Method for operating a laboratory sample distribution system, laboratory sample distribution system, and laboratory automation system

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a method of operating a laboratory sample distribution system, the laboratory sample distribution system having a plurality of carriers (4) each configured to carry one or more sample containers containing samples to be analyzed by a laboratory apparatus (3), where n (n>3) carriers (4) are provided; a transfer plane (1) configured to support the plurality of carriers (4), the transfer plane (1) comprising a plurality of interconnected transfer modules each comprising a plurality of planar fields (5); and a drive device (13) configured to control the movement of the plurality of carriers (4) along individual routes between the plurality of planar fields (5). The method includes moving the plurality of carriers (4) along individual routes on the transfer plane (1), where moving includes, for each respective carrier, reserving a route segment along the individual route, the route segment being provided by one or more of the plurality of planar fields (5), and moving the carrier (4) along the route segment at least once, and preventing a deadlock arrangement on the transfer plane where the plurality of carriers (4) block further movement along the individual routes (6) from each other with respect to the plurality of carriers (4). Preventing includes determining, at the current operating time, a potential deadlock arrangement for the plurality of carriers (4) on the transfer plane (1) at a future operating time, where the potential deadlock arrangement includes allocating n deadlock planar fields occupied by the plurality of carriers (4) in the case of the potential deadlock arrangement, and further includes reserving, for a first carrier from the plurality of carriers (4) moving along a first individual route, a first route segment ending at a first end planar field, and assigning a non-reservation flag to an adjacent planar field adjacent to the first end planar field along the first individual route. Further provided are a laboratory sample distribution system and a laboratory automation system.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a method of operating a laboratory sample distribution system. Further, the present disclosure relates to a laboratory sample distribution system. Also, the laboratory sample distribution system is also referred to as a laboratory automation system.

Background Art

[0002] Laboratory automation systems are applied, in particular, to essentially automatically determine samples, for example samples of body fluids. Samples are typically received in sample vessels or containers that are processed via a laboratory automation system.

[0003] Such laboratory automation systems can comprise a plurality of units. A laboratory automation system typically comprises a plurality of laboratory stations or devices, such as, for example, pre-analysis, analysis and / or post-analysis stations or devices. Typically, containers are transported between different stations of the system via a sample distribution or transport system. A sample carrier with or without a sample may be moved along a line for processing the sample, and the sample carrier is moved by a transport device having one or more actuators and an actuator driver or drive device for driving the carrier. For example, a sample vessel may be moved or repositioned from a first work station provided on a processing line within the system to a second work station. A work station or device may sometimes also be referred to as a work place.

[0004] Currently, only the transport systems within the inspection room are fully automated. However, the designs of these transport systems are mostly rather simple, equipped with conveyor systems, and the samples and sample containers / carriers are each moved along predetermined routes. Usually, the set of routes along different analyzers / inspection room stations is defined by hardware design (rail / track arrangement) and / or electronics (dip switch configuration, pre-programmed turntable logic, etc.) (e.g., belt-driven transport system). Thus, a specific sample / container / carrier can be assigned to a specific predetermined route. The specific sample / container / carrier can be transported along this specific predetermined route, "step off" from the route close to the specific analyzer to be processed by the analyzer, and "step on" to the route again to be further transported along the specific predetermined route until reaching the end of the route. Then, the sample can be, for example, stored or discarded. Typically, these routes are designed manually in a "brain power" process, i.e., with respect to a specific order situation. For example, the inspection room designer defines the routes so that a reference set of orders is processed efficiently and predetermined requirements are met.

[0005] However, in the case of complex transport systems, such a design may reach its limits.

[0006] WO 2016 / 188752 discloses a laboratory automation system comprising a number of laboratory stations and a number of sample container carriers (e.g., from 10 to 10,000), the sample container carriers being adapted to transport one or more sample containers. The sample containers contain samples to be processed by the laboratory stations. A transfer plane is provided, which is adapted to support the sample container carriers. The transfer plane comprises a number of transfer areas, and one of the transfer areas of the number of transfer areas is assigned to a corresponding laboratory station of the number of laboratory stations. Samples are transferred to the laboratory stations by moving the corresponding sample container carriers to the assigned transfer areas. Driving means are provided, which are adapted to move the sample container carriers on the transfer plane simultaneously and independently of each other along individual transport paths.

[0007] More complex transport systems may require more sophisticated operating methods, especially in order to better utilize their capabilities.

[0008] The document of European Patent Application Publication No. 3095739 discloses a method of operating a laboratory sample distribution system comprising several sample container carriers adapted to transport one or more sample containers, the sample containers containing samples to be analyzed by several laboratory stations. A transfer plane is provided, which is adapted to support the sample container carriers. The transfer plane comprises several transfer locations assigned to corresponding laboratory stations. Driving means are provided for moving the sample container carriers on the transfer plane. The method includes a step of pre-calculating a route according to the transfer locations during the initialization of the laboratory sample distribution system, and a step of controlling the driving means so that the sample container carriers move along the pre-calculated route after the initialization of the laboratory sample distribution system. During the initialization (start-up) of the laboratory sample distribution system, a predetermined route extending across the transfer plane is pre-calculated according to different transfer locations (between different transfer locations). The pre-calculated route is provided on the transfer plane between the transfer locations. The transfer locations represent initial nodes or target nodes in the sense of graph theory. The route is calculated using an informed search algorithm, namely the A* algorithm or the D* algorithm. The A* algorithm is an algorithm used in path finding and graph traversal to efficiently calculate traversable paths between different nodes, for example in the form of transfer locations.

[0009] The document of European Patent Application Publication No. 3410123 refers to a method of operating a laboratory sample distribution system, the laboratory sample distribution system comprising several sample container carriers, each of the sample container carriers being provided with at least one magnetically active device, each of the sample container carriers being adapted to carry at least one sample container, several interconnected transfer plane modules, each of the transfer plane modules being adapted to support several of the aforementioned sample container carriers, and several electromagnetic actuators being provided, and below each transfer plane module, several of the electromagnetic actuators being arranged in rows and columns and being stationary. The electromagnetic actuators are adapted to move one of the sample container carriers among the sample container carriers on the transfer plane module along one of the rows or along one of the columns by applying a magnetic moving force to the sample container carrier. The method includes: a) a step of assigning at least one of the transfer plane modules to a route category, at least two traffic lanes being formed on the transfer plane module categorized as the route category, the sample container carriers being moved in a given transport direction within each traffic lane, the transport directions of the at least two traffic lanes being opposite to each other, and a change from one transport direction to the opposite transport direction being impossible for the sample container carriers moved on the transfer plane module categorized as the route category; and b) a step of assigning at least one other transfer plane module among the transfer plane modules to an intermediate point category, a change from one transport direction to the opposite transport direction being enabled for the sample container carriers moved on the transfer plane module categorized as the intermediate point category.

[0010] The document of U.S. Patent No. 9,835,637 generally relates to an automated system for use in a laboratory environment, and more particularly to a system and method for scheduling samples within an automated system by providing queuing logic.

[0011] An analysis system for analyzing biological samples is disclosed in the document of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2019 / 0120866.

[0012] The document of U.S. Patent No. 10,668,622 generally refers to an automated system for use in a laboratory environment, and more particularly refers to a system and method for use in a clinical analyzer.

[0013] The document of U.S. Patent No. 9,315,334 discloses an automated system for an in vitro diagnostic environment. The system includes a plurality of intelligent carriers including on-board processing and navigation functions. The carriers control local movement, navigate decision points such as branch points within a track, and independently reach appropriate test stations.

[0014] In a complex transportation system, route calculation for carriers also becomes more complex. The size of the possible route set increases exponentially with both the number of carriers in the transfer plane / transfer plane module and the number of transport fields. Even for a single carrier, the number of routes connecting its current position to a destination is enormous. However, in a typical use case (with a large number of transport fields and carriers), optimal routing needs to consider the routes of hundreds of carriers simultaneously. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0015] It is an object to provide an improved method of operating a laboratory sample distribution system and a laboratory sample distribution system. In particular, it is an object to provide a technique for an improved determination of routes for carriers in a laboratory sample distribution system. Specifically, it is an object to avoid one or more deadlock situations in a laboratory sample distribution system. This is because such deadlock situations disrupt and interfere with the distribution of samples. Carriers involved in a deadlock situation become immobile on the transport system and thus can no longer reach their destinations. Further, routes involved in a deadlock situation, and in some cases, some or all of the carriers on those routes can no longer be used.

[0016] To solve this problem, a method of operating a laboratory sample distribution system according to independent claim 1 is provided. Further, a laboratory sample distribution system according to independent claim 16 is provided. Further, a laboratory automation system according to claim 17 is provided. Further embodiments are disclosed in the dependent claims.

[0017] According to one aspect, a method for operating a laboratory sample distribution system is provided. The laboratory sample distribution system includes a plurality of carriers having n (n>3) carriers each configured to convey one or more sample containers containing samples to be analyzed by a laboratory device (the plurality of carriers may be a subset of the total plurality of carriers provided by the laboratory sample distribution system), and a transfer plane assigned to the laboratory device and configured to support the plurality of carriers, the transfer plane including a plurality of interconnected transfer modules having a plurality of planar fields (at least one of the planar fields (each planar field) may accept only one carrier at a time and / or at least one of the planar fields (each planar field) may accept a plurality of carriers at a time), and a drive device configured to control the movement of the plurality of carriers along individual routes between the plurality of planar fields, the movement including moving the plurality of carriers between adjacent planar fields of the plurality of planar fields along the individual routes in response to a drive control signal.

[0018] The method includes (i) moving a plurality of carriers along individual routes on the transfer plane, the moving including, for each carrier, reserving a route segment along the individual route, the route segment being provided by one or more of the plurality of planar fields, and executing at least once a step of moving the carrier along the route segment, and (ii) preventing a deadlock arrangement on the transfer plane in which the plurality of carriers block further movement along the individual routes with respect to each other (the prevention of the deadlock arrangement on the transfer plane may be performed, in particular when designing a route or a section of a route and / or at runtime, for example outside of runtime via simulation and / or calculation).

