Method and system for laboratory sample tracking

Abstract

To provide scientific instrument support systems, as well as related methods, computing devices, and computer-readable media.SOLUTION: A method includes automatically generating a sample identifier for a sample, receiving sample information for the sample, and generating a data structure ledger for the sample. The data structure ledger includes an initial ledger block with the sample identifier and the sample information. The method also includes receiving experiment data relating to the sample, generating an experiment ledger block in the data structure ledger, receiving a request for a report corresponding to the sample, querying the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request, and generating the report based on the ledger data received in response to the query.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 629,956, filed September 25, 2023, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. [Background technology]

[0002] Clinical and testing laboratories receive samples for analysis, which may be divided into aliquots, and each sample (each aliquot) may be prepared and / or analyzed by a number of scientific instruments, including, for example, chromatographs (e.g., gas, liquid, etc.), spectrometers, etc. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0003] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The embodiments will be readily understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: For ease of description, like reference numerals denote like structural elements, and in which: FIG. [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary scientific instrument support system for performing support operations, according to various embodiments. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary scientific instrument support module for performing support operations, according to various embodiments. [Diagram 3] 1 is an example of a graphical user interface that may be used to perform some or all of the assistance methods disclosed herein, according to various embodiments. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example computing device that may perform some or all of the scientific instrument support methods disclosed herein, in accordance with various embodiments. [Diagram 5] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example scientific instrument support system that may perform some or all of the scientific instrument support methods disclosed herein, in accordance with various embodiments. [Figure 6]1 is a flow diagram of an exemplary method for performing an assistive action, according to various embodiments. [Figure 7A] 1 is an example of a graphical user interface that may be used to perform some or all of the assistance methods disclosed herein, according to various embodiments. [Figure 7B] 1 is an example of a graphical user interface that may be used to perform some or all of the assistance methods disclosed herein, according to various embodiments. [Figure 7C] 1 is an example of a graphical user interface that may be used to perform some or all of the assistance methods disclosed herein, according to various embodiments. [Figure 7D] 1 is an example of a graphical user interface that may be used to perform some or all of the assistance methods disclosed herein, according to various embodiments. [Figure 8] 1 is an example of a graphical user interface that may be used to perform some or all of the assistance methods disclosed herein, according to various embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0004] In a laboratory environment, samples are processed and / or analyzed by one or more scientific instruments (e.g., via one or more aliquots) to determine, for example, the presence or absence of a compound in the sample, or the amount of a compound in the sample. Each scientific instrument that processes and / or analyzes the sample may use a different software application to perform the analysis and generate the analysis results. Thus, to generate a report about the sample, a technician manually collects information from each of the scientific instruments and manually compiles the collected information. Because the technician must track the sample across different aliquots and / or scientific instructions, as well as across results that may be generated by different software applications that may use different schemes to identify the sample, ensuring that the report includes all applicable results associated with the sample is tedious and error-prone. A laboratory information management system (LIMS) may be used to track samples through various experiments performed by one or more scientific instruments. However, a LIMS may still face some of the problems described above. Input into such a LIMS is done manually by the technician, and the LIMS is not integrated with the scientific instruments. The different ways in which data is generated and stored by the LIMS and scientific instruments can make it difficult to map results to a particular sample being tracked through the LIMS. In addition, the LIMS stores only a subset of the data associated with a sample. The data stored by the LIMS may not be inherently linked to the sample's metadata. Thus, not only is report generation very cumbersome and error-prone, but it often also results in inefficient use of laboratory resources, including equipment use, consumable use, data processing use, and bandwidth use.

[0005] Thus, to address these and other problems with existing laboratory environments and related management techniques, a scientific instrument support system, as well as related methods, computing devices, and computer readable media, are disclosed herein. For example, in some embodiments, a method is provided that includes generating, with a processing device, a sample identifier for a sample, receiving, with the processing device, sample information about the sample, receiving, with the processing device, experimental data related to the sample from a plurality of scientific instruments, and generating, with the processing device, a data structure ledger for the sample that includes the sample identifier and the experimental data linked to the sample information. The method also includes receiving a request for a report corresponding to the sample, querying the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request, and generating the report based on the ledger data received in response to the query.

[0006] In some embodiments, the scientific instrument support system includes a processing device or set of processing devices configured to generate a sample identifier for a sample, receive sample information about the sample, and generate a data structure ledger for the sample. The data structure ledger includes an initial ledger block having the sample identifier and the sample information. The processing device or set of processing devices is also configured to generate an experiment ledger block in the data structure ledger. The experiment ledger block includes the experiment data received from the scientific instrument. The processing device or set of processing devices is further configured to receive a request for a report corresponding to the sample, query the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request, and generate the report based on the ledger data received in response to the query.

[0007] In some embodiments, the scientific instrument support device includes first logic for generating a sample identifier for the sample, second logic for receiving sample information for the sample, and third logic for generating a data structure ledger for the sample. The data structure ledger includes an initial ledger block having the sample identifier and the sample information. The scientific instrument support device also includes fourth logic for generating a time-stamped experiment ledger block in the data structure ledger. The experiment ledger block includes the experiment data received from the plurality of scientific instruments. The scientific instrument support device further includes fifth logic for receiving a request for a report corresponding to the sample, sixth logic for querying the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request, and seventh logic for generating the report based on the ledger data received in response to the query.

[0008] The embodiments of scientific instrument support disclosed herein may achieve improved performance compared to conventional approaches. For example, the described sample tracking methods and systems significantly improve sample information storage and retrieval for report generation. In particular, the described methods and systems allow for easy integration of data from various scientific instrument analyses performed on samples so that the data can be accessed later to generate reports. Hence, the embodiments disclosed herein provide improvements to scientific instrument technology (e.g., improvements in computer technology supporting such scientific instruments, among others). The overall laboratory platform (e.g., the Ardia™ platform) may create the opportunity to ensure that result data is written to / correlated with any required sample information to create an audit trail of the sample.

[0009] Various of the embodiments disclosed herein may improve upon conventional approaches to achieve technical advantages of higher throughput and data validation through improved data structure relationships between various experiments performed on a sample. Such technical advantages are not achievable with routine conventional approaches, and all users of a system including such embodiments benefit from these advantages (e.g., by assisting the user in performing technical tasks such as generating reports on a sample through a guided human-machine interaction process). As discussed further herein, various aspects of the embodiments disclosed herein may improve the functionality of the computer itself, such as the speed at which sample data can be analyzed and subsequently retrieved. The computational and user interface features disclosed herein not only involve the collection and comparison of information, but also apply new analytical and technical techniques to modify the operation of scientific support equipment. Thus, the present disclosure introduces capabilities that neither conventional computing devices nor humans could perform.

