1. A board supporting device comprising:
a plurality of first supporting members formed of an elastic material;
a plurality of second supporting members formed of an elastic material and having higher compression modulus than said first supporting members; and
a supporting-members holding member which holds said first and second supporting members,
wherein said supporting members are arranged on said supporting-members holding member such that each of said first supporting members is adjacent to a corresponding one of said second supporting members,
and wherein said supporting members project from said supporting-members holding member such that a distal end of each of said first supporting members lies on a plane while a distal end of each of said second supporting members lies on one of opposite sides of said plane which is closer to said supporting-members holding member.
2. A board supporting device according to claim 1, wherein said supporting-members holding member includes a substantially flat plate.
3. A board supporting device according to claim 2, wherein said flat plate has a plurality of receiving holes formed therein, and wherein each of said supporting members is received at a proximal end portion thereof in a corresponding one of said receiving holes.
4. A board supporting device according to claim 3, wherein said proximal end portion of each of said first supporting members has a thickness which is equal to that of said proximal end portion of each of said second supporting members and each of said first supporting members has a distal end portion whose thickness is small than that of a distal end portion of each of said second supporting members.
5. A board supporting device according to claim 3, wherein said receiving holes includes first holes and second holes each of which has an inner dimension larger than that of each of said first holes,
wherein each of said first supporting members has a thickness which is constant as viewed in a projection direction in which each of said supporting members projects from said flat plate, while each of said second supporting members has a thickness which is constant as viewed in said projection direction and which is larger than said thickness of each of said first supporting members,
and wherein said first supporting members are received in said first holes while said second supporting members are received in said second holes.
6. A board supporting device according to claim 1, wherein each of the elastic materials forming said first and second supporting members has a loss tangent (tan \u03b4) not smaller than 0.5, as measured when the elastic material is subjected to vibration of 110 Hz at a temperature of 20\xb0 C.
7. A board supporting device according to claim 1, further including:
a board holding mechanism which holds opposite end portions of a board such that said opposite end portions of said board have the same distance from said plate, and wherein said first and second supporting members are positioned relative to said board holding mechanism such that said board can be supported at one of opposite surfaces thereof by said supporting members while being held at said opposite end portions by said board holding mechanism.
8. A board supporting device according to claim 1, supporting a circuit board as said board which is to be subjected to a predetermined work achieved by a working head whose position relative to said circuit board is changeable by a relative movement device.
9. A board supporting device according to claim 1, supporting a circuit board as said board onto which an electric component is to be mounted by a mounting head whose position relative to said circuit board is changeable by a relative movement device.
10. A board supporting device comprising:
a plurality of first supporting members formed of an elastic material;
a plurality of second supporting members formed of an elastic material and having higher compression modulus than said first supporting material; and
a supporting members holding member for holding said first and second supporting members,
wherein said second supporting members have lengths smaller than those of said first supporting members, so that distal ends of said second supporting members are closer than distal ends of said first supporting members to said supporting members holding member, when said first and second supporting members are held by said supporting members holding member.
11. A board supporting device according to claim 10, wherein said supporting members holding member includes a substantially flat plate.
12. A board supporting device according to claim 11, wherein said flat plate has a plurality of receiving holes formed therein, so that each of said supporting members can be received at a proximal end portion thereof in a corresponding one of said receiving holes.
13. A board supporting device according to claim 12, wherein
said proximal end portion of each of said first supporting members has a thickness which is equal to that of said proximal end portion of each of said second supporting members, and
each of said first supporting members has a distal end portion whose thickness is smaller than that of a distal end portion of each of said second supporting members.
14. A board supporting device according to claim 12, wherein
said receiving holes includes first holes and second holes each of which has an inner dimension larger than that of each of said first holes,
each of said first supporting members has a thickness which is constant as viewed in a projection direction in which each of said supporting members projects from said flat plate, while each of said second supporting members has a thickness which is constant as viewed in said projection direction and which is larger than said thickness of each of said first supporting members, so that said first supporting members can be received in said first holes while said second supporting members can be received in said second holes.
15. A board supporting device according to claim 10, wherein each of the elastic materials forming said first and second supporting members has a loss tangent (tan \u03b4) not smaller than 0.5, as measured when the elastic material is subjected to vibration of 110 Hz at a temperature of 20\xb0 C.
16. A board supporting device according to claim 10, further including:
a board holding mechanism which holds opposite end portions of a board such that said opposite end portions of said board have the same distance from said supporting members holding member,
wherein said first and second supporting members are positioned relative to said board holding mechanism such that said board can be supported at one of opposite surfaces thereof by said supporting members while being held at said opposite end portions by said board holding mechanism.