[0019] Preventing includes, in the drive device, further determining, at the current operating time, a potential deadlock arrangement for a plurality of carriers on a transfer plane at a future operating time, where the potential deadlock arrangement includes determining a potential deadlock arrangement to which n deadlock plane fields occupied by a plurality of carriers are assigned in the case of the potential deadlock arrangement; reserving a first route segment ending at a first end plane field for a first carrier from among the plurality of carriers moving along a first individual route; and assigning a non-reservation flag to an adjacent plane field adjacent to the first end plane field along the first individual route.

[0020] Furthermore, the following is provided. That is, the first end plane field provides a first deadlock plane field among the n deadlock plane fields, the adjacent plane field provides a second deadlock plane field among the n deadlock plane fields, and assigning a non-reservation flag to the adjacent plane field prevents all of the remaining carriers among the plurality of carriers from reserving a second route segment along a second individual route, where the second route segment has an adjacent plane field assigned as a second end plane field to be occupied by at least one of the remaining carriers at least at a future operating time.

[0021] According to another aspect, a laboratory sample distribution system is provided. The laboratory sample distribution system includes a plurality of carriers having n (n>3) carriers each configured to transport one or more sample containers containing samples to be analyzed by a laboratory device, and a transfer plane that is assigned to the laboratory device and configured to support the plurality of carriers, the transfer plane comprising a plurality of interconnected transfer modules each having a plurality of planar fields, and a drive device configured to control the movement of the plurality of carriers along the individual routes of the plurality of planar fields, the movement including moving the plurality of carriers between adjacent planar fields of the plurality of planar fields along the individual routes in response to a drive control signal.

[0022] The system is configured to perform: (i) moving a plurality of carriers along respective individual routes on a transfer plane, the moving including at least once performing for each carrier a step of reserving a route segment along the individual route, the route segment being provided by one or more of a plurality of planar fields, and a step of moving the carrier along the route segment; and (ii) preventing a deadlock situation on the transfer plane in which the plurality of carriers block further movement along their respective individual routes with respect to each other. With regard to the preventing (in the drive), the following is further provided. That is, determining, at a current operating time, a potential deadlock situation for the plurality of carriers on the transfer plane at a future operating time, the potential deadlock situation including n deadlock planar fields assigned to be occupied by the plurality of carriers in case of the potential deadlock situation; reserving, for a first carrier out of the plurality of carriers moving along a first individual route, a first route segment ending at a first terminal planar field; and assigning a non-reservation flag to an adjacent planar field adjacent to the first terminal planar field along the first individual route.

[0023] Further, the following is provided. That is, the first terminal planar field provides a first one of the n deadlock planar fields, the adjacent planar field provides a second one of the n deadlock planar fields, and assigning the non-reservation flag to the adjacent planar field prevents all remaining carriers from the plurality of carriers from reserving a second route segment along a second individual route, the second route segment having the adjacent planar field assigned as a second terminal planar field to be occupied by at least one of the remaining carriers at least at the future operating time.

[0024] According to yet another aspect, there is provided a laboratory automation system, which includes the laboratory sample distribution system according to the foregoing aspect and a plurality of laboratory devices.

[0025] Steps provided or executed for data processing related to the operation of the laboratory sample distribution system, such as preventing deadlock arrangements, include a driving device that controls the movement of a plurality of carriers along individual routes, and a data processing device that is separated from the driving device but is functionally connected to the driving device and includes one or more data processors (for example, a computer, a microcontroller, a CPU, a data storage, and / or a communication interface), and may be executed by at least one of them.

[0026] A deadlock situation where carriers block each other's further movement along individual routes is efficiently avoided by the provided technology.

[0027] For example, 10 to 10,000 sample container carriers may be provided. The laboratory sample distribution system may process 2,000 to 200,000 samples per day. In one embodiment, 2 to 50 laboratory stations or devices may be provided. The transfer plane may be a plane, particularly a completely flat plane.

[0028] First and second (sub) transfer planes may be provided, and the first and second transfer planes may be provided at different levels. The carriers may be transported from the first transfer plane to the second transfer plane (and vice versa) via a lift (for example, a paternoster lift) and / or a ramp. The transfer plane may include first and second (sub) transfer planes, and optionally further (sub) transfer planes. Therefore, the routes can also include routes that extend across both the first and second transfer planes, and optionally further transfer planes, and each transfer plane is provided at a different level.

[0029] In this regard, a route connection segment of a route extending across a plurality of transfer planes, each provided at a different level, may connect a route section on one of these planes, for example, on a first transfer plane, to a route section on another of these planes, for example, on a second transfer plane. A route segment connecting route sections on different levels is part of the route. This route connection segment may be constituted by a transport system such as a ramp or a lift.

[0030] In the present application, generally, the term "transfer plane" refers to both two-dimensional and / or three-dimensional surfaces, that is, planes and / or surfaces that extend not only in two spatial dimensions but also in a third spatial dimension. Such a three-dimensional surface in the sense of this application can be, for example, a surface with one or more curvatures, ramps, and / or lifts between (sub) planes.

[0031] (Sample container) carriers can be arranged on the transfer plane. Carriers can be moved on and above the transfer plane. The transfer plane may comprise 2 to 100 transfer locations or fields. The transfer locations (fields) may be assigned to corresponding laboratory stations or devices. For example, each laboratory device may have a single corresponding transfer location (field) configured to transfer a sample carrier and / or a sample from the transfer plane to the laboratory device or vice versa. Alternatively, two or more transfer locations (fields) may be assigned to corresponding laboratory stations, particularly output transfer locations and input transfer locations. The transfer locations may be assigned statically or dynamically to the laboratory stations. In other words, during operation / runtime, the transfer locations may be changed as required.

[0032] The carrier is configured to mainly transport one or more sample containers that accommodate samples, but the carrier (or at least one of the carriers) can transport one or more empty sample containers, can unload (empty), and / or may transport other articles, such as reagent cassettes and / or consumables, such as disposable pipette tips and / or reaction cells. The carrier (or at least one of the carriers) may be configured to transport waste, such as used tips, reaction cells, and / or empty reagent cassettes. The waste may be transported from the instrument to a waste disposal unit. An empty carrier may be used to clean, maintain, and / or repair the transport surface (plane).

[0033] The transfer module can include one or more planar fields. The planar location can include one or more planar fields. The planar fields may each define a respective planar location. The planar location can correspond to the transfer module. Planar fields assigned to the same transfer module need not be assigned to the same planar location. Each planar field / location / position can correspond to a specific area / logical field on the transfer plane. In particular, the planar field may be a logical field on the transfer plane. The transfer plane can be segmented into several logical fields, for example, square logical fields of the same size and contour. The logical fields may form a regular grid, each cell of the grid may correspond to a logical field, each cell of the grid may be a square of the same size (identical in the X and Y directions), and / or the grid may (exactly) cover the transfer plane. One or each transfer module (TM) may include one or more logical fields (e.g., a subset of the logical fields forming the transfer plane). A set of (interconnected) transfer modules may form the transfer plane. The pitch between adjacent transfer modules (TMs) may form a pitch within a regular grid. The logical fields may be provided such that each logical field can accommodate only one carrier. For example, 10 to 10,000 planar locations or fields may be provided. Each planar field / logical field can correspond to the transfer module.

[0034] From each planar location or logical field, the carrier can generally move in two X-directions and two Y-directions (left / right and up / down). Alternatively, the carrier may be restricted to move in only one X-direction and one Y-direction from each planar location or logical field. However, the allowed movement directions do not have to be the same for each planar location / logical field. For example, at the first planar location or logical field, the carrier can only move diagonally up and to the right, and at the second planar location / logical field, the carrier can only move diagonally down and to the left. The restrictions may be given to prevent 2x1 (1x2) deadlocks.

[0035] Individual routes can be determined before and / or at runtime of a laboratory sample distribution system, sometimes called pre-determination of individual routes. Individual routes can be used as or represented by a lookup table. Each time the carrier needs to travel or move from a starting field to a destination, the corresponding route can be selected from the lookup table. Based on the information containing the routing data indicating the individual routes, potential deadlock configurations may be determined.

[0036] In a deadlock configuration, the set of carriers is prevented or blocked from making the next move because other carriers already occupy the planar fields and none of them can move. If movement between fields (logical fields / planar positions) is possible only in one X direction and one Y direction for each field, the minimum deadlock situation involves four carriers. In this case, the four carriers are located in the area of a 2×2 planar field. Each planar location or field is occupied by one carrier. In each planar field within the area of the 2×2 planar field, clockwise or counterclockwise movement to the next planar location or field within the area of the 2×2 planar field is allowed and intended. However, due to the occupation, the possibility of movement of each carrier depends on the possibility of movement of other carriers, so such movement is impossible. Therefore, there is a circular dependency of the carriers and their next moves. Larger deadlock situations involving more carriers can also exist, although caused by the same mechanism.

[0037] If movement between fields (logical fields / planar positions) is possible in each horizontal direction for each field, the minimum deadlock situation involves two carriers. In this case, similar to the 2x2 deadlock, the two carriers are located in the area of a 2×1 (1×2) field. Carriers involved in larger deadlocks can be arranged at all transport locations in the rectangular (n×m) area of the transfer plane. In addition to this situation, a deadlock may also involve any closed arrangement of planar locations that includes carriers that cannot move due to circular dependencies. A deadlock may even involve different planes and planar locations of the lamps / lifts. The embodiments presented here apply similarly.

[0038] A deadlock may be detected. The deadlock may be detected by detecting a cycle in the incidence matrix of the graph. A list of carriers that cannot reserve the next field at the end of the current move because another carrier is there is (periodically) updated. A list of planes corresponding to carriers that cannot reserve the next field because another carrier is there at the end of the (planned move) is (periodically) updated. The corresponding adjacency matrix M is determined. The elements of the matrix M indicate whether the plane positions corresponding to carriers that cannot reserve the next field because another carrier is there are adjacent (connected via arcs) in the graph. By matrix multiplication, it can be determined whether the plane positions corresponding to carriers that cannot reserve the next field because another carrier is there form one or more cycles. The detected cycle may indicate a (potential) deadlock.