[0010] In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part of this specification, in which like numerals designate like parts throughout and which show, by way of illustration, embodiments which may be implemented. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural or logical changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, the following detailed description is not to be taken in a limiting sense.

[0011] Various operations may be described as multiple separate actions or operations, in the order that is most helpful in understanding the subject matter disclosed herein. However, the order of description should not be construed as implying that these operations are necessarily order dependent. In particular, these operations may not be performed in the order presented. The operations described may be performed in a different order than in the described embodiment. Various additional operations may be performed and / or described operations may be omitted in additional embodiments.

[0012] For purposes of this disclosure, the phrases "A and / or B" and "A or B" mean (A), (B), or (A and B). For purposes of this disclosure, the phrases "A, B, and / or C" and "A, B, or C" mean (A), (B), (C), (A and B), (A and C), (B and C), or (A, B, and C). Although some elements may be referred to in the singular (e.g., a "processing device"), any suitable element may be represented by multiple instances of that element, and vice versa. For example, a set of operations described as being performed by a processing device may be implemented with different ones of the operations performed by different processing devices.

[0013] This description uses the phrases "one embodiment," "various embodiments," and "several embodiments," each of which may refer to one or more of the same or different embodiments. Additionally, terms such as "comprising," "including," and "having" used with respect to embodiments of the present disclosure are synonymous. When used to describe a range of dimensions, the phrase "between X and Y" represents a range that includes X and Y. As used herein, an "apparatus" may refer to any individual device, a collection of devices, a portion of a device, or a collection of portions of devices. The drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.

[0014] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a scientific instrument support system 100 (hereinafter simply referred to as the support system 100) for performing support operations, according to various embodiments. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the support system 100 includes a number of instrument computing devices 104 connected via a communication network 120. Each instrument computing device 104 is communicatively connected to a scientific instrument 108 and a corresponding support device 112. The support device 112 is a physical entity that performs some function of sample preparation and / or sample analysis. The support device 112 may include, for example, sensors, detectors, actuators, spectrometers, spectrograms, oscilloscopes, electrometers, interferometers, and the like. The scientific instrument 108 is a logic container that includes a collection of the support devices 112. For example, the support devices 112 cooperate to perform operations and produce results. The scientific instrument 108, including the collection of the support devices 112, prepares or analyzes inputs, such as, for example, blood samples or other biological samples, semiconductors, chemical compounds, solutions, foods, and drug samples. The scientific instruments 108 may include, for example, liquid chromatography instruments, gas chromatography instruments, ion chromatography instruments, mass spectrometry instruments, trace element instruments (e.g., inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy, atomic absorption spectrometry, etc.), capillary electrophoresis instruments, and spectroscopy instruments.

[0015] The assistance system 100 includes a database 116, a server 124, and a user device 128 communicatively coupled to a plurality of appliance computing devices 104 (and each other) through a communication network 120. It should be understood that the assistance system 100 may include fewer or additional components than those illustrated in FIG. 1. For example, the assistance system 100 may include fewer or more appliance computing devices 104, a plurality of servers 124, a plurality of databases 116, or a combination thereof. In some instances, the database 116 may be implemented by the server 124 or a cloud service provider. The components of the assistance system 100 may communicate through one or more intermediate devices not illustrated in FIG. 1.

[0016] The server 124 may act as a "control hub" for multiple instrument computing devices 104. For example, the server 124 may track the status of each instrument computing device 104 to track the availability of the scientific instruments 108 and the experiments being run on the scientific instruments 108. The server 124 may communicate with each of the instrument computing devices 104 by sending commands to the instrument computing devices 104 to write the experimental data to a data structure ledger, as described further below, or may be responsible for writing experimental data output by a particular instrument to a data structure ledger, as described further below. For example, the server 124 may implement a server-based platform (e.g., Thermo Fisher Scientific's Ardia™ platform), which may be implemented as a cloud-based platform or using a private server. The server 124 may discover and register the instrument computing devices 104, and collect and coordinate information output by the instrument computing devices 104. The server-based platform helps ensure that sample information and experimental data are stored and accessible by laboratory equipment and devices. The server 124 may act as a control or facilitation hub for the entire platform (e.g., for a centralized ledger example) to facilitate sample audit trails and ensure that result data from experiments is written to and correlated with any necessary sample information (e.g., a sample identifier), project information (e.g., a project identifier), user information (e.g., a user identifier), or equipment information (e.g., an equipment identifier), etc. to create a sample audit trail.

[0017] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a scientific instrument support module 200 for performing support operations, according to various embodiments. The scientific instrument support module 200 may be, for example, the server 124 and / or the instrument computing device 104. The scientific instrument support module 200 may be implemented by a circuit (e.g., including electrical and / or optical components) such as a programmed computing device. The logic of the scientific instrument support module 200 may be included in a single computing device or may be distributed across multiple computing devices that communicate with each other as needed. An example of a computing device that may implement the scientific instrument support module 200, alone or in combination, is discussed herein with reference to the computing device 400 of FIG. 4, and an example of a system of interconnected computing devices in which the scientific instrument support module 200 may be implemented across one or more of the computing devices is discussed herein with reference to the scientific instrument support system 500 of FIG. 5.

[0018] The scientific instrument support module 200 may include ledger logic 202, block logic 204, and report logic 206. As used herein, the term "logic" may include an apparatus that performs a set of operations associated with the logic. For example, any of the logic elements included in the support module 200 may be implemented by one or more computing devices programmed with instructions to cause one or more processing devices of the computing devices to perform the set of associated operations. In certain embodiments, a logic element may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable media having instructions that, when executed by one or more processing devices of the one or more computing devices, cause the one or more computing devices to perform the set of associated operations. As used herein, the term "module" may refer to a collection of one or more logic elements that together perform a function associated with the module. Different ones of the logic elements in a module may take the same form or different forms. For example, some logic in a module may be implemented by a programmed general-purpose processing device and other logic in the module may be implemented by an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). In another example, different ones of the logic elements in a module may be associated with different sets of instructions executed by one or more processing devices. A module may not include all of the logic elements illustrated in an associated drawing, e.g., a module may include a subset of the logic elements illustrated in an associated drawing when that module performs a subset of the operations described herein with reference to that module.

[0019] The ledger logic 202 may create a data structure ledger for each sample received by the laboratory or for each project (including multiple samples) performed by the laboratory. In one embodiment, the data structure ledger may be a blockchain ledger, such as a distributed blockchain ledger (peer-to-peer, federated, public, public, permissioned, permissionless, etc.), or a centralized blockchain ledger. In other embodiments, the data structure ledger may be distributed or centralized and may be based on various ledger technologies and infrastructures, such as, but not limited to, blockchain, such as IOTA, cache graphs, directed acyclic graphs (DAGs), distributed hash tables, Merkle trees, Adelson-Velsky and Landis (AVL) trees, B-trees, stacks, queues, or hybrid combinations of different data structures and infrastructures. In some embodiments, the data structure ledger may be a relational table, a hash table, and / or a linked list, etc. The ledger logic 202 may automatically generate a unique sample identifier for each sample being tracked. The ledger logic 202 receives sample information about the samples and correlates the sample information with a sample identifier or other identifier, for example, using a data structure object.

