The TriBio Autoreactor was designed for the proposed University of Florida Biofoundry with the objective of creating an autonomous microbioreactor for the purpose of culturing microorganisms for scientific research. The TriBio Autoreactor combines the capabilities of four standalone machines that are currently needed for bacterial culturing within one system. The TriBio Autoreactor provides incubation, sample handling, sample shaking, and cell culture monitoring in one product. The TriBio Autoreactor also has the capability to independently culture up to three different biological samples simultaneously, which allows the user to enhance their culturing throughput by threefold.
The goals of the TriBio Autoreactor are to provide the user with an all-inclusive, hands-off cell culturing experience in a compact space. Cell culturing machines currently on the market are either only able to perform one or a few functions, or they are large and exorbitantly expensive. TriBio aims to make cell culturing more accessible to large and small labs alike; by combining the functions of many machines with the ability to process three experiments simultaneously makes this compact machine perfect for labs with limited benchtop space and smaller budgets. The autonomous nature of TriBio also saves manpower and time during these experiments, as users no longer must juggle transfer from machine to machine. The programmable capabilities of the device aim to make the future of biological research as simple as hitting play.
Main functions of the TriBio Autoreactor are as follows: temperature control, gas control, liquid handling, instantaneous sensing, and three distinct shaking patterns. In order to fully carry out the customer’s needs, the design was divided into six essential subsystems: liquid handling, environmental control, mobility/shaking, user interface, overall housing, and the feedback control subsystem. Current microbioreactors require frequent human intervention to produce adequate amounts of microbial culture. The subsystems for the TriBio Autoreactor come together and harmoniously synergize to not only create a functional product, but a product that transcends current technology to autonomously monitor and culture multiple microbial samples with independent growing conditions in a way that involves negligible user interaction.
The TriBio Autoreactor has many unique features that set it apart from both current market technology and its direct competition in this course. Once again, TriBio has three discrete culture modules that can process multiple experiments simultaneously. The novel shaker system designed for TriBio makes double-orbital shaking possible without the need for expensive off-the-shelf shaker systems. The intricate sensing system makes possible accurate fluorescent intensity and optical density readings for everything from 15 mL tubes to a 364-well plate. The sleek design of TriBio’s housing belies the multiple safety features, such as limit switches on all doors and redundant check valves on the gas control system. In fact, TriBio’s gas control system complies completely with industry standards for the handling of volatile gases, separating oxygen and using brass fittings to limit the risk of combustion, while also allowing for easy replacement of the system’s parts as they wear over time. The modular and customizable nature of TriBio allow for a wide of array of experiments to be conducted, accounting for everything from a soft cover for cells sensitive to the photobleaching effect to the ability to custom mix gases in real time.
Comments