[0039] For all identified deadlocks, the size (the number of positions that need to be occupied to form the deadlock) may be calculated. Small deadlocks, such as 2×2 deadlocks, may occur more easily than large deadlocks. Also, larger deadlocks may be frequently caused by smaller deadlocks. Avoiding small and large deadlocks may involve reducing the solution space for finding an optimized route. It may be prioritized to eliminate the opportunity to generate small deadlocks. A deadlock size threshold may be given. The calculation of an optimized set of individual routes may avoid creating routes that can result in deadlocks of a size below the deadlock size threshold.

[0040] Deadlocks can be prevented by moving the rules for the carriers. Each carrier may reserve the corresponding track segment. The first carrier may reserve the first track segment. The first track segment may include one or more subsequent planar positions on the route of the first carrier starting from the current planar position of the carrier. The position of the reserved first track segment may be blocked for other carriers. A flag may be set at the first planar position on the route of the first carrier following the reserved first track segment. The planar position with the flag set may not be blocked for other carriers. The second carrier may not reserve a second track segment that ends at the planar position with the flag set, i.e., the last planar position of the second track segment of the second carrier starting from the current position of the second carrier may not be the planar position with the flag set. A track segment may include a predetermined number, for example, one, two, or more planar positions. Alternatively, different carriers may reserve track segments with different numbers of planar positions.

[0041] Determining potential deadlock configurations may include determining potential closed - array deadlock configurations in which a plurality of carriers are arranged in a plurality of planar fields forming a closed array of the planar fields. In such deadlock configurations, the carriers occupy the planar fields given along the closed lines. For each carrier, the next field of movement along the closed line is blocked by another one of the carriers. Such deadlock configurations, if not avoided, may be resolved by redetermining at least one of the individual routes including a change in the direction of movement (a different next field). In one embodiment, it may be determined that four carriers (n = 4) potentially enter a deadlock configuration (2×2 configuration).

[0042] The movement of a plurality of carriers may include restricting the movement of each carrier from the plurality of carriers to only a single vertical direction and a single horizontal direction in the transfer plane.

[0043] For example, to avoid a 2×2 deadlock, a specific pattern for movement between allowed fields (locations) on the transfer plane may be provided. In each planar location or field, the carrier can move exclusively in one X direction and one Y direction. The plane may be rectangular. In this or other embodiments, the plane may be divided into a square area of n×n planar locations or fields. The carrier may be enabled to move in a first X direction in the upper portion (half) of each square area, and may be enabled to move in a second X direction different from the first direction in the lower portion (half) of each square area of the transfer plane, i.e., the first and second directions lead in opposite directions. The carrier may be enabled to move in a first Y direction in the left portion (half) of each square area, and may be enabled to move in a second Y direction different from the first vertical direction in the right portion (half) of each square area of the transfer plane, i.e., the first and second Y directions lead in opposite directions. Each square area may comprise one area of a 2×2 planar location or field where circular movement is possible. Additionally, an area of a 2×2 planar field composed of four such square areas may allow circular movement. In these areas of 2×2 planar locations or fields, four allowed movements may define a circular movement that is allowed. One of the four allowed movements can be removed. Alternatively, two or more, preferably two, of the four allowed movements can be removed. Preferably, one or more of the removed allowed movements are movements that are not expected to be frequently used. In particular, one or more of the removed allowed movements are movements that are perpendicular to the main transport flow.

[0044] There can be two ways to obtain a route that avoids a 2×2 deadlock. (1) The allowed directions for determining the route are defined according to the above specific pattern and / or (2) when calculating an optimized set of offline routes, rules are added to avoid including in the set of routes a region of 2×2 planar locations where circular movement is allowed, which is defined by any subset of the inter-field movements between the fields included in the set of routes.

[0045] Preventing a deadlock arrangement on the transfer plane may include providing flag data indicating adjacent plane fields to which an unreserved flag is assigned to the drive device, assigning an unreserved flag to the adjacent plane fields, and updating the flag data when one of ending the assignment of the unreserved flag in the adjacent plane fields is performed. In response to the ending, a record of the plane fields to which the unreserved flag was assigned and provided may be deleted from the flag data. The flag data may be provided with, for example, a look-up table in a data memory separated from the drive device within a central memory device provided in or accessible by the drive device.

[0046] Reserving the second route segment may include referring to the flag data and verifying that an unreserved flag is not assigned to the second end field of the second route segment. Otherwise, if it cannot be verified that there is no unreserved flag in the second end plane field, an alternative second route segment different from the second route segment may be determined. Subsequently, for the alternative second route segment, here too, it is verified that an unreserved flag is not assigned to the end field. Such steps may be repeated until some second route segment is found for which it is verified that an unreserved flag is not assigned to the end plane field.

[0047] In this method, the movement of a plurality of carriers along individual routes involves determining a model representing a transfer plane with location-to-location movement between planar locations and between planar locations associated with the plurality of carriers, and using the model to calculate an optimized set of individual routes for a plurality of pairs of planar locations from the plurality of planar locations, including solving an optimization problem where the routes between the plurality of pairs of planar locations are optimized simultaneously, calculating the optimized set of individual routes, and providing the optimized set of individual routes as individual routes on the transfer plane. In this regard, the planar location may be a planar field. Such determination of individual routes may be provided as a pre-determination of individual routes before moving the carriers on the transfer plane in at least one of a drive device and a data processing device separated from the drive device. The pre-determination may be made, for example, before initializing a laboratory sample distribution system.

[0048] For example, 5 to 10 routes between a plurality of pairs of planar locations may be optimized simultaneously. The plurality of pairs of planar locations may be 5 to 10 pairs. The routes between 5 to 10 pairs of planar locations may be optimized simultaneously.

[0049] The calculation of individual routes between a plurality of pairs of planar locations from a plurality of planar locations may further include determining a plurality of individual routes between a plurality of pairs of planar locations from the plurality of planar locations (e.g., in a directed graph model), and determining an optimized set of individual routes from the plurality of routes, including solving an optimization problem (e.g., a mixed integer optimization problem) in the plurality of individual routes.

[0050] The model may be a directed graph model of the transfer plane. A plurality of nodes of the directed graph model are assigned to a plurality of planar locations, and a plurality of arcs connecting the nodes of the directed graph model are assigned to a plurality of inter-location movements between two planar locations. Calculating an optimized set of individual routes in the directed graph model can include finding an optimal multi-commodity flow in this directed graph. The multi-commodity flow problem is a network flow problem regarding a plurality of commodities (flow requirements) between different source nodes and sink nodes. A pair of end locations / locations or fields can define the source node and the sink node. Alternatively, the model can be a numerical model and / or a simulation. However, the model can also be another model, for example, a combination of the aforementioned models.

[0051] Merely an inter-field (inter-location) movement between two adjacent planar fields (locations) may be allowed. Merely an inter-location movement between two adjacent groups of logical fields / planar positions may be allowed. The arc may only connect adjacent nodes of the directed graph model.

[0052] When pre - determining individual routes, the method may further include, for example, determining an optimally re - set set of individual routes from the individual routes during initialization of the laboratory sample distribution system. The determination of the optimally re - set set of individual routes may depend on the expected carrier traffic on the transfer plane. For example, the pre - determined individual routes may comprise two sets of individual routes, a first set for high traffic and a second set for low traffic. If low traffic is expected, the second set of optimized routes is selected when determining the optimally re - set set of individual routes, and vice versa. Alternatively, the optimally re - set set of individual routes may comprise several sets of optimized individual routes for several traffic scenarios. When determining the optimally re - set set of individual routes, in this case, depending on the expected traffic, the corresponding set of optimized routes is selected from the several sets of optimized routes.

[0053] In different alternative embodiments, the plurality of individual routes between pairs of planar fields / places from a plurality of planar fields / places within the directed graph model can be selected from the plurality of possible routes connecting the pairs of planar fields. The possible routes can be (directly) located on the transfer plane, preferably can be completely (directly) located on the transfer plane. Each pair of planar fields / places may indicate a pair of a start field / place / node and a destination field / place / node of one of the routes. The start and destination locations or fields of a particular individual route may constitute the end location or field of this individual route. The pair of planar places or fields may correspond to a pair of transfer places or fields assigned to one or more laboratory stations or devices and configured to transfer sample containers between the laboratory stations or devices.

[0054] In this method, the pre-determination of individual routes (e.g., offline) may further include determining a first optimized set of individual routes, assigning first application parameters to the first optimized set of individual routes, determining a second optimized set of individual routes different from the first optimized set of individual routes, and assigning second application parameters to the second optimized set of individual routes. Further, controlling the drive device may further include receiving application information indicating current application parameters, and selecting one of the first optimized set of individual routes and the second optimized set of individual routes to control the drive device when it is determined that the current application parameters match the first application parameters or the second application parameters. The first and second application parameters can indicate the first and second dates, periods, traffic situations (e.g., high traffic or low traffic), operating modes, and / or sequences.

[0055] (Expected) carrier traffic (carrier traffic intensity) may depend on several factors. The throughput may be higher on business days than on weekends and may be higher between 8:00 and 18:00 than at night. For example, when glucose screening is performed on a batch of samples or a clinical trial is conducted, the types of tests ordered may vary on a particular day or time. Thus, the endpoint assigned to the corresponding laboratory device may fulfill its function as an endpoint more frequently. The corresponding route including this endpoint may have a higher carrier traffic (carrier traffic intensity). Similarly, due to seasonal effects or pandemic situations, some tests are ordered much more frequently over a longer period.

[0056] Application parameters may correspond to the KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) of a laboratory automation system. Examples of application parameters may be traffic data, constraints, constraint weightings, etc., or combinations thereof.

[0057] Optimization problems that may be model-related can be one of a multi-commodity flow problem, particularly a multi-commodity flow problem in a directed graph, a shortest path problem, and a minimum flow problem.