[0020] The block logic 204 may generate an experiment block in the data structure ledger that includes experimental data regarding the sample. The block logic 204 may receive the experimental data corresponding to an experiment performed on the sample by the scientific instrument 108. The block logic 204 generates an experiment data block that includes a reference to the data structure ledger or a node or block within the data structure ledger. For example, the experiment ledger block may include a hash with a reference to a previous block in the data structure ledger of the block. An experiment block is, for example, an entry in the data structure ledger and need not be in the form of a block of a blockchain. An experiment block may include, for example, a table entry, and / or a pointer data structure entry, etc. An experiment block may be created using a block object, which may be similar to the data structure object discussed above.

[0021] The report logic 206 may generate reports from the data structure logic based on queries from a user. The queries may include requests for data associated with one or more experiments performed on a sample. The report logic 206 retrieves the relevant data from the data structure ledger and automatically generates reports based on the data.

[0022] The scientific instrument assistance methods disclosed herein may include interactions with a human user (e.g., via a user local computing device 520 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 5). These interactions may include providing information to the user (e.g., information regarding the operation of a scientific instrument such as the scientific instrument 510 of FIG. 5, information regarding a sample being analyzed or other tests or measurements performed by the scientific instrument, information obtained from a local or remote database, or other information) or providing options for the user to enter commands (e.g., to control the operation of a scientific instrument such as the scientific instrument 510 of FIG. 5 or to control the analysis of data generated by the scientific instrument), queries (e.g., to a local or remote database), or other information. In some embodiments, these interactions may occur through a graphical user interface (GUI) that includes a visual display on a display device (e.g., display device 410, discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4) that provides output to the user and / or prompts the user to provide input (e.g., via one or more input devices, such as a keyboard, mouse, trackpad, or touch screen included in other I / O devices 412, discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4). The scientific instrument support system disclosed herein may include any suitable GUI for interaction with a user.

[0023] 3 illustrates an exemplary GUI 300 that may be used in performing some or all of the assistance methods disclosed herein, according to various embodiments. As described above, the GUI 300 may be provided on a display device (e.g., the display device 410 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4) of a computing device (e.g., the computing device 400 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4) of a scientific instrument assistance system (e.g., the scientific instrument assistance system 500 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 5), and a user may interact with the GUI 300 using any suitable input device (e.g., any of the input devices included in the other I / O devices 412 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4) and input technique (e.g., cursor movement, motion capture, face recognition, gesture detection, voice recognition, button actuation, etc.).

[0024] GUI 300 may include a data display area 302, a data analysis area 304, a scientific instrument control area 306, and a settings area 308. The particular number and arrangement of areas illustrated in Figure 3 is merely illustrative, and GUI 300 may include any number and arrangement of areas, including any desired features. Representations such as those in Figures 7A-8 may be included in any suitable area of ​​GUI 300 (e.g., in data display area 302 or data analysis area 304 of GUI 300).

[0025] The data display area 302 may display data generated by a scientific instrument (e.g., the scientific instrument 510 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 5). For example, the data display area 302 may display experimental data, such as results of an experiment, sample identifiers for samples, experimental parameters, etc.

[0026] The data analysis area 304 may display the results of a data analysis (e.g., the results of analyzing the data illustrated in the data display area 302 and / or other data). For example, the data analysis area 304 may display a report generated based on a sample data structure ledger. In some embodiments, the data display area 302 and the data analysis area 304 may be combined in the GUI 300 (e.g., to include data output from a scientific instrument and several analyses of the data in a common graph or area).

[0027] The scientific instrument control area 306 may include options that allow a user to control a scientific instrument (e.g., the scientific instrument 510 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 5). For example, the scientific instrument control area 306 may include control functions for a chromatography instrument, a spectrometry instrument, or the like.

[0028] The settings area 308 may include options that enable a user to control features and functions of the GUI 300 (and / or other GUIs) and / or perform common computing operations related to the data display area 302 and the data analysis area 304 (e.g., saving the data on a storage device, such as the storage device 404 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4, sending the data to another user, labeling the data, etc.). For example, the settings area 308 may include options for how to display the sample information and / or query input features.

[0029] As mentioned above, the scientific instrument support module 200 may be implemented by one or more computing devices. Figure 4 is a block diagram of a computing device 400 that may perform some or all of the scientific instrument support methods disclosed herein, according to various embodiments. In some embodiments, the scientific instrument support module 200 may be implemented by a single computing device 400 or by multiple computing devices 400. Furthermore, as discussed below, the computing device 400 (or multiple computing devices 400) that implements the scientific instrument support module 200 may be part of one or more of the scientific instrument 510, the user local computing device 520, the service local computing device 530, or the remote computing device 540 of Figure 5.

[0030] 4 is illustrated as having several components, any one or more of which may be omitted or duplicated as appropriate for the application and setting. In some embodiments, some or all of the components included in computing device 400 may be mounted on one or more motherboards and encased in a housing (e.g., comprising plastic, metal, and / or other materials). In some embodiments, some of these components may be fabricated on a single system-on-a-chip (SoC) (e.g., an SoC may include one or more processing devices 402 and one or more storage devices 404). 4, but may include interface circuitry (not shown) for coupling to one or more components using any suitable interface (e.g., a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface, a High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) interface, a Controller Area Network (CAN) interface, a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) interface, an Ethernet interface, a wireless interface, or any other suitable interface). For example, computing device 400 may not include display device 410, but may include display device interface circuitry (e.g., connector and driver circuitry) to which display device 410 may be coupled.

[0031] Computing device 400 may include processing device 402 (e.g., one or more processing devices). As used herein, the term "processing device" may refer to any device or portion of a device that processes electronic data from registers and / or memory and converts the electronic data into other electronic data that may be stored in registers and / or memory. Processing device 402 (i.e., electronic processing device or electronic processor) may include one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), central processing units (CPUs), graphics processing units (GPUs), cryptographic processors (dedicated processors that execute cryptographic algorithms in hardware), server processors, or any other suitable processing devices.

