Data communication in a laboratory environment

• US 20040260782A1
• Filed: 01/30/2004
• Published: 12/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: NEXUS Biosystems, Inc. (Azenta, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Discovery Partners International, Inc. (Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hansen, Eric, Neeper, Robert K., Affleck, Rhett L., Lillig, John E.
• Application Number:
  US10/769,470
• Publication Number:
  US 20040260782A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/208
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 9/523 for multisample carriers, e.g. used for microtitration plates
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 29/58 Macromolecular compounds
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 7/00 Single-crystal growth from solutions using solvents which are liquid at normal temperature, e.g. aqueous solutions from molten solvents C30B9/00; by normal or gradient freezing C30B11/00; under a protective fluid C30B27/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/1433 using image recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2001/4027 evaporation leaving a concentrated sample
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2015/1493 Particle size
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00356 Holding samples at elevated temperature (incubation)
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00455 Controlling humidity in analyser
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/00881 network configurations
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/042 moved independently, e.g. by fork manipulator
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/0425 Stacks, magazines or elevators for plates
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2035/0463 in incubators
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/253 for batch operation, i.e. multisample apparatus analytical automats G01N35/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/0099 comprising robots or similar manipulators robots per se B25J
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 35/028 having reaction cells in the form of microtitration plates
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/0016 Technical microscopes, e.g. for inspection or measuring in industrial production processes

Abstract

A system for controlling the operation a one or more crystallography laboratory comprises a user interface coupled to an input device. The laboratories each house test samples and include imaging devices and automated machinery configured to retrieve specific samples for imaging. A controller is configured to receive scheduling information from the user interface indicating one or more samples to be imaged and one or more times to image the samples, wherein the controller communicates the scheduling information to each laboratory housing at least one of the test samples to be imaged. The laboratory devices may communicate asynchronously via a server configured to receive messages, determine process(es) to be executed based on the type of the received message, the source of the message, and/or the destination of the message. A transmit message may then be generated, through execution of the process(es), and transmitted to the determined destination device when available.

Claims

1. A system for controlling the operation of at least one remote crystallography laboratory, the system comprising:

a user interface coupled to an input device;

one or more crystallography laboratories located remote from said user interface, the laboratories each housing a plurality of test samples and including an imaging device and automated machinery configured to retrieve a specific sample and place the sample in a position to be photographed by the imaging device, wherein the automated machinery and imaging devices disposed at the one or more crystallography laboratories are controlled by computers respectively located at each of the plurality of laboratories; and

a controller located remote from said user interface and said one or more crystallography laboratories, the controller being configured to receive scheduling information from the user interface indicating one or more samples to be photographed and one or more times to acquire said photographs of said samples, wherein said controller communicates the received scheduling information to each laboratory housing at least one of the test samples to be photographed.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the scheduling information further comprises a number of photographs of each test sample to be photographed and settings for the imaging devices at each of the laboratories housing at least one of the test samples to be photographed.

3. A controller coupled to one or more user interfaces and one or more crystallography laboratories, the controller being configured to control automated processes at the one or more crystallography laboratories, the controller comprising:

a schedule manager for receiving schedule information from the at least one of the user interfaces and updating a database at one or more of the crystallography laboratories, wherein each of the crystallography laboratories comprises a local scheduler configured to access the database and retrieve the updates schedule information; and

an imaging system for retrieving one or more images stored at a database at one or more of the crystallography laboratories and transmitting the one or more images to a user interface.

4. A server configured to route scheduling data from a plurality of user interfaces to one or more remote laboratories, the server comprising:

a list of remote laboratories and the test samples housed in each of said remote laboratories;

an input port for receiving scheduling information from at least one of said plurality of user interfaces, wherein the scheduling information comprises information specifying a plurality of test samples to be photographed;

a schedule manager configured to determine which of said remote laboratories house at least one of the plurality of test samples; and

an output device configured to transmit said scheduling information to each of said remote laboratories determined to house at least one of the plurality of test samples.

5. The server of claim 4, wherein the scheduling information further comprises information specifying one or more times to photograph said plurality of test samples.

6. The server of claim 4, wherein the scheduling information further comprises information specifying settings for an imaging device at one of the remote laboratories.

7. The server of claim 4, wherein the scheduling information further indicates a number of images to acquire at a specified time.

8. A computing device for facilitating communication of messages among a plurality of devices, wherein the plurality of devices comprises one or more devices in a laboratory and one or more devices external to the laboratory, wherein each of the plurality of devices is in communication with the computing device, the computing device comprising:

a receive module configured to receive messages from any of the plurality of devices;

a transmit module configured to transmit messages to any of the plurality of devices;

a storage module configured to store a received message; and

a processing module configured to process said received message according to predefined preferences of a determined destination device;

the processing module generates a transmit message and provides instructions to the transmit module to transmit the transmit message to the destination device.

9. The computing device of claim 8, wherein the computing device executes a Java Message Service (JMS) application program interface and the received message is JMS compliant.

10. The computing device of claim 8, wherein the received message is stored in the storage module until the computing device determines that the destination device is in communication with the computing device.

