Overview
ISO 23783-3:2022 - Automated liquid handling systems - Part 3: Determination, specification and reporting of volumetric performance - provides guidance and requirements for collecting, analysing and reporting volumetric performance data of automated liquid handling systems (ALHS). It applies to complete, installed liquid handling devices (including tips and essential consumables) that perform liquid transfers without human intervention. The standard focuses on how to measure delivered volumes, track results, compute descriptive statistics and produce standardized test or calibration reports.
Key topics and technical requirements
- Scope and applicability: Applies to all ALHS configurations for which volumetric performance is assessed (single- or multi-channel devices, different tip/syringe configurations).
- Data collection: Each delivery is measured as a measured volume (V) using methods referenced in ISO 23783-2. Reports must describe the test liquid (chemical composition and/or physical properties) because density, viscosity and surface tension affect performance.
- Data examination: Visual inspection for outliers, trending and spatial patterns (e.g., heat maps) is recommended before statistical analysis. Note: detailed statistical treatment of outliers is outside this part’s scope.
- Indexing and traceability: A standardized indexing scheme (ordered triplet (l,m,n)) is used to track results by channel (l), experiment/reproducibility condition (m) and delivery order within a run (n).
- Descriptive statistics: The standard specifies metrics for per-channel and dataset-level evaluation, including average volume, systematic error (trueness) and random error (precision). These concepts relate to accuracy improvements by reducing systematic and/or random errors.
- Measurement uncertainty: Measured volumes should account for