[0032] The computing device 400 may include a storage device 404 (e.g., one or more storage devices). The storage device 404 may include one or more memory devices, such as random access memory (RAM) (e.g., a static RAM (SRAM) device, a magnetic RAM (MRAM) device, a dynamic RAM (DRAM) device, a resistive RAM (RRAM) device, or a conductive-bridging RAM (CBRAM) device), a hard-drive-based memory device, a solid-state memory device, a network drive, a cloud drive, or any combination of memory devices. In some embodiments, the storage device 404 may include memory that shares a die with the processing device 402. In such embodiments, the memory may be used as a cache memory and may include, for example, an embedded dynamic random access memory (eDRAM) or a spin transfer torque magnetic random access memory (STT-MRAM). In some embodiments, storage device 404 may include a non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions that, when executed by one or more processing devices (e.g., processing device 402), cause computing device 400 to perform any suitable of the methods or portions of those methods disclosed herein.

[0033] Computing device 400 may include an interface device 406 (e.g., one or more interface devices 406). Interface device 406 may include one or more communication chips, connectors, and / or other hardware and software to manage communications between computing device 400 and other computing devices. For example, interface device 406 may include circuitry to manage wireless communications to transfer data to and from computing device 400. The term "wireless" and its derivatives may be used to describe circuits, devices, systems, methods, techniques, communication channels, etc. that may communicate data through the use of modulated electromagnetic radiation over a non-solid medium. This term does not imply that the associated device does not include any wiring, although in some embodiments it may not. The circuitry included in interface device 406 for managing wireless communications may implement any of a number of wireless standards or protocols, including, but not limited to, Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11 family), IEEE 802.16 standards (e.g., IEEE 802.16-2005 amendment), Institute for Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) standards including the Long-Term Evolution (LTE) project (e.g., advanced LTE project, ultra mobile broadband (UMB) project (also referred to as “3GPP®2”), etc.) with any amendments, updates, and / or revisions.In some embodiments, the circuitry included in the interface device 4006 for managing wireless communications may operate in accordance with a Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), Evolved HSPA (E-HSPA), or LTE network. In some embodiments, the circuitry included in the interface device 4006 for managing wireless communications may operate in accordance with an Enhanced Data for GSM Evolution (EDGE), GSM EDGE Radio Access Network (GERAN), Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN), or Evolved UTRAN (E-UTRAN). In some embodiments, circuitry included in interface device 406 for managing wireless communications may operate according to Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT), Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO), and derivatives thereof, as well as any other wireless protocols designated as 3G, 4G, 5G, and beyond. In some embodiments, interface device 406 may include one or more antennas (e.g., one or more antenna arrays) for receiving and / or transmitting wireless communications.

[0034] In some embodiments, the interface device 406 may include circuitry for managing wired communications, such as electrical, optical, or any other suitable communications protocol. For example, the interface device 406 may include circuitry supporting communications according to Ethernet technology. In some embodiments, the interface device 406 may support both wireless and wired communications, and / or support multiple wired and / or wireless communications protocols. For example, a first set of circuits of the interface device 406 may be dedicated to short-range wireless communications, such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, and a second set of circuits of the interface device 406 may be dedicated to long-range wireless communications, such as global positioning system (GPS), EDGE, GPRS, CDMA, WiMAX, LTE, EV-DO, etc. In some embodiments, the first set of circuits of the interface device 406 may be dedicated to wireless communications, and the second set of circuits of the interface device 406 may be dedicated to wired communications.

[0035] Computing device 400 may include battery / power circuitry 408. Battery / power circuitry 408 may include one or more energy storage devices (e.g., batteries or capacitors) and / or circuitry for coupling components of computing device 400 to an energy source separate from computing device 400 (e.g., AC line power).

[0036] Computing device 400 may include a display device 410 (e.g., multiple display devices), which may include any visual display, such as a head-up display, a computer monitor, a projector, a touch screen display, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a light emitting diode display, or a flat panel display.

[0037] Computing device 400 may include other input / output (I / O) devices 412. Other I / O devices 412 may include, for example, one or more audio output devices (e.g., a speaker, a headset, an earpiece, an alarm, etc.), one or more audio input devices (e.g., a microphone or microphone array), a location device (e.g., a GPS device that communicates with a satellite-based system to receive the location of computing device 400, as known in the art), an audio codec, a video codec, a printer, sensors (e.g., a thermocouple or other temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, a pressure sensor, a vibration sensor, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, etc.), an image capture device such as a camera, a keyboard, a cursor control device (e.g., a mouse, a stylus, a trackball, or a touchpad), a barcode reader, a Quick Response (QR) code reader, or a radio frequency identification (RFID) reader.

[0038] Computing device 400 may have any form factor suitable for its application and configuration, such as a handheld or mobile computing device (e.g., a mobile phone, a smartphone, a mobile Internet device, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a netbook computer, an ultrabook computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), an ultra-mobile personal computer, etc.), a desktop computing device, or a server computing device or other networked computing component.

[0039] One or more computing devices implementing any of the scientific instrument support modules or methods disclosed herein may be part of a scientific instrument support system. Figure 5 is a block diagram of an exemplary scientific instrument support system 500 in which some or all of the scientific instrument support methods disclosed herein may be performed, according to various embodiments. The scientific instrument support modules and methods disclosed herein (e.g., the scientific instrument support system 100 of Figure 1, the scientific instrument support module 200 of Figure 2, and the method 600 of Figure 6) may be implemented by one or more of the scientific instruments 510, the user local computing device 520, the service local computing device 530, or the remote computing device 540 of the scientific instrument support system 500.

[0040] Any of the scientific instrument 510, the user local computing device 520, the service local computing device 530, or the remote computing device 540 may include any of the embodiments of the computing device 400 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4, and any of the scientific instrument 510, the user local computing device 520, the service local computing device 530, or the remote computing device 540 may take the form of any suitable embodiment of the computing device 400 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4.

[0041] Each of the scientific instruments 510, the user local computing device 520, the service local computing device 530, or the remote computing device 540 may include a processing device 502, a storage device 504, and an interface device 506. The processing device 502 may take any suitable form, including any form of the processing device 402 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4, and the processing devices 502 included in different ones of the scientific instruments 510, the user local computing device 520, the service local computing device 530, or the remote computing device 540 may take the same form or different forms. The storage device 504 may take any suitable form, including any form of the storage device 504 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4, and the storage devices 504 included in different ones of the scientific instruments 510, the user local computing device 520, the service local computing device 530, or the remote computing device 540 may take the same form or different forms. The interface device 506 may take any suitable form, including any of the forms of the interface device 406 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4, and the interface devices 506 included in different ones of the scientific instrument 510, the user local computing device 520, the service local computing device 530, or the remote computing device 540 may take the same or different forms.

