Surface detection calibration system and method

Abstract

Calibration of components of a liquid handling system is provided. Each of the movable stages and associated attachments (e.g., pipettes) and material handling gripper systems is calibrated from time to time, as the precision of the components of the liquid handling system enables the operation of such components. For the movable stages and associated attachments, a fixed calibration probe may be used to locate a specific spatial location in the calibration target slot. Similarly, for the material handling gripper systems, a fixed calibration pin may be used to locate a specific spatial location in the calibration target slot. Each of these systems may be calibrated based on the movement of the movable stages and associated attachments and material handling gripper systems to move to and locate a specific spatial location.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Cross - Reference to Related Applications This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 503,449, filed on May 19, 2023, entitled "AUTOMATED LIQUID HANDLING SYSTEMS, TOOLS, AND CALIBRATIONS", which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

[0002] The present disclosure generally relates to liquid handling systems. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to combinations of movable stages and pipettes, and to the calibration of components of liquid handling systems, such as material handling gripper systems.

Background Art

[0003] A liquid handling system may include several movable components for dispensing liquids or other materials into containers (e.g., test tubes) or devices (e.g., test devices) and for transporting containers and devices for use by the liquid handling system. For example, a robotic element and several selectively connectable pipettes may be coupled to a movable stage. The movable stage assists in moving and precisely positioning the pipettes above a receptacle, such as a reaction vessel or device, used to react the solution dispensed by the pipettes. In one example, the pipettes, receptacle, and / or device used to react the solution may be located in a closed space where the reaction can be isolated from any external environment to ensure that no other objects can interrupt the process and / or reaction taking place within the closed space of the liquid handling system. In another example, the liquid handling system may also include a material handling gripper system having a pair of gripper arms for transporting reaction vessels or devices to various locations within a closed space where liquids or other types of materials may be placed to undergo one or more operations. For example, a gripper system may be used to move a set of test tubes or other similar containers to a location within a closed space where one or more reactants are added to the exemplary test tubes or other containers.

[0004] Since such systems may include several moving parts or may be manufactured with varying tolerance levels between parts, it is necessary to ensure the accuracy of moving such systems to specific locations within a liquid handling system. Therefore, a movable stage with an associated device (e.g., a pipette) or movable gripper arm may be calibrated from time to time along with associated attachments and material handling gripper systems in order to accurately dispense liquid or other reactants or materials into a container or device, or to move reaction vessels, devices between specific locations. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0005] Detailed explanations are provided below, referring to the attached diagrams. In the diagrams, the leftmost digit of the reference number identifies the diagram in which the reference number first appears. The use of the same reference number in different diagrams indicates similar or identical items. The systems shown in the attached drawings may not be to scale, and components within the drawings may not be shown to scale relative to each other.

[0006] [Figure 1] This figure shows a liquid handling system according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view of a liquid handling system deck assembly according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 3] This is a perspective view of a movable stage assembly including a first pipette and a second pipette, according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 4] This figure shows a calibration system including a pipette, a calibration probe, and a calibration adapter, as well as one or more other calibration sites, according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 5] Figure 3 is a partially open view of the first pipette, according to an example of the principle described herein, showing the internal components of the first pipette and the attachment of a calibration probe to the nozzle of the first pipette. [Figure 6] These are closed and open diagrams of a calibration probe according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 7] Figure 6 shows a perspective view of a partial internal component of the calibration probe, according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 8] This document shows a partial perspective view of the upper portion of a calibration probe and a partial perspective view of a pipette nozzle configured to be inserted into a calibration probe collet, according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 9] This figure shows a calibration target area to which a calibration probe or gripper arm pin is directed in order to calibrate a component of a liquid handling system, according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 10]This figure shows a pair of material handling system gripper arms equipped with gripper jaws, and a calibration pin for calibrating the components of the material handling gripper system, according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 11] Figure 10 is an open view of one of the calibration gripper arms, showing a partial internal component of the gripper arm and calibration pin illustrated, according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 12] This figure shows a material handling gripper arm having the gripper jaws of Figure 11, and a deployment of a calibration pin for calibrating the material handling gripper system, according to an example of the principle described herein. [Figure 13] This is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary method for calibrating components of a liquid handling system according to an example of the principles described herein. [Figure 14] This is a computing system diagram showing the configuration of a liquid handling system that can be used to implement embodiments of the principles described herein. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0007] overview This disclosure describes methods and systems for calibrating components of a liquid handling system. For example, a liquid handling system may include a movable stage for transporting one or more liquid handling devices or systems. The devices or systems that can be transported by the movable stage include one or more pipettes and associated devices (e.g., pipette nozzles and various nozzle attachments) for delivering and dispensing liquid or other materials into one or more containers (e.g., test tubes, beakers, etc.). In another example, a liquid handling system may also include other devices or systems, including a material handling gripper system having a gripper arm for transporting containers or devices between various locations within the liquid handling system. Such a system is composed of many movable parts with different tolerances between components, and calibration of the components of the liquid handling system may be necessary because such a system needs to precisely distribute liquid and transport liquid handling containers or devices within the liquid handling system. That is, the precision of the movable stage, as well as attached devices such as pipettes for delivering liquid and other materials to containers or other devices at various locations within the liquid handling system, is important. Similarly, the precision of the material handling gripper system is crucial for picking up, moving, and loading containers or devices between various locations within the liquid handling system. Therefore, components of the liquid handling system may be calibrated from time to time to ensure operational accuracy.

[0008] In one example, a pipette fixed to a movable stage may accept a calibration probe fixed in association with the pipette nozzle. The movable stage, together with the pipette and the attached calibration probe, may be moved to a calibration target slot located within a calibration adapter, or to a calibration target slot located in one or more other deck components or locations within the liquid handling system. In the calibration target slot, the pipette with the calibration probe is lowered until the calibration probe touches the surface of the calibration adapter or another liquid handling system deck location adjacent to the calibration target slot. Touching the surface of the calibration adapter or another liquid handling system deck location adjacent to the calibration target slot is indicated by conductivity between the calibration probe and the surface being touched, if both the calibration probe and the surface being touched are made of conductive material. Through an iterative process of moving the calibration probe up and down and laterally, the calibration probe may be used to detect the geometry of the calibration target slot. For example, the location of the side of the calibration target slot and the location of the edge where the calibration target slot descends into the calibration target slot opening, below the surface of the calibration adapter or other liquid handling system deck location, are determined. Based on the determined geometry, the spatial position, including the x, y, and z coordinates of a specific location such as the geometric center of the calibration target slot, can be determined and stored. Thus, since the precise movements of the moving stage and the attached pipette for moving the calibration probe to a specific location (e.g., the geometric center of the calibration target slot) are known at this point, the moving stage can be calibrated together with the attached pipette.

[0009] In another example, with respect to a material handling gripper system, the components of the material handling gripper system may also be calibrated. Similar to the combination of a movable stage and pipette discussed above, each of the gripper arms of the material handling gripper system may receive a calibration probe or pin at the lower end of the gripper arm. Starting with the first gripper arm of two or more gripper arms, the calibration pin is fixed to the lower end of the first gripper arm. Similar to the combination of a movable stage and pipette discussed above, the gripper arm with the attached combination pin is lowered until the calibration pin touches the surface of the calibration adapter or another liquid handling system deck location adjacent to the calibration target slot. Similar to the calibration probe described above for the combination of a movable stage and pipette, touching the surface is indicated by conductivity between the gripper arm calibration pin and the surface being touched, if both the gripper arm calibration pin and the surface being touched are made of conductive material. As discussed above for the combination of a moving stage and pipette, the spatial position, including the x, y, and z coordinates of a specific location within the calibration target slot, such as the geometric center of the calibration target slot, can be determined and stored through an iterative process of moving the gripper arm calibration pin vertically and laterally. This process is then repeated for a second or other gripper arm by fixing the gripper arm calibration pin to a second gripper arm of two or more gripper arms, and having the second gripper arm with the fixed gripper arm calibration pin repeat the process of determining the specific spatial location within the calibration target slot. If the material handling gripper system has three or more gripper arms, the calibration process is repeated for any additional gripper arms. Similar to the combination of a moving stage and pipette, the material handling gripper system can be calibrated because the precise movement of the gripper arm to move the gripper arm calibration pin to a specific location is known at this point.

[0010] An example disclosed herein provides a pipette calibration probe comprising a calibration probe shaft, a collet disposed at the upper end of the calibration probe shaft, a set of collet threads circumferentially disposed around the calibration probe shaft below the collet, and a collet compression sleeve housing rotatably disposed around the calibration probe shaft. The collet compression sleeve housing has a set of receiving threads circumferentially disposed around the inner surface of the collet compression sleeve housing. The set of receiving threads is rotatably engaged with the set of collet threads to traverse the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing rotatably upward onto the collet and traverse the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing rotatably downward away from the collet. The collet compression sleeve housing is operable to traverse rotatably upward via the engagement of the set of receiving threads to compress the collet into a closed configuration. The collet compression sleeve housing is operable to traverse rotatably downward via the engagement of the set of receiving threads to decompress the collet into an open configuration.

[0011] The collet includes one or more compression slots arranged longitudinally from the upper end to the lower end of the collet. The collet is compressed into a closed configuration by compressing one or more compression slots from an open configuration to a closed configuration, and the collet is decompressed into an open configuration by decompressing one or more compression slots from a closed configuration to an open configuration. Compression of one or more collet slots is caused by the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing traversing upward over the collet, and decompression of one or more collet slots is caused by the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing traversing downward away from the collet.

[0012] In the example, the collet includes an orifice within its upper end, which is longitudinally aligned with the calibration probe shaft. The orifice within the upper end of the collet is configured to receive the lower end of the pipette nozzle, which is longitudinally aligned with the calibration probe shaft. The collet is fixed to the pipette nozzle when the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing is rotatably traversed to the collet.

[0013] The calibration probe shaft is made of a conductive material, and the pipette nozzle is made of a conductive material. The pipette calibration probe and the pipette nozzle are coupled by inserting the lower end of the pipette nozzle into a collet orifice. The coupling between the pipette nozzle and the pipette calibration probe provides a continuous conductive path through the pipette nozzle to the calibration probe shaft and through the calibration probe shaft. Contact between the lower end of the calibration probe shaft and the surface of the pipette, including the pipette nozzle, that is to be calibrated provides conductivity from the pipette through the pipette nozzle and through the calibration probe shaft to the surface. Conductivity from the pipette through the pipette nozzle and through the calibration probe shaft to the surface provides capacitive sensing of the contact point between the lower end of the calibration probe shaft and the surface. For example, providing capacitive sensing includes providing an electromagnetic field around the lower end of the calibration probe shaft, enabling the detection of the contact point when the lower end of the calibration probe shaft is in close proximity to the surface. As used herein and in the appended claims, the term “proximal” is intended to be understood broadly as one element being adjacent to or touching another.

