Provided herein are systems and methods for the automation of seed planting and analysis comprising automated planting of the seeds, germination, and analysis. The methods generally comprise conveying containers containing seeds to an automated seed planting station, wherein each container includes a machine-readable tag, planting at least some of the seeds in the container onto respective planting trays, wherein each planting tray includes a machine-readable tag, allowing the seeds to germinate, and analyzing the germinated seeds. The systems generally comprise a seed planting system and a planting verification and correction system. Also provided herein are backlit templates comprising a light source and a power interface configured to connect to a power source to power the light source.

Provided are an automatic analysis device and a maintenance support system which prevent a failure that occurs between regular inspection periods to thereby reduce the downtime of the automatic analysis device. A maintenance support system acquires, from each of a plurality of automatic analysis devices (100), pulse information transmitted from the automatic analysis device (100) provided with a mechanism which is driven by a pulse motor, and a transmission means which transmits pulse information including tow among a driving pulse value for driving the pulse motor, a consumed pulse amount that is a pulse amount consumed when the pulse motor has actually been driven, and a remaining pulse amount obtained by subtracting the consumed pulse amount from the driving pulse value, and stores at least the consumed pulse amount.

A laboratory apparatus comprising a housing, wherein the housing comprises a through-opening, wherein the through-opening is adapted for passing through it a transport device for transporting laboratory sample containers in and/or out of the housing, and a cover, wherein the cover comprises at least two ring segments, wherein the ring segments are adjustable to each other between a distant adjustment with at least one distance in between ends of the ring segments for arranging them around the passed through transport device and a near adjustment with less or no distance in between the ends of the ring segments for surrounding the passed through transport device, and wherein the cover in the near adjustment is adapted to cover a part of the through-opening left free by the passed through transport device, wherein the laboratory apparatus is a pre-analytical, analytical, and/or post-analytical laboratory apparatus, in particular a sorting module.

The present invention has a plurality of conveyance lanes disposed in parallel, and also has an information-reading unit for reading a sample identifier of a container present in a reading region set within a conveying unit, the reading region being disposed in at least one location from among the conveyance-direction front-surface side of a holder, the conveyance-direction reverse side of the holder, and above the conveyance lanes. The information-reading unit is configured to read the sample identifier of a container being conveyed through any conveyance lane among the plurality of conveyance lanes using the one information-reading unit. There are thereby provided a specimen conveyance device and a specimen conveyance method by which the accuracy of reading sample information can be improved over that in the past.

An automatic analysis device has a structure that allows the operator to add or replace a reagent. A reagent container loading portion has an opening through which a reagent container is adapted to be introduced into the device. A reagent container transport tool has a plurality of reagent container insertion slots and is movable up and down. A refrigerator to cool a plurality of reagent containers has an opening that allows the reagent container transport tool to pass therethrough. An elevating and lowering mechanism is configured to elevate or lower the reagent container transport tool. A reagent container loading portion has a plurality of guide grooves arranged radially on its lower surface in front of the opening that are adapted to guide a reagent container. The guide grooves communicate with the respective reagent container insertion slots arranged radially on the reagent container transport tool at an elevated position.

An automatic analyzer with high processing capacity is capable of immediately measuring an emergency specimen rack. The automatic analyzer includes a conveying line for conveying a specimen rack, and an analysis unit which has a dispensing line in which a plurality of specimen racks are arranged for waiting until sample dispensing, and a sampling area for dispensing the sample to the analysis unit. A rack save area is provided in the dispensing line and at a position adjacent to the upstream side of the sampling area. When a specimen rack exists in the sampling area at the time of measuring an emergency specimen rack, a controller moves the specimen rack to the save area and positions the emergency specimen rack to be moved from a downstream side of the sampling area to the sampling area.

An automatic analyzer with high processing capacity is capable of immediately measuring an emergency specimen rack. The automatic analyzer includes a conveying line for conveying a specimen rack, and an analysis unit which has a dispensing line in which a plurality of specimen racks are arranged for waiting until sample dispensing, and a sampling area for dispensing the sample to the analysis unit. A rack save area is provided in the dispensing line and at a position adjacent to the upstream side of the sampling area. When a specimen rack exists in the sampling area at the time of measuring an emergency specimen rack, a controller moves the specimen rack to the save area and positions the emergency specimen rack to be moved from a downstream side of the sampling area to the sampling area.

To provide an automated analyzer with a built-in, user-friendly printer that can avoid contamination of printed paper of the printer by having a housing front wall 102 provided in a recessed manner from a front end 101 of a housing upper portion that has disposed thereon a sample disc 110, a reagent disc 120, a reaction disc, a sample dispensing mechanism, and a reagent dispensing mechanism, and by having a printer 200 and a paper receptacle 210 disposed on the housing front wall. The front end portion of the housing upper portion that projects beyond the housing front wall serves as eaves, thereby preventing a sample or a reagent that may be spilled on the housing upper portion from staining the printer or printing paper.

An automated instrument for processing a sample includes a first lock configured to move between a locked configuration and an unlocked configuration. The first lock is configured to be engaged with a first movable holding structure in the locked configuration to secure the first holding structure within the automated instrument. The first lock is configured to be disengaged from the first holding structure in the unlocked configuration to allow movement of the first holding structure within the automated instrument. The automated instrument also includes a robotic arm movable within the automated instrument and configured to move the first lock between the locked configuration and the unlocked configuration. The first holding structure is configured to hold a sample processing device and configured to move within the automated instrument when the first lock is in the unlocked configuration. The robotic arm can also be configured to move the sample processing device within the system.

A seed sampling system is provided comprising an automated seed loading assembly operable to singulate seeds from a plurality of seeds or enable loading of individually stored seeds and an automated seed sampling assembly comprising at least one sampling module operable to remove tissue samples from one of the singulated seeds. The system also includes an automated seed transport assembly comprising at least one retention member operable to transfer the singulated seeds from at least one elevator unit of the seed loading assembly to the at least one sampling module of the seed sampling assembly. In connection therewith, the at least one sampling module includes multiple sampling locations, each associated with a sampler, where the at least one sampling module is operable to remove tissue samples from seeds at one of sampling locations while another one of the sampling locations is cleaned to remove residual seed tissue therefrom.