[0042] The scientific instruments 510, the user local computing device 520, the service local computing device 530, and the remote computing device 540 may communicate with other elements of the scientific instrument support system 500 via communication paths 508. The communication paths 508 may be communicatively coupled to the interface devices 506 of the different elements of the scientific instrument support system 500 as shown, and may be wired or wireless communication paths (e.g., according to any of the communication techniques discussed herein with reference to the interface device 406 of the computing device 400 of FIG. 4). Although the particular scientific instrument support system 500 illustrated in FIG. 5 includes communication paths between each pair of the scientific instruments 510, the user local computing device 520, the service local computing device 530, and the remote computing device 540, this "fully connected" implementation is merely illustrative, and in various embodiments, various ones of the communication paths 508 may not be present. For example, in some embodiments, the service local computing device 530 may not have a direct communication path 508 between its interface device 506 and the interface device 506 of the scientific instrument 510, and instead may communicate with the scientific instrument 510 via a communication path 508 between the service local computing device 530 and the user local computing device 520, and a communication path 508 between the user local computing device 520 and the scientific instrument 510.

[0043] The scientific instrument 510 may include any suitable scientific instrument, such as, for example, a liquid chromatography instrument, a gas chromatography instrument, an ion chromatography instrument, a mass spectrometry instrument, a trace element instrument (e.g., inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy, atomic absorption spectrometry, etc.), a capillary electrophoresis instrument, and a spectroscopy instrument.

[0044] The user local computing device 520 may be a computing device (e.g., according to any of the embodiments of the computing device 400 discussed herein) that is proximate to a user of the scientific instrument 510. In some embodiments, the user local computing device 520 may also be proximate to the scientific instrument 510, but need not be. For example, a user local computing device 520 in a user's home or office may be remote from but communicate with the scientific instrument 510, such that the user may control and / or access data from the scientific instrument 510 using the user local computing device 520. In some embodiments, the user local computing device 520 may be a laptop, smartphone, or tablet device. In some embodiments, the user local computing device 520 may be a portable computing device. In some embodiments, the user local computing device 520 may be used for sample preparation, including receiving sample information about samples to be analyzed by a laboratory.

[0045] The service local computing device 530 may be a computing device (e.g., according to any of the embodiments of computing device 400 discussed herein) that is proximate to an entity that provides a service to the scientific instrument 510. For example, the service local computing device 530 may be proximate to the manufacturer of the scientific instrument 510, or a third-party service company. In some embodiments, the service local computing device 530 may communicate with the scientific instrument 510, the user local computing device 520, and / or the remote computing device 540 (e.g., via a direct communication path 508 or via multiple "indirect" communication paths 508, as discussed above) to receive data regarding the operation of the scientific instrument 510, the user local computing device 520, and / or the remote computing device 540 (e.g., results of self-diagnostic tests of the scientific instrument 510, calibration coefficients used by the scientific instrument 510, measurements of sensors associated with the scientific instrument 510, etc.). In some embodiments, the service local computing device 530 may communicate with the scientific instrument 510, the user local computing device 520, and / or the remote computing device 540 (e.g., via a direct communication path 508 or multiple "indirect" communication paths 508, as discussed above) and transmit data to the scientific instrument 510, the user local computing device 520, and / or the remote computing device 540 (e.g., to update programmed instructions, such as firmware, in the scientific instrument 510, to initiate performing a test or calibration sequence on the scientific instrument 510, to update programmed instructions, such as software, in the user local computing device 520 or the remote computing device 540, etc.).A user of the scientific instrument 510 may utilize the scientific instrument 510 or the user local computing device 520 to communicate with the service local computing device 530 to report problems with the scientific instrument 510 or the user local computing device 520, to request a technician visit to improve the operation of the scientific instrument 510, to order consumable or replacement parts associated with the scientific instrument 510, or for other purposes. The service local computing device 530 may generate a data structure ledger and generate reports based on data retrieved from the data structure ledger.

[0046] The remote computing device 540 may be a computing device (e.g., according to any of the embodiments of the computing device 400 discussed herein) that is located remotely from the scientific instruments 510 and / or from the user local computing device 520. In some embodiments, the remote computing device 540 may be included in a data center or other large-scale server environment. In some embodiments, the remote computing device 540 may include network-attached storage (e.g., as part of the storage device 504). The remote computing device 540 may store data generated by the scientific instruments 510, perform analysis of data generated by the scientific instruments 510 (e.g., according to programmed instructions), facilitate communications between the user local computing device 520 and the scientific instruments 510, and / or facilitate communications between the service local computing device 530 and the scientific instruments 510. The remote computing device 540 may be used to query the data structure ledger and generate reports based on data retrieved from the data structure ledger.

[0047] In some embodiments, one or more of the elements of the scientific instrument support system 500 illustrated in FIG. 5 may not be present. Furthermore, in some embodiments, multiples of various elements of the scientific instrument support system 500 of FIG. 5 may be present. For example, the scientific instrument support system 500 may include multiple user local computing devices 520 (e.g., different user local computing devices 520 associated with different users or in different locations). In another example, the scientific instrument support system 500 may include multiple scientific instruments 510, all in communication with a service local computing device 530 and / or a remote computing device 540. In such an embodiment, the service local computing device 530 may monitor these multiple scientific instruments 510, and the service local computing device 530 may trigger updates or other information to be "broadcast" to the multiple scientific instruments 510 at the same time. Different ones of the scientific instruments 510 in the scientific instrument support system 500 may be located near each other (e.g., in the same room) or far from each other (e.g., on different floors of a building, in different buildings, in different cities, etc.). In some embodiments, the scientific instrument 510 may be connected to an Internet-of-Things (IoT) stack that allows command and control of the scientific instrument 510 through web-based applications, virtual or augmented reality applications, mobile applications, and / or desktop applications. Any of these applications may be accessed by a user operating a user local computing device 520 that communicates with the scientific instrument 510 through an intervening remote computing device 540. In some embodiments, the scientific instrument 510 may be sold by the manufacturer together with one or more associated user local computing devices 520 as part of a local scientific instrument computing unit 512.

[0048] In some embodiments, different ones of the scientific instruments 510 included in the scientific instrument support system 500 may be different types of scientific instruments 510. For example, one scientific instrument 510 may be a chromatography instrument and another scientific instrument 510 may be a spectrometry instrument. In some such embodiments, the remote computing device 540 and / or the user local computing device 520 may combine data from the different types of scientific instruments 510 included in the scientific instrument support system 500.

[0049] 6 is a flow diagram of a method 600 for performing an assistive operation, according to various embodiments. The operations of the method 600 may be illustrated with reference to certain embodiments disclosed herein (e.g., the scientific instrument assistive module 200 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 2, the GUI 300 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 3, the computing device 400 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 4, and / or the scientific instrument assistive system 500 discussed herein with reference to FIG. 5), but the method 600 may be used in any suitable setting to perform any suitable assistive operation. Although the operations are illustrated in FIG. 6 once each and in a particular order, the operations may be appropriately reordered and / or repeated as desired (e.g., different operations performed may be performed in parallel, as appropriate).