[0014] In an additional example, a gripper arm calibration system is provided comprising a gripper arm having a calibration probe orifice disposed at the lower end of the gripper arm, a magnet disposed inside the calibration probe orifice, and a calibration probe or pin having a calibration probe shaft, wherein the calibration probe shaft has an upper end and a lower end and a retainer band disposed circumferentially around the calibration probe shaft between the upper and lower ends. Each of the upper and lower ends of the calibration probe shaft is configured to be inserted into the calibration probe orifice until the inserted upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft contacts the magnet and holds the calibration probe shaft within the calibration probe orifice. The calibration probe orifice includes a path to the lower end of the gripper arm, longitudinally aligned with the gripper arm. The path has a depth corresponding to the length of the calibration probe shaft extending from the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft to the retainer band. A magnet located inside the calibration probe orifice is further positioned at the end of a path configured to magnetically engage with the upper or lower end into which the calibration probe shaft is inserted.

[0015] An electrical contact is located inside the lower end of the gripper arm. The electrical contact is configured to contact the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft when the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft is inserted into the calibration probe orifice. The calibration probe shaft is made of a conductive material, and contact between the electrical contact and the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft provides a continuous conductive path from the gripper arm through the calibration probe shaft.

[0016] Contact between the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and the surface where calibration of the gripper arm is desired provides conductivity from the gripper arm, through the calibration probe shaft, to the surface. Providing a continuous conductive path from the gripper arm, through the calibration probe shaft, to the surface provides capacitive sensing of the contact point between the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and the surface. Capacitive sensing includes providing an electromagnetic field (EMF force detection) around the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and enabling detection of the contact point when the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft is in proximity to the surface.

[0017] According to another example, a liquid handling system calibration system is provided that includes a liquid handling system having one or more movable components for transporting materials or devices to one or more locations on a deck of the liquid handling system. A calibration probe is secured to the lower end of one of the one or more movable components for calibrating the selected movable component. The calibration probe has conductivity from the selected movable component, through the calibration probe, for capacitive sensing of the contact point between the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and the surface where calibration of the selected movable component is desired. The liquid handling system is operable to lower the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft to a point on a surface near an edge of a target calibration slot, the target calibration slot including a calibration aperture surrounded by a plurality of edges between the calibration aperture and a surface region around the calibration aperture. The liquid handling system is further operable to repeatedly lift, lower, and move the lower tip of the calibration probe until all of the plurality of edges are located, determine a geometric center or other specific point within the calibration aperture based on the located plurality of edges, and calibrate the selected movable component relative to the determined geometric center or other specific point within the calibration aperture. The selected movable component includes at least one of a movable stage assembly including a pipette and pipette nozzle and a gripper system arm.

[0018] Additionally, the techniques described in this disclosure may be implemented as a method and / or by a system having a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, implement the techniques described above.

[0019] Exemplary embodiments As discussed above, this disclosure describes methods and systems for calibrating components of a liquid handling system, which may include a movable stage for transporting one or more liquid handling devices or systems, and the liquid handling system may include a material handling gripper system. The accuracy of the components of the liquid handling system enables the operation of such components, and thus each of the movable stage and associated attachments (e.g., pipettes) and the material handling gripper system are sometimes calibrated. In the case of the movable stage and associated attachments, a fixed calibration probe may be used to locate a particular spatial location in a calibration target slot. In the case of the material handling gripper system, a fixed calibration probe or pin may similarly be used to locate a particular spatial location in a calibration target slot. Based on the movement of the movable stage and associated attachments and the material handling gripper system to reach and find the particular spatial location, each of these systems may be calibrated.

[0020] Here, specific embodiments and implementations of this disclosure are described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings in which various aspects are shown. However, the various aspects may be implemented in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments described herein. This disclosure encompasses variations of the embodiments as described herein. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

[0021] Figure 1 shows a liquid handling system 100 according to an example of the principle described herein. In the examples described herein and in the appended claims, the liquid handling system 100 may also be referred to as a robot or robotic system. In one example, the liquid handling system 100 may include a housing 102. The housing 102 may include one or more sides or walls, and as shown in Figure 1, the housing may include a top surface, four vertically positioned side walls, and a bottom surface joined to each other to form a generally box-shaped architecture for housing and accommodating several liquid handling system hardware. In one example, one or more of the top surface, side walls, and bottom surface may include a transparent section, such as a window, to allow a user to view the interior of the housing 102.

[0022] A movable stage 104 may be maintained within the housing 102. The movable stage 104 may be mechanically coupled to an x-axis movable truss 110 that can move the movable stage 104 in the x-direction. Furthermore, the movable stage 104 may be mechanically coupled to a first y-axis movable truss 112-1 and a second y-axis movable truss 112-2 that can move the movable stage 104 in the y-direction. The x-axis movable truss 110 and the first and second y-axis movable trusses 112-1 and 112-2 may be driven by one or more motors that can be activated by commands received from an instruction device 1428 and any element in the baseboard 1402 (Figure 14), as described below with reference to Figure 14. Commands used to activate the motors can move the movable stage 104 to a digitally addressable location inside the housing 102.

[0023] The housing 102 may further house a deck 106. The deck 106 may be located at the bottom of the housing 102 and may hold one or more cradle devices 108. The cradle devices 108 may be detachably or selectively coupled to the deck 106 and may be used to hold one or more modules 114, one or more modules 114 may be coupled to the cradle devices 108 and may be used to process liquids distributed by the liquid handling system 100. In one example, the modules 114 may include, for example, a temperature deck, a heat shaker, a thermocycler, a heating device, a cooling device, a vacuum pump, a centrifuge, a liquid handler, a tube handling device, a sealing device, a desealing device, a magnetic device, other modules, and combinations thereof. In connection with the commands used to operate the motors associated with the x-axis movable truss 110 and the first y-axis movable truss 112-1 and the second y-axis movable truss 112-2, these commands may move the movable stage 104 to a digitally addressable location within the housing 102, including an area or portion of module 114 or a position on module 114, so that the pipette, as described below with reference to Figure 3, can distribute fluid onto or into module 114.

[0024] As shown in Figure 1, the liquid handling system 100 may include a user interface (UI) 118. In one example, and as shown in Figure 1, the UI 118 may be a touchscreen, which may detect touch input from a user and include both an input device (touch panel) and an output device (visual display), the touch panel being superimposed on an electronic visual display. The commands and prompts described herein may be presented to the user of the liquid handling system 100 via this or another UI 118. The UI 118 may be communicatively coupled to an instruction device 1428 (Figure 14) and / or any element in the baseboard 1402 (Figure 14). This makes it possible for the instruction device 1428 and / or any element in the baseboard 1402 (Figure 14) to present the commands and prompts described herein via the UI 118 and enable the user to input information via the interactive elements of the UI 118. Although depicted and described as a touchscreen, UI118 may include any input / output devices such as display devices, printers, audio speakers, haptic devices, heads-up displays, keyboards, mice, touchpads, trackpads, accelerometers, gyroscopes, proximity sensors, thermometers, virtual reality systems, augmented reality systems, joysticks, gamepads, paddles, cameras, microphones, other input / output devices, and combinations thereof. Furthermore, in one example, UI118 does not have to be directly coupled to the liquid handling system 100, but instead may be associated with a separate computing device that is directly or indirectly coupled to the liquid handling system 100, such as the computing system 1400 and / or instruction device 1428 depicted and described in relation to Figure 14.

[0025] Figure 2 shows a perspective view of the deck assembly 200 of the liquid handling system 100 according to an example of the principle described herein. In one example, the deck assembly 200 includes several different cradle devices coupled with the deck 106 and a plurality of deck covers. The deck assembly 200 includes a first cradle 202, a first fluid handling module 204, a second cradle 206, a second fluid handling module 208, a third cradle 210, a third fluid handling module 212, a fourth fluid handling module 214, a first mounting opening 218-1, a second mounting opening 218-2, a third mounting opening 218-3, a fourth mounting opening 218-4, a first large deck slot cover 220-1, a second large deck slot cover 220-2, and a third large deck slot cover This includes 220-3, a first large slot cover receptacle 222-1, a second large slot cover receptacle 222-2, a third large slot cover receptacle 222-3, a first small deck slot cover 224-1, a second small deck slot cover 224-2, a third small deck slot cover 224-3, a fourth small deck slot cover 224-4, a first small cover receptacle 226-1, a second small cover receptacle 226-2, a third small cover receptacle 226-3, and a fourth small cover receptacle 226-4. In the example shown in Figure 2, various cradles are coupled with various modules, for example, a calibration adapter module coupled to a given cradle (see Figure 4). However, while the modules may be coupled to deck 106 via a cradle, they may also be coupled directly to deck 106. For example, module 214 is illustrated to be coupled directly to deck 106.

[0026] In the example shown in Figure 2, deck slots not occupied by the cradle are covered by deck slot covers of appropriate size. Each deck slot cover may include deck slot cover receptacles such as deck slot cover receptacles 222-1 to 222-3 and 226-1 to 226-3. In one example, each deck slot cover receptacle may be coupled to a laboratory apparatus. In one example, a first laboratory apparatus may be coupled to a first large deck slot cover receptacle 222-1, a second laboratory apparatus may be coupled to a first small deck slot cover receptacle 226-1, and a third laboratory apparatus may be coupled to a second large deck slot cover receptacle 222-2. The first laboratory apparatus may be a test tube container configured to hold a number of standard test tubes, micro test tubes, etc. Each test tube may contain laboratory materials such as biological samples, chemical samples, reagents, washing solutions, catalysts, solutes, and solvents, but are not limited. The second laboratory apparatus may be a fluid handling container such as a well plate or a well reservoir, but are not limited. The third laboratory apparatus may be a pipette tip container. In one example, the configuration of test tubes in the first laboratory apparatus, the configuration of wells in the second laboratory apparatus, and the configuration of pipette tips in the third laboratory apparatus may correspond to the configuration of pipettes used in the laboratory work, or the configuration of pipettes used in the laboratory work may correspond to at least the configuration of wells in the second laboratory apparatus. For example, the second laboratory apparatus may be a microplate (also called a well plate) containing 96 wells, with 8 rows of 12 wells each along its length (e.g., along the x-axis), and the pipette configuration may be 12 pipettes along the length, 8 pipettes along the width (one per row), or 96 pipettes covering all 96 wells of the well plate, but are not limited.

[0027] In the illustrated example, deck slot covers 220-1 to 220-3 and 222-1 to 222-3 each contain a single deck slot cover receptacle, and the size of each deck slot cover receptacle may be approximately the size of the first small deck slot cover receptacle 226-1. Alternatively, the size of deck slot cover receptacles 222-1 to 222-3 may approximate the size of deck slot cover receptacles 222-1 to 222-3, or deck slot cover receptacles 222-1 to 222-3 may contain two deck slot cover receptacles (for example, the second cover receptacle may occupy the empty portion of the first large deck slot cover 220-1).