[0058] The calculation of an optimized set of offline routes between multiple pairs of planar locations from multiple planar locations can include, for example, finding an optimal multi-commodity flow within a directed graph. The multi-commodity flow problem is a network flow problem regarding multiple commodities (flow requirements) between different source nodes and sink nodes. The end point location / location pairs can define the source nodes and sink nodes.

[0059] The optimization problem may be solved, for example, by applying a MIP solver (Mixed-Integer-Programming-solver). A general-purpose solver for MIP problems can be used. The MIP solver can be one of the following, namely, Gurobi, IBM ILOG Cplex, and Coin-OR CBC, that is, the solution to a mixed integer optimization problem can be found with software products such as Gurobi, IBM ILOG Cplex, and Coin-OR CBC. Additional solvers capable of solving this type of optimization problem are known. Generally, a mixed integer optimization problem deals with a mathematical optimization problem involving two types of variables, variables that take values in the integer domain and variables that take values in the continuous domain.

[0060] First, an optimization problem may be defined. For example, a multi-commodity flow problem, i.e., the problem of interest is modeled. The problem of interest may be to find a set of routes on a transfer plane that is optimal with respect to one or more given criteria (constraints). Next, a solution method for the defined optimization problem, such as a MIP solver, may be selected to solve the optimization problem.

[0061] Examples of possible solution methods are presented in the paper P. FESTA, "Exact and Approximate Algorithms for Solving Hard Combinatorial Optimization Problems, and a Simple Introduction to Heuristic Algorithms", 16th International Conference on Transparent Optical Networks (ICTON), 2014, pages 1 to 20, doi:10.1109 / ICTON.2014.6876285. The optimization problem can be solved by an exact optimization method, an approximation of the original problem by a simpler one, and solving a simpler problem, and / or by heuristics and / or metaheuristics. The exact optimization method can be (i) the branch-and-bound method, (ii) the dynamic programming method, or (iii) a solver (other exact optimization methods can also be used). The solver may include multiple algorithms (not just exact algorithms). The exact optimization method can also include a combination of the aforementioned methods. Solving an approximated simpler problem may include applying (i) one or more greedy algorithms, (ii) local search, (iii) one or more relaxation-based algorithms, or (iv) one or more random algorithms (other methods for solving an approximated simpler problem may be used). Also, solving an approximated simpler problem may include a combination of the aforementioned methods. Heuristics and / or metaheuristics can be (i) simulated annealing, (ii) one or more evolutionary algorithms, (iii) tabu search, or (iv) one or more greedy randomized adaptive search procedures (GRASP). Also, heuristics and / or metaheuristics can include a combination of the aforementioned methods.

[0062] The method may further include: (i) providing first frequent end-point location data indicating a first selection of a planar location (or field) that most frequently provides end-points of individual routes; and (ii) determining a directed graph model of a transfer plane, wherein a first node of the directed graph model is assigned to a planar location from the first selection of the planar location (or field), and a first arc starting and / or ending at the first node of the directed graph model is assigned to an inter-location (inter-field) movement from and / or to a planar location (or field) from the first selection of the planar location (or field).

[0063] Alternatively or additionally, the method may include, in a data processing apparatus, providing first frequent end-point location (field) data / data regarding a first highly frequent pair of end-point locations (fields) indicating a first selection of a pair of planar locations (fields) that most frequently provides a pair of end-points (a starting point and a destination) of a route of travel for a carrier. The first selection of the pair of planar locations (fields) may correspond to 5 to 10 pairs of end-points, i.e., the first selection of the pair of planar locations (fields) may correspond to 5 to 10 routes of travel for a carrier.

[0064] A pair of planar fields or locations can include a first selection of a planar field (which most frequently provides the end points of the routes for travel or movement of the carrier) and / or a first selection of a planar location (field) pair. In particular, the first selection of a planar field (which most frequently provides the end points of the individual routes of movement for the carrier) and / or the first selection of a planar location (field) pair can define the planar field / location pair. The first selection of a planar location (or field) (which most frequently provides the end points of the routes of travel for the carrier) and / or the first selection of a planar location (field) pair may (but is not limited to) correspond to a transfer location (or field) and / or a pair of transfer locations. However, the first selection of a planar location (field) may correspond to all end points and / or the first selection of a planar location (field) pair can correspond to all pairs of end points (departure and destination) in the travel routes for the carrier.

[0065] Alternatively or additionally, the method may include providing, in a data processing device, data regarding a first end point location (field) and / or a first pair of end point locations (fields) indicating a first selection of a planar location (field) located in a first area corresponding to a first workflow and / or corresponding to a high-priority sample (time-critical test).

[0066] One transfer field or location may correspond to one or more laboratory devices or stations, such as an analyzer. In the case of one or more laboratory devices, a plurality of (each) planar fields can define one transfer field. The first planar field among the plurality of planar fields can define one transfer field. Alternatively, the second planar field among the plurality of planar fields can define one transfer field. It is possible to exchange whether the first or second planar field defines one transfer field. In particular, whether the first or second planar field defines one transfer field can be exchanged during the determination of individual (e.g., offline) routes, especially during the determination of a plurality of routes between pairs of planar fields from a plurality of planar fields within a directed graph model, and / or during the determination of an optimized set of routes. The laboratory device can comprise an input (assigned to the first transfer field) for the carrier and an output (assigned to the second transfer field) for the carrier. In particular, the input and output can be exchanged during the determination of individual routes. In particular, the exchange can be performed in one or more of the optimization steps. A mere pair of input and output may correspond to a pair of planar fields. However, the input and output can correspond to the same planar field.

[0067] The method may further include: (i) providing second frequent end-point location data indicating a second selection of a planar location (or field) that provides the end-points of individual routes less frequently, wherein the second selection of the planar location (or field) is different from the first selection of the planar location (or field), and providing second frequent end-point location data indicating the second selection of the planar location (or field); and (ii) determining a directed graph model of the transfer plane, wherein the second node of the directed graph model is assigned to a planar location (or field) from the second selection of the planar location (or field), and the second arc starting and / or ending at the second node of the directed graph model is assigned to an inter-location (inter-field) movement from and / or to a planar location (or field) from the second selection of the planar location (or field).

[0068] Alternatively or additionally, the method may include providing, in a data processing device, second frequent end-point location (field) data / data regarding a second highly frequent pair indicating a second selection of a planar location (field) pair that provides pairs of end-points (starting and destination) of routes for a carrier less frequently. The second selection of the planar location (field) pair may correspond to 5 to 10 pairs of end-points, i.e., the second selection of the planar location (field) pair may correspond to 5 to 10 routes for the carrier. The second selection of the planar location (field) may be (completely / in pairs) different from the first selection of the planar location (field). The second selection of the planar location (field) pair may be (completely / in pairs) different from the first selection of the planar location (field) pair.

[0069] Pairs of planar fields or locations may include a second selection of a planar location (or field) and / or a second selection of a pair of planar locations (fields). In particular, the second selection, together with the first selection of a planar location (or field) and / or a pair of planar locations (fields), can define a pair of planar locations (or fields). The second selection of a planar location (or field) and / or the second selection of a pair of planar locations can be a non-transfer location (or field), i.e., the second selection of a planar field and / or the second selection of a pair of planar locations may not include a transfer location (or field) (but is not limited to this).

[0070] Alternatively or additionally, the method may further include providing, in a data processing device, data regarding a second end point location (field) and / or a second pair of end point locations (fields) indicating a second selection of a planar location (field) and / or a second selection of a pair of planar locations (fields) located in a second region corresponding to a second workflow and / or corresponding to samples with a lower priority.

[0071] The first selection of a planar location (or field) / planar location (field) pair may define a first set of pairs of planar locations (or fields). The second (and first) selection of a planar location (or field) / planar location (field) pair may define a second set of pairs of planar locations (or fields). The first and second sets of pairs of planar locations (or fields) may be made (or may define) a pair of planar locations (or fields). For example, the determination of a route that can be performed as a pre-determination of an individual route is the first determination of a route, the first determination in which the first set of pairs of planar locations (or fields) defines a pair of planar locations (or fields), and the second determination of an individual route, the second determination in which the second set of pairs of planar locations (or fields) defines a pair of planar locations (or fields). The first and second determinations of the route may be made independently of each other. The first and second (optimized) routes may correspond to the first and second determinations of the individual routes. The determination of the route may include a third determination of the route. The third determination of the route may correspond to a third (optimized) route. The third determination of the route may include determining an optimized set of routes between a third selection of a planar location (field) / planar location (field) pair. Similarly, the fourth, fifth, and further optimized individual routes can also be calculated in a group (5 to 10 routes and / or 5 to 10 pairs of planar locations). The second determination of the route may be made after the first determination of the route. The second determination of the route may depend on the first (optimized) route determined via the first determination of the route. The expected traffic load from the first set of routes may be considered during the second optimization. During the second determination of the route, the first (optimized) route may be fixed. The second determination of the route may include a single route algorithm, such as the A* algorithm. The first and second determinations of the route may correspond to determining a plurality of routes between pairs of planar locations (or fields) from a plurality of planar locations (or fields) in a directed graph model. The third determination of the route may correspond to determining an optimized set of routes from a plurality of routes.

[0072] A pair of the first set of pairs of planar locations (or fields) may comprise two planar locations (or fields) from a first selection of planar locations (or fields). A pair of the second set of pairs of planar locations (or fields) may comprise two planar locations (or fields) from a second selection of planar locations (or fields). However, additionally or alternatively, a pair of the second set of pairs of planar locations (or fields) may comprise one planar location (or field) from the first selection of planar locations (or fields) and one planar location (or field) from the second selection of planar locations (or fields).

[0073] The method may further comprise providing traffic data indicative of a predicted number of carriers moving between a plurality of pairs of planar locations (or fields) within a time interval, and calculating an optimized set of individual routes between a plurality of pairs of planar locations from a plurality of planar locations in accordance with the predicted number of carriers traveling between the plurality of pairs of planar locations.