11. A method for asynchronously processing and communicating data between a plurality of devices, the method comprising:

receiving a message comprising a payload;

determining a type of the message;

determining one or more processes to be completed based on the determined type of the message;

generating one or more transmit messages by executing said determined one or more processes;

transmitting the one or more transmit messages to respective one or more destination devices.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the type of the message is one of a command message, a experiment result message, or a management message.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein one of the processes determines at least one of the one or more destination devices.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the one or more processes are each software programs developed to manipulate the payload according to parameters of the destination device.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said generating the transmit message comprises processing at least one of stored data and the payload.

16. A method for asynchronously processing and communicating data between a plurality of devices, the method comprising:

transmitting a message comprising a transaction type and transaction data;

receiving the message at a server;

retrieving from a table stored on the server a process, wherein the process is selected based at least partly on the transaction type;

generating one or more transmit message by processing the transaction data according to the process;

addressing the one or more transmit message for delivery to a destination device;

storing the transmit message on the server for later retrieval by the destination device if the destination device is not currently available to receive the transmit message.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the process determines the destination device.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein one or more of the transmit messages is transmitted to more than one destination device.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein a plurality of processes are retrieved and processed.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

receiving a request for the transmit message; and

transmitting the transmit message to the destination device.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

generating a response message at the destination device;

receiving the response message at the server; and

storing the response message on the server for later retrieval by one of the plurality of devices.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein the plurality of devices includes two or more of a technician PC, a database, a laboratory instrument, and a laboratory controller.

23. A method for asynchronously processing and communicating data between a plurality of devices, the method comprising:

transmitting from a transmit device a message comprising transaction data;

receiving the message at a server;

retrieving from a table stored on the server a process, wherein the process is selected based at least partly on one or more characteristics of the transmit device;

generating one or more transmit message by processing the transaction data according to the process;

addressing the one or more transmit message for delivery to a destination device;

storing the one or more transmit message on the server for later retrieval by the destination device if the destination device is not currently available to receive the one or more transmit message.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the one or more characteristics includes a format for the one or more transmit message.

25. The method of claim 23, wherein another process determines the destination device.

26. A method for asynchronously processing and communicating data between a plurality of devices, the method comprising:

transmitting from a transmit device a message comprising a transaction type and transaction data;

receiving the message at a server;

retrieving from a table stored on the server a process, wherein the process is selected based at least partly on a characteristic of the transmit device and a characteristic of a destination device;

generating one or more transmit message by processing the transaction data according to the process;

addressing the one or more transmit messages for delivery to the destination device;

storing the one or more transmit message on the server for later retrieval by the destination device if the destination device is not currently available to receive the one or more transmit message.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein another process determines the destination device.

28. A system for controlling the operation of at least one remote crystallography laboratory, the system comprising:

a user interface coupled to an input device;

a crystallography laboratory located remote from said user interface, the crystallography laboratory housing a plurality of test samples and including an imaging device and automated machinery configured to retrieve a specific sample and place the sample in a position to be photographed by the imaging device, wherein the automated machinery and imaging device are controlled by a computing device located at the crystallography laboratory;

a controller located remote from said user interface and said crystallography laboratory, the controller being configured to receive scheduling information from the user interface indicating one or more samples to be photographed and one or more times to acquire said photographs of said samples to be photographed, wherein said controller communicates the received scheduling information to the crystallography laboratory.

29. The system of claim 28, further comprising another crystallography laboratory in communication with the controller, wherein a portion of the samples to be photographed are located at the crystallography laboratory and another portion of the samples to be photographed are located at the another crystallography laboratory;

the controller being configured to communicate the scheduling information to the crystallography laboratory and the another crystallography laboratory.

30. A controller coupled to a plurality of user interfaces and one or more crystallography laboratories, the controller being configured to control automated processes at the one or more crystallography laboratories, the controller comprising:

a schedule manager for receiving schedule information from the plurality of user interfaces and updating a database , wherein each of the crystallography laboratories comprises a local scheduler configured to access the database and retrieve the updates schedule information;

an image module for retrieving one or more images stored at an image database at one or more of the plurality of laboratories and transmitting the one or more images to a user interface.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein the database is stored at one or more of the crystallography laboratories

32. The system of claim 30, wherein the scheduling information further comprises a number of photographs of each test sample to be photographed and settings for the imaging devices at each of the laboratories housing at least one of the test samples to be photographed.

33. A server configured to route scheduling data from a plurality of computing devices to a plurality of remote laboratories, the server comprising:

a storage medium storing a list of remote laboratories and an indicator of the test samples housed in each of said remote laboratories;

an input port for receiving scheduling information from at least one of said plurality of computing devices, wherein scheduling information specifies a plurality of test samples to be photographed and one or more times to photograph said plurality of test samples;

a schedule manager configured to determine which of said remote laboratories house test samples specified in the scheduling information; and

an output device configured to transmit said scheduling information to said remote laboratories determined to house test samples included in said scheduling information.