Throughout the drug discovery industry, PlateCranes have been used to increase the efficiency of numerous High Throughput Screens involving complex methods, such as FLIPR, Reporter, ELISA and FRET assays. With its built-in plate gripper and on-board controller, the PlateCrane pioneered the concept of a small, microplate robot serving multiple instruments, often from several different instrument manufacturers. PlateCranes give users the ability to use the best instruments available for the scientific task at hand within an easy-to-set-up benchtop workcell.
Many PlateCranes are currently being used to automate the application of barcode labels to microplates. The PlateCrane can be setup to automatically deliver batches of up to 450 microplates to Barcode Print & Apply devices, such as the Computype LAP-4100. In this application, users requiring barcode labels to track the microplates used in their assays can print custom labels on thousands of microplates by just setting up the PlateCrane Workcell with sufficient plates and letting it run unattended. The PlateCrane provides what is easily the most reliable, trouble-free barcode print & apply system for microplates anywhere.
The PlateCrane is also used to move microplates and filter plates in high throughput, automated DNA Plasmid Prep systems. Unlike systems offered by some plasmid prep kit manufacturers, Hudson’s wide array of automated dispensers, shaker nests and automated vacuum nests make PlateCrane-based plasmid prep systems truly walk-away: with no need for human intervention from start to finish, with throughput as high as six 96-well plates (576 samples) per hour.
Hudson also makes private-labelled, OEM PlateCranes for several instrument manufacturers who need a capable, reliable device dedicated to automatically loading and unloading their instruments, providing long “walk away” capability to their instruments.
The PlateCrane EX provides walkaway automation for simple workcells with a single microplate instrument, or complex workcells with several instruments, multiple processes or even a complete assay. It comes with 4 axes of motion: tower rotation, vertical travel, a telescoping arm and gripper rotation. It includes an optional EasyTeach teaching pendant for easily setting plate positions in your workcell, and the revolutionary AutoTeach machine vision teaching system.
The PlateCrane EX moves labware to and from removable stacks that are mounted on bases located around the arm. These bases are modular to allow flexibility in the configuration of stacks and surrounding instruments.
- Adds microplate capacity to a single instrument to increase “walkaway” time.
- Performs complete automated assays by linking multiple instruments with one or more PlateCrane EXs.
- Moves plates with lids to and from stacks, and can automatically remove the lid from the active plate.
- Works with 96, 384 and 1536-well microplates, deep well plates, plates with lids, and tip racks.
- Fits within standard laboratory hoods.
- Provides random access to stacks with shelves, for room temperature incubation and time-critical kinetic assays.
The PlateCrane EX is supplied with Hudson’s SoftLinx laboratory automation software. SoftLinx provides scheduling capability and an easy-to-use icon-based drag and drop Method Editor. SoftLinx users can access Hudson’s software interfaces for more than 150 microplate-based instruments, including liquid handlers, pipettors, washers, readers, incubators, sealers, bar code labelers, and more.
Plate Capacity: Up to 450 plates without lids or up to 275 plates with lids.
Plate Format: Portrait & Landscape – (Rotary Gripper)
Plate Storage Device: 2 removable stacks (expandable up to 15)
Housing Material: Painted steel covering cast aluminum housing.
Gripper Material: Black anodized aluminum; textured neoprene rubber inserts.
Arm Mechanism: Ball bearing axis with high-speed screw rail; mechanical stops to prevent continuous rotation (345° maximum).
Rotary Travel: 345° ¨
Horizontal Reach: From center of vertical axis: 12″ – 18″ radius
Vertical Reach: Maximum 22.75 in. from table, minimum 4.25 in. from table, total 18.0 in. vertical travel distance.
Size (H x W x D): 27 in. x 19 in. x 27 in.
Weight: about 45 lbs.
Computer Interface: RS-232 serial cable