A laboratory distribution system is presented. The system comprises diagnostic laboratory container carriers and a conveyor. The conveyor comprises an endless drive defining a closed-loop conveyor pathway. The system comprises supporting elements attached to the endless drive. The supporting elements receive a container carrier and transport the container carrier in an upright position along a pathway section. The supporting elements are mounted pivotally about a horizontal pivot axis to the drive and structured such that a center of gravity of the supporting element with or without an empty or loaded container carrier is arranged below and vertically aligned with the pivot axis when the supporting element is in an upright position such that each supporting element is free to pivot about the associated pivot axis under the effect of gravitational forces acting on the supporting element for maintaining the supporting elements in an upright position while travelling along the path.

The present invention provides a production-line-type high-throughput screening system, which relates to the field of biotechnology and testing equipment. The system comprises of four manipulators, three parallel conveyor belts with fixed slots, 2-DOF slipway and fixed fixtures, 96-channel pipetting system, coloring device, oscillating mixing device, microplate reader, well plates loading platform and well plates recycling platform. Manual operation takes five minutes to detect one 96-well plate, while this system can handle 20 96-well plates per minute. It expands the number of screening targets, making the screening process more clearly and concisely and liberating manual labor. The system makes effective contributions to the development of microbial breeding technology.

An apparatus for the transfer of conveying devices of containers of biological products between laboratory automation systems placed at different heights. The apparatus include a motor-driven belt arranged transversely with respect to the automation systems. Shelves are fixed to the motor-driven belt for accommodating the conveying devices during the transfer. The conveying devices are loaded/unloaded on/from the shelves of the apparatus by the action of pushers. The belt allows for, by rotation, a simultaneous bidirectional transfer, both in ascent and descent, of conveying devices from one automation system to the other.

A reaction cuvette moving device and a fully automatic chemiluminescence immunoassay apparatus. The reaction cuvette moving device includes a transmission mechanism and a push mechanism, wherein the transmission mechanism comprises a baseplate and a first horizontal transmission mechanism provided on the baseplate. The push mechanism includes a support assembly, a second horizontal transmission mechanism provided on the support assembly, and a push rod connected to the second horizontal transmission mechanism.

A full-automatic sample pretreatment device includes a frame module, a cap removing module, a blood-collection tube grasping module, a pipette module, a platform module, a handling module, a film sealing module, a magnetic solid phase extraction module, an SPE positive pressure extraction module and a conveyor belt waste transfer module. A conveyor belt waste transfer module is arranged at a bottom of the frame module, the cap removing module, the platform module and the magnetic solid phase extraction module are sequentially arranged in the middle of the frame module from left to right, and the blood-collection tube grasping module, the pipette module, the handling module and the film sealing module are arranged at an upper portion of the frame module. The magnetic solid phase extraction module and the SPE positive pressure extraction module are detachable and interchangeable components.

Described is a method for loading a sample-vial carrier into a sample manager of a liquid chromatography system. The method includes placing a sample-vial carrier onto a transfer drawer having first and second drawer magnets. The transfer drawer is transported into a sample tray of a sample manager using a drawer drive system of a transfer drawer receiving apparatus. The drawer drive system has a drive magnet that is engaged with the first drawer magnet during transport. The transport of the transfer drawer is terminated when the second drawer magnet is engaged with a sample tray magnet on the sample tray. The sample tray is rotated about an axis substantially perpendicular to a direction of transport of the transfer drawer to provide a shear force to disengage the first drawer magnet from the drive magnet.

One actuator (a gripper mechanism and reagent bottle lid opening mechanism drive unit 120) drives a gripper mechanism 106 that holds a reagent bottle 10 and a reagent bottle lid opening mechanism 104 that incises a lid of the reagent bottle 10. The gripper mechanism 106 operates to ascend when the reagent bottle lid opening mechanism 104 operates to descend in order to incise the reagent bottle lid 112, and the reagent bottle lid opening mechanism 104 operates to ascend when the gripper mechanism 106 operates to descend in order to hold the reagent bottle 10. The reagent bottle lid opening mechanism 104 and the gripper mechanism 106 operate without interfering with each other's functions.

A sample container for an agricultural sample such as soil comprises: an elongated tubular body defining a longitudinal axis, a top end, a bottom end, and an internal cavity extending between the ends configured for holding the sample; a first cap detachably coupled to the top end; and a second cap slideably disposed in the cavity, the second cap being movable in opposing directions between the top and bottom ends.

A sample unloading system comprising: a wash-down enclosure defining an inner chamber; a rotatable carriage disposed in the inner chamber, the carriage configured to receive a sample tube containing an agricultural material and rotate the sample tube between a plurality of rotational positions; a tube gripper mechanism disposed on the carriage, the tube gripper mechanism configured to selectively engage the sample tube when positioned in the carriage; wherein the tube gripper mechanism retains the sample tube in the carriage when the sample tube is in an inverted position.

Described is an apparatus for controlling a position of a sample in a liquid chromatography system. The apparatus includes a rotary drive mechanism, a stepper motor and a rotational coupling system such as a drive belt and pulley system. The rotational coupling system transfers the rotational motion of a motor shaft to a shaft of the rotary drive mechanism. Advantageously, the stepper motor is remote to the sample compartment for improved safety in the event that volatile gas accumulates within the sample compartment. The rotary drive mechanism can be configured in a small form factor and can provide highly stable rotation of an attached sample tray to accommodate the requirements of compact liquid chromatography systems. In addition, leakage from inside the sample compartment to the ambient environment is substantially reduced or eliminated, resulting in better thermal control of the sample compartment.