[0050] At 602, the method 600 includes automatically generating a sample identifier for a sample. A sample is a material received in a laboratory for chemical and / or biological analysis. For example, a soil sample may be received for analysis to detect the presence or amount of nutrients or chemicals, a wine sample may be received for analysis to detect the presence or amount of chemicals, etc. The ledger logic 202 may generate one or more graphical user interfaces (GUIs) to facilitate the creation of a sample record and to collect information about the sample (e.g., when the sample was collected, where the sample was collected from, how the sample was collected, etc.). Examples of sample creation GUIs generated by the ledger logic 202 are illustrated in FIGS. 7A-7D. As shown in FIG. 7A, an application screen GUI 704 is illustrated that allows a user to select a sample management application. The application screen GUI 704 includes an open icon 708 that is configured to be selected, for example, by clicking on the open icon 708.

[0051] In response to receiving a selection of the open icon 708, the ledger logic 202 generates a sample creation GUI 712 (shown in FIG. 7B) that facilitates sample creation. With reference to FIG. 7B, the sample creation GUI 712 includes a sample creation icon 716 and a sample import icon 720. Similar to the open icon 708, the sample creation icon 716 and the sample import icon 720 are configured to be selected, for example, by clicking the sample creation icon 716 and the sample import icon 720, respectively. In response to receiving a selection of the sample creation icon 716, the ledger logic 202 generates a sample information GUI 724 (shown in FIG. 7C). In response to receiving a selection of the sample import icon 720, the ledger logic 202 imports a previously created sample, for example, from a different application or from a previously created sample. With reference to FIG. 7C, the sample information GUI 724 includes one or more fields for receiving sample information. The sample information received via the GUI 724 may include, for example, a sample name, a sample type, a total weight of the sample, a project name for the sample, sample notes, and / or a user handling the sample, etc. FIG. 7D illustrates another sample information GUI 728 that may be generated in response to receiving a selection of the create sample icon 716. The sample information GUI 728 includes one or more fields for receiving sample information. The sample information received via the GUI 728 may include information that may be received on the sample information GUI 724 and may also include, for example, an expiration date for the sample, a safety label for the sample (e.g., warning of regulated substances hazardous to health), a storage life for the sample, a sampling technique for the sample, and / or a sampling entity for the sample, etc.

[0052] As shown in FIGS. 7C and 7D, the ledger logic 202 automatically generates a sample identifier, for example, in response to receiving a selection of the create sample icon 716. In other examples, the ledger logic 202 generates a sample identifier in response to other triggers, such as, for example, other input from a user. The sample identifier may be a numeric or alphanumeric identifier. In some examples, in addition to the numeric or alphanumeric identifier and / or encoding of the numeric or alphanumeric identifier, a barcode, QR code, or the like is generated. In some examples, the sample identifier is a randomly or semi-randomly generated hash value and is unique to the sample. In some examples, the generated barcode, QR code, or the like may be printed, for example, using a label printer, and applied to the sample container containing each sample (or aliquot). A scanning device (e.g., a barcode / QR code scanner) may be used to quickly identify the sample by scanning a barcode, QR code, or the like attached to the sample container.

[0053] At 604, the method 600 includes receiving sample information about the sample. As shown in Figures 7C and 7D, the ledger logic 202 may receive the sample information via one of the GUIs 724, 728.

[0054] At 606, the method 600 includes generating a data structure ledger for the sample. Generating a data structure ledger for the sample may include generating a data structure ledger for a project that includes the sample. The project may include additional samples. The data structure ledger includes an initial ledger block (e.g., an initial ledger entry) having a sample identifier and sample information. The ledger logic 202 generates the data structure ledger using the initial ledger block as the origin block of the data structure ledger, for example. In one embodiment, the data structure ledger is a centralized ledger such that the structure ledger for the sample may be stored in the database 116. In another embodiment, the data structure ledger is a distributed ledger such that each instrument computing device 104, database 116, server 124, and / or user device 128 may each store a copy of the data structure ledger. In one embodiment, the sample identifier may be used as an index to retrieve the data structure ledger from the database 116. In other embodiments, a different index, such as a hash of the initial block or a hash of the sample identifier, may be used as the index to retrieve the data structure ledger from the database 116. In one embodiment, the genesis block is generated by the ledger logic 202 using a data structure object. The data structure object may include a sample identifier field and a sample information field such that the sample identifier is correlated with the sample information in the genesis block. The genesis block is an instance of a data structure object for a particular sample.

[0055] At 608, the method 600 includes receiving experimental data regarding the sample from the scientific instrument 510, such as, for example, in real-time execution of an analytical workflow on the sample by the scientific instrument and / or in response to completion of an analytical workflow on the sample by the scientific instrument. The experimental data may include a sample identifier. The analytical workflow performed on the sample by the scientific instrument may include, for example, preparation of the sample for an experiment (e.g., dissolving the sample in a solution and / or injecting the solution into another scientific instrument, etc.), or completion of an analysis or experiment on the sample, etc. The experimental data may be received by the block logic 204. The experimental data may include information regarding the analytical workflow, such as the analytical method to be performed, the instrument used, identity of a user performing the experiment (e.g., one or more user identifiers), location of the experiment, time of the experiment, one or more project identifiers, results of the experiment, an identifier of the scientific instrument, and / or an identifier of the experiment performed on the sample, etc.

[0056] At 610, the method 600 includes generating an experiment ledger block in the data structure ledger. The experiment ledger block includes at least some of the received experiment data and / or data generated based thereon. The block logic 204 generates the experiment ledger block using, for example, a block object. The block object may be similar to the data structure object described above and may include a sample identifier field and an experiment data field such that the sample identifier and other identifiers (e.g., project, user, or instrument, etc.) are correlated with the experiment data in the experiment ledger block. The experiment ledger block is an instance of a block object. In some embodiments, the experiment ledger block may be similar to an initial ledger block where the sample information has been replaced with the experiment data. In some embodiments, the newly created experiment ledger block may include a pointer to the initial ledger block if no experiment ledger block was previously created, or may include a pointer to the most recently added experiment ledger block if one or more experiment ledger blocks were previously created. Thus, the experiment ledger block is added to the end of the blockchain, or to a linked list, or the like. In some examples, a newly created experiment ledger block may include a pointer to an initial ledger block regardless of whether a previous experiment ledger block was created. In other examples, different pointer structures may be used in the experiment ledger block to create different forms of data structures. In some examples, the method 600 receives experimental data for samples from multiple scientific instruments. The data structure ledger created for the samples includes the experimental data linked to the sample identifier and sample information. In at least one example, the data structure ledger includes a blockchain structure.