[0028] As shown in Figure 2, each deck slot may include a first mounting opening at a first longitudinal end and a second mounting opening at a second longitudinal end opposite the first longitudinal end (e.g., a first mounting opening 218-1, a second mounting opening 218-2, a third mounting opening 218-3, and a fourth mounting opening 218-4). In a first example, the first mounting opening 218-1 may be configured to accommodate a first header fastener, and the second mounting opening 218-2 may be configured to accommodate a second header fastener. The first header fastener may be inserted through the first mounting opening 218-1 and removably coupled to a first mounting header and a first mounting base to secure the first end of the first cradle 202 to the deck 106. A second header fastener may be inserted through a second mounting opening 218-2 and removably coupled to a second mounting header and a second mounting base to secure the second end of the first cradle 202 to the deck 106. Similarly, as a second example, a third header fastener may be inserted through a third mounting opening 218-3 and removably coupled to a third mounting header and a third mounting base to secure the first end of the first miniature deck slot cover 224-1 to the deck 106, and a fourth header fastener may be inserted through a fourth mounting opening 218-4 and removably coupled to a fourth mounting header and a fourth mounting base to secure the second end of the first miniature deck slot cover 224-1 to the deck 106.

[0029] Each of the other deck slot covers and cradles may also be secured to deck 106 in the same manner as described in the example of securing the first cradle 202 and the small deck slot cover to deck 106. Furthermore, each mounting opening may be a threaded opening through which a header fastener can be screwed. Additionally or alternatively, the header fastener may include a restraining screw. Alternatively, the deck slot covers and cradles may be secured to deck 106 using other standard mounting solutions such as clamps, magnets, or snaps to predetermined locations where the covers and cradles can be secured to deck 106.

[0030] Figure 3 shows a perspective view of a movable stage assembly 300 including a first pipette and a second pipette, according to an example of the principle described herein. The movable stage assembly 300 includes a movable stage 104 and a first pipette 304-1 and a second pipette 304-2, according to an example of the principle described herein. The first pipette 304-1 and the second pipette 304-2 shown in Figure 3 include a single-channel pipette form factor, and each of the first pipette 304-1 and the second pipette 304-2 can dispense from a single pipette nozzle (e.g., a single-channel pipette), i.e., the first pipette nozzle 306-1 and the second pipette nozzle 306-2, respectively. In one example, the first pipette 304-1 and the second pipette 304-2 may be capable of dispensing, for example, up to 50 microliters (μL) of fluid. In one example, the first pipette 304-1 and the second pipette 304-2 may be capable of dispensing, for example, up to 1,000 μL of fluid. However, the first pipette 304-1 and the second pipette 304-2 may be designed to transport and / or dispense fluids of any range of volumes. Furthermore, the first pipette 304-1 and the second pipette 304-2 may be supplied and / or sold as, for example, 20 μL pipettes, 50 μL pipettes, 200 μL pipettes, 300 μL pipettes, 1,000 μL pipettes, or other types of pipette capacities. In one example, nozzle connection tips 308-1 and 308-2 are provided for attaching various instruments to the pipette nozzles 306-1 and 306-2. For example, a fluid pipette (not shown) having a narrow lower tip may be attached to the nozzle connection tips 308-1 and 308-2 to dispense liquid from the nozzle connection tips 308-1 and 308-2 into a small-diameter container such as a test tube.

[0031] In one example, additional pipettes may be included in the movable stage assembly 300. For example, a third pipette (not shown) may include an array of multiple pipette nozzles (e.g., an 8-channel pipette). In one example, such a third pipette may be capable of dispensing, for example, up to 50 μL of fluid. In one example, the first pipette 304-1 and the second pipette 304-2 may be capable of dispensing, for example, up to 1,000 μL of fluid. However, the third pipette may be designed to transport and / or dispense fluid in any range of volumes. Furthermore, such a third pipette may be supplied and / or sold as, for example, a 20 μL pipette, a 50 μL pipette, a 200 μL pipette, a 300 μL pipette, a 1,000 μL pipette, or other types of pipette volume capacities.

[0032] As discussed above, in one example, a movable stage assembly including a movable stage 104 and pipettes 304-1, 304-2 (and any other pipettes attached to the movable stage 104) may be calibrated from time to time to ensure that the pipette nozzles 306-1, 306-2 are precisely aligned over, for example, a location where a test tube is placed and liquid is discharged from the pipette. As discussed above, to calibrate pipettes 304-1, 304-2 and their associated pipette nozzles 306-1, 306-2, a calibration probe is attached to nozzle connection tips 308-1, 308-2 to extend the length of the pipette nozzles 306-1, 306-2 and to electrically interface the pipettes 304-1, 304-2 with the surface of deck 106 at the target location. By positioning a specific point at the target location, the movable stage assembly and associated components may be calibrated for the subsequent distribution of fluid or other material at the specific point at the target location.

[0033] Figure 4 shows a calibration system including a pipette, calibration probe, and calibration adapter according to an example of the principle described herein. In one example, and as will be described in detail below, a first pipette 304-1, which is being calibrated together with other components of a movable stage assembly 300, may be positioned in a neutral xy position and then moved in the z direction toward the deck 106 via an automatic actuator until the calibration probe or tip (hereinafter referred to as the calibration probe) 408 touches the surface of a calibration adapter or deck slot cover fixed to the deck 106. This position may be stored in a data storage device as z=0. Collision detection may be provided via a conductive interaction between the calibration probe and the surface of the calibration adapter or deck slot cover. In one example, as described herein, collision detection may be performed via capacitance, where a capacitive charge generates a small electromagnetic field around the probe tip. The surface is detected when the small EMF field penetrates as the probe tip approaches or touches the surface. Alternatively, collision detection may be provided by a motor stall sensor that detects resistance to motion indicated by the back EMF. The motor stall sensor may detect the applied force and / or when the motor stalls. In some cases, the motor drive may detect changes in capacitance and / or magnetism as the calibration tip moves toward the deck.

[0034] Referring to Figure 4, the first pipette 304-1, along with the attached pipette nozzle 306-1, is positioned on the calibration adapter 402 to calibrate the movable stage assembly 300 and the associated pipette and pipette nozzle against the calibration target slot 410. In one example, the calibration adapter 402 may be mounted on a lower cradle (see Figure 2) or directly on the deck 106 in a location where one or more containers and / or devices may be used with the liquid handling system 100, as described above with reference to Figures 1 and 2. In one example, the shape and thickness of the calibration adapter and the calibration target slot 410 may be varied according to the needs of the container or other device that may be mounted on the deck 106. For example, for a container where the calibration adapter 402 is located in the upper right corner of the illustrated location, a different calibration adapter 402 with a calibration target slot 410 located in the upper right corner may be used. In addition, if the container or device used in the location of the calibration adapter is higher or lower, the thickness of the calibration adapter may also be modified.

[0035] Alternatively, if a calibration adapter is not required to account for the changing target location or height of the container or device receiving the liquid or other material from the pipette nozzle 306-1, the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1 may be positioned in different locations, for example, on the deck slot cover 224-1 of deck 106, and the calibration target slot 240 may be used as a calibration target. In other words, if a calibration adapter is not required, the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1 may be positioned at any location on deck 106 where the container or other device may be deployed and calibration is desired.

[0036] In one example, the calibration target slots 410, 240 are generally square or rectangular slots that may be used for calibration in one example of this disclosure. The calibration target slots 410, 240 may be located on the calibration adapter 402, on the first miniature deck slot cover 224-1, or at a predetermined location on deck 106 away from locations on deck where laboratory work may be performed. In one example, the bands 412-1, 412-2 (collectively referred to herein as band 412) around the calibration target slots 410, 240 are coplanar with the surface of the calibration adapter 402, the deck slot cover 220, or other locations on deck 106. Each of the calibration slot openings 414-1, 414-2 (collectively referred to herein as calibration slot opening 414) of the calibration target slots 410, 240 descends to a specified depth to receive the calibration probe tip 408 as it descends during calibration. In one example, the calibration slot opening 414 of the calibration target slots 410, 240 may also function as a mounting port for mounting one or more containers, devices, etc., to the calibration adapter 402, the deck slot cover 240, or other locations on the deck 106. The calibration slot opening 414 may include any recess defined within the calibration target slots 410, 240 of the calibration adapter 402. In one example, the calibration slot opening 414 may be centered within the band 412 of the calibration target slots 410, 240 of the calibration adapter 402. Furthermore, although the calibration slot opening 414 of the calibration target slots 410, 240 is shown in the figure as a square or rectangular shape, the calibration slot opening 414 may have any shape, including, for example, a rounded shape, a circular shape, a polygonal shape, a cross shape, or any other shape. In one example, the liquid handling system 100 knows the shape of the calibration slot opening 414 in order to carry out the calibration process described herein.

[0037] Referring to Figure 4, in one example, a calibration probe 406 is attached to the lower end of the pipette nozzle 306-1 to calibrate a movable stage assembly and associated components, including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1. As will be further described below, the calibration probe shaft 404 and calibration probe tip 408 are lowered by the first pipette 304-1 until the calibration probe tip 408 contacts the surface of the calibration adapter 402 near the calibration target slot 410. Thus, as will be described below, the calibration probe 406 may move automatically and iteratively in small increments until the center point of the calibration target slot 410, 240 or other desired point is located. Once the center point of the calibration target slot 410, 240 or other desired location is located, that location may be memorized so that the subsequent need to move the pipette and pipette nozzle to that location is carried out precisely.

[0038] In one example, the calibration adapter or band 412-1 around the calibration target slots 410, 240 (deck area without calibration adapter) may be made of a conductive material such as metal, thereby allowing the contact between the calibration probe tip 408 (also made of a conductive material) and a conductive surface to signal via a capacitance circuit in the first pipette 304-1, so that the first pipette 304-1 knows where the calibration probe tip 408 is currently located. That is, in one example, the calibration adapter 402 and the deck slot cover 240 may be electrically coupled to the deck 106. Electrical coupling may enable the use of capacitive calibration as described herein. For example, the user may place the calibration adapter 402 at a lower cradle, module, or deck position where the corresponding position requires calibration of the movable stage assembly 300. As described below, a capacitive sensing process may be used to locate the module, container, or device on which the movable assembly 300 and its associated components (e.g., pipette) can operate. The capacity detection process may be performed automatically through a software application, as described below with reference to Figure 14.

[0039] Referring to Figure 4, as described above, the calibration system and method disclosed herein can detect collisions between the calibration probe 406 and the calibration adapter 402, the first miniature deck slot cover 224-1, or other surfaces on the deck 106 via capacitive conduction through a capacitive sensor. Alternatively, collisions between the calibration probe 406 and the calibration adapter 402, the first miniature deck slot cover 224-1, or other surfaces on the deck 106 may be detected using stall detection or force feedback via an inverse EMF sensor in the motor drive unit. As further described below with reference to Figure 9, the x and y coordinates may be scanned across the calibration adapter, deck slot cover, or other deck locations by touching the calibration probe tip 408, which mimics the pipette nozzle 306-1, at multiple points. Therefore, it can be detected whether the calibration probe tip 408, which mimics the pipette nozzle 306-1, touches the edge of the deck 106, the calibration slot openings 414-1, 414-2, and / or the calibration slots 410, 240. Since the precise location and size of the square or rectangular calibration slots 410, 240 relative to the rest of the deck 106 are known, the positions of the calibration probe 406 and the pipette nozzle 306-1 relative to the deck 106 can be determined.

