Patent ID: 7875245

Claim:
An apparatus for automated processing of a plurality of biological samples on sample carriers having respective identifications, the processing of each sample being conducted according to a respective sequence of protocol steps, said apparatus comprising: a frame; a plurality of drawers within the frame, each drawer comprising a respective carrier rack for supporting at least one carrier; and a robotic reagent dispensing head within the frame that performs ongoing robotic processing, including dispensing of reagents, according to the protocol steps; and a sensor for reading the identifications, wherein a first sample, in a first drawer, for which the processing is completed may be removed from the apparatus without interrupting the ongoing robotic processing of a second sample in a second drawer, and wherein a second sample, in a second drawer, may be inserted into the apparatus without interrupting the dispensing of reagents onto a first sample, in a first drawer, with the robotic reagent dispensing head.