[0057] In some embodiments, a separate data structure ledger is created for each sample, as described above. In other embodiments, all sample data is stored in a single data structure ledger. In these embodiments, the genesis block may be specific to a laboratory (or an organization that operates several laboratories) or a project. Information about each sample, including sample information and experimental data, may be included in a data structure block or entry in the laboratory's data structure ledger. As discussed above, the data structure ledger may be a centralized ledger stored, for example, in the database 116. In this embodiment, the centralized ledger is accessed from the database 116 by each requesting computing entity (i.e., the server 124, the user device 128, the equipment computing device 104, etc.) and edited or queried accordingly. In other embodiments, the data structure ledger may be a decentralized ledger such that a copy of the data structure ledger for each sample is stored in each (or more) of the equipment computing device 104, the database 116, the server 124, and the user device 128. Each computing entity edits its locally stored copy of the data structure ledger to add a corresponding block (or entry) for the sample. All copies of the data structure ledger may be reconciled at regular intervals or on a transactional basis. Each block of the data structure ledger may be encrypted, for example, using a cryptographic hash function and a digital signature. Additionally, each block of the data structure ledger is immutable, such that once created, the block cannot be altered. A decentralized ledger provides the added advantage of being secure and providing additional audit and control capabilities compared to other types of data structures, since the ledger blocks are immutable. In some embodiments, data can only be altered by a "privileged user." A privileged user may be a laboratory manager or other user with special privileges to correct stored records within the laboratory. Corrections made by a privileged user may also be recorded to provide a secure audit trail. The data structure ledger may be exported to other systems, such as a LIMS, or an external data management system.

[0058] At 612, the method 600 includes receiving a request for a report corresponding to the sample. The request for the report may be received by the reporting logic 206 via a graphical user interface for querying the database 116. The request may be in the form of, for example, a Structured Query Language (SQL) query, a NoSQL query, or the like. In some examples, the request for the report may be received from a smartphone application running on a mobile phone (e.g., the user device 128). In some embodiments, the report may be requested based on other criteria. For example, the request (e.g., the second request) may be received corresponding to a scientific instrument, an experiment, a user, a laboratory, a group of instruments, a group of users, or the like.

[0059] At 614, the method 600 includes querying the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request. The reporting logic 206 queries the database 116 based on the request for the report to retrieve ledger data corresponding to the request. The ledger data includes relevant data from the data structure ledger for generating the requested report. The query may specify one or more sample identifiers to retrieve ledger data corresponding to the one or more sample identifiers. In some embodiments, the query may be directed to multiple data structure ledgers associated with multiple samples. The reporting logic 206 may parse data from the multiple data structure ledgers with data corresponding to the queried criteria (e.g., scientific instrument, experiment, etc.). For example, the data may be parsed based on multiple blocks that include identifiers of criteria (e.g., scientific instrument identifiers, experiment identifiers, etc.).

[0060] At 616, the method 600 includes generating a report based on the ledger data received in response to the query. The report logic 206 generates a report, e.g., a predefined template. The report may be generated based on data for a project including multiple samples. The report may also be generated for each sample separately or for each experiment separately. Since the experiment data is correlated to identifiers, the report may be easily generated by using any identifier (e.g., sample identifier, project identifier, user identifier, or instrument identifier, etc.). FIG. 8 illustrates one example of a report 800 generated by the report logic 206. The report 800 relates to sample amount tracking with respect to sample distribution among aliquots. In some examples, the report may be generated and displayed on a graphical user interface of the smartphone application discussed above.

[0061] The following paragraphs provide various examples of the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0062] Example 1 is a method that includes generating, with a processing device, a sample identifier for a sample, receiving, with the processing device, sample information about the sample, receiving, with the processing device, experimental data related to the sample from a plurality of scientific instruments, and generating, with the processing device, a data structure ledger for the sample that includes the sample identifier and the experimental data linked to the sample information. The method also includes receiving a request for a report corresponding to the sample, querying the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request, and generating the report based on the ledger data received in response to the query.

[0063] Example 2 may include the subject matter described in example 1 and may further specify that the data structure ledger is a distributed ledger using a blockchain structure.

[0064] Example 3 may include the subject matter of example 1 or 2, and may further provide that the sample information includes one or more selected from the group consisting of: the time the sample was taken, the date the sample was taken, the weather at the time and location the sample was taken, the coordinates of the location where the sample was taken, the sampling technique used to remove the sample, and an image of the sample.

[0065] Example 4 may include the subject matter described in Examples 1-3, and may further provide that the experimental data includes one or more selected from the group consisting of a weight of the sample, one or more user identifiers, one or more project identifiers, a result of the experiment, an identifier of the scientific equipment, and an identifier of the experiment performed on the sample.

[0066] Example 5 may include the subject matter described in Examples 1-4 and may further provide that the report is generated in a smartphone application.

[0067] Example 6 may include the subject matter of examples 1-5, and may further provide that the method includes generating a barcode including the sample identifier and providing the barcode to a label printer. A label including the barcode is printed for use with the sample using the label printer.

[0068] Example 7 may include the subject matter described in Examples 1-6 and may further specify that the method includes receiving sample data corresponding to sample changes after generation of the data structure ledger, and in response to receiving the sample data, appending a time-stamped sample data block to the data structure ledger.

[0069] Example 8 is a scientific instrument support system including a processing device or set of processing devices configured to generate a sample identifier for a sample, receive sample information about the sample, and generate a data structure ledger for the sample. The data structure ledger includes an initial ledger block having the sample identifier and the sample information. The processing device or set of processing devices is also configured to generate an experiment ledger block in the data structure ledger. The experiment ledger block includes the experiment data received from the scientific instrument. The processing device or set of processing devices is further configured to receive a request for a report corresponding to the sample, query the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request, and generate the report based on the ledger data received in response to the query.

[0070] Example 9 may include the subject matter described in example 8, and may further specify that the data structure ledger is a distributed ledger using a blockchain structure.

[0071] Example 10 may include the subject matter of example 8 or 9, and may further provide that the sample information includes one or more selected from the group consisting of: the time the sample was taken, the date the sample was taken, the weather at the time and location the sample was taken, the coordinates of the location where the sample was taken, the sampling technique used to remove the sample, and an image of the sample.

[0072] Example 11 may include the subject matter of examples 8-10, and may further provide that the experimental data includes one or more selected from the group consisting of a weight of the sample, one or more user identifiers, one or more project identifiers, a result of the experiment, an identifier of the scientific equipment, and an identifier of the experiment performed on the sample.

[0073] Example 12 may include the subject matter described in Examples 8-11 and may further provide that the report is generated in a smartphone application.

[0074] Example 13 may include the subject matter of examples 8-12, and may further provide that the processing device or set of processing devices is configured to generate a barcode including the sample identifier and provide the barcode to a label printer. A label including the barcode is printed for use with the sample using the label printer.