[0074] Additionally or alternatively, the traffic data may indicate an actual / recent number of carriers traveling between a plurality of pairs of planar locations within a time interval.

[0075] Providing the traffic data may further comprise at least one of providing traffic data determined from a sample order list, providing traffic data determined from historical data indicative of historical operation of a laboratory sample distribution system, providing traffic data determined from workflow data indicative of a workflow in one or more sample containers to be transported by a plurality of carriers, providing traffic data determined from current and / or recent measured numbers of transported carriers, and providing traffic data determined from a simulation.

[0076] The traffic data may correspond to empty carriers and filled (routed) carriers.

[0077] Calculating an optimized set of individual routes between pairs of planar locations from multiple planar locations may further include applying at least one constraint selected from the following group: minimizing the route length of each individual route, minimizing the weighted route length of each individual route, minimizing the number of route curves for each individual route, minimizing the number of individual routes by merging with another individual route, evenly distributing the carrier traffic for each planar field, restricting the inter-field movement between two planar fields to only movement between adjacent planar fields, excluding planar fields reserved for carrier waiting, evenly distributing the predicted wear of planar fields across multiple planar fields of the transfer plane, minimizing the energy consumption of the laboratory sample distribution system, and minimizing / avoiding regions of 2×2 planar positions having four intersections.

[0078] A region of 2×2 planar positions having four intersections may represent one potential deadlock situation. Similarly, additional potential deadlock situations may be defined. Additional or alternative constraints may be the minimization or avoidance of one or more additional potential deadlock situations.

[0079] Constraints can have weights. Routes with higher expected traffic may be weighted more highly. More highly weighted routes may be prioritized over less highly weighted routes when minimizing the respective route length, the number of route curves, and / or the number of intersections, and / or the overlap with other routes. The first and second pre-determinations of individual routes may include applying different constraints.

[0080] Constraints can have weights. The weights can be set empirically. Constraints can be hard (e.g., can have "infinite weight") or soft (e.g., can have finite weight). Constraints regarding routes with high traffic can have a higher evaluation than those regarding routes with low traffic. According to an example referring to a route with low traffic intensity, the following weights are applied in optimization. (i) Route length: 2 penalty points per field used in the route (flat location or flat position); (ii) Route confluence: 80 penalty points for routes that merge with each other. According to another example referring to a route with higher traffic intensity, the following weights are applied in optimization. (i) Route length: 3 penalty points per field used in the route (flat location or flat position); (ii) Route confluence: 120 penalty points for routes that merge with each other.

[0081] Preventing deadlock arrangements on the transfer plane may further include preventing the carrier from moving along the corresponding route segment when the last field of the fields of the corresponding route segment is included in the individual routes of another carrier.

[0082] Regarding a laboratory automation system, the plurality of laboratory devices (stations) may include one or more laboratory devices selected from a pre - analysis laboratory device, a laboratory device for sample analysis, and a post - analysis laboratory device. The pre - analysis station or device may be adapted to perform any kind of pretreatment of samples, sample containers and / or sample container carriers. The analysis station may be adapted to generate a measurement signal using a sample or a part of the sample and a reagent, and the measurement signal indicates whether an analyte is present and, if so, its concentration. The post - analysis station may be adapted to perform any kind of post - treatment of samples, sample containers, and / or sample container carriers.

[0083] The control of the drive device includes: (i) in the drive device, receiving a reservation request from a carrier traveling on an individual route selected from a predetermined set of individual routes and located at the current route position or on the field along the selected individual route, wherein the reservation request indicates a request to reserve the next route field along the selected individual route; (ii) verifying whether the next route field is available for travel by the drive device; and (iii) if the drive device verifies that the next route field is available for travel, moving the carrier from the current route field to the route field to follow along the selected individual route.

[0084] After verifying that the next route field is available for travel and before moving the carrier, the next route field can be reserved for this carrier, i.e., the next route field can be blocked for other carriers. In particular, the next route field can be blocked for other carriers until the carrier of interest reaches the route field to follow and then leaves the next route field. The above can similarly be applied to n next route fields. The n next route fields may correspond to a subset of locations / fields (e.g., logical fields / plane positions) along the selected individual route. In this case, the n next route fields can be successively unlocked for other carriers after the carrier has passed through them.

[0085] The determination of individual routes that can be made as a pre - determination may further include, in a data processing apparatus, receiving first route traffic information indicating high carrier traffic in a first individual route and splitting at least one individual route into two or more different individual routes. The first route traffic information may be derived from traffic (intensity) data indicating the predicted number of carriers traveling between pairs of flat fields over a time interval. A (traffic) threshold may be pre - determined. If the number of carriers traveling between (corresponding) pairs of flat fields within the time interval is greater than the threshold, the traffic may be identified as high (high - traffic). If the number of carriers traveling between (corresponding) pairs of flat fields within the time interval is lower than the threshold, the traffic may be identified as low (low - traffic).

[0086] Several (traffic) thresholds of different sizes can be defined. The more (traffic) thresholds are exceeded, the more frequently at least one individual route can be split. At least one individual route can be split into more different individual routes by the amount by which the threshold is exceeded. The (traffic) threshold can indicate the maximum capacity of the route. In the case of several thresholds, the first / minimum threshold may indicate the maximum capacity of the route, and subsequent thresholds may indicate twice the maximum capacity of the route.

[0087] Different individual routes may comprise first and second individual routes that are different from each other. The first and second individual routes may have an overlapping section and a separated section. For example, the separated section may comprise a parallel section. A carrier that first traverses at least one individual route before splitting of this route may traverse one of two or more different individual routes into which the at least one individual route has been split. The carrier can be equally split between two or more different individual routes. Thus, in the case of two different individual routes, 50% of the carrier may traverse the first of the two different individual routes, and 50% of the carrier may traverse the second of the two different individual routes. Alternatively, the loads of different individual routes may be different. For example, the shortest of the different individual routes may have the highest load. If one of the different individual routes is the best with respect to optimization (e.g., shortest and / or having the fewest intersections with other routes), this route can have the highest load of the different individual routes. Alternatively, traffic can be taken in by one of the different individual routes until a (traffic) threshold is reached, and all traffic exceeding this threshold can be sent to a further route of the different individual routes.

[0088] A traffic intensity matrix or two-dimensional list can indicate the (expected) traffic intensity at each pair of planar locations (combination of start point / end point) (see Table 1). Each pair of planar locations can correspond to a specific (required) traffic intensity.

[0089]

Table 1

[0090] The method may further include providing traffic intensity data indicating the predicted number of carriers traveling between each of a plurality of pairs of planar fields within a certain time interval. The traffic intensity data may be included in the traffic data. The traffic intensity may include a traffic intensity matrix or a two-dimensional list.

[0091] The traffic data may be determined based on the traffic intensity data and / or the traffic intensity at each pair of planar locations. The traffic intensity data and / or the traffic intensity at each pair of planar locations may be calculated based on the total cumulative traffic between each pair of planar locations, the peak traffic between each pair of planar locations, and / or the capacity of the examination room device assigned to each pair of planar locations. To determine the total cumulative traffic, for example, over a specific time interval, all movements between each pair of planar locations can be calculated from, for example, an ordered list. For example, the number of carriers moved / moved within 24 hours between each pair of planar locations can indicate the total cumulative traffic between each pair of planar locations. To determine the peak traffic, for example, a 15-minute or 30-minute time window (e.g., a movement time window) or a predetermined time interval over 24 hours may be defined, and the maximum traffic intensity can be identified for each pair of planar locations. The peak traffic can correspond to global or local peak traffic. The global peak traffic corresponds to the traffic intensity at each pair of planar locations when the traffic between all pairs of planar locations is at its maximum. The local peak traffic corresponds to the maximum traffic intensity at each pair of planar locations. The maximum traffic intensities at different pairs of planar locations may exist at different times. The capacity of the examination room device can be considered to avoid waiting near the examination room device. The sum of the traffic (intensity) for each route can correspond to the transport capacity of the system for each route. The transport capacity can be matched with the capacity of the examination room device for each route.

[0092] The above (traffic) threshold may be compared with traffic intensity data for each pair of planar fields or locations to determine whether the traffic is high.

[0093] A first selection of planar fields may indicate a plurality of pairs (end points of carrier routes) with a high frequency of planar fields. A second selection of planar fields may indicate a plurality of pairs (end points of carrier routes) with a low frequency of planar fields. The first selection of planar fields may correspond to high-order entries in the traffic intensity matrix. The second selection of planar fields may correspond to low-order entries in the traffic intensity matrix.

[0094] The determination of individual routes may include a first determination of individual routes, where the first selection of planar fields defines pairs of planar fields, and a second preliminary determination of individual routes, where the second selection of planar fields defines pairs of planar fields. The first determination of individual routes may be prioritized. The first determination of individual routes may be made before the second determination of individual routes. During the second determination of individual routes, the first-determined individual routes may be fixed / "frozen". The first and second determinations of individual routes may be provided in the same manner as the determination of individual routes.

[0095] In optimization, traffic intensity can be used to weight the importance of each pair of planar fields. For example, in the case of a pair of planar fields with high traffic intensity, it is more important to reduce the number of bends or intersections of the corresponding routes connecting the pair of planar fields than for a pair of planar fields with low traffic intensity.

[0096] Determining individual routes may further include receiving second route traffic information indicating high carrier traffic (intensity) in a second individual route, and preventing the second individual route from being route adjusted while determining one of the plurality of individual routes and / or determining an optimized set of individual routes. This step may alternatively or additionally be included in the step of calculating an optimized set of individual routes.

[0097] Determining / calculating individual routes between a plurality of pairs of plane fields from a plurality of plane fields (e.g., in a directed graph model) may include receiving first carrier traffic information indicating a first carrier traffic scenario in the plurality of individual routes, determining a first plurality of individual routes between a plurality of pairs of plane fields from a plurality of plane fields (e.g., in a directed graph model), receiving second carrier traffic information indicating a second carrier traffic scenario in the plurality of individual routes, wherein the second carrier traffic scenario is different from the first carrier traffic scenario, and determining a second plurality of individual routes between a plurality of pairs of plane fields from a plurality of plane fields (e.g., in a directed graph model). This step may alternatively or additionally be included in a pre-determination step.