[0040] Since the calibration probe 406 may come into contact with the deck 106 during calibration, the calibration probe 406 may be a machined metal rod used to avoid concerns about sterility and fragility. In one example, the calibration probe 406 may be designed as a single monolithic component. Additionally, the center of the calibration probe 406 may be concentric with the center of the pipette 112. In one example, the calibration probe 406 may be secured to the pipette 112 by a collet as described herein. In other examples, the calibration probe 406 may be secured via, among other things, a threaded collar, a cam latch, magnetism, and other fastening means or methods.

[0041] Figure 5 shows a partially open view of the first pipette of Figure 3, according to an example of the principle described herein, showing the internal components of the first pipette and the attachment of a calibration probe to the nozzle of the first pipette. As illustrated in Figure 5, the first pipette 304-1 includes several internal components 502 necessary for operating the pipette, including moving the pipette in various directions inside the housing 102, including moving the pipette up and down, and dispensing liquid and / or other material through the pipette nozzle 306-1 as part of the function of the liquid handling system 100. A printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) 504 includes circuitry that is operable to receive and execute instructions related to the computing system 1400 (Figure 14) in order to move the first pipette 304-1 and dispense liquid and / or other material, as described herein. In one example of this disclosure, the PCBA 504 is operable to perform the calibration system and method described herein by moving a pipette having a mounted calibration probe 406 to the surface of the calibration adapter 402 or the surface of the deck slot cover 240.

[0042] In Figure 5, the calibration probe 406 is shown fixed to the nozzle connector tip 308-1 at the lower end of the pipette nozzle 306-1. The calibration probe 406, described in detail below, includes an upper collet housing 508 configured to clamp the calibration probe to the nozzle connector tip 308-1. The calibration probe 406 also includes a collet compression or clamping sleeve 510 for rotatably clamping the calibration probe 406 to the nozzle connector tip 308-1. An optional control handle or member 512 is provided to assist in securing the calibration probe 406 to the nozzle connector tip 308-1. A lower calibration probe tip 408 is provided to bring the calibration probe 406 into contact with the surface of the calibration adapter 402, the first miniature deck slot cover 224-1, or another location on the deck 106 for calibrating the movable stage assembly 300, which includes the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1. In one example, both the pipette nozzle 306-1 and the calibration probe (see Figures 6 and 8) are made of conductive material.

[0043] Referring to Figure 5, in the process of the calibration probe tip 408 finding its location within the calibration target slots 410, 240 for calibrating the movable stage assembly 300, which includes the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, a capacitor 514 is provided for storing charge in the electrical circuit passing through the pipette nozzle 306-1 and the calibration probe 406 and calibration probe tip 408 in the direction of PCBA 504 when the calibration probe tip 408 comes into contact with a conductive (e.g., metallic) surface of the calibration adapter 402, the first miniature deck slot cover 224-1, or other location on the deck 106. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the capacitive collision detection system can generate a small electromagnetic field around the tip of the calibration probe 406 that can detect collisions or near collisions with a surface even if the surface is not made of a conductive material.

[0044] Referring here to Figures 6-9, the components of the calibration probe 406 are shown and described in detail. In one example of this disclosure, the surface detection calibration probe 406 described herein may include a machined metal or other conductive material that can be attached to the first pipette 304-1 manually or mechanically. In the example, the calibration probe 406 may be made of a material such as metal, which, in addition to being conductive, may be used to avoid concerns of sterility and fragility because the calibration probe 406 comes into contact with the calibration adapter, deck slot cover, or other deck locations during calibration. The tolerances of a metal machined calibration probe 406 may be tighter than those of an injection-molded tip used in liquid handling processes, which can improve the accuracy of the calibration.

[0045] Referring here to Figure 6, closed and open views of the calibration probe 406 are shown and illustrated. As shown in Figure 6, the calibration probe 406 provides a collet 606 for securing the calibration probe 406 to the nozzle connector tip 308-1 at the lower end of the pipette nozzle 306-1. In one example, the collet 606 is longitudinally aligned with the calibration probe shaft 404 of the calibration probe 406. As shown in illustration 602a, a collet compression or clamping sleeve 510 covers the collet 606 and is configured to clamp the collet 606 around the nozzle connector tip 308-1, as described below. In an alternative version of the calibration probe 406 shown in Figure 6, the upper collet housing 508 shown in Figure 5 is not utilized. In one example, the collet compression or clamping sleeve 510 shown in Figure 6 is used to clamp the collet 606 around the nozzle connection tip 308-1 and to cover the collet 606. An optional control handle or member 512 is provided to assist in securing the calibration probe 406 to the pipette nozzle 306-1 and to provide strength to the calibration probe shaft 404. The calibration probe tip 408 provides a contact point for allowing the calibration probe 406 to touch the surface of the calibration adapter 402, the first miniature deck slot cover 224-1, or other deck location during calibration, as described below with reference to Figure 9.

[0046] Referring to a partial cross-sectional view 602b of the calibration probe 406, a set of collet threads 604 is circumferentially arranged around the upper end of the calibration probe shaft 404 below the collet, causing the collet 606 to tighten around the nozzle connection tip 308-1. Referring to a cross-sectional view 602c of the calibration probe 406, a set of receiving threads 612 is circumferentially arranged around the inner surface of the collet compression or clamping sleeve 510. In one example of the present disclosure, as the collet compression or clamping sleeve 510 rotates, the collet threads 604 above the upper end of the calibration probe shaft 404 engage with the set of receiving threads 612 inside the collet compression or clamping sleeve 510. The engagement of the collet threads 604 with the receiving threads 612 of the collet compression or clamping sleeve 510 causes the clamping sleeve 510 to traverse rotatably upward. The upward rotatable traverse of the collet compression or clamping sleeve 510 causes circumferential compression or constriction of the collet 606 by closing the gap or slot 608 located longitudinally around the collet 606 from the upper end to the lower end of the collet. The circumferential compression or constriction of the collet 606 causes compression of the collet slot, causing the collet 606 to clamp or grip the nozzle connection tip 308-1 and secure the calibration probe 406 to the lower end of the pipette nozzle 306-1. Reversing the rotation of the collet compression or clamping sleeve 510 causes the collet compression or clamping sleeve 510 to rotatably traverse downward along the calibration probe shaft 404, decompressing the collet slot and easing the circumferential compression or constriction of the collet 606, allowing the calibration probe 406 to be removed from the pipette nozzle 306-1. In one example, the calibration probe 406 may be installed by the user, or alternatively, the calibration probe 406 may be installed automatically by the material handling gripper system, as described below with reference to Figures 10-12.

[0047] Figure 7 shows a perspective view of a portion of the internal components of the calibration probe 406 of Figure 6, according to an example of the principle described herein. Figure 7 shows a portion of the internal components of the calibration probe 406 without the collet compression or clamping sleeve 510. The collet 606, collet threads 604, collet probe shaft 404, and calibration probe tip 408 may be manufactured from a single piece of conductive material, or they may be assembled from one or more separate components so that the combined unit is conductive. Then, as shown in Figure 8, when the nozzle connection tip 308-1 is inserted into the collet orifice 610, capacitive conduction becomes continuous, as shown in Figure 5, from the PCBA 504 of the first pipette 304-1 through the pipette nozzle 306-1 and then through the calibration probe 406.

[0048] Figure 8 shows a perspective view of the upper portion of the calibration probe 406 and a partial perspective view of the pipette nozzle 306-1 configured to be inserted into the calibration probe collet 606, according to an example of the principle described herein. In Figure 8, the nozzle connector tip 308-1 is shown in detail with respect to insertion into the collet 606 via the path 804. In one example, the nozzle connector tip 308-1 may optionally include a retaining ring 802 to help hold the pipette nozzle in place within the collet orifice 610 of the collet 606 until the collet 606 is tightened around the nozzle connector tip 308-1. In one example, after the nozzle connector tip 308-1 is inserted into the collet 606 and the collet 606 is tightened, the connection between the pipette nozzle 306-1 and the calibration probe 406 provides continuous conductivity from the circuit of the first pipette 304-1 to the calibration probe tip 408 of the calibration probe 406, as described herein. Additionally, as shown and described herein, the center of the calibration probe 406 may be concentric with the center of the pipette nozzle 306-1. In some cases, the first pipette 304-1 may be designed to include the calibration probe 406 as a single monolithic component.

[0049] Figure 9 shows the calibration target areas of the calibration slots 410, 240 to which a calibration probe is directed to calibrate the movable stage 104 and the associated first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1 according to an example of the principle described herein. When calibration of the movable stage 104, including the first pipette 304-1 and the attached pipette nozzle 306-1, is desired, as discussed above with reference to Figure 4, the calibration probe 406 may be manually or automatically attached to the nozzle connection tip 308-1, as shown in Figure 8. At a higher level, the calibration process, further described below with reference to Figure 13, involves locating the edges of each side of the calibration slots 410, 240, with the calibration slot openings 414-1, 414-2 starting in the calibration slots 410, 240. In other words, the geometric centers of the calibration target slots 410, 240 can be located by locating the edges of the calibration slot openings 414-1, 414-2. The determined and located geometric centers or other locations of the calibration slots 410, 240 can be stored to orient the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1 to their stored locations in order to dispense liquid or other material into a container or device located at that location. Alternatively, calibration of the movable stage assembly 300, including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, may enable the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1 to move precisely to desired locations throughout the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100.

[0050] When a command is received via UI118 to calibrate the movable stage assembly 300, which includes the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1 with the attached calibration probe 406 move to a position above the selected calibration target slots 410, 240, as shown in Figure 4. Then, referring to the upper illustration 900a of Figure 9, the calibration probe 406 is first lowered to a position 902 on the surface area of ​​the calibration target slots 410, 240. As should be noted, the calibration probe 406 in Figure 9 shows where the calibration probe 406 first lands during calibration, but is depicted as a miniature or icon to avoid obscuring other shown features in Figure 9. A depiction of the calibration probe relative to other components is shown more precisely in Figure 4.

[0051] By utilizing previous calibration information or known positional information for calibration target slots 410, 240 on deck 106, the calibration probe 406 is moved to the center of each side of calibration target slots 410, 240, close to the previously stored position of the edge 904a, 906a, 908a, 910a between bands 412-1, 412-2 and calibration slot openings 414-1, 414-2. For each side 904, 906, 908, 910, the calibration probe 406 follows an iterative process of finding the edge location. Referring to illustration 900a at the top of Figure 9, the calibration probe 406 first moves to position 902, as shown in Figure 9. As described above with reference to Figures 4 and 5, when the calibration probe tip 408 touches the surface of the calibration adapter 402, the deck slot cover 240, or any other location on the deck 106, the contact between the calibration probe tip 408 and the surface allows for the instantaneous discharge of the accumulated charge from the capacitor 514 in the direction of the PCBA 504. The resulting conductivity, reaching the touched surface through the pipette nozzle 306-1 and the calibration probe tip 408, allows the liquid handling system 100 to establish reach of the calibration probe tip 408 to the surface, as described herein. In one example, when the calibration probe tip 408 touches the surface of the calibration adapter 402, the deck slot cover 240, or any other location on the deck 106, the PCBA 504 may respond quickly enough so that the positional variation caused by the speed of movement and the time taken for response is below the required or desired calibration tolerance.

