Open source robot helps automate lab work

OT.One from Opentrons is an automated micropipette robot for handling liquids in laboratories.

Automated technology that can help complete complicated and delicate tasks is already seeing developments in the medical field, with the first full-scale surgeries using an autonomous miniature robot taking place this year. Now, a new robot could make everyday laboratory tasks a little less laborious.

OT.One, a micropipette robot from Opentrons, is helping to automate lab work. The robot is marketed as an affordable lab tool, and Opentrons is offering open source programs and software for download and use on the OT.One to run experiments.

Rather than doing experiments delicately by hand, which consumes large amounts of time, OT.ONE functions as a platform for scientists to design their experiments in their browser, and use the robot to quickly conduct repetitive tasks.

Opentrons’ journey started on Kickstarter in 2014, when the company successfully raised more than USD 125,000. The OT.One is now on sale for USD 3,000 and is being used in labs in Japan, China and Australia. What other lab processes could be made more efficient and accurate by robot assistance?