Agilent Technologies R Series, User Manual

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17 Chapter 1: Introduction
BenchCel Microplate Handling Workstation R-Series User Guide
Challenging
microplate
characteristics
Microplates that have the following characteristics might require
additional setup time to ensure repeatable performance for the
BenchCel Workstation:
❑
Microplate material . Although you can adjust the robot grip distance
to compensate for a microplate’s flexibility, some microplates are too
soft and tend to bend in the robot grippers (for example, low-profile
polypropylene PCR microplates).
❑
Manufacturing variance . Slight variations in microplate dimensions
can reduce repeatability of secure gripping. In addition, because the
BenchCel Workstation uses reflected light to sense microplate
presence and orientation, variations in the reflective properties of
the microplates can affect optimal operation.
❑
Microplate design . Microplates that have very small notches might be
hard to detect by the orientation sensors. In addition, some
microplates have special features specifically designed for particular
instruments but are not optimized for the BenchCel Workstation.
❑
Thermal cycling effects . Microplates that have been through thermal
cycling might become warped.
❑
Tall labware . Especially tall tube racks and tip boxes that are taller
than 65 mm might pose challenges in the BenchCel Workstation.
Contact Velocity Technical Support about acceptable tall labware.
❑
Extra long lid . Some microplates that have lids that extend past the
microplate skirt tend to pose challenges for the BenchCel
Workstation.
Related topics
For more information about... See...
Defining labware in the software BenchWorks Automation Control User
Guide
Location of plate-orientation
sensors “Stacker head” on page 7
How the plate-orientation sensors
work “Adjusting the plate-orientation sensors”
on page 124
BenchCel Workstation features “Hardware overview” on page 4
Safety information “Safety information” on page 22
Installation requirements “Unpacking and installing the
workstation” on page 27