17. A board supporting device according to claim 10, supporting a circuit board as said board which is to be subjected to a predetermined work achieved by a working head whose position relative to said circuit board is changeable by a relative movement device.
18. A board supporting device according to claim 10, supporting a circuit board as said board onto which an electric component is to be mounted by a mounting head whose position relative to said circuit board is changeable by a relative movement device.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A particle contrast agent composition for staining a blood fluid sample being imaged in an automated particle analysis system comprising:
at least one particle contrast agent selected from the group consisting of Crystal Violet, New Methylene Blue, Methyl Green, Eosin Y, and Safranin O;
a permeabilizing agent including saponin present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations between about 50 mgL and about 750 mgL under staining conditions; and
a fixing agent including gluteraldehyde present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations at or below 0.1% under staining conditions.
2. The composition of claim 1, wherein:
the at least one particle contrast agent includes Crystal Violet, New Methylene Blue, and Eosin-Y;
a ratio of the Crystal Violet to the New Methylene Blue is between about 1:90 to about 1:110 under staining conditions; and
the Eosin-Y is present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 3 \u03bcM to about 300 \u03bcM under staining conditions.
3. The composition of claim 2, wherein:
the Crystal Violet is present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 6 \u03bcM to about 10 \u03bcM under staining conditions;
the New Methylene Blue is present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 70 \u03bcM to about 2.4 mM under staining conditions; and
the Eosin-Y is present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 10 \u03bcM to about 50 \u03bcM under staining conditions.
4. The composition of claim 3, wherein:
the Crystal Violet is approximately 90% pure or greater;
the New Methylene Blue is approximately 70% pure or greater; and
the Eosin-Y is approximately 80% pure or greater.
5. The composition of claim 4, wherein:
the Crystal Violet is present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 7.8 \u03bcM under staining conditions;
the New Methylene Blue is present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 735 \u03bcM under staining conditions; and
the Eosin-Y is present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 27 \u03bcM under staining conditions.
6. The composition of claim 3, additionally comprising:
buffer components.
7. A method of treating particles of a blood fluid sample which will be imaged using an automated particle analysis system comprising:
combining the blood fluid sample with a particle contrast agent composition to obtain a sample mixture; and
incubating the sample mixture at a temperature between about 37\xb0 Celsius and about 60\xb0 Celsius for fewer than 90 seconds;
wherein the particle contrast agent composition includes:
at least one particle contrast agent selected from the group consisting of Crystal Violet, New Methylene Blue, Methyl Green, Eosin Y, and Safranin O;
a permeabilizing agent including saponin present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations between about 50 mgL and about 750 mgL under staining conditions; and
a fixing agent including gluteraldehyde present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations at or below 0.1% under staining conditions.
8. A method of claim 7, wherein:
the particle contrast agent composition includes Crystal Violet New Methylene Blue in amounts sufficient to result in a ratio of the Crystal Violet to the New Methylene Blue between about 1:1 to about 1:500 under staining conditions; and
incubating the sample mixture includes heating the sample mixture fewer than 60 seconds.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein:
the particle contrast agent composition includes:
Crystal Violet present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations at about 6 \u03bcM to about 10 \u03bcM under staining conditions;
New Methylene Blue present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 70 \u03bcM to about 2.4 mM under staining conditions; and
Eosin-Y present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 10 \u03bcM to about 50 \u03bcM under staining conditions; and
combining the blood fluid sample with the particle contrast agent composition includes combining to a ratio of the blood fluid sample to the particle contrast agent composition of about 1:2 to about 1:10.
10. The method of claim 8, wherein incubating the sample mixture includes heating the sample mixture to between about 46\xb0 C. and about 49\xb0 C. for between 40 and 50 seconds.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein:
the Crystal Violet is approximately 90% pure or greater;
the New Methylene Blue is approximately 70% pure or greater; and
the Eosin-Y is approximately 80% pure or greater.
12. The method of claim 10, wherein:
the particle contrast agent composition includes:
Crystal Violet present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations at about 7.8 \u03bcM under staining conditions;
New Methylene Blue present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 735 \u03bcM under staining conditions;
Eosin-Y present in amounts sufficient to result in concentrations of about 27 \u03bcM under staining conditions; and
buffer components;
combining the blood fluid sample with the particle contrast agent composition includes combining to a ratio of the blood fluid sample to the particle contrast agent composition of about 1:3 to about 1:4; and
incubating the sample mixture includes heating the sample mixture to about 47\xb0 C. for about 45 seconds.