A fluid container holder includes a body having a receptacle configured to receive a container. The body has a conductive outer surface for connection to an electrical ground or voltage source, and the holder is not formed solely of an electrically conductive metal. A fluid container handling assembly includes a drawer having a holder supporting a fluid container, and a frame supporting the holder. The frame is movable between a first position providing access to the holder and a second position positioning the holder within the instrument. The assembly also includes a first lock securing the holder to the frame when the frame is at the first frame position and unlocking the holder from the frame when the frame is at the second frame position. The assembly also includes a holder transporter configured to move the holder between a first holder position and a second holder position within the instrument.

Incubation system and method for automated cell culture and/or testing. An exemplary incubation system may comprise a housing forming a chamber. A rack may define storage positions to support an array of sample holders inside the chamber. A detection robot may be configured to capture one or more images of cells contained by one or more wells of each sample holder while the sample holder remains at one of the storage positions of the rack. A fluid handling station may be configured to add fluid to, and/or remove fluid from, one or more wells of each of the sample holders inside the housing. At least one plate robot may be configured to move sample holders between the rack and the fluid handling station. A computer may control operation of the detection robot, the fluid handling station, and the at least one plate robot.

A device for loading an automated analysis system is presented. The device comprises a chassis, a movable loading element movably coupled to the chassis and configured to move between a first and a second position, a holding structure, the holding structure being floatingly coupled to the movable loading element, the holding structure being configured to hold a receptacle for material to be loaded into the automated analysis system, a first alignment element attached to the chassis and a second alignment element attached to the holding structure. The first alignment element is configured to engage with the second alignment element to align the holding structure in a predetermined position relative to the chassis when the movable loading element is in the second position.

The technology described herein generally relates to systems for extracting polynucleotides from multiple samples, particularly from biological samples, and additionally to systems that subsequently amplify and detect the extracted polynucleotides. The technology more particularly relates to microfluidic systems that carry out PCR on multiple samples of nucleotides of interest within microfluidic channels, and detect those nucleotides.

An automated low-temperature storage for storing laboratory samples includes a storage zone for storing the samples that is maintainable at a first temperature below 20 C.; a handling zone located above the storage zone that is maintainable at a second temperature above the first temperature and below 0 C.; a chamber laterally adjacent to the storage zone and the handling zone for storing the samples at a third temperature that is higher than the first temperature and below 0 C.; and a vertical wall separating the chamber from the handling zone and storage zone. A first opening arranged in said vertical wall connects the handling zone and the chamber; and an automated transport device is arranged at least partially in the handling zone and is configured to move the samples between the storage zone, the handling zone, and the chamber.

The present invention relates to methods, devices and systems for associating consumable data with an assay consumable used in a biological assay. Provided are assay systems and associated consumables, wherein the assay system adjusts one or more steps of an assay protocol based on consumable data specific for that consumable. Various types of consumable data are described, as well as methods of using such information in the conduct of an assay by an assay system.

Described is a modular microfluidic device (MMD) for producing an analytic composition from a biological fluid sample, said device comprising a reagent module (RM) comprising a reagent reservoir containing a reagent and an eluent reservoir containing an eluent, said reagent and eluent reservoirs being coupled to one or more RM microchannels; and a sample preparation module (SPM) comprising a SPM microchannel adapted to couple with the RM microchannel whereby fluid continuity between SPM and RM microchannels is produced on coupling, and: (i) a sample inlet for receiving said biological fluid sample; (ii) an outlet for delivering said analyte composition; (iii) a sensor component; (iv) a mixing chamber; (v) a metering chamber; (vi) an eluent chamber; (vii) a valve; and (viii) a solid phase extraction element (SPE); wherein said metering chamber is of fixed volume and shape and substantially ellipsoidal, the metering chamber having an inlet and an outlet, said inlet and/or outlet being in fluid communication with one or more microchannel(s) of the MMD.

Embodiments of the disclosure relate to methods of storing and using biosamples with a cartridge that includes slots for storing biosample capillary tubes. The methods include providing access to a holder inside an enclosure of the cartridge, the enclosure having a same form factor as a data tape cartridge used in an automated tape library. The holder is configured to receive a plurality of capillary tubes in the holder, the capillary tubes including one or more biosamples. Exemplary methods may also include receiving capillary tubes in the cartridge, withdrawing capillary tubes from the cartridge, scanning and/or analyzing the capillary tubes and/or biosamples. Exemplary methods may additionally or alternatively include retrieving the cartridge from a storage slot of the automated tape library, loading the cartridge onto a drive of the automated tape library, and/or receiving and/or exporting a cartridge to/from the automated tape library via a mail slot.

A device for receiving, stacking, and removing microplates is presented and described. The device comprises a tower for stacking the microplates, wherein a microplate comprises a container and, optionally, a lid. There is a retaining device at the lower end of the tower, which has a first retaining tool and a second retaining tool, and preferably partially encompasses a microplate. The first retaining tool is designed to hold a microplate in a form-fitting manner. The second retaining tool is designed to fix a container in the microplate in place in a frictional manner. The first retaining tool is above the second retaining tool in the stacking direction. A system that comprises the device described above, a dispenser device, and a transport device, is also disclosed. The dispenser device is used to fill microplates, and the transport device is used to add and remove microplates to and from the device.

A rover-based integrated laboratory system including autonomous mobile robots is disclosed. Namely, a rover-based integrated laboratory system is disclosed comprising a workspace; a laboratory component within the workspace, the laboratory component being adapted to perform a laboratory technique; a labware component within the workspace that is adapted to be used in the laboratory technique; and a rover component within the workspace that is operatively connected to the laboratory and the labware components, the rover component being an autonomous mobile robot.