IGF::OT::IGF Fully Adaptive and Autonomous Drone for Laboratory Automation Projects

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Contractor will design and build a fully automated, self-contained drone platform to enable repetitive tasks in a laboratory environment - specifically, High throughput Screening (HTS) by robotic loading and unloading of microplates in a bio-research laboratory. Such a platform has the potential to be far more attractive than traditional robots in the realm of indoor logistics because they can be adapted to be infinitely configurable with respect to waypoints; can transport material over long distances; and unlike traditional robots, do not adversely impact the real estate envelope of the laboratory or require rearrangement of equipment in a laboratory. Contractor will use commercially available components to a large extent, and combine them with innovative mechanics, sensor, software and actuation solutions. The resulting platform will allow fully autonomous operation with minimal operator intervention requirements, and yet provide high accuracy in material movement, low failure rates, easy to use software driven interfaces, and a high degree of safety to allow the drones to operate within the bio-laboratory in the presences of humans and other bstacles. The drone platform will largely eliminate the need for labor intensive repetitive logistics operations and also provide attractive productivity enhancements within the bio-laboratory sector.