[0075] Example 14 may include the subject matter of Examples 8-13, and may further provide that the one processing device or set of processing devices is further configured to receive a second request for a second report corresponding to the scientific instrument and to query a plurality of data structure ledgers corresponding to the plurality of samples to receive second ledger data corresponding to the scientific instrument. The second ledger data includes data from a plurality of blocks of the plurality of data structure ledgers including an identifier for the scientific instrument. The one processing device or set of processing devices is further configured to generate the second report based on the second ledger data received in response to the query.

[0076] Example 15 is a scientific instrument support device including first logic for generating a sample identifier for a sample, second logic for receiving sample information for the sample, and third logic for generating a data structure ledger for the sample. The data structure ledger includes an initial ledger block having the sample identifier and the sample information. The scientific instrument support device also includes fourth logic for generating a time-stamped experiment ledger block in the data structure ledger. The experiment ledger block includes the experiment data received from the plurality of scientific instruments. The scientific instrument support device further includes fifth logic for receiving a request for a report corresponding to the sample, sixth logic for querying the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request, and seventh logic for generating the report based on the ledger data received in response to the query.

[0077] Example 16 may include the subject matter described in example 15, and may further specify that the data structure ledger is a distributed ledger using a blockchain structure.

[0078] Example 17 may include the subject matter of examples 15 or 16, and may further provide that the sample information includes one or more selected from the group consisting of the time the sample was taken, the date the sample was taken, the weather at the time and location the sample was taken, the coordinates of the location where the sample was taken, the sampling technique used to remove the sample, and an image of the sample.

[0079] Example 18 may include the subject matter of Examples 15-17, and may further provide that the experimental data includes one or more selected from the group consisting of a weight of the sample, one or more user identifiers, one or more project identifiers, a result of the experiment, an identifier of the scientific equipment, and an identifier of the experiment performed on the sample.

[0080] Example 19 may include the subject matter described in Examples 15-18 and may further provide that the report is generated in a smartphone application.

[0081] Example 20 may include the subject matter of examples 15-19, and may further provide that the processing device or set of processing devices is configured to generate a barcode including the sample identifier and provide the barcode to a label printer. A label including the barcode is printed for use with the sample using the label printer.

Claims

1. 1. A method for scientific instrument support, comprising: generating a sample identifier for the sample with a processing device; receiving sample information about the sample with the processing device; receiving experimental data relating to the sample from a plurality of scientific instruments using the processing device; generating, with the processing device, a data structure ledger for the samples that includes the sample identifiers and the experimental data linked to the sample information; receiving a request for a report corresponding to the sample; Querying the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request; and generating the report based on the ledger data received in response to the query.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the data structure ledger is a distributed ledger that uses a blockchain structure.

3. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the sample information includes one or more selected from the group consisting of: the time the sample was taken, the date the sample was taken, the weather at the time and location the sample was taken, the coordinates of the location where the sample was taken, the sampling technique used to extract the sample, and an image of the sample.

4. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the experimental data comprises one or more selected from the group consisting of a weight of the sample, one or more user identifiers, one or more project identifiers, a result of an experiment, an identifier of a scientific instrument, and an identifier of an experiment performed on the sample.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the report is generated in a smartphone application.

6. generating a barcode representative of the sample identifier; providing the bar code to a label printer, wherein a label including the bar code is printed using the label printer for use with the sample; The method of claim 1 further comprising:

7. receiving sample data corresponding to changes in the samples after generation of the data structure ledger; in response to receiving the sample data, appending a time-stamped sample data block to the data structure ledger; The method of claim 1 further comprising:

8. 1. A scientific instrument support system, comprising: A processing device or a set of the processing devices, the processing device or the set of the processing devices comprising: generating a sample identifier for the sample; receiving sample information about the sample; generating a data structure ledger for the sample, the data structure ledger including an initial ledger block having the sample identifier and the sample information; generating an experiment ledger block in said data structure ledger, said experiment ledger block including experiment data received from a scientific instrument; receiving a request for a report corresponding to the sample; Querying the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request; and generating the report based on the ledger data received in response to the query.

9. The scientific instrument support system of claim 8 , wherein the data structure ledger is a distributed ledger that uses a blockchain structure.

10. 9. The scientific instrument support system of claim 8, wherein the sample information includes one or more selected from the group consisting of the time the sample was taken, the date the sample was taken, the weather at the time and location the sample was taken, the coordinates of the location where the sample was taken, the sampling technique used to extract the sample, and an image of the sample.

11. 9. The scientific instrument support system of claim 8, wherein the experimental data includes one or more selected from the group consisting of a weight of the sample, one or more user identifiers, one or more project identifiers, a result of an experiment, an identifier of a scientific instrument, and an identifier of an experiment performed on the sample.

12. The scientific instrument support system according to claim 8 , wherein the report is generated in a smartphone application.

13. The processing device or set of processing devices: generating a barcode including the sample identifier; 9. The scientific instrument support system of claim 8, further configured to: provide the barcode to a label printer, wherein a label including the barcode is printed using the label printer for use with the sample.

14. The processing device or set of processing devices: receiving a second request for a second report corresponding to the scientific instrument; querying a plurality of data structure ledgers corresponding to a plurality of samples to receive second ledger data corresponding to the scientific instrument, the second ledger data including data from a plurality of blocks of the plurality of data structure ledgers including an identifier of the scientific instrument; 9. The scientific instrument support system of claim 8, further configured to: generate the second report based on the second ledger data received in response to the query.

15. A scientific instrument support device, comprising: first logic for generating a sample identifier for the sample; second logic for receiving sample information about the sample; third logic for generating a data structure ledger for the sample, the data structure ledger including an initial ledger block having the sample identifier and the sample information; fourth logic for generating a time-stamped experiment ledger block in the data structure ledger, the experiment ledger block including experiment data received from a plurality of scientific instruments; fifth logic for receiving a request for a report corresponding to the sample; sixth logic for querying the data structure ledger to receive ledger data corresponding to the request; and seventh logic for generating the report based on the ledger data received in response to the query.

16. The scientific instrument support apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the data structure ledger is a distributed ledger.

17. 16. The scientific instrument support device of claim 15, wherein the sample information includes one or more selected from the group consisting of the time the sample was taken, the date the sample was taken, the weather at the time and location the sample was taken, the coordinates of the location where the sample was taken, the sampling technique used to extract the sample, and an image of the sample.

18. 16. The scientific instrument support device of claim 15, wherein the experimental data includes one or more selected from the group consisting of a weight of the sample, one or more user identifiers, one or more project identifiers, an experiment result, an identifier of a scientific instrument, and an identifier of an experiment performed on the sample.

19. The scientific instrument support apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the report is generated in a smartphone application.

20. A processing device or set of processing devices, generating a barcode including the sample identifier; 16. The scientific instrument support apparatus of claim 15, further configured to: provide the barcode to a label printer, wherein a label including the barcode is printed using the label printer for use with the sample.

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