Pipette Dispenser Vision System for Liquid Handling Error Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing liquid handling instruments face challenges such as underfilling or overfilling containers, missing to load containers, and loading containers with the incorrect fluid, especially when dealing with multiple wells, leading to increased error probabilities.
Innovation Solution
A pipette dispenser vision system that includes a dispensing platform with multiple wells, one or more pipettes for dispensing liquid, an imaging device for capturing images during the pipetting process, and controllers to verify and modify the pipetting process based on the image data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual or automated liquid handling instruments are used to transfer liquids between containers, then speed and efficiency of operations are improved, but errors such as underfilling, overfilling, missing to load, and loading incorrect fluids increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a vision system that captures images of the dispensing process and provides real-time feedback to the liquid handling instrument. The system analyzes images to verify liquid transfer accuracy, detect underfilling or overfilling conditions, and confirm proper fluid loading, thereby enabling error detection and correction during automated operations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces purely mechanical liquid handling with a hybrid system that incorporates optical sensing and image analysis. The vision system uses optical fields to detect liquid levels, fluid types, and dispensing accuracy, substituting mechanical verification with optical measurement capabilities
2Productivity
If multiple wells are processed simultaneously, then productivity is improved, but the probability of errors increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the multi-well processing task into individually monitored units. Each well is separately imaged and verified by the vision system, allowing independent detection of errors in each well while maintaining parallel processing. This segmentation enables quality control across multiple wells without compromising individual well accuracy
Solution Approach 2:
The vision system provides real-time feedback for each well during parallel processing, allowing immediate detection and correction of errors. The system continuously monitors liquid levels, fluid types, and dispensing accuracy in each well independently, maintaining high reliability even during high-throughput operations
Data Source
AI summary
A pipette dispenser vision system and method are disclosed. For example, a pipette dispenser vision system is provided for tracking pipettes with respect to dispensing liquid into target fluid wells, vessels, and/or reservoirs. The presently disclosed pipette dispenser vision system may include, for example, a computing device, a red/green/blue (RGB) imaging device, an infrared (IR) imaging device, an IR illumination source, and an IR sensor; all arranged with respect to, for example, a single-channel and/or a multi-channel pipette for dispensing liquid into a dispensing platform. Further, a method of using the presently disclosed pipette dispenser vision system is provided. For example, the method processes image data from the RGB imaging device and/or the IR imaging device to monitor/verify certain operations of the pipetting process and/or dispensing platform.