Screening


even transfer assays between systems comprising different hardware with comparative ease. Modern software with drag and drop interfaces, simulation and assay statistics modules remove the trial and error involved when developing schedules. New assays can even be validated on virtual platforms in the office prior to running on hardware. On screen visual representations of the hardware platform and assay workflow, updated live provide powerful diagnostics insight and will help operators quickly identify the source of problems. Good software can make all the difference (Figure 18).


Poor reliability in complex automation systems, such as advanced HTS platforms, stems from sev- eral root causes, principally: hand-offs between robots and other devices, where the slightest miss- alignment or movement can cause failure; poor gripper or nest design which is intolerant of typical variations; poor or damaged barcodes; dimension- al variation between supposedly standard SBS plate types; and, in many cases, significant varia- tion within the same type of labware which cannot only affect system reliability, but also introduce systematic variation in assay results. Other factors such as failure of pneumatic actuators or vacuum pick-ups, or drift in make/break sensor positions, can also lead to system failure. TAP (www.theau- tomationpartnership.com) have developed numer- ous strategies to cope with these variations and risks. Low-level control software is coded to auto- matically retry operations which may occasionally fail, thus preventing an operator call out and asso- ciated process disruption for intermittent faults. Robotic teach points, particular for storage rack- ing/hotels, can be automatically set using a non- contact system of lasers and flags, thus ensuring positional variation is easily and consistently com- pensated for. Grippers and nests are designed with sufficient lead-ins and self-datuming features to accommodate typical variations in labware and positions, including differences between the pick and place location in the same nest. Where neces- sary, TAP also designs and supplies labware with the demanding tolerances which may be required for reliable automated operation, such as glass ‘QC’ pipettes which are guaranteed to be suffi- ciently straight to always engage with the corner of a flask or plate (Figure 19).


The increasing numbers of applications which can be automated on liquid handling workstations has necessitated development of process security fea- tures to safe-guard complex liquid handling opera- tions. Innovative software and hardware solutions


Drug Discovery World Winter 2010/11


Figure 18: RTS Life Science Sprint™6, process management and scheduling software


reduce the risk of errors and instrument downtime as well as providing full traceability. Accurate and proper placement of labware is vital to the correct operation of the instrument. Tecan (www.tecan.com) platforms offer easy-to-follow graphical interfaces which guide users through loading and unloading of labware, barcode reading


Figure 19: TAP’s CompacT SelecT system using a QC pipette to reliably seed cells to produce plates just-in-time for HTS campaigns


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