How to easily set up your own pipetting protocols on electronic pipettes (video)

How to easily set up your own pipetting protocols on electronic pipettes

INTEGRA electronic pipettes offer many standard programs, which fit into multiple applications being done in labs today, for example repeat dispense. However there are times when a program or a protocol might be too lengthy or complicated to fit into one of the standard programs. For those times INTEGRA offers a truly unique solution, custom step-based programming.

Here's how it works. Simply enter custom from the main menu. Here you can see a list of already created programs, but let's make a new one. I'm prompted to give the program a name. And I'm now free to enter all the steps I need, to create my own program. Let's make an example. We'll assume I have two different liquids going into a 96 well plate for kinetic assay and I need to mix them to achieve a homogeneous solution.

The program will be set up as follows. Aspirate 160, so this is the diluent. I want to aspirate my sample into this tip as well. But first let's put an air gap to separate the two liquids. I can inform the user by adding a text prompt with the word air. The air gap ensures, that the diluent doesn't accidentally carry over to your sample source, when you aspirate. Then we'll program a small amount of air to be aspirated, so aspirate 20. 

Next we'll add another text prompt, which tells the user, that the sample is next. And then we'll aspirate 50 for our sample. We'll have to dispense all of this now into our plate, so we'll program dispense 230. And all that remains is the mix step to get a homogeneous solution. So we'll add that now. Mix three times 200.

And that's it. The program is finished and saved. All we have to do now is enter it to start and the screen will show us always what the next step is. I can aspirate the diluent and looking at the screen I see the text prompt telling me, that air is coming. So I aspirate air. Now the screen is telling me, that the sample is coming. So I aspirate that as well. And now I just have to dispense into my well and the mix can begin too.

This was just one small example of a custom program, which can be used on the INTEGRA electronic pipettes. But the possibilities are almost endless in terms of what can be programmed. Other steps, which can be programmed include beeps, timers, blowouts but no dispenses, mixing and tip spacing with the adjustable tip spacing VOYAGER. This really gives you total control over your most complex pipetting protocols, which will make these processes easier resulting in less mistakes and better results.

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