A system for extracting analytes from a biological sample, which includes: an electronic pipette having pipette cones with a tip; a well support; a pipette holder including: a base which can removably house each well support; a pipette support into which the pipette is inserted, and which can move relative to the base between a first position in which the tips of the cones are inserted in a well of the support and at least one second position in which the tips are outside the wells; a housing facing the pipette cones above their tip when the pipette support is in the first position, and facing the tips of the pipette cones when the pipette support is in the second position; and a magnetized part removably inserted in the housing.

The present invention relates to an automated analytical system and an automated method for separating and detecting an analyte, as well as an automated analytical instrument.

A system for loading pipette tips. A system for accommodating pipette tips is provided, comprising a tray having openings for accommodating pipette tips in a plate, wherein the openings have at their upper end a surrounding contour which has curved surface area corresponding to a section of a spherical washer, and pipette tips having at their upper end an offset forming a contact surface for the surrounding contour of the tray's opening, wherein the shape of the contact surface corresponds to the section of a spherical washer so that the centers of both spheres of surrounding contour and contact surface are congruent

An adapter for connecting an array of pipette tips having through bores with conical upper ends to a multichannel air displacement pipettor having a plurality of ports with compliant internal sealing surfaces. The adapter comprises a planar base with an array of openings extending between its top and bottom surfaces. Sealing tubes project upwardly from the top surface, and tip mounting tubes project downwardly from the bottom surface, with pairs of sealing tubes and tip mounting tubes being arranged coaxially and in communication with respective ones of the openings in the base. The tip mounting tubes are externally dimensioned and configured for insertion into the conical upper ends of the pipette tips, and the sealing tubes are externally configured and dimensioned for insertion into the ports of the pipettor and into sealing interengagement with their compliant internal sealing surfaces.

A pipette tip system for use with a plurality of pipette tips is disclosed that includes a support card and a support card lid. The support card includes an array of pipette tip receiver openings arranged in a N×M array, wherein the N is less than M. The support card further has a short-side card rail edge on an edge of the support card along the N side of the array, and a long-side card rail edge on an edge of the support card along the M side of the array. The support card lid includes a long-side lid rail edge extending from a support card first surface, which is adapted to slidably mate with the long-side card rail edge, and a short-side lid rail edge extending from a support card second surface, which is adapted to slidably mate with the short-side card rail edge.

A pipette tip system for use with a plurality of pipette tips is disclosed that includes a support card connected to a base, wherein the base comprises an interlocking structure constructed to mate with an adjacent base. This unique base can be used with the several embodiments disclosed herein.

A system is disclosed for measuring head framing and tip straightness in a liquid handler. The present system uses a test plate, having an upper surface formed of clay or other impressionable material. The test plate may be placed at a liquid handling station. Pipette tips may then be loaded onto the head, and the head positioned at the station including the test plate. The head may be actuated in the z-direction so that the tips leave an imprint in the upper surface of the test plate. The imprint of the tips on the test plate may then be analyzed using any of a variety of measurement techniques to determine head framing alignment or misalignment.

Embodiments of lab automation workstations are disclosed in which the pod that performs pipetting operations is integrated with pipette tip-loading functionality. To generate the necessary tip-loading force, a dual drive system is used that is symmetric about the Y-axis to allow for offset or partial tip box loads by dynamically centering the drive force (e.g., the tip-loading force) over the reaction load. This minimizes the need for oversized linear motion components while still allowing for the generation of high tip-loading forces needed to properly load a large number of pipette tips simultaneously.

Provided herein is a pipette tip tray that includes a base and a connected pipette tip receptacle plate, where the base includes a plurality of axially-disposed base ribs disposed on two or more internal wall surfaces, the pipette receptacle plate includes a plurality of plate ribs disposed on the distal surface of the plate, and a portion of at least a subset of the plate ribs is in contact with at least a portion of an end of at least a subset of the base ribs.

The system includes a pipette tip with a proximal end that has a rim. The rim defines a proximal opening adapted to receive a pipetter, and the rim includes a rim conical edge. The system also has a support card with a top surface, a pipette tip receiver opening within the top surface, the opening adapted to receive the pipette tip and having a receiver opening conical edge. The rim conical edge and the receiver opening conical edge are constructed such that when the pipette tip is disposed of in the pipette tip receiver opening, the rim conical edge abuts the receiver opening conical edge, and the top surface is flush with or nearly flush with the rim.