Remote execution of materials library designs

• US 7,653,607 B2
• Filed: 02/08/2007
• Issued: 01/26/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dassault Systemes Americas Corp. (Dassault Systemes SA)
• Original Assignee: Symyx Solutions, Inc.
• Inventors: Fellmann, Jere D., Goldwasser, Isy, Dorsett, David R. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vincent; David R
• Assistant Examiner(s): Brown, Jr.; Nathan H
• Application Number:
  US11/704,075
• Publication Number:
  US 20070143240A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,083 Days
• Field of Search: 706/29
• US Class Current: 706/29
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce
• CPC Class Codes: G16C 20/90 Programming languages; Computing architectures; Database systems; Data warehousing
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/40 for data related to laboratory analysis, e.g. patient specimen analysis

Abstract

Methods, apparatus, and business processes enabling individual chemists to design, order, and obtain data for multiple experiments or measurements in a timely and cost-effective manner. In particular implementations, the invention includes methods and apparatus for designing sets of custom experiments, ordering the execution of the experiments, communicating the order to a remote laboratory, executing the experiments at that laboratory using high-throughput technologies, and communicating the experimental results to the user.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented system for carrying out a set of experiments, comprising:

a computer-implemented experiment design tool for generating at a first location an experiment request for execution of a set of experiments to be performed on a library of materials at a second location, the library of materials having a plurality of members, the first location being remote from the second location, the experiment request defining one or more starting materials to be used in the set of experiments, one or more distribution schemes to be used to assign the one or more starting materials to members of the library of materials, and one or more processing conditions to be applied to members of the library of materials, such that each of a plurality of the library members is defined by a unique combination of starting materials and/or process conditions;

interface means for communicating the experiment request from the first location to the second location;

a research engine at the second location, the research engine being operable to perform the set of experiments by distributing the starting materials to members of the library of materials according to the distribution scheme, applying the processing conditions to members of the library of materials according to the experiment request, and applying one or more specified screening methods to the members of the library of materials to generate experimental results; and

a computer-implemented data viewer tool configured to provide access to the experimental results at the first location.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the one or more screening methods are specified in the experiment request.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the one or more screening methods are defined based on one or more of the starting materials and process conditions defined in the experiment request.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the experiment design tool is provided as a computer program executed by a server process running at the second location that is accessible through a client process running at the first location.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein:

the experiment design tool is a computer program executed by a process running at the first location.

6. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

an experiment database storing data from a plurality of sets of experiments performed by the research engine.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein:

the data viewer tool is configured to provide a user at the first location with an interface to search and manipulate data stored in the experiment database.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein:

the data viewer tool is configured to provide the user with access only to experiments that are associated with the user in the experiment database.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein:

the data viewer tool is configured to provide the user with access to experiments that are associated with different users and/or institutions in the experiment database.

10. A computer-implemented research system for carrying out a set of experiments, comprising:

a computer-implemented experiment design tool for generating at a first location an experiment request for execution of a set of experiments, the experiment request including electronic data embodying an experiment design defining a set of experiments, the experiment design including an experiment matrix having a plurality of matrix elements, one or more starting materials assigned to the matrix elements and one or more process conditions to be applied to the matrix elements, each of a plurality of matrix elements being defined by a unique combination of starting materials and/or process conditions, the experiment design also defining one or more screening methods to be applied to generate experimental results;

a user interface subsystem configured to receive an experiment request for a set of experiments generated by the experiment design tool to be performed at a second location remote from the first location; and

a research engine at the second location, the research engine being configured to prepare a library of materials corresponding to the experiment matrix included in the experiment design, the library of materials having a plurality of members, each member containing the starting materials assigned to a corresponding matrix element, the research engine being operable to apply the process conditions to the members of the library of materials to transform at least one of the starting materials into a product and to apply the screening methods to generate experimental results;

the user interface subsystem being further configured to provide the experimental results to a user at the first location.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

an inventory subsystem including an inventory database storing information identifying a plurality of materials in an inventory of materials available at the second location.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein:

the computer-implemented experiment design tool is configured to enable the user to select one or more materials from materials identified in the inventory database.

13. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

one or more automated instruments coupled to the research engine, the one or more automated instruments being operable to prepare the library of materials, apply the process conditions and/or apply the screening method according to the experiment design.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

a process database storing information identifying a plurality of chemical processes capable of being performed by the one or more automated instruments.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein:

the computer-implemented experiment design tool is configured to enable the user to select one or more processing conditions from processing conditions that can be implemented according to the process database.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein:

the computer-implemented experiment design tool is configured to enable the user to select one or more screening methods from screening methods that can be applied by one or more of the automated instruments.

17. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

an experiment database at the second location, the experiment database storing information about one or more sets of experiments executed on behalf of the user.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein:

the user interface subsystem is configured to provide the user with access to the experimental results in the experiment database.

19. The system of claim 10, wherein:

the research engine is further configured to evaluate the experiment design to generate an experimental plan including electronic data describing a proposed execution of the set of experiments; and

the user interface subsystem is further configured to provide the experimental plan to the user.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein:

the user interface subsystem is further configured to receive an input from the user in response to the experimental plan, wherein the preparing the library of materials, the applying the process conditions, the applying the screening methods, and the providing the experimental results are only performed when the user approves of the experimental plan.

21. The system of claim 10, wherein:

the one or more screening methods are defined based on one or more of the starting materials and process conditions defined in the experiment design.

22. A system for carrying out a set of experiments, comprising:

a computer-implemented experiment design tool for generating at a first location an experiment request for execution of a set of experiments, the experiment request including electronic data embodying an experiment design defining a set of experiments, the experiment design including electronic data defining an experiment matrix having a plurality of matrix elements, one or more starting materials assigned to the matrix elements and one or more process conditions to be applied to the matrix elements, each of a plurality of matrix elements being defined by a unique combination of starting materials and/or process conditions, the experiment design also defining one or more screening methods to be applied to generate experimental results;

user interface means for receiving at a second location an experiment request generated by the experiment design tool at the first location for a set of experiments to be performed at a second location, and for providing electronic data describing experimental results to a user at the first location, the second location being remote from the first location;

synthesis means for preparing a library of materials at the second location according to an experiment request received by the user interface means, the library of materials having a plurality of members corresponding to elements of the experiment matrix defined in the received experiment request;

processing means for applying the set of process conditions to the members of the library of materials at the second location to transform at least one of the starting materials into at least one product; and

screening means for applying the screening methods to the members of the library of materials at the second location to generate experimental results.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein:

the computer-implemented experiment design tool includes an interactive user interface configured to enable the user to select materials from a list of materials in a remote material inventory.

24. The system of claim 22, wherein:

the computer-implemented experiment design tool includes an interactive user interface configured to enable the user to select processing conditions from a list of processing conditions that can be implemented by the processing means.

25. The system of claim 22, wherein:

the computer-implemented experiment design tool includes an interactive user interface configured to enable the user to select screening methods from a list of screening methods that can be performed by the screening means.

26. The system of claim 22, wherein:

the computer-implemented experiment design tool includes an interactive user interface configured to access one or more databases identifying materials, process conditions and screening methods that can be applied at the second location.

27. The system of claim 22, further comprising:

means for evaluating the experiment design at the second location to generate an experimental plan including electronic data describing a proposed execution of the set of experiments;

the user interface means being further operable to provide the experimental plan to the remote user and to receive an input from the user in response to the experimental plan, wherein the preparing the library of materials, the applying the process conditions, the applying the screening methods, and the providing the experimental results are only performed when the user approves of the experimental plan.

28. The system of claim 22, wherein:

the one or more screening methods are defined based on one or more of the starting materials and process conditions defined in the experiment design.