An engineering evaluation of four fluid transfer devices for automated 384-well high throughput screening

As high throughput screening (HTS) evolves toward plate densities greater than 96 wells, the ability of fluid-handling devices to accurately transfer proportionately smaller volumes of liquid is challenged. This article examines the performance of four methods for plate-to-plate transfer of fluid volumes ranging from 10 nL to 10 μL. These volumes enable screening assays with plate densities of 384 wells or greater. The hardware are: (1) Zymark's Rapid Plate-96™ modified with an XY-stage, (2) Robbins Scientific's Hydra 384™, (3) Cartesian Engineering's PixSys™, and (4) Packard's BioChip™. The criteria that were chosen to quantitatively evaluate the liquid-handling devices are precision/coefficient of variation and the time to complete a transfer from one 384-well plate to another. In addition, a more subjective discussion is presented on the maintainability of the hardware, reagent waste minimization, general hardware “robustness,” and the capability and ease for integration into an HTS system. These criteria are evaluated from the standpoint of using the hardware in an integrated, fully automated HTS robotic system. This engineering evaluation concluded that the modified Rapid Plate-96™ and Hydra 384™ are best suited for immediate use in an automated HTS system, and the newer technologies employed by the PixSys and BioChip require improvements in reliability, speed, and ease of use. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Lab Robotics and Automation 11: 250–259, 1999