INTRO

Type

Client Project

Year

2022

Client

AXION Biosystems

Team

Roger Swales (Design Lead)

Lorenz Bauer (Designer)

Fraser McPhee (Designer)

Duration

20 weeks

The Omni Pro 12 is an automated, high-throughput live-cell analysis platform designed for continuous multiwell imaging inside the incubator. The platform was designed to simplify and accelerate the acquisition of complex biological data for laboratories. 

DESIGN DRIVING PERFORMANCE INNOVATION AND AUTOMATED EFFICIENCY

The Omni Pro 12 delivers a high-throughput live-cell analysis. It is designed for continuous multi-well imaging inside a conditioned laboratory incubator. Image capture, at allotted intervals, records complex biology cell growth, utilizing brightfield and fluorescence image capture. The AI-driven capture & analysis software balances innovative design and service requirements with user flexibility to rapidly generate publication-ready research data.

DESIGN DELIVERS UNPARALLELED EASE-OF-USE

Recent research shows that up to 50% of work performed today can be automated with currently available technology. Machine learning, automation and economy of scale promise to transform the way laboratory research is performed. Technology alone will not deliver this promise: it requires well-considered, user-focused design solutions.

Understanding user needs, functional context and stakeholder requirements informed our design thinking. Our goal at the outset of the commission was to deliver a fit-for-function and open design identity incorporating embedded user prompts that would guide users to the correct loading chamber.

BOOSTING LIVE CELL ANALYSIS AND WORKFLOW EFFICIENCY TO EMPOWER RESEARCHERS

Simply open the incubator and place your well plate experiment in an available chamber, close the incubator door and walk away. At allotted time intervals the robotic arm delivers the individually coded well plates to the stationary sample stage. The streamlining of core processes makes research easier, less prone to failure, faster and more efficient. Cell images captured over time are automatically uploaded to a cloud portal, where AI analysis can begin.

A SPECIALIZED LABORATORY TOOL DESIGNED TO SIMPLIFY AND ACCELERATE TO ACQUISITION OF COMPLEX BIOLOGICAL DATA
 

The 12-plate storage and handling – with real-time analysis of vast volumes of data – delivers a significant step forward in performance efficiency.

SERVICE AND ACCESS THINKING 
 

Embedded diagnostic tools and sensors anticipate future service requirements, reducing potential downtime, to keep the product in operation while preserving running cell culture experiments. During on-site servicing, the subassembly design philosophy delivers fast access, for sterilized cleaning procedures and maintenance access.

DESIGN GUIDE R&D TO MAKE INFORMED CHOICES.
 

Design refinement delivered simplified subassemblies and a more ordered, rationalized component layout. Iterative design oversight delivered assembly and component layout improvements, all the way through to the layout of individual PCB components and belt system design.

By closely working in collaboration with the development team we refined a detailed design philosophy incorporating a fit-for-function material palette. Colour and accent finishing specification greatly enhances the overall functional design aesthetic appeal and branding impact.