What is Biobanking?

A biobank is a facility that collects, processes, stores, and distributes biological samples for biomedical research. Effective biobanking requires efficient internal logistics due to the delicate nature of samples like blood, DNA, and tissue, which degrade quickly if mishandled. These samples must be maintained under ideal conditions during transport and storage to ensure meaningful research insights. 

Historically, biobanking systems relied on paper and manual processes for tracking and transporting materials. While many have adopted basic database systems, these often involve significant manual input, leading to bottlenecks and inefficiencies.

The Model C2 AMR Transport Cart addresses the logistical challenges faced by biobanks. The autonomous delivery cart, created by leading robotic developers at Quasi Robotics, automates routine transport tasks, streamlining workflows, reducing errors, and safeguarding sample integrity. Ultimately, the C2 allows biobank personnel to focus on higher-value activities, accelerating research and scientific discoveries. 

As biobanking embraces automation, the Model C2 represents a step towards a future with increased efficiency, enhanced collaboration, and accelerated biomedical breakthroughs.

Manual Biobanking Methods and Protocols

In traditional biobank workflows, processes continue to rely on manual labor. Staff physically search for specific samples in storage units, often relying on paper-based or outdated inventory systems. Once located, samples are hand-carried between storage and research areas, with each movement manually recorded in a database or ledger for tracking.

These manual methods introduce bottlenecks within the biobanking system. Researchers experience delays if staff cannot retrieve critical samples, leading to downtime and sporadic stop-and-go workloads that increase stress, urgency, and inattention to detail.

Furthermore, manual data entry is time-consuming and prone to errors like mislabeling or incorrect location logging. This slows down processes and compromises the integrity of entire biobanking operations.

The Critical Role of Timely Deliveries in Biobanking

Many biomedical research efforts depend on the timely and secure movement of samples and materials within the biobank. Delivery delays introduce several challenges:

• Disrupted Research Timelines: Experiments often have strict time constraints for sample analysis. Delays can force researchers to reschedule or even abandon experiments entirely.
• Breakdown of Sample Quality: Delayed transport exposes samples to suboptimal conditions, potentially compromising their integrity, invalidating research results, or requiring obtaining new samples.
• Inefficient Inventory Management: Manual inventory tracking and replenishment can lead to shortages of essential supplies and critical consumables, causing further delays and disrupting research workflows.

Intelligent Automation for Optimizing Biobanking Workflows

Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) are intelligent robots that navigate environments independently, delivering materials precisely to designated locations. In biobanking operations, AMR robots handle the transport and retrieval of samples, consumables, and equipment between storage, processing, and research areas, 

AMR robots use advanced artificial intelligence algorithms to optimize delivery paths, considering factors like biobank layout, schedules, request urgency, and real-time data on traffic and processing needs. This process significantly reduces transport times while adhering to established secure and accurate handling protocols. 

By automating routine transport tasks, AMRs free up biobanking personnel for higher-value activities, including sample quality checks, protocol refinement, and in-depth data analysis. These biobanking shifts contribute to streamlined AI workflow automation and more impactful research outcomes.

Key Benefits of Automated Biobanking Deliveries

AMR robot application in biobanking operations introduces automation that directly translates into tangible benefits for biobanking operations, including:

• Reduced Delivery Times: AMRs navigate autonomously, significantly reducing the transportation time of samples, consumables, and equipment compared to manual processes.
• Enhanced Inventory Management: Mobile robots can integrate with biobanking system inventories for real-time stock monitoring. They can automatically trigger replenishment when thresholds are reached, preventing shortages and disruptions.
• Elevated Sample Integrity: Controlled routes and docking stations ensure minimal handling and exposure, protecting sample quality and viability.
• Improved Safety: Biorepositories often handle hazardous materials. Mobile robots can safely transport these materials, minimizing the risk of exposure to personnel.

Quasi Robotics’ Model C2 Robotic Cart: The Biobank’s Delivery Partner

To address manual transport challenges, Quasi Robotics has developed the Model C2 AMR Material Transport Cart, an innovative solution for automating biobank internal logistics. The Model C2 is designed with the specific needs of biobanks in mind. Its key capabilities contribute to streamlined workflows, enhanced sample integrity, and improved overall efficiency:

Safe and Secure Transport:

• Customized Build: C2 offers customizable shelves and compartments to accommodate facility-specific sample types, containers, and security requirements.
• Temperature Control: Optional refrigerated compartments maintain optimal temperature conditions for sensitive samples during transport.
• Protocol Adherence: C2 adheres to established biobanking protocols to ensure strict sample handling standards.

Autonomous Robotic Navigation:

• AI Route Planning: Advanced routing algorithms enable C2 to calculate the most efficient delivery paths within the biobank to minimize transport time and ensure on-demand materials delivery.
• Sensor Suite for Obstacle Avoidance: C2 independently navigates complex biobank environments with LiDAR and ToF sensors for practical obstacle avoidance and flexibility in dynamic conditions.
• Precision Point Delivery: Specific delivery points for the C2 can be programmed and modified in seconds with accuracy down to the inch for precise delivery within the biobank.

Simple Control and Integration:

• Existing System Integration: C2 integrates with existing biobanking systems, sample management software, and inventory databases, enabling automated task generation and real-time data exchange, 
• Mobile App Control: A User-friendly mobile app allows researchers and technicians to summon the Model C2, track its location, and manage deliveries remotely.

The Future of Biobanking: Collaborative Efficiency

The Quasi Robotics Model C2 offers biobank systems a suite of benefits that directly contribute to operational efficiency and research acceleration:

• Accelerated Research Timelines: Automating routine transport tasks speeds up biobanking workflows by reducing the time it takes for researchers to receive essential samples or materials.
• Optimized Resource Utilization: Freeing staff from manual transport allows optimal utilization of human resources with greater returns from higher-value and larger-scope processes.
• Enhanced Data Quality: Timely sample delivery and moderation of environmental conditions contribute to preserving sample integrity creating reliable and reproducible research outcomes.
• Reduced Staff Workload and Operational Costs: Automating routine tasks lessens the burden on biobank staff and reduces labor costs associated with manual transport processes.

Biomedical research increasingly relies on collaboration between researchers, institutions, and biobanks across geographical boundaries. This collaboration requires the efficient exchange of biospecimens and their vast amounts of associated data. Automation solutions like the Quasi Robotics Model C2 hold the potential to enhance collaboration significantly within the biobanking landscape.

Published by: Martin De Juan