US 12,449,436 B2
Mobile robotic processing cart
Louis Guarracina, Newburyport, MA (US); and Ulysses Gilchrist, Reading, MA (US)
Assigned to HIGHRES BIOSOLUTIONS, INC., Beverly, MA (US)
Filed by HIGHRES BIOSOLUTIONS, INC., Beverly, MA (US)
Filed on Mar. 5, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/596,052.
Application 18/596,052 is a continuation of application No. 18/052,101, filed on Nov. 2, 2022, granted, now 11,921,127.
Application 18/052,101 is a continuation of application No. 17/205,308, filed on Mar. 18, 2021, granted, now 11,726,103, issued on Aug. 15, 2023.
Application 17/205,308 is a continuation of application No. 16/265,258, filed on Feb. 1, 2019, granted, now 10,955,430, issued on Mar. 23, 2021.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/625,796, filed on Feb. 2, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2024/0210430 A1, Jun. 27, 2024
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. G06F 7/00 (2006.01); B25J 5/00 (2006.01); B25J 9/16 (2006.01); B25J 15/04 (2006.01); B25J 19/06 (2006.01); G01N 35/00 (2006.01); G05D 1/00 (2006.01); G05D 1/646 (2024.01); G01N 35/04 (2006.01)
CPC G01N 35/0099 (2013.01) [B25J 5/007 (2013.01); B25J 9/1676 (2013.01); B25J 9/1679 (2013.01); B25J 15/04 (2013.01); B25J 19/06 (2013.01); G05D 1/0212 (2013.01); G05D 1/646 (2024.01); G01N 2035/0489 (2013.01); G01N 2035/0491 (2013.01)] 28 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A laboratory system comprising:
a plurality of lab workstations distributed in a lab, the plurality of lab workstations including: at least one human operated workstation and at least one robot automated workstation, each of which is configured to run jobs of a work process;
at least one auto-navigating robot processing vehicle including a processing section configured for holding a sample holder, wherein the at least one auto-navigating robot process vehicle is arranged to transport the sample holder to and from different lab workstations of the plurality of lab workstations; and
a controller communicably connected to the plurality of lab workstations and the at least one auto-navigating robot processing vehicle, wherein the controller is configured to:
receive operational job data characterizing each of a number of different jobs that define the work process, each job being run on at least one of the at least one human operated station and the at least one robot automated workstation,
receive system data from, and describing a state of, one or more of: the at least one human operated workstation, the at least one robot automated workstation, and the at least one auto-navigating robot processing vehicle, and
based on the operational job data and the system data, schedule and coordinate each of the number of different jobs that define the work process with respect to the at least one human operated workstation, the at least one robot automated workstation, and the at least one auto-navigating robot processing vehicle, so as to perform each job in coordination at different workstations of the one or more of the at least one human operated station and the at least one robot automated workstation and effect the work process defined by the different jobs;
wherein:
the controller has a resolver configured to:
monitor the coordination of the different jobs at the different workstations and generate a corresponding sequence of the auto-navigating robot processing vehicle jobs that describe a process flow, of the defined work process, at the different workstations, and edit the auto-navigating robot processing vehicle jobs and the different workstations so as to change from a first process flow that includes a first sequence of auto-navigating robot processing vehicle jobs, to a second process flow that includes a second sequence of auto-navigating robot processing vehicle jobs that are different from the first sequence.
 
11. A laboratory system comprising:
a plurality of lab workstations distributed in a lab, the plurality of lab workstations including: at least one human operated workstation and at least one robot automated workstation, each of which is configured to run jobs of a work process;
at least one auto-navigating robot processing vehicle including a vehicle processing section configured for holding a sample holder, wherein the at least one auto-navigating robot process vehicle is arranged to transport the sample holder to and from different lab workstations of the plurality of lab workstations;
at least one manual cart with a cart processing section configured for holding the sample holder; and
a controller communicably connected to the plurality of lab workstations and the at least one auto-navigating robot processing vehicle, wherein the controller is configured to:
receive operational job data characterizing each of a number of different jobs that define the work process, each job being run on at least one of the at least one human operated station and the at least one robot automated workstation,
receive system data from, and describing a state of, one or more of: the at least one human operated workstation, the at least one robot automated workstation, the at least one auto-navigating robot processing vehicle, and the at least one manual cart, and
based on the operational job data and the system data, schedule and coordinate each of the number of different jobs that define the work process at least with respect to the at least one auto-navigating robot processing vehicle and the at least one manual cart, so as to perform each job in coordination at different workstations of the one or more of the at least one human operated station and the at least one robot automated workstation and effect the work process defined by the different jobs;
wherein:
the controller is further configured to command moves and/or dockings of at least one the auto-navigating robot processing vehicle and mobile cart to the different of the one or more of the at least one human operated station and the at least one robot automated workstation so that moves and/or dockings are sequenced, according to the coordinated number of different jobs, wherein the sequenced moves and/or dockings describe a process flow of the defined work process with each of; the at least one auto-navigating robot processing vehicle, the at least one manual cart, alone and in combination.