Abstract

Back to the Future: Laboratory Automation User Interfaces

Rob Harkness, Business Development Manager, Peak Analysis & Automation Ltd

Traditionally, control software for automated platforms has been an application that requires in-depth training to operate. However, there has been a trend in recent years to provide much simpler user interfaces. There are a number of reasons why this has occurred but primarily, it has been driven by end users familiarity with software ‘Apps’. There is now an expectation that software found within the laboratory should be just as easy to use. This talk will look at the history of software user interfaces, from the batch interfaces that ran on the world’s first computer terminals through to the natural interfaces found on the devices we use today. We’ll focus on how automation software is used within the laboratory and see how this has evolved to an extent that any user can now run a complex robotic platform with minimal training. Finally, we’ll present the technological advances in user interfaces and show what type of human-machine interfaces maybe used in the future.