Methods and systems for using RFID in biological field
Biological reagent carrier devices and methods are disclosed, which employ RFID techniques to associate information with biological reagents.
1. A device comprising:
a consumable comprising at least one reagent or a carrier supporting the at least one reagent for use in an instrument for carrying out a biological assay; and
an RFID tag coupled to the consumable, wherein the RFID tag comprises a memory and information about the consumable stored in the memory wherein the information comprises at least one of a) a number of times a licensee is permitted to use the carrier or reagent; b) recall information for the carrier or the reagent; and c) information regarding whether the carrier or reagent has become unsuitable for use.
2. The device of claim 1 , wherein the memory comprises material safety data sheet information about the consumable, stored in the memory.
3. The device of claim 1 , wherein the consumable is at least one reagent.
4. The device of claims 3 , further comprising identification information about the at least one reagent, stored in the memory.
5. The device of claim 3 , wherein the RFID tag is programmed to provide a one time use such that reagents cannot be refilled in the consumable.
6. The device of claim 1 , wherein the device further comprises a digital signature associated with the consumable, stored in the memory.
7. The device of claim 1 , also comprising parameters stored in the memory for controlling operation of the instrument.
8. The device of claim 1 , wherein the reagent is a biological reagent.
9. The device of claim 1 , wherein the carrier is a reaction plate, tube, surface plasmon resonance array, slide, conical low-volume tube, microfluidic card, microarray cartridge, microarray or container.
10. An apparatus for associating information with a consumable selected from a carrier or a reagent for use in an instrument for carrying out a biological assay, the apparatus comprising:
a carrier for supporting the reagent; and
at least one RFID tag coupled to the carrier, wherein the RFID tag:
a) is operable to be read by a RFID reader; and
b) comprises a memory and information about the carrier or the reagent stored in the memory, wherein the information comprises at least one of i) a number of times a licensee is permitted to use the carrier or the reagent; ii) recall information for the carrier or the reagent; and iii) information regarding whether the carrier or the reagent has become unsuitable for use.
11. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the information stored in the memory is information about the reagent.
12. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the RFID tag is programmed to provide a one time use such that reagents cannot be refilled in the consumable.
13. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the device further comprises a digital signature associated with the consumable, stored in the memory.
14. The apparatus of claim 10 , also comprising parameters stored in the memory for controlling operation of the instrument.
15. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the reagent is a biological reagent.
16. A system comprising a biological instrument and an apparatus for associating information with a consumable selected from a carrier or a reagent, the apparatus comprising:
a carrier for supporting the reagent; and
at least one RFID tag configured to be read by an RFID reader, wherein the RFID tag comprises:
a) an RFID antenna coupled to the carrier;
b) a memory; and
c) information about the consumable stored in the memory, wherein the information comprises at least one of a) a number of times a licensee is permitted to use the carrier or reagent; b) recall information for the carrier or the reagent; and c) information regarding whether the carrier or reagent has become unsuitable for use.
17. The system of claim 16 , wherein the information is information about the reagent.
18. The system of claim 16 , wherein the RFID tag is programmed to provide a one time use such that reagents cannot be refilled in the consumable.
19. The system of claim 16 , wherein the device further comprises a digital signature associated with the consumable, stored in the memory.
20. The system of claim 16 , wherein the reagent is a biological reagent.