Concepts for the third generation of laboratory systems.
This paper briefly describes the history of laboratory systems and discusses some of the recent concepts. The third generation of laboratory systems, which appeared around 1990, encompasses most of the pre-analytical, analytical and post-analytical procedural steps of the laboratory workflow, thus eliminating much of the so-called "3 D tasks" (dull, dirty, dangerous). These automation systems enable humans to focus on work of higher value such as result validation or development of tests in emerging areas. The new development started in Japan in 1981 and reached the Western hemisphere around 1995. Currently there are between 800 and 900 installations world-wide that meet the above criteria. The majority of them automate hematology, whereas systems that automate more complex areas such as clinical chemistry, immunochemistry, coagulation and urinalysis, represent only about one third. More than 60% of the world-wide system base has been installed in Japan. Future growth in the West and high market saturation in Japan are likely to decrease this percentage during the next few years. The two key concepts of third generation systems are "consolidation" and "integration". The following definitions are suggested: * Consolidation: Combining different analytical technologies or strategies on one instrument or on one group of connected instruments. * Integration: Linking analytical instruments or groups of instruments with pre- and post-analytical devices. Examples for the technical realization of both concepts and practical aspects of how to apply them in an individual laboratory are given. Components, which are specifically new in the context of laboratory automation, are conveyor belts, stationary and floor-running robots, and software for process control. The most attractive options to be considered when automating a laboratory are primary tube sorting and the use of secondary samples to increase speed and to avoid sample carryover. Other applications include automatic centrifugation (esp. for hospital laboratories), decapping (esp. for clinical chemistry), automatic loading and unloading of analyzers (esp. for large laboratories), automatic rerun and reflex testing as well as computer-based sample retrieval, result validation, and interpretation. Specific recommendations for automation planning include the need to see and discuss working installations either during site visits or via video documentations, and to conduct computer simulation experiments on the basis of a "virtual laboratory" model.