Automated Particle Collection for Protein Crystal Harvesting

A robust automated system to collect protein crystals for X-ray crystallography is presented. This system uses an ultraviolet imaging system based on commercial off-the-shelf components, a magnetically manipulated tool, and a resilient behavior-based controller. The system is validated by collecting over 350 polystyrene beads, used as crystal emulators, and transporting them 2 mm to a predefined goal in a 14-h period without human intervention. The average time to identify, collect, transport, and deliver a crystal emulator is 2.4 min, similar to an expert operator. This is the first demonstration of a completely automated robust system for protein crystal harvesting.