RFID Auditing System for Cryogenic Biological Sample Storage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Biological samples stored in cold storage, such as cryogenic fluids, face challenges in effective and efficient auditing due to the risk of sample mix-ups and the difficulty in identifying samples if their labels are lost or damaged, while removing samples for auditing can cause them to warm up, reducing their storage lifetime.
Innovation Solution
A system for remote live auditing of biological samples using RFID tags and a docking assembly that allows for wireless interrogation of the tags without opening the vessel, maintaining electrical connections regardless of the lid's position, and utilizing a wireless transceiver to communicate with a server for accurate tracking and identification.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If biological samples are removed from cold storage for auditing, then their identities can be checked, but they will warm up and their storage lifetime will be reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical system of physically removing samples from cold storage with a wireless electromagnetic field-based RFID interrogation system. The RFID reader communicates with tags on sample containers through electromagnetic fields without requiring physical contact or removal, thus maintaining the cold storage environment while enabling identification auditing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces RFID tags as intermediaries between the sample containers and the auditing system. These tags store identification information and can be wirelessly interrogated, allowing the system to audit sample identities without directly accessing or removing the samples from their cold storage containers.
2Duration of action of stationary object
If samples are kept in closed cold storage, then their storage lifetime is maintained, but auditing becomes difficult and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical process of opening containers and visually inspecting labels with an automated wireless RFID interrogation system. This system can rapidly read identification data from multiple samples simultaneously without opening any containers, dramatically reducing auditing time while maintaining closed storage conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-attaching RFID tags to sample containers before storage. This allows the identification information to be readily available for wireless reading at any time during auditing, eliminating the need to open containers or manually read labels during the auditing process.
3Reliability
If labels are lost or damaged, then sample identification becomes difficult or impossible, but adding robust labeling increases device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical labeling system (physical labels that can be lost or damaged) with an electronic identification system based on RFID tags. These tags are embedded or attached to containers and can be wirelessly read, providing durable and reliable identification that does not depend on visible physical labels.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses RFID tags to create an electronic copy or representation of the sample identification information. Instead of relying on the physical label itself, the system stores and retrieves identification data in the RFID tag, which can be read wirelessly and is more resistant to loss or damage than physical labels.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables accurate and efficient tracking and identification of biological samples within cryogenic storage without exposing them to warmer temperatures, reducing the risk of mix-ups and extending their storage lifetime by allowing auditing without removing the samples from the cold environment.
Implementation Method 1
The RFID tag is operable to provide identifying information about the biological sample in the form of electromagnetic radiation
Data Source
AI summary
A system for the remote live auditing of biological samples contained in a cold storage vessel (10). The vessel (10) comprises one or more canisters (100(1), 100(2)), each of which comprises a connector (102(1), 102(2)) and is configured to hold at least one container (50), each of which contains one or more biological samples and has associated therewith an RFID tag identifying the container (50) in question. The system further comprises a docking assembly (200) mounted on the vessel (10) and comprising a plurality of connectors (202), each of which is configured to engage with the connector (102(1), 102(2)) of one of said canisters (100(1), 100(2)), thereby providing an electrical connection between the docking assembly (200) and the canister (50) in question. Each canister (100(1), 100(2)) is operable to wirelessly interrogate the RFID tags of the containers (50) held therein, to receive information identifying the containers (50) as a result of the interrogation, and to communicate this identifying information to the docking assembly (200) via the electrical connection. Also disclosed are a canister and a docking assembly suitable for use in the system.