Not my project but a good read and starting off point.
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I don’t want it unless it can hit a 1536 plate with default labware! /s
I like the syringe/pipette approach that was taken by this project but a more flexible approach might have been to just disassemble a pipete-controller and route it to interchangeable serological pipetes
Definitely a cool project, we need a sub $1000 robot for plate stamping and other simple tasks. Sometimes the over-engineering and inflated price point can leave academic labs in the dust. (For example, the 96 matrix tube capper/decapper units that are $60k-$100k which is bonkers for a non-multitasking robot)
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100%! Typical resolution of even the cheapest 3D printers is somewhere between .05mm and .1mm. Easily enough resolution to hit wells on a 1536 plate if configured properly.
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This is too cool; It looks like that project is partially NIH funded as a incentive for STEM/biotech exposure in schools and early learning! Here’s another project under the same grant involving a LEGO Liquid Handler! It uses a lot of the same core parts which makes me think that this is a kit-based challenge, which is even cooler.
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For example, the 96 matrix tube capper/decapper units that are $60k-$100k which is bonkers for a non-multitasking robot
Honestly some of those capper/decapper units are crazy tho. Exchangeable cassettes for multiple manufacturers, 96 individual motors, lasers, ability to adjust torque, etc…
Yes the cost is high (I believe academic labs get discounts) but they’re pretty cool feats of engineering. Also not all academic labs are the same. Some academic labs are basically VC/startup factories and they have more funds for this kind of stuff than even small startups because undergrads, technicians and grad students get paid peanuts and are often exploited for their labor.