[0098] The first plurality of individual routes between a plurality of pairs of plane fields may comprise a first number of plane fields included in / traversed by the first plurality of individual routes. The second plurality of individual routes between a plurality of pairs of plane fields may include a second number of plane fields included in / traversed by the second plurality of individual routes. The first and second numbers of plane fields may be different. Each plane field may correspond to a respective module of a transfer plane. Modules corresponding to / serving only plane fields not included in / traversed by the (first and / or second) plurality of individual routes may be switched off.

[0099] Regarding the laboratory sample distribution system, the embodiments described above in relation to the method of operating the laboratory sample distribution system may be provided as appropriate.

[0100] According to another aspect, a method of operating a laboratory sample distribution system is provided. The laboratory sample distribution system includes a plurality of carriers having n (n>3) carriers configured to each transport one or more sample containers containing samples to be analyzed by laboratory equipment (the plurality of carriers may be a subset of the total plurality of carriers provided by the laboratory sample distribution system), and a transfer plane that is assigned to the laboratory equipment and configured to support the plurality of carriers, the transfer plane including a plurality of interconnected transfer modules having a plurality of planar fields (at least one of the planar fields (each planar field) may receive only one carrier at a time and / or at least one of the planar fields (each planar field) may receive a plurality of carriers at a time), and a drive device configured to control the movement of the plurality of carriers along individual routes between the plurality of planar fields, the movement including moving the plurality of carriers between adjacent planar fields of the plurality of planar fields along the individual routes in response to a drive control signal.

[0101] The method includes: (i) providing a plurality of route segments to be traveled, wherein for each of the plurality of carriers, each respective route segment to be traveled is provided along a respective route on a transfer plane, and each route segment is provided by one or more of a plurality of planar fields; and (ii) preventing a deadlock arrangement on the transfer plane in which the plurality of carriers block further movement along individual routes with respect to each other (the prevention of a deadlock arrangement on the transfer plane may be performed, in particular when designing a route or a section of a route and / or at runtime, for example outside of runtime via simulation and / or calculation). The prevention further includes (in the drive device) determining, during the current operating time, whether a deadlock arrangement among the plurality of carriers on the transfer plane will occur (potentially or with a possibility of occurring) during future operating times when the plurality of carriers are moved along the plurality of route segments. If it is determined that no deadlock will occur, the plurality of carriers are moved along the plurality of route segments (each such movement may define the movement). If it is determined that a deadlock will occur (potentially or with a possibility of occurring), the plurality of carriers are moved in a monitoring mode to avoid the deadlock. Alternatively, the carriers may be moved in a monitoring mode in any case.

[0102] Moving the plurality of carriers in a monitoring mode to avoid a deadlock may include moving the carriers one by one (along their respective route segments), checking each time whether moving the next carrier will cause a deadlock, and skipping the movement of a particular carrier or shortening its movement length (e.g., the number of fields of the corresponding route segment) if it is determined that this movement will cause a deadlock.

[0103] Preventing may include determining the (minimum) number of (empty) fields that would complete a deadlock if the field were occupied by a carrier. Moving multiple carriers in a monitored manner to avoid deadlocks, if the number of (empty) fields that would complete a deadlock when the field is occupied by a carrier is less than a threshold (e.g., 2 or 3), may include skipping (preventing) the movement of a carrier that ends the operation of one of the fields of the above number of fields that would complete the deadlock (situation) and become (empty) (e.g., the last field of the fields of each route segment corresponds to one of the above number of fields that would complete the deadlock and become (empty)). Alternatively or additionally, the length of the movement (e.g., the number of fields of the corresponding route segment) may be shortened.

[0104] Moving multiple carriers in a monitored manner to avoid deadlocks may include preventing the carrier from moving along that route segment if this movement would cross the route of another carrier (e.g., the last field of the fields of a route segment is included in the route of another carrier). Alternatively or additionally, the length of the movement (e.g., the number of fields of the corresponding route segment) may be reduced or increased.

[0105] According to another aspect, there is provided a laboratory sample distribution system configured to perform at least some of the above-described method steps.

[0106] Regarding the laboratory sample distribution system, the above-described embodiments may be appropriately provided in relation to the method of operating the laboratory sample distribution system.

[0107] Furthermore, the above-described embodiments may be combined with each other in relation to different methods of operating the laboratory sample distribution system.

[0108] Description of Further Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments will be described as an example with reference to the drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0109]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3A

Figure 3B

Figure 3C

Figure 3D

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6A

Figure 6B

Figure 7

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0110] FIG. 1 shows a graphical display of a laboratory sample distribution system. The laboratory sample distribution system includes a plurality of carriers 4 configured to transport one or more sample containers containing samples to be analyzed by a laboratory device 3, a transfer plane 1 assigned to the laboratory device 3 and providing support for the sample container carriers 4, and a drive device 13 configured to move the plurality of carriers 4 between a plurality of planar fields or locations 5 provided on the transfer plane 1 in response to a drive control signal.

[0111] The transfer plane 1 is provided by a plurality of transfer modules 12. The transfer plane 1 may include a plurality of planar positions / logical fields 5. In the illustrated case, one planar position / logical field 5 defines one planar location 5'. Each transfer module 12 is assigned to a respective planar field or location 5. Each laboratory device 3 is assigned to one or more (local or adjacent) planar fields or locations 5.

[0112] Also, FIG. 1 shows a display of a directed graph model 8 provided as an example for determining individual routes in a carrier 4 for traveling or moving (from a start planar field to an end planar field) between planar fields or locations 5. Alternative methods for determining individual routes in a carrier 4 in a given arrangement of planar fields, methods known as such, may be applied.

[0113] In the illustrated example, the directed graph model 8 includes a plurality of nodes 9 and a plurality of arcs 10 connecting the nodes 9. Each of the nodes 9 of the directed graph model 8 may correspond to a respective planar field 5. Alternatively, with respect to a subset of the nodes 9, each node 9 may correspond to a respective planar field 5. Each of the arcs 9 of the directed graph model 8 may correspond to a movement between two respective planar fields 5. Alternatively, with respect to a subset of the arcs 9, each arc 9 may correspond to a movement between two respective planar fields 5.

[0114] One or more planar fields 5 are assigned to the inspection room device 3. One of these planar fields 5 (planar location 5') can be a transfer field or location 16. Each inspection room device 3 is assigned to one or more transfer fields 16. A carrier 4 located on the first transfer field assigned to the inspection room device can be transferred from this transfer field to the inspection room device. Alternatively, when a carrier 4 with a sample is located on the first transfer field assigned to the inspection room device 3, the sample can be transferred from the first transfer field to the inspection room device 3. A carrier 4 located within the inspection room device 3 can be transferred to the second transfer field assigned to the inspection room device 3. Alternatively, when a carrier 4 without a sample is located on the second transfer field assigned to the inspection room device 3, the sample can be transferred from the inspection room device 3 to the carrier 4 on the second transfer field. The first and second transfer fields may be assigned to the same inspection room device 3. The first and second transfer fields can correspond to the input and output of the inspection room device 3 (input planar field and output planar field). The first and second transfer fields can correspond to the same or different planar fields 5 assigned to the inspection room device 3. Note that only one carrier 4 can be provided on one planar field.

[0115] Via the transfer plane 1, the carrier 4 is moved between different planar fields 5. In particular, the carrier 4 may be moved between a plurality of pairs of planar fields 11. The movement may correspond to an individual route 6 in the carrier 4. The first planar field of the individual route 6 may provide the starting planar field and the last planar field of the individual route 6 in the destination planar field, and vice versa. The plurality of starting planar fields and the plurality of destination planar fields may correspond to the end point field and / or a plurality of pairs 11 of planar fields. For each pair of planar fields 11, different individual routes 6 may be provided. Each pair of planar fields 11 may comprise two planar fields 5, for example a starting planar field 11' and a destination planar field 11", i.e. two end point fields. First frequent end point field data indicating a first selection of the planar field 14 that most frequently provides the end point of the travel route 6 in the carrier 4 may be determined. This first selection of the planar field 14 may correspond to a first set of pairs of planar fields 11. The first set of pairs of planar fields 11 may correspond to transfer fields, in particular transfer fields 16 that the carrier frequently visits. Second frequent end point field data indicating a second selection of the planar field 15 that provides the end point of the travel route 6 in the carrier 4 less frequently may be determined. This second selection of the planar field 15 may correspond to a second set of pairs of planar fields 11. This second selection 15 need not correspond to the transfer field 16. The second set of pairs of planar fields 11 need not correspond to the transfer field 16. The second set of pairs may include pairs 11 that do not correspond to the first selection 14 and / or pairs 11 in which one field of each pair 11 corresponds to the first selection 14 and the other field of each pair 11 corresponds to the second selection 15. The second set of pairs of planar fields 11 may correspond to transfer fields 16 that are not visited very frequently by the carrier 4. The alternating arrangement of nodes 9 and arcs 10 can form a route 6, with the first and last elements being nodes 9, and these nodes 9 corresponding to a pair of planar fields 11.

[0116] Figure 1 shows four endpoints. The four endpoints may correspond to the selection of the planar fields 14, 15. There are possible connection routes exceeding 12 between these four endpoints. However, for simplicity, Figure 1 shows only two routes. Each endpoint can form a pair of planar fields 11 with any of the other endpoints. Therefore, these four endpoints can define 12 different pairs of planar fields 11. Generally, m endpoints can define m·(m - 1) different pairs of planar fields 11 (where b() is the binomial coefficient). However, according to Figure 1, two first endpoints 11’, 11” correspond to the first selection of the planar field 14, and the two other endpoints (second endpoints) correspond to the second selection of the planar field 15. The first endpoint can define the first pair of planar fields. The second endpoint can define the second pair of planar fields. The first traffic corresponding to the first pair of planar fields may be higher than the second traffic corresponding to the second pair of planar fields. Therefore, the number of carriers 4 traveling between the first pair of planar fields may be more than the number of carriers 4 traveling between the second pair of planar fields, for example, within a given time interval.

