of the second area overlaps a portion of the first area.
20 . The machine-readable medium of claim 18 , wherein the mobile phone comprises digital processing comprising one or more color filters to reproduce a captured image and prior to reading of the identifier of at least one of the plurality of cassettes, method comprises removing the one or more color filters.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD Tissue processing and carrier identification. BACKGROUND Tissues from the body taken for diagnosis of disease processes are often processed in the histology laboratory to produce paraffin blocks embedding them to then cut thin tissue sections which can be mounted on slides, stained and viewed under a microscope by a pathologist for analysis. These pre-analytical processes generally include, in order, gross examination, fixation, dehydration, clearing, paraffin infiltration and embedding. The procedure is used for processing tissues including biopsies, larger specimens removed at surgery, or tissues from autopsy. Gross examination generally consists of describing the macroscopic specimen and placing all or selected parts of it into a sample carrier such as a small plastic cassette which holds the tissue while it is being processed to a paraffin block. Initially, the cassettes are placed into a fixative. Following gross examination, the fixation of the tissue continues. A purpose of fixation is to preserve tissues permanently in as life-like a state as possible by altering structures of proteins such that degradation by autolysis does not occur. Once the tissue has been fixed or fixated, the tissue needs to be processed into a form in which it can be made into thin sections for microscopic examination. The usual way this is done is with paraffin. Embedding tissue in paraffin provides a solid support matrix for the tissue allowing it be sectioned at a thickness on the order of 1 to 20 microns. Getting fixed tissue into paraffin for sectioning is called tissue processing with the main steps in this process being dehydration, clearing, infiltration, which then is followed by embedding. Tissues fixed in aqueous solutions cannot be directly infiltrated with paraffin. First, the water from the tissues must be removed by dehydration. This may be done with a series of alcohols at different concentrations (e.g., 70 percent to 95 percent to 100 percent). Alternatively, the dehydration may be done with a mixture of formalin and alcohol. Other dehydrants can also be used such as acetone or mixtures of different solvents. Following dehydration, the tissue is cleared. “Clearing” consists of removal of the dehydrant and some of the lipids with a substance that will be miscible with the embedding medium (e.g., paraffin). The most common clearing agent is xylene. Once cleared, the tissue is infiltrated with an embedding agent such as paraffin. Finally, the tissue in a cassette or removed from its cassette is placed into molten paraffin and then the paraffin is cooled to form a solidified block embedding or encapsulating the tissue so that it can be sectioned. Alternatively, the tissue can be processed in a sectionable cassette, embedded in paraffin along with the cassette and sectioned. Once the tissue has been embedded in a solid paraffin block, the tissue can be cut into sections that can be placed on one or multiple slides. This is done with a microtome. Once sections are cut, they are floated on a warm water bath that helps remove any wrinkles. The tissue sections in paraffin are then picked up from the water bath and placed on a glass microscope slide. A sample carrier such as a cassette may be marked with identification and/or process information. The introduction of barcodes has made it possible to machine read barcodes printed on a sample carrier and to track the sample carrier during histological sample processing, embedding, sectioning and any verifications steps from creation to archiving. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which like references indicate similar elements. It should be noted that references to “an” or “one” embodiment in this disclosure are not necessarily to the same embodiment, and such references mean at least one. FIG. 1 shows an illustrative process flow of preparing a tissue taken from a subject for tissue processing. FIG. 2 shows a top, side perspective view of a device that may be used to capture, store and output identification information such as a barcode on a sample carrier (e.g., a cassette or cassette/frame assembly) in an array such as in a basket, a magazine or other container without removing the sample carrier from the array (e.g., magazine, basket or other container). FIG. 3 shows the device of FIG. 2 a mobile phone is placed in a carriage of the device and a basket containing tissue cassettes is contained in a base of the device. FIG. 4 shows a top, back perspective view of the device of FIG. 2. FIGS. 5A-5C show a representative step by step capture of images of cassettes in a basket or container. FIG. 6 shows a top, side perspective view of another example of a device that may be used to capture, store and output identification information such as a barcode on a sample carrier (e.g., a cassette or cassette/frame assembly) in an array such as in