[0052] Referring to Figure 9, when the calibration probe 406 is moved around the calibration slot openings 414-1 and 414-2 to the surface of position 902 of bands 412-1 and 412-2, the z-distance between the lower end of the pipette nozzle 306-1 and the surface of the calibration adapter 402, the deck slot cover 240, or any other location on the deck 106 is established. For example, for illustrative purposes, consider that the calibration probe 406 first touches the surface of the calibration adapter 402, the deck slot cover 240, or any other location on the deck 106 at position 902, which acts as a contact point, as the calibration probe is at position 1 in the list of probe positions 912 shown in Figure 9. The z-distance (vertical distance) to position 1 is stored, and electrical (e.g., capacitive) contact with the surface of band 412-1 indicates that the probe has landed on the surface (hereinafter referred to as "on the deck"). Where applicable, the calibration probe 406 does not actually need to be in contact with the surface, but "touching" the surface may be detected via capacitive sensing, where a capacitive charge generates a small electromagnetic field (in this case, around the tip of the calibration probe tip). The surface is detected when the small EMF field penetrates as the probe tip approaches or touches the surface.

[0053] To begin the process of finding the first edge 904a, the calibration probe 406 may then be lifted and moved laterally to a second position, for example, position 2, and the calibration probe 406 is lowered by the z-distance established at position 1. At position 2, since position 2 is above the calibration slot openings 414-1, 414-2, it does not contact the surface of band 412-1. The absence of electrical (i.e., capacitive) contact between position 2 and the surface above the calibration slot openings 414-1, 414-2 indicates that the probe is not landing on the surface of the calibration adapter, deck slot cover, or other deck position. The absence of the calibration probe landing on the surface of the calibration adapter, deck slot cover, or other deck position will hereafter be referred to as "not on deck".

[0054] The calibration probe 406 is lifted again and moved laterally, but this lateral movement carries the probe to position 3. That is, in the iterative process, the calibration probe 406 is returned towards position 1, since it is now known that position 1 is not the first edge 904a. At position 3, the calibration probe 406 is lowered again by a distance z to position 3. At position 3, the probe makes electrical contact with band 412-1, which indicates that it has landed on the deck. This forward and backward process continues iteratively back to position 4 where the calibration probe 406 does not land on the deck again, and then back to position 5 where the calibration probe 406 lands on the deck. With each successive incremental movement, the distance traveled by the calibration probe 406 is reduced to identify the first edge 904a. According to the example shown in Figure 9, the first edge 904a is eventually found between positions 5 and 7. In one example, this movement between a position "on the deck" and a position "not on the deck" can be performed iteratively through several algorithms, for example, a binary search in which the position of the target (in this case, the first edge 904a) can be found in a sorted array of positions or values.

[0055] In one example, after the first edge 904a is located and memorized, the calibration probe 406 moves to another side 906, 908, 910 of the calibration target slots 410, 240 to find the edge of the second side. As should be understood, the order in which the edges 904a, 906a, 908a, 910a of each side 904, 906, 908, 910 are found may be achieved in any desired order. For example, referring to the depiction 900b illustrated in Figure 9, the calibration probe 406 is shown to move along the lower side 910 of the calibration target slots 410, 240 to position 914. Then, an iterative process is carried out to move the calibration probe 406 up and down and laterally to find the “on deck” and “off deck” positions 1-7 within the set of positions 916 shown in the lower left corner of the calibration target slots 410, 240. In this example, the edge 910b is located at position 7, and the location of the edge 910b is stored.

[0056] In one example, this iterative process is carried out for each side 904, 906, 908, 910 until the edge of each side is located. Knowing the location of the edges of each side 904, 906, 908, 910 and the dimensions of the calibration target slots 410, 240, the liquid handling system 100 can determine the geometric center 918 or other desired location of the calibration target slots 410, 240 via the computing system 1400. According to one example, the geometric center can be determined by averaging the positions of each edge of the calibration target slots 410, 240. Once the geometric centers or other desired locations of the calibration target slots 410, 240 are established as specific x and y positions on the deck 106, and specific z positions (z-distance) to the surface of the band 412-1 around the calibration target slots 410, 240, the movable stage 104, including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, may then automatically move to its specific x, y, and z positions as necessary to dispense liquid or other material into a container or device positioned at its x, y, and z positions. In addition to calibrating the movable stage 104, including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, to a specific location for subsequently dispensing a liquid or other material, calibrating the movable stage 104, including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, to a specific x, y, and z position in a given calibration target slot 410, 240 may also be used to calibrate the movable stage 104, including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, to other locations on the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100, based on knowing the positions of other locations on the deck 106 relative to the x, y, and z positions located during the calibration process.

[0057] In one example, fewer edges than all of the edges 904a, 906a, 908a, and 910a of each side 904, 906, 908, and 910 may be detected during the calibration process described herein. For example, two of the edges 904a, 906a, 908a, and 910a may be detected, where a first edge of the edges 904a, 906a, 908a, and 910a is detected, followed by a second edge of the edges 904a, 906a, 908a, and 910a extending perpendicularly to the first edge. In this example, the geometric center 918 can be determined given knowledge of the shape and size of the calibration slot opening 414.

[0058] As discussed above, the calibration process described for the movable stage 104, including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, may also be used to calibrate the gripper arms used in the liquid handling system 100 to move, position, and remove containers or devices, such as test tubes, beakers, test equipment, etc., between various locations on the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100. Figure 10 shows a pair of material handling system gripper arms with gripper jaws and calibration pins for calibrating the components of the material handling gripper system, according to an example of the principle described herein. As shown in Figure 10, in one example, a robotic material handling gripper system 1000 is provided for positioning, moving, repositioning, and removing containers or devices at various locations on the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100. The robot material handling gripper system 1000 (hereinafter referred to as the "gripper system") may be connected to the movable stage 104 shown in Figure 1, or it may operate independently of the movable stage 104 by moving along the x-axis movable truss 110 in the same manner as the movable stage 104, as described above with reference to Figure 1.

[0059] The gripper system 1000 includes a gripper gantry 1004 from which a pair of gripper arms 1006-1, 1006-2 can be suspended. At the lower ends of the gripper arms 1006-1, 1006-2, gripper jaws 1008-1, 1008-2 are fixed to the gripper arms. Optional gripper jaw pads 1012 are disposed on the inner surfaces of the gripper jaws 1008-1, 1008-2 to assist them in gripping a container or device. In one example, a control circuit within the gripper system 1002 (e.g., within the gripper gantry 1004, or within the gripper arms 1006-1, 1006-2) may be programmed, or otherwise commanded, to move a container or device around the interior of the liquid handling system 100 by squeezing (gripping) the gripper arms 1006-1, 1006-2 together to capture the container or device. In one example, gripper jaws 1008-1, 1008-2 and associated optional gripper jaw pads 1012 may be squeezed together via the movement of the gripper arms 1006-1, 1006-2 to capture a container or device. The container or device may be released in a given position by pulling away the gripper arms after the container or device has been positioned in the desired location.

[0060] Referring to Figure 10, the gripper arm 1006-1 is positioned above the calibration target slots for the first miniature deck slot covers 224-1 and 240, as described above. A gripper calibration pin 1010 is fixed to the gripper arm 1006-1 to calibrate it in the same manner as described above for the calibration probe 406. Although the gripper calibration pin 1010 is generally shown as a tubular pin, the gripper calibration pin 1010 may have other shapes, for example, with a square or rectangular cross-section. In one example, the gripper calibration probe or pin 1010 (hereinafter, "gripper calibration pin") may be fixed to another gripper arm 1006-2 to calibrate other grippers on 1006-2. Similar to the movable stage assembly 300 including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1 discussed above, the PCBA 1104 (Figure 11) may be used to control the operation of the gripper arms 1006-1, 1006-2, including the calibration of the gripper system 1000, as described herein.

[0061] Figure 11 shows an open view of one of the calibration gripper arms of Figure 10, illustrating partial internal components of the gripper arm and calibration pin as an example of the principle described herein. As shown in Figure 11, the gripper calibration pin 1010 may be inserted into a gripper pin orifice 1208 (Figure 12) such that the upper end 1214 (Figure 12) of the gripper calibration pin 1010 contacts the magnet 1102 in order to hold the gripper calibration pin 1010 in place during calibration of the gripper arms 1006-1 and 1006-2. In one example, a retainer band 1116 is circumferentially positioned around the gripper calibration pin 1010 to stop the movement of the upper end 1214 relative to the magnet 1102 and to fix any unwanted movement of the gripper calibration pin 1010 inside the lower end of the gripper arm 1006-1.

[0062] Referring to Figure 11, the gripper calibration pin 1010 operates via a capacitance system in the same manner as the calibration probe 406 described for calibrating the movable stage assembly 300, which includes the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1. That is, when the lower end of the gripper calibration pin 1010 (made of a conductive material such as metal) touches a conductive surface on the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100, the stored charge in the capacitor associated with the PCBA 1104 provides a conductive signal through the electrical contact 1106 which is conductively connected to the upper end 1214 of the gripper calibration pin 1010 via monitoring of an electromagnetic field or force (EMF). Capacitive signaling allows the lower end of the gripper calibration pin 1010 to touch, in the same manner as described above with reference to the calibration probe 406, when the gripper calibration pin 1010 makes contact with the conductive surface of the calibration target slot 240 of the first miniature deck slot cover 224-1, thereby signaling to the PCBA 1104 that the gripper calibration pin 1010 is "on the deck".

[0063] Figure 12 shows a deployment of a material handling gripper arm having the gripper jaws of Figure 11 and a calibration pin for calibrating the material handling gripper system, according to an example of the principle described herein. As shown in Figure 12, the gripper calibration pin 1010 is housed in a calibration pin receptacle 1204. The gripper calibration pin 1010, along with its upper end 1214, lower end 1212, and retainer band 1116, remains housed in the calibration pin receptacle 1204 until required to calibrate the gripper system 1000. In other examples, the gripper calibration pin 1010 may be housed by screwing the pin into a hole in one of the gripper arms or by securing the pin by screw-locking. In other examples, the gripper calibration pin 1010 may be housed on a deck 106 or a cradle module (Figure 1). The user may be prompted by a software application via UI118 to place the stored gripper calibration pin 1010 into the first gripper arm of the available gripper arms. In response, the user may place the gripper calibration pin 1010 into the gripper pin orifice 1208 as described below.

[0064] Before initiating the calibration process, the gripper calibration pin 1010 is removed from the calibration pin receptacle 1204, and the upper or lower end of the gripper calibration pin 1010 is inserted into the gripper pin orifice 1208 until the upper end 1212 or lower end 1214 engages with the magnet 1102 and contacts the electrical contact 1106 as described above with reference to Figure 11. In one example, the calibration probe or pin orifice includes a path to the lower end of the gripper arm, longitudinally aligned with the gripper arm. The path has a depth corresponding to the length of the calibration pin shaft extending from the upper or lower end of the gripper calibration probe pin 1010 to the retainer band 1116.