[0117] Figure 2 shows a graphical representation of a flowchart of a method for operating an inspection room sample distribution system. The method according to Figure 2 includes determining (step 20) individual routes 6 on a transfer plane by one or more processors of a data processing device, for example, according to a transfer field. Such determination may be made at runtime of the inspection room sample distribution system and / or before moving the carrier 4 on the transfer plane 1, thereby pre-determining the (individual) offline routes in the carrier 4 on the transfer plane 1.

[0118] In the illustrated embodiment, determining the individual routes 6 includes determining a directed graph model of the transfer plane (step 21), where a plane field 5 is assigned to a node 9 of the directed graph model 8, and an arc 10 connecting the nodes 9 of the directed graph model 8 is assigned to an inter-field movement between two plane fields 5. Further, a plurality of individual (e.g., offline) routes 6 between pairs of plane fields from the plurality of plane fields 5 in the directed graph model are determined in step 22. The determined individual routes 6 can be applied to move the carrier 4 on the transfer plane 1.

[0119] Optionally, an optimized set of individual routes may be determined from the plurality of individual routes 6 (step 23), such determination further including solving a mixed integer optimization problem in the plurality of individual routes 6. Subsequently, the drive device 30 may control the movement of the carrier 4 along the (optimized) individual routes 6 on the transfer plane 1.

[0120] A plurality of pairs of the planar fields 11 may comprise first and second sets of the plurality of pairs of the planar fields 11. The determination of each individual route can include two executions, a first determination and a second determination. In the first determination, a plurality of routes 6 for the first set of the plurality of pairs of the planar fields 11 may be determined, and in the second determination, a plurality of routes 6 for the second set of the plurality of pairs of the planar fields 11 may be determined. Alternatively, the determination of the plurality of individual routes between the plurality of pairs of planar fields from the plurality of planar fields in the directed graph model 22 may include two executions, an execution in the first set of the plurality of pairs of the planar fields 11 and an execution in the second set. Alternatively, the determination of the optimized set of individual routes from the plurality of individual routes 6 can include two executions, an execution in the first set of the plurality of pairs of the planar fields 11 and an execution in the second set. In any case, the first execution may be prioritized. The first execution can be performed before the second execution. During the second execution, the routes determined via the first execution may be fixed. In FIG. 1, the first route 6' may be calculated via the first execution, and the second route 6'' may be calculated via the second execution.

[0121] For example, the determination of the plurality of individual routes 6 between the plurality of pairs of the planar fields 11 from the plurality of planar fields 5 in the directed graph model can include a first execution for determining the first route 6, and independently, the determination of the plurality of individual routes between the plurality of pairs of planar fields from the plurality of planar fields in the directed graph model 8 can include a second execution for determining the second individual route. Then, the first and second routes can be optimized again according to both the first and second routes and / or according to the plurality of pairs (all) of the planar fields 11. This subsequent step can correspond to the determination of the optimized set of individual routes from the plurality of individual routes 6.

[0122] FIG. 3A shows a graphical representation of an example of a minimum deadlock when movement between fields (logical fields / plane positions) is possible only in one X-direction and one Y-direction for each field. In this case, four out of a plurality of plane fields 5 in the area of a 2×2 plane field are occupied by four carriers 4. Thus, each of the four plane fields or locations is occupied by one carrier 4. For each plane field, with respect to the area of the 2×2 plane field, a counterclockwise movement 31 to another plane field in the area of the 2×2 plane field is allowed. Also, for each of the four carriers 4, such movement is intended. However, since each of the four plane fields is occupied, none of the four carriers 4 can reserve a following plane field and / or cannot execute the intended movement. Thereby, a deadlock occurs.

[0123] Similarly, although not shown, other deadlock arrangements in more than four carriers can potentially occur during the runtime of the examination room sample distribution system. For example, n carriers 4 (n>4) may be provided on n plane fields, and the plane fields may be arranged along a closed line or in a circle, whereby all carriers block each other's further movement to adjacent plane fields that are already occupied by another carrier from among the n carriers. An adjacency matrix corresponding to the blocked carriers 4 can also be provided in such alternative embodiments. By matrix multiplication, the adjacency matrix can be determined via adjacent matrices when the blocked carriers 4 form a circle, i.e., when the blocked carriers form a deadlock.

[0124] Figure 3B shows a graphical representation of an example of an allowed movement 32 of a carrier 4 in a given planar field. In a given planar field, the carrier 4 may be allowed to move only in one X direction and one Y direction. Figure 3B shows an embodiment in which the carrier 4 is allowed to move leftward in the X direction and upward in the Y direction. On the other hand, Figure 3C further shows a non-allowed movement 33 of a carrier in a given planar field 5.

[0125] Figure 3D shows a graphical representation of a specific pattern in an allowed inter-field movement 32 on a transfer plane 1. In Figure 3D, the transfer plane 1 is divided into a square area of a 6×6 planar field 35. Each area of the 6×6 planar positions 35 corresponds to one transfer module 12. The square area 35 may be cut at the edge of the transfer plane 1. In the upper half of each square area 35, the carrier 4 is allowed to move leftward in the X direction, and in the lower half of each square area 35, the carrier 4 is allowed to move rightward (only) in the X direction. In the left half of each square area 35, the carrier 4 is allowed to move downward in the Y direction, and in the right half of each square area 35, the carrier 4 is allowed to move upward (only) in the Y direction. In this pattern, each square area 35 includes one area of a 2×2 planar location 34 at the center that can result in a deadlock. In this area of the 2×2 planar field 34, clockwise carrier movement is allowed. Further, the pattern includes additional such areas of the 2×2 planar field 34, and each planar field 5 of each of the additional such areas of the 2×2 planar field 34 corresponds to a corner location 5 of the square area 35. In Figure 3D, each such area of the 2×2 planar field 34 (which potentially forms a deadlock) is marked with an exclamation mark. The four planar positions included in this 2×2 planar location are derived from the four adjacent corners of the four areas. There is one completely displayed 6×6 area and eight parts of the 6×6 area (only partially shown in Figure 3D).

[0126] Figure 4 shows a graphical representation of a reserved track segment 42 and a subsequent flagged planar position 43 in the first carrier 4'. Figure 4 shows a method for preventing deadlocks. The first carrier 4' reserves the track segment 42 at the planar position 5 along its route 41. The first planar position 5 of the segment 42 corresponds to the planar position 5 where the first carrier 4' will next enter, starting from the current planar position 5. Starting from the first planar position 5, the track segment 42 includes one or more directly adjacent further planar positions 5 up to the last planar position 5 of the track segment 42. In Figure 4, the track segment 42 includes two planar positions 5, namely the first and the last. The planar positions 5 of the track segment 42 of the first carrier 4' may be reserved for the first carrier 4', i.e., these planar positions 5 may be blocked for carriers 4 other than the first carrier 4'. The planar position 5 on the route 41 of the first carrier 4' immediately following the last field of the segment 42 of the first carrier 4' can be flagged with respect to the first carrier 4'. The flagged planar position 43 of the first carrier 4' may not be reserved by other carriers 4, i.e., the flagged planar position 43 may not be included by the segments 42 of other carriers 4. Thus, in Figure 4, in particular the fourth carrier 4" is not allowed to reserve the flagged planar position 43 and thus is not allowed to reserve the next two planar positions to the right of its current position.

[0127] Figure 5 shows a graph display of the split route 51. If the traffic on the determined route 51 has high traffic, for example, if the traffic exceeds a threshold, the route 51 may be split into several sub-routes 52, 53. In the case of Figure 5, the route 51 with high traffic is split into two sub-routes 52, 53. The sub-routes 52, 53 include overlapping sections, separation / merging sections, and parallel sections. The traffic of the route 51 with high traffic may be divided such that 50% goes to the upper route 52 and 50% goes to the lower route 53. Alternatively, the traffic of the route 51 with high traffic may be distributed to the sub-routes 52, 53 with different weightings. For example, the shortest of the sub-routes 52, 53 of the split route 51 may be given the highest percentage of traffic. To avoid collisions at the intersection 54 of the routes, the carrier 4 assigned to the split route 51 may alternatively follow one of the sub-routes 52, 53.

[0128] Figure 6A shows a graph display of a situation that may lead to a deadlock. An example of an algorithm for avoiding falling into a deadlock will be described with reference to Figure 6A. In the first step, a set of the next moves for a subset (s) of the carriers 4, that is, the carriers 4 1 , 4 2 , 4 3 , and 4 4 is planned. In the next step, it is checked whether these moves can result in a deadlock. If not, the planned moves can be executed. If these moves may result in a deadlock, the list of planned moves is processed sequentially, and it is checked one by one whether the next move will cause a deadlock. The move that causes a deadlock is prevented. Alternatively, the length of the move can be shortened so that a deadlock does not occur. Referring to the example of Figure 6A, note that the move of the carrier 4 1 can be executed safely. The carrier 4 2Moving it will cause a deadlock. Therefore, it is possible to skip the movement of carrier 2 or shorten the movement length so as not to cause a deadlock. Carrier 4 3 can move safely. Carrier 4 4 can also move safely and even reduce the risk of deadlock. Figure 6B shows a graphical representation of the situation shown in Figure 6A after the carrier movement has been executed.

[0129] In the case shown in Figure 6A, the situation shown is only one position away from a deadlock, i.e., if it is occupied by carrier 4, there is only one (empty) field 5 that completes the deadlock.

[0130] There may be one or more (empty) fields 5 that complete the deadlock when occupied by carrier 4 (the open "side"). It may be prohibited to move carrier 4 to such a remaining open "side". In this case, for example, the left-to-right route of carrier 4 4 is prohibited. If it is determined that only n (or less) free positions remain until a deadlock occurs (n is configurable (n > 0)), the movement of carrier 4 that ends at any of these positions may be prohibited.

[0131] Figure 7 shows a strategy for avoiding deadlocks. In this case, the movement of the carrier that ends at the intersection with another route 6 is prohibited. Therefore, the movement of carriers 4 1 and 4 2 on the left side of Figure 7 is not allowed because it ends at the intersection with the vertical route 6. However, those movements can be shortened or extended to make them allowable (see the right side of Figure 7).

Claims

1. A method of operating a laboratory sample distribution system, the laboratory sample distribution system comprising: a plurality of carriers (4) having n (n>3) carriers (4) each configured to convey one or more sample containers containing samples to be analyzed by a laboratory device (3); a transfer plane (1) assigned to the laboratory device (3) and configured to support the plurality of carriers (4), the transfer plane (1) comprising a plurality of interconnected transfer modules each comprising a plurality of planar fields (5); a drive device (13) configured to control the movement of the plurality of carriers (4) along individual routes between the plurality of planar fields (5), the movement comprising moving the plurality of carriers (4) between adjacent planar fields of the plurality of planar fields (5) along the individual routes (6) in response to drive control signals; comprising; the method comprising: moving the plurality of carriers (4) along the individual routes on the transfer plane (1), the moving comprising, for each carrier, reserving a route segment along the individual route, the route segment being provided by one or more of the plurality of planar fields (5), and executing at least once a step of moving the carrier (4) along the route segment; preventing a deadlock arrangement on the transfer plane, wherein the plurality of carriers (4) block further movement of each other along the individual routes (6); comprising, the preventing comprising: determining, at the current operating time, a potential deadlock arrangement for the plurality of carriers (4) on the transfer plane (1) at a future operating time, the potential deadlock arrangement including n deadlock planar fields assigned to be occupied by the plurality of carriers (4) in the case of the potential deadlock arrangement; Reserving, for a first carrier from the plurality of carriers (4) moving along a first respective route, a first route segment ending in a first end plane field; Assigning a non-reservation flag to an adjacent plane field (43) adjacent to the first end plane field along the first respective route; Further comprising: The first end plane field provides a first deadlock plane field among the n deadlock plane fields; The adjacent plane field (43) provides a second deadlock plane field among the n deadlock plane fields; Assigning the non-reservation flag to the adjacent plane field (43) prevents all remaining carriers among the plurality of carriers (4) from reserving a second route segment along a second respective route, the second route segment being the adjacent plane field (43) assigned as a second end plane field to be occupied by at least one of the remaining carriers for at least the future operation time; Method. **Claim 2** The determining includes determining a potential closed array deadlock arrangement in which the plurality of carriers (4) are arranged on a plurality of plane fields arranged in a closed array of plane fields, the method according to claim 1. **Claim 3** Moving the plurality of carriers (4) includes restricting movement in each carrier from the plurality of carriers (4) to only a single vertical direction and a single horizontal direction of the transfer plane, the method according to claim 1 or 2. **Claim 4** The preventing includes: Providing flag data indicating the adjacent plane field (43) to which the non-reservation flag is assigned to the drive device (13); Updating the flag data when one of assigning the non-reservation flag to the adjacent plane field (43) and ending the assignment of the non-reservation flag for the adjacent plane field (43) is performed, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 3. **Claim 5** Reserving the second route segment includes referring to the flag data and verifying that no non-reservation flag is assigned to a second end field of the second route segment, the method according to claim 4. **Claim 6** ​ Moving the plurality of carriers (4) along the respective routes (6) comprises: determining a model representing a plurality of moves between locations between the transfer plane (1) having a plurality of planar locations (5') and the plurality of planar locations (5') associated with the plurality of carriers (4); calculating an optimized set of individual routes between a plurality of pairs of planar locations from the plurality of planar locations (5'), the calculating comprising solving an optimization problem in which a plurality of routes between the plurality of pairs of planar locations are optimized simultaneously; providing the optimized set of individual routes as individual routes (6) on the transfer plane (1); The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, comprising: **Claim 7** The model is a directed graph model (8) of the transfer plane (1), a plurality of nodes (9) of the directed graph model (8) are assigned to a plurality of planar locations (5'), and a plurality of arcs (10) connecting the nodes (9) of the directed graph model (8) are assigned to a plurality of moves between locations between two planar locations (5'). The method according to claim 6. **Claim 8** The optimization problem is a multi-commodity flow problem, particularly a multi-commodity flow problem in a directed graph, a shortest path problem, a minimum flow problem, a traveling salesman problem, and a graph coloring problem, The method according to claim 6 or 7, which is one of the above. **Claim 9** The optimization problem is solved by applying an MIP solver. The method according to any one of claims 6 to 8. **Claim 10** providing first frequent end-point location data indicating a first selection of a planar location that most frequently provides end-points of individual routes; determining the directed graph model (8) of the transfer plane (1), wherein a first node (9) of the directed graph model (8) is assigned to the planar location from the first selection of planar locations, and first arcs (10) starting and / or ending at the first node (9) of the directed graph model (8) are assigned to moves between locations from and / or to planar locations from the first selection of planar locations. Determining the directed graph model (8) of the transfer plane (1); The method according to claim 7, further comprising: **Claim 11** To provide second frequent end point location data indicating a second selection of a planar location, where the frequency of providing the end points of individual routes (6) is lower, and the second selection of the planar location is different from the first selection of the planar location, and to provide second frequent end point location data indicating the second selection of the planar location. To determine the directed graph model (8) of the transfer plane (1), where the second node (9) of the directed graph model (8) is assigned to the planar location from the second selection of the planar location, and the second arc (10) starting and / or ending at the second node (9) of the directed graph model (8) is assigned to the movement between locations from and / or to the planar location from the second selection of the planar location, and to determine the directed graph model (8) of the transfer plane (1). The method according to claim 7 or 10, further comprising the above.

12. To provide traffic data indicating the predicted number of carriers (4) moving between a plurality of pairs of the planar locations within a time interval. To calculate the optimized set of individual routes between the plurality of pairs of the planar locations from the plurality of planar locations (5'), according to the predicted number of carriers (4) moving between the plurality of pairs of the planar locations. The method according to any one of claims 6 to 11, further comprising the above.

13. Providing the traffic data comprises providing traffic data determined from a sample order list, providing traffic data determined from historical data indicating the historical operation of the laboratory sample distribution system, providing traffic data determined from workflow data indicating the workflow in the one or more sample containers to be transported by the plurality of carriers (4), and providing traffic data determined from the current and / or recently measured number of transported carriers (4). The method according to claim 12, further comprising at least one of the above.

14. Calculating the optimized set of individual routes between the plurality of pairs of the planar locations from the plurality of planar locations (5') is the following group: minimizing the route length of each individual route, minimizing the weighted route length of each of the individual routes, minimizing the number of route curves for each individual route. Minimizing the number of individual routes that merge into other individual routes, Evenly distributing the carrier traffic for each planar field (5), Restricting field-to-field movement between two planar fields (5) to only movement between adjacent planar fields, Excluding planar fields (5) reserved for carrier waiting, Evenly distributing the predicted wear of the planar fields across the plurality of planar fields (5) of the transfer plane (1), Minimizing the energy consumption of the laboratory sample distribution system, and Minimizing / avoiding regions of 2×2 planar positions having four intersections, The method according to any one of claims 6 to 13, further comprising applying at least one constraint selected from the group consisting of.

15. Preventing the deadlock arrangement on the transfer plane (1) further includes preventing the carrier (4) from moving along the corresponding route segment when the last field (5) of the fields (5) of the corresponding route segment is included in the individual route (6) of another carrier (4). The method according to any one of claims 1 to 14.

16. A laboratory sample distribution system, A plurality of carriers (4) having n (n>3) carriers (4) each configured to carry one or more sample containers containing samples to be analyzed by a laboratory device (3), A transfer plane (1) assigned to the laboratory device (3) and configured to support the plurality of carriers (4), the transfer plane (1) comprising a plurality of interconnected transfer modules each having a plurality of planar fields (5), A drive device (13) configured to control the movement of the plurality of carriers (4) along the plurality of planar fields (5) of the individual routes (6), the movement including moving the plurality of carriers (4) between adjacent planar fields of the plurality of planar fields (5) along the individual routes in response to a drive control signal. A drive device (13), Comprising, The system is, Moving the plurality of carriers (4) along the respective routes on the transfer plane (1), the moving being, for each carrier, a step of reserving a route segment along the respective route, the route segment being provided by one or more of the plurality of planar fields (5), the step of reserving; and moving the carrier along the route segment at least once, including moving the plurality of carriers (4) along the respective routes on the transfer plane (1). Preventing a deadlock arrangement on the transfer plane (1) in which the plurality of carriers (4) block further movement along the respective routes (6) with respect to each other for the plurality of carriers (4). Is configured to perform, the preventing comprising Determining, at the current operating time, a potential deadlock arrangement for the plurality of carriers (4) on the transfer plane (1) at a future operating time, the potential deadlock arrangement having n deadlock planar fields assigned thereto that would be occupied by the plurality of carriers (4) in the case of the potential deadlock arrangement, determining the potential deadlock arrangement. Reserving, for a first carrier from the plurality of carriers (4) moving along a first respective route, a first route segment ending at a first terminal planar field. Assigning a non-reservation flag to an adjacent planar field (43) adjacent to the first terminal planar field along the first respective route. Further including The first terminal planar field provides a first deadlock planar field of the n deadlock planar fields. The adjacent planar field (43) provides a second deadlock planar field of the n deadlock planar fields. Assigning the non-reservation flag to the adjacent plane field (43) prevents all remaining carriers of the plurality of carriers (4) from reserving a second route segment along a second individual route, and the second route segment is at least the future operating time. The adjacent plane field (43) is assigned as a second end plane field to be occupied by one of the remaining carriers. Laboratory sample distribution system.

17. A laboratory automation system comprising the laboratory sample distribution system according to claim 16 and a plurality of laboratory devices (3).

18. The laboratory automation system according to claim 17, wherein the plurality of laboratory devices (3) comprise one or more laboratory devices selected from a pre-analysis laboratory device, a laboratory device for sample analysis, and a post-analysis laboratory device.

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