Micro-Scale Biological Process Automation: Modelling, Sensing and Control

在过去的十年里，人们对现在被称为单细胞手术的先进技术的发展越来越感兴趣。生物医学研究和医学界对使用这种技术处理细胞和胚胎的需求日益增加，这给开展他的工作的实验室施加了压力，要求提高这一过程的产量和成功率。目前，这些流程由训练有素的技术人员手动执行。为了满足日益增长的需求，这些任务的自动化技术必须得到发展。我们之前在机器人和自动化领域的经验应用于大规模制造，以及我们在过去6-7年在生物工程方面的发展，包括单细胞胚胎注射，细胞注射中的注射力控制，细胞注射的视觉伺服控制，以及3D MEMS装配自动化，使我们能够独特地研究微尺度生物技术任务的自动化。在本提案中，我们将研究微尺度电池加工技术自动化所需的以下挑战。

The last decade has witnessed a growing interest in the development of advanced techniques for what is now referred to single as cell surgery. An increasing demand for processing of cells and embryos using this technique, from both the biomedical research and medical communities, is placing pressure on labs carrying out his work to increase both the throughput and success rate of this process. Currently, these processes are carried out manually by highly trained technicians. To meet increasing demand, advances in the state-of-the-art of the automation of these tasks must be developed. Our previous experience in the robotics and automation field applied to large scale manufacturing, and developments we have made in bioengineering in the last 6-7 years, involving injection of single cell embryos, control of injection forces in the cell injection, visual servo control for cell injection, and 3D MEMS assembly automation has uniquely positioned us to investigate the automation of micro-scale biotechnology tasks. In this proposal, we will investigate the following challenges required in micro-scale cell processing technology automation. This proposed research aims to investigate automation of single cell surgery with an automated robotic bio-manipulation system. Our proposed work includes: (i) Develop an automated system to pattern individual cells for robotic surgery; (ii) Develop sensing and control strategies for robotic automation of cell membrane perforation using a PZT actuated cell membrane cutter; (iii) Using electric field actuation, under closed-loop control with visual feedback to image internal cell organelles, develop closed-loop vision based controllers allowing cells to be re-oriented for surgery; (iv) Develop vision and force based trajectory generation, sensing and control methodologies to ensure precise perforation of cells; (v) Develop automated robotic approaches for the removal of cell bodies using laser tweezers. This work will advance the state of the art, creating new technologies to permit automated cell surgery to be carried out.