[0065] After the calibration of the first gripper arm 1006-1 as described below, the gripper calibration pin is removed from the gripper pin orifice 1208 of the first gripper arm and inserted into the corresponding gripper pin orifice 1208 of the second gripper arm 1006-2 for calibration of the second gripper arm 1006-2. As should be understood, if the gripper system 1000 has three or more gripper arms, the calibration process described herein may be repeated for all available gripper arms of the gripper system 1000.

[0066] In one example, the calibration process for each of the gripper arms 1006-1 and 1006-2 is the same as described above for the movable stage assembly 300, which includes the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1. That is, referring back to Figures 9 and 10, for each gripper arm, the arm is lowered until the lower end 1212 of the gripper calibration pin 1010 contacts the surface of the band 412-2 of the calibration target slot 240. The contact between the gripper calibration pin 1010 and the conductive surface of the band 412-2 causes an electrical capacitance discharge through the gripper calibration pin 1010, signaling the contact of the pin with the surface to the PCBA 1104. After lowering the gripper calibration pin to the surface, the calibration process may be started and proceeded as described above with reference to Figure 9. That is, once the z-distance from the raised position of the gripper calibration pin to the contact point is established, the gripper calibration pin is then moved in iterative vertical and lateral movements to locate each edge 904a, 906a, 908a, 910a of the calibration target slot 240. Similar to the calibration probe 406, after each edge has been identified, the x, y, and z coordinates of the center 918 can be established. The x, y, and z coordinates are stored. After the second gripper arm 1006-2 is calibrated, the calibrated gripper system 1000 can then be used to accurately transport a container or device to and from a target location at the determined x, y, and z coordinates. Similar to the calibration of the movable stage assembly 300, including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, gripper calibration of the gripper system 1000 also enables the gripper system to accurately move to different locations in the liquid handling system 100 to transport a container and devices dispersed thereon.

[0067] Figure 13 shows a flowchart of an exemplary method 1300 for calibrating components of a liquid handling system 100 according to an example of the principles described herein. In step 1302, method 1300 is initiated. In step 1304, a request is received to calibrate one or more components of the liquid handling system 100. For example, a user may determine that it is necessary to calibrate one or more components of the liquid handling system 100 described herein due to an error or quality control issue that may have been experienced from either the first pipette 304-1 and the movable stage assembly 300, including the pipette nozzle 306-1, as determined by a quality control analysis, for example, that the dispensing of liquid or other material from the pipette nozzle 306-1 is slightly off target from the receptacle, e.g., the test tube from which the liquid or other material is dispensed. Alternatively, a request to calibrate one or more components of the liquid handling system 100 may respond to a standard calibration protocol in which one or more components of the liquid handling system 100 are calibrated occasionally, for example, once a day, once a week, once a month. A request or need to calibrate one or more components of the liquid handling system 100 may also be directed to the gripper system 1000 for the same or similar reasons as described above for the movable stage assembly 300, which includes the first pipette 304-1 and the pipette nozzle 306-1.

[0068] In one example, a request to calibrate one or more components of the liquid handling system 100 may be a manual request initiated by the user by selecting the calibration of one or more components of the liquid handling system via the UI 118, as described above with reference to Figure 1. Alternatively, if the calibration of one or more components of the liquid handling system 100 is performed regularly, the user of the liquid handling system 100 may receive prompts via the UI 118 indicating that one or more components of the liquid handling system 100 need to be calibrated according to the scheduled calibration requirements.

[0069] In step 1306, in response to a request or need to calibrate one or more components of the liquid handling system 100, one or more components requiring calibration are selected via UI 118 or via alternative functions available to the user to initiate or start the calibration of one or more components of the liquid handling system 100. In one example, the user may choose to calibrate components of the movable stage assembly 300, including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, or the user may choose to calibrate the gripper system 1000.

[0070] If the user selects the movable stage assembly 300, which includes the first pipette 304-1 and the pipette nozzle 306-1, for calibration, method 1300 proceeds to step 1308, in which the calibration probe 406 is attached to the nozzle connector tip 308-1 of the first pipette 304-1, as described above with reference to Figure 8. As described herein, the calibration probe 406 may be manually attached to the nozzle connector tip 308-1, or the calibration probe 406 may be automatically attached to the nozzle connector tip 308-1. If the calibration probe 406 is manually attached to the nozzle connector tip 308-1, the user removes the calibration probe 406 and inserts the nozzle connector tip 308-1 into the collet orifice 610 of the collet 606. After positioning the nozzle connection tip 308-1 in the collet 606, the user manually rotates the collet compression or tightening sleeve 510 to engage the collet threads 604 with the receiving threads 612, thereby causing the rotatable sleeve to rotatably traverse upward and tighten the collet 606 around the nozzle connection tip 308-1. If the calibration probe 406 is automatically fixed to the nozzle connection tip 308-1, a robotic gripper system, such as the gripper system 1000 described herein, may automatically retrieve the calibration probe 406 and robotically position it in the same manner as the user would manually. After inserting the nozzle connection tip 308-1 into the collet 606, the robotic gripper system may automatically rotate the collet compression or tightening sleeve 510 to tighten the collet 606 around the nozzle connection tip 308-1.

[0071] After the calibration probe 406 is fixed to pipette 306-1 as described above, the method proceeds to step 1310, where the user may be prompted to initiate calibration via UI 118. As should be understood, the decision to initiate calibration is directed to a specific location on the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100. For example, the decision, requirement, or necessity to calibrate the movable stage assembly 300, including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, may be directed to the calibration target slots 410, 240, as described above with reference to Figure 4. Alternatively, the user may select a location that requires or is requested to be calibrated from a list of locations accessible via U118. According to another alternative, if the need to calibrate the movable stage assembly 300 and its associated components arises due to a quality control issue, the user may be prompted via UI 118 to calibrate a specific location on the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100. In step 1310, the user may selectively initiate calibration via UI 118.

[0072] In response to the start of calibration in step 1310, the movable stage assembly 300 moves to the required or selected calibration location. As described above with reference to Figure 9, the movable stage assembly 300 lowers the first pipette 304-1, pipette nozzle 306-1, and fixed calibration probe 406 until the calibration probe tip 408 touches the surface near the edges 904a, 906a, 908a, 910a of the calibration target slots 410, 240. The liquid handling system 100 initiates the iterative calibration process described above with reference to Figure 9 via the liquid processing computing system 1400.

[0073] In step 1312, as described above with reference to Figure 9, the computing system 1400 described below causes the calibration probe 406 to start vertical and horizontal movement techniques to determine the edges 904a, 906a, 908a, 910a of the square or rectangular calibration target slots 410, 240. After all the edges 904a, 904a, 908a, 910a have been determined, the geometric center 918 or other location within the calibration target slots 410, 240 is determined, and the x, y, and z coordinates of the determined geometric center 918 or other location within the calibration target slots 410, 240 are stored.

[0074] In step 1314, the determined geometric center 918 or the x, y, and z coordinates of other locations within the calibration target slots 410, 240 are used to calibrate the movable stage assembly 300 and its associated components to the determined x, y, and z coordinates. That is, as described above with reference to Figure 9, once the liquid handling system 100 learns, through the computing system 1400, the precise movements required to move the movable stage assembly 300 and its associated components to the precise locations of the determined x, y, and z coordinates, the movable stage assembly 300 and its associated components may be calibrated by repeating the determined movements to move the components of the movable stage assembly 300 and its associated components, such as pipettes 304-1 and 304-2, to the specific locations of the determined x, y, and z coordinates. Alternatively, calibration of the movable stage assembly 300 may be used to adjust the movement of the movable stage assembly 300 and its associated components in order to calibrate the movable stage assembly and its associated components for movement to any location on the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100.

[0075] Referring back to step 1306, if the user has selected the gripper system 1000 for calibration, the method proceeds to the calibration step, and method 1300 proceeds to step 1316, in which the gripper calibration pin 1010 is attached to the first gripper arm of one or more gripper arms 1006-1 as described above with reference to Figures 10-12. The gripper calibration pin 1010 may also be attached to the gripper arm 1006-1 by inserting one end of the gripper calibration pin into the gripper pin orifice 1208 until the inserted end contacts the magnet 1102.

[0076] After the gripper calibration pin is secured to the gripper arm 1006-1 as described above, the method proceeds to step 1318, in which case the user may be prompted to initiate calibration via UI 118. As should be understood, the decision to initiate calibration is directed to a specific location on the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100. For example, the decision, requirement, or need to calibrate the gripper system 1000 may be directed to the calibration target slots 410, 240, as described above with reference to Figure 4. Alternatively, the user may select a location that requires or is requested to be calibrated from a list of locations accessible via U118. According to another alternative, if the need to calibrate the gripper system 1000 and its associated components arises due to a quality control issue, the user may be prompted via UI 118 to calibrate a specific location on the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100. In step 1318, the user may selectively initiate calibration via UI 118.

[0077] In step 1318, calibration of the selected gripper system 1000 is initiated. The gripper system 1000 moves to the required or selected calibration location. As described above with reference to Figures 9 to 12, the gripper system 1000 lowers the gripper arm 1006-1 and the fixed gripper calibration pin 1010 until the gripper calibration pin 1010 touches the surface near the edges 904a, 906a, 908a, 910a of the calibration target slots 410, 240. The liquid handling system 100 initiates the iterative calibration process described above with reference to Figure 9 via the computing system 1400.

[0078] In step 1320, as described above with reference to Figures 9 to 12, the computing system 1400 described below causes the gripper calibration pins to initiate vertical and horizontal movement techniques to determine the edges 904a, 906a, 908a, and 910a of the square or rectangular calibration target slots 410 and 240. After all the edges 904a, 904a, 908a, and 910a have been determined, the geometric center 918 or other location within the calibration target slots 410 and 240 is determined, and the x, y, and z coordinates of the determined geometric center 918 or other location within the calibration target slots 410 and 240 are stored.

[0079] In step 1322, the determined geometric center 918 or the x, y, and z coordinates of other locations within the calibration target slots 410, 240 are used to calibrate the gripper system 1000 and its associated components to the determined x, y, and z coordinates. That is, as described above with reference to Figures 9 to 12, once the liquid handling system 100 learns, through the computing system 1400, the precise movements required to move the gripper system 1000 and its associated components to the precise locations of the determined x, y, and z coordinates, the gripper system 1000 and its associated components may be calibrated to move the components of the gripper system 1000 and its associated components to the specific locations of the determined x, y, and z coordinates by repeating the determined movements. Alternatively, calibration of the gripper system 1000 and its associated components may be used to adjust the movement of the gripper system 1000 and its associated components in order to calibrate the gripper system 1000 and its associated components for movement to any location on the deck 106 of the liquid handling system 100.

[0080] Method 1300 may end at step 1324, or Method 1300 may be performed again and any number of times thereafter.

[0081] Figure 14 shows a computing system diagram illustrating the configuration of a computing system 1400 that may be used to implement embodiments of the principles described herein. The computing system 1400 may include a baseboard 1402, or “motherboard,” which is a printed circuit board on which multiple components or devices can be connected via a system bus or other telecommunication paths. In one example, one or more central processing units (“CPUs”) 1404 operate in conjunction with a chipset 1406. The CPUs 1404 may be standard programmable processors that perform the arithmetic and logical operations necessary for the operation of the liquid handling system 1400.

[0082] The CPU 1404 operates by transitioning from one discrete physical state to the next through the operation of switching elements that distinguish and change these states. Switching elements may include electronic circuits that maintain one of two binary states, such as flip-flops, and electronic circuits that provide output states based on the logical combination of the states of one or more other switching elements, such as logic gates. These switching elements may be combined to create more complex logic circuits, including registers, adders-subtractors, arithmetic logic units, floating-point units, and the like.

[0083] Chipset 1406 provides an interface between the CPU 1404 and the rest of the components and devices on the baseboard 1402. Chipset 1406 may also provide an interface to RAM 1408, which is used as main memory within the liquid handling system 1400. Chipset 1406 may further provide an interface to a computer-readable storage medium such as read-only memory ("ROM") 1410 or non-volatile RAM ("NVRAM") to store basic routines that help start the liquid handling system 100 (Figure 1) described herein and transfer information between various components and devices. ROM 1410 or NVRAM may also store other software components necessary for the operation of the liquid handling system 100 in the configuration described herein.

[0084] The computing system 1400 may operate in a network environment using logical connections to remote computing devices and computer systems via a network, such as network 1430. The chipset 1406 may include functionality for providing network connectivity through a network interface controller (NIC) 1412, such as a Gigabit Ethernet adapter. The NIC 1412 can connect the liquid handling system 1400 to other computing devices via network 1430. It should be understood that multiple NICs 1412 may be present in the computing system 1400 to connect computers to other types of networks and remote computer systems. The liquid handling system 100 may be connected to an instruction device 1428. The instruction device 1428 may include any computing device separate from the computing elements of the liquid handling system 1400 that can be used to provide instructions and / or programming to the liquid handling system 1400. In one example, the instruction device 1428 may be included “as a service” (aaS), where the use of the product is provided as a service (e.g., as a subscription-based service) rather than as an artifact owned and maintained by the user.

[0085] The computing system 1400 may be connected to a storage device 1422 that provides non-volatile storage to the computing system 1400. The storage device 1422 may store an operating system 1424, programs 1426, and data. The storage device 1422 may be connected to the computing system 1400 through a storage controller 1414 connected to a chipset 1406. The storage device 1422 may include one or more physical storage units. The storage controller 1414 may interface with the physical storage units through a serial-connected SCSI ("SAS") interface, a serial advanced technology attachment ("SATA") interface, a Fibre Channel ("FC") interface, or other types of interfaces for physically connecting and transferring data between the computer and the physical storage units.

[0086] The computing system 1400 may store data on the storage device 1422 by transforming the physical state of the physical storage unit to reflect the stored information. The specific transformation of the physical state may depend on various factors in different embodiments of this specification. Examples of such factors may include, but are not limited to, the techniques used to implement the physical storage unit, whether the storage device 1422 is characterized as primary storage or secondary storage, and the like.

[0087] For example, the computing system 1400 may store information in the storage device 1422 by issuing commands through the storage controller 1414 to change the magnetic properties of a specific location in a magnetic disk drive unit, the reflective or refractive properties of a specific location in an optical storage unit, or the electrical properties of a specific capacitor, transistor, or other distinct component in a solid-state storage unit. Other transformations of the physical medium are possible without departing from the scope and spirit of this specification, and the above examples are provided solely to facilitate this explanation. The computing system 1400 may further read information from the storage device 1422 by detecting the physical state or properties of one or more specific locations in the physical storage unit.

[0088] In addition to the high-capacity storage device 1422 described above, the liquid handling system 1400 may access other computer-readable storage media to store and retrieve information such as program modules, data structures, or other data. Those skilled in the art will understand that the computer-readable storage media is any available medium that provides non-temporary storage of data and can be accessed by the liquid handling system 100. In one example, the operations performed by the liquid handling system 100 and / or any components contained therein may be supported by one or more devices similar to the computing system 1400. In other words, some or all of the operations performed by the liquid handling system 100 and / or any components contained therein may be performed by one or more computing devices operating in a cloud-based configuration.

[0089] Computer-readable storage media may include, but are not limited to, volatile and non-volatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any way or technique. Computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM, erasable programmable ROM ("EPROM"), electrically erasable programmable ROM ("EEPROM"), flash memory or other solid-state memory technologies, compact disk ROM ("CD-ROM"), digital versatile disk ("DVD"), high-definition DVD ("HD-DVD"), Blu-ray, or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tapes, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other media that can be used to store desired information in a non-temporary manner.

[0090] As described above, the storage device 1422 may store an operating system 1424 used to control the operation of the liquid handling system 1400. In one embodiment, the operating system 1424 may include the LINUX operating system. In another example, the operating system may include the WINDOWS® SERVER operating system of MICROSOFT Corporation in Redmond, Washington. In yet another example, the operating system 1424 may include the UNIX operating system or one of its variations. It should be understood that other operating systems may also be used. The storage device 1422 may store other systems or application programs and data used by the liquid handling system 1400.

[0091] In one example, storage device 1422 or other computer-readable storage medium, when loaded into computing system 1400, is encoded with computer-executable instructions that transform the computer from a general-purpose computing system into a dedicated computer capable of implementing the embodiments described herein. These computer-executable instructions transform computing system 1400 by specifying how CPU 1404 transitions between states, as described above. According to one example, computing system 1400 can access computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by computing system 1400, perform the various processes described herein. Computing system 1400 may also include computer-readable storage medium storing instructions for performing any of the other computer implementation operations described herein.

[0092] The computing system 1400 may also include one or more input / output controllers 1416 for receiving and processing input from several input devices, such as a user interface (UI) 118, a keyboard, a mouse, a touchpad, a touchscreen, an electronic stylus, or other types of input devices. Similarly, the input / output controllers 1416 may provide output to the UI 118, a display such as a computer monitor, a flat panel display, a digital projector, a printer, or other types of output devices. It will be understood that the computing system 1400 may not include all of the components shown in Figure 14, may include other components not explicitly shown in Figure 14, or may utilize an architecture entirely different from the architecture shown in Figure 14.

[0093] UI118 may include any user input and / or output devices as described above in relation to the devices associated with the input / output controller 1416. UI118 may include, for example, haptic UI (e.g., touch), visual UI (e.g., field of view), auditory UI (e.g., sound), other types of UI devices, and combinations thereof. UI118 may be used by the user to receive information and instructions from the computing system 1400 regarding how to operate the liquid handling system 100, for example, by attaching the calibration probe 406 or gripper calibration pin 1010 to initiate the calibration process described herein. Since this is one aspect of the system and method, a process in which the user may interface with UI118 is described here.

[0094] Referring again to Figure 14, the computing system 1400 may further include liquid handling system hardware 1420. The liquid handling system hardware 1420 may include all the various components of the liquid handling system 100, for example, the movable stage assembly 300 including the first pipette 304-1 and pipette nozzle 306-1, and the gripper system 1000. Furthermore, the liquid handling system hardware 1420 may include, for example, a deck, a cradle device coupled to the deck, and any type of module that may be coupled to the cradle device and used to process the liquid distributed by the liquid handling system 100. Modules that may be coupled to the cradle device and used to process the liquid distributed by the liquid handling system 100 may include, for example, a temperature deck, a heat shaker, a thermocycler, a heating device, a cooling device, a vacuum pump, a centrifuge, a liquid handler, a tube handling device, a sealing device, a desealing device, a magnetic device, other modules, and combinations thereof. Furthermore, the liquid handling system hardware 1420 may include the housing of the liquid handling system 100 and any other elements of the liquid handling system 100.

[0095] The elements described in relation to Figure 14 are depicted as being connected, for example, directly or indirectly via LAN 1430, but the elements may be contained within the liquid handling system 100 as a whole, or they may be distributed across any number of computing networks among any number of separate devices. For example, the instruction device 1428 may be located directly within the liquid handling system 100, as opposed to being connected via LAN 1430.

[0096] Exemplary items A: A pipette calibration probe comprising: a calibration probe shaft; a collet disposed at the upper end of the calibration probe shaft; a set of collet threads disposed circumferentially around the calibration probe shaft below the collet; and a collet compression sleeve housing rotatably disposed around the calibration probe shaft, wherein the collet compression sleeve housing includes a set of receiving threads disposed circumferentially around the inner surface of the collet compression sleeve housing, the set of receiving threads being rotatably engaged with the set of collet threads, the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing rotatably traversing upward onto the collet, and the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing rotatably traversing downward away from the collet.

[0097] B: The pipette calibration probe as described in paragraph A, wherein the collet compression sleeve housing is operable to traverse rotatably upward via the engagement of a set of receiving threads and a set of collet threads in order to compress the collet into a closed configuration, and the collet compression sleeve housing is operable to traverse rotatably downward via the engagement of a set of receiving threads and a set of collet threads in order to decompress the collet into an open configuration.

[0098] C: The pipette calibration probe described in paragraphs A-B, wherein the collet includes a compression slot defined longitudinally from the upper end to the lower end of the collet, the collet is compressed to a closed configuration by compressing the compression slot from an open configuration to a closed configuration, and the collet is decompressed to an open configuration by decompressing the compression slot from a closed configuration to an open configuration.

[0099] D: The pipette calibration probe described in paragraphs A-C, wherein compression of the compression slot is caused by the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing traversing upward onto the collet, and decompression of the compression slot is caused by the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing traversing downward away from the collet.

[0100] E: The pipette calibration probe described in paragraph A, wherein the collet includes an orifice defined within the upper end of the collet, and the orifice is longitudinally aligned with the calibration probe shaft.

[0101] F: The pipette calibration probe according to paragraphs A and E, wherein the orifice within the upper end of the collet is configured to receive the lower end of the pipette nozzle, and the lower end of the pipette nozzle is longitudinally aligned with the calibration probe shaft.

[0102] G: The pipette calibration probe described in paragraphs A and E-F, wherein the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing is rotatably traversed over the collet, thereby securing the collet to the pipette nozzle.

[0103] H: The pipette calibration probe according to paragraphs A and E-F, wherein the calibration probe shaft is made of a conductive material, the pipette nozzle is made of a conductive material, the pipette nozzle and the pipette calibration probe are connected by inserting the lower end of the pipette nozzle into an orifice, and the connection between the pipette nozzle and the pipette calibration probe provides a continuous conductive path that passes through the pipette nozzle to the calibration probe shaft and through the calibration probe shaft.

[0104] I: The pipette calibration probe according to paragraphs A, E-F and H, wherein the contact between the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and the surface at the calibration location provides conductivity from the pipette through the pipette nozzle and through the calibration probe shaft to the surface.

[0105] The pipette calibration probe described in paragraphs A, E-F and H-I, wherein conductivity from the pipette through the pipette nozzle and through the calibration probe shaft to the surface provides capacitive detection of the contact point between the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and the surface.

[0106] K. A pipette calibration probe according to paragraphs A, E-F and H-J, which provides capacitive sensing by providing an electromagnetic field around the lower end of the calibration probe shaft, enabling the detection of a contact point when the lower end of the calibration probe shaft is in close proximity to a surface.

[0107] L: A gripper arm calibration system comprising: a gripper arm having a calibration probe orifice defined within the lower end of the gripper arm; a magnet disposed inside the calibration probe orifice; and a calibration probe having a calibration probe shaft, the calibration probe shaft having an upper end and a lower end, and a retainer band disposed circumferentially around the calibration probe shaft between the upper and lower ends, wherein the upper and lower ends of the calibration probe shaft are configured to be inserted into the calibration probe orifice until the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft contacts the magnet and holds the calibration probe shaft within the calibration probe orifice.

[0108] M: The gripper arm calibration system according to paragraph L, wherein the calibration probe orifice includes a path to the lower end of the gripper arm that is longitudinally aligned with the gripper arm, the path includes a depth corresponding to the length of the calibration probe shaft extending from the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft to a retainer band, and a magnet disposed inside the calibration probe orifice is further disposed at the end of the path, configured to magnetically engage with the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft.

[0109] N: The gripper arm calibration system according to paragraph L, further comprising an electrical contact disposed inside the lower end of the gripper arm, wherein the electrical contact is configured to contact the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft.

[0110] O: The gripper arm calibration system according to paragraphs L and N, wherein the calibration probe shaft is made of a conductive material, and contact between an electrical contact and the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft provides a continuous conductive path from the gripper arm through the calibration probe shaft.

[0111] P: A gripper arm calibration system according to paragraphs L, N~O, wherein contact between the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and a surface at the calibration location provides conductivity from the gripper arm through the calibration probe shaft to the surface.

[0112] Q: A gripper arm calibration system according to paragraphs L, N~P, which provides a continuous conductive path from the gripper arm through the calibration probe shaft to the surface, thereby providing capacitive detection of the contact point between the lower end of the calibration probe shaft and the surface.

[0113] R: A gripper arm calibration system according to paragraphs L, N~Q, which includes providing capacitive sensing by providing an electromagnetic field around the lower end of the calibration probe shaft, enabling the detection of a contact point when the lower end of the calibration probe shaft is in close proximity to a surface.

[0114] S: A liquid handling system calibration system comprising: a liquid handling system including a movable component for transporting material or devices to one or more locations on the deck of the liquid handling system; a calibration probe fixed to the lower end of the movable component for calibrating the movable component, wherein the calibration probe provides conductivity from the movable component through the calibration probe to provide capacitive sensing of the contact point between the lower tip of the calibration probe and the surface, wherein the liquid handling system lowers the lower tip of the calibration probe to a point on the surface near the edge of a target calibration slot defined in the surface, the target calibration slot includes a calibration opening, the calibration opening is defined by being surrounded by a plurality of edges between the calibration opening and a surface region around the calibration opening, and the lower tip of the calibration probe is repeatedly raised, lowered and moved until the plurality of edges are located, determining a geometric center or other specific point in the calibration opening based on the located plurality of edges, and calibrating the movable component to the determined geometric center or other specific point in the calibration opening.

[0115] T: The liquid handling system calibration system according to paragraph S, wherein the movable component includes at least one of a movable stage assembly including a pipette and a pipette nozzle, and a gripper system arm.

[0116] While the exemplary sections described above relate to one or more embodiments, it should be understood that in the context of this specification, the contents of the exemplary sections can also be implemented through methods, devices, systems, computer-readable media, and / or other embodiments. Additionally, any of Examples A-T may be implemented alone or in combination with any one or more other Examples A-T.

[0117] While the System and Method are described in relation to specific examples, it should be understood that the scope of the System and Method is not limited to these specific examples. Since other modifications and changes to suit specific operating requirements and environments will be apparent to those skilled in the art, the System and Method are not considered to be limited to the examples selected for disclosure purposes, but rather encompass all changes and modifications that do not constitute a departure from the true spirit and scope of the Invention.

[0118] This application describes embodiments having certain structural features and / or methodological actions, but it should be understood that the claims are not necessarily limited to the specific features or actions described. Rather, the specific features and actions are merely examples of some embodiments that fall within the scope of the claims of this application.

[0119] conclusion The examples described herein provide calibration of components of a liquid handling system. Each of the movable stage and associated attachments (e.g., pipettes) and material handling gripper systems is calibrated from time to time. In the case of the movable stage and associated attachments, a fixed calibration probe may be used to locate a specific spatial location in the calibration target slot. In the case of the material handling gripper system, a fixed calibration pin may similarly be used to locate a specific spatial location in the calibration target slot. Each of these systems may be calibrated based on the movement of the movable stage and associated attachments and the material handling gripper system to move to and locate a specific spatial location.

[0120] While this system and method are described in relation to specific examples, it should be understood that the scope of this system and method is not limited to these specific examples. Since other modifications and changes to suit specific operating requirements and environments will be apparent to those skilled in the art, this system and method is not considered to be limited to the examples selected for disclosure purposes, but rather encompasses all changes and modifications that do not constitute a departure from the true idea and scope of this system and method.

[0121] This application describes examples of certain structural features and / or methodological actions, but it should be understood that the claims are not necessarily limited to the specific features or actions described. Rather, the specific features and actions are merely illustrative examples of some of the cases that fall within the scope of the claims of this application.

Claims

1. A pipette calibration probe, Calibration probe shaft, A collet is disposed at the upper end of the calibration probe shaft, A set of collet threads arranged circumferentially around the calibration probe shaft below the collet, The system comprises a collet compression sleeve housing rotatably disposed around the calibration probe shaft, wherein the collet compression sleeve housing includes a set of receiving threads circumferentially disposed around the inner surface of the collet compression sleeve housing, A pipette calibration probe comprising a set of receiving threads rotatably engaged with a set of collet threads, the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing rotatably traversing upward onto the collet, and the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing rotatably traversing downward away from the collet.

2. The collet compression sleeve housing is operable to traverse rotatably upward via the engagement of the set of receiving threads and the set of collet threads in order to compress the collet into a closed configuration. The pipette calibration probe according to claim 1, wherein the collet compression sleeve housing is operable to traverse rotatably downward via the engagement of the receiving thread set and the collet thread set in order to decompress the collet into an open configuration.

3. The collet includes a compression slot defined longitudinally from the upper end of the collet to the lower end of the collet, The collet compresses the compression slot from an open configuration to a closed configuration, thereby compressing it into a closed configuration. The pipette calibration probe according to claim 2, wherein the collet is decompressed to an open configuration by decompressing the compression slot from a closed configuration to an open configuration.

4. The compression of the compression slot is caused by the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing traversing upward onto the collet. The pipette calibration probe according to claim 3, wherein the decompression of the compression slot is caused by the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing traversing downward away from the collet.

5. The pipette calibration probe according to claim 1, wherein the collet includes an orifice defined within the upper end of the collet, and the orifice is longitudinally aligned with the calibration probe shaft.

6. The pipette calibration probe according to claim 5, wherein the orifice within the upper end of the collet is configured to receive the lower end of the pipette nozzle, and the lower end of the pipette nozzle is longitudinally aligned with the calibration probe shaft.

7. The pipette calibration probe according to claim 6, wherein the upper end of the collet compression sleeve housing is rotatably traversed onto the collet, thereby fixing the collet to the pipette nozzle.

8. The calibration probe shaft is made of a conductive material, The pipette nozzle is made of a conductive material, The pipette nozzle and the pipette calibration probe are connected by inserting the lower end of the pipette nozzle into the orifice. The pipette calibration probe according to claim 6, wherein the connection between the pipette nozzle and the pipette calibration probe provides a continuous conductive path that passes through the pipette nozzle to the calibration probe shaft and through the calibration probe shaft.

9. The pipette calibration probe according to claim 8, wherein the contact between the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and the surface at the calibration location provides conductivity from the pipette through the pipette nozzle and through the calibration probe shaft to the surface.

10. The pipette calibration probe according to claim 9, wherein the conductivity from the pipette through the pipette nozzle and through the calibration probe shaft to the surface provides capacitive detection of the contact point between the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and the surface.

11. The pipette calibration probe according to claim 10, wherein providing capacitive sensing includes providing an electromagnetic field around the lower end of the calibration probe shaft, enabling the detection of the contact point when the lower end of the calibration probe shaft is in close proximity to the surface.

12. A gripper arm calibration system, A gripper arm comprising a calibration probe orifice defined within the lower end of the gripper arm, A magnet disposed inside the calibration probe orifice, A calibration probe comprising a calibration probe shaft, wherein the calibration probe shaft includes an upper end and a lower end, and includes a retainer band disposed circumferentially around the calibration probe shaft between the upper end and the lower end, A gripper arm calibration system wherein the upper and lower ends of the calibration probe shaft are configured to be inserted into the calibration probe orifice until the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft contacts the magnet and holds the calibration probe shaft within the calibration probe orifice.

13. The calibration probe orifice includes a path to the lower end of the gripper arm that is longitudinally aligned with the gripper arm, and the path includes a depth corresponding to the length of the calibration probe shaft, extending from the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft to the retainer band. The gripper arm calibration system according to claim 12, wherein the magnet disposed inside the calibration probe orifice is further disposed at the end of the path configured to magnetically engage with the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft.

14. The gripper arm calibration system according to claim 12, further comprising an electrical contact disposed inside the lower end of the gripper arm, wherein the electrical contact is configured to contact the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft.

15. The calibration probe shaft is made of a conductive material, The gripper arm calibration system according to claim 14, wherein contact between the electrical contact and the upper or lower end of the calibration probe shaft provides a continuous conductive path from the gripper arm through the calibration probe shaft.

16. The gripper arm calibration system according to claim 15, wherein contact between the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and a surface at the calibration location provides conductivity from the gripper arm through the calibration probe shaft to the surface.

17. The gripper arm calibration system according to claim 16, wherein providing a continuous conductive path from the gripper arm through the calibration probe shaft to the surface provides capacitive detection of the contact point between the lower tip of the calibration probe shaft and the surface.

18. The gripper arm calibration system according to claim 17, wherein providing capacitive sensing includes providing an electromagnetic field around the lower end of the calibration probe shaft, enabling the detection of the contact point when the lower end of the calibration probe shaft is in close proximity to the surface.

19. A liquid handling system calibration system, A liquid handling system including a movable component for transporting materials or devices to one or more locations on the deck of the liquid handling system, A calibration probe fixed to the lower end of the movable component for calibrating the movable component, wherein the calibration probe provides conductivity from the movable component through the calibration probe in order to provide capacitive detection of the contact point between the lower tip of the calibration probe and the surface, The aforementioned liquid handling system The lower tip of the calibration probe is lowered to a point on the surface near the edge of a target calibration slot defined within the surface, wherein the target calibration slot includes a calibration opening, and the calibration opening is defined by being surrounded by a plurality of edges between the calibration opening and the surface region around the calibration opening. The lower tip of the calibration probe is repeatedly raised, lowered, and moved until the multiple edges are located. Based on the identified multiple edges, the geometric center or other specific point within the calibration opening is determined. A liquid handling system calibration system for calibrating the movable component to the geometric center or other specific point within the determined calibration opening.

20. The liquid handling system calibration system according to claim 19, wherein the movable component includes at least one of a movable stage assembly including a pipette and a pipette nozzle, and a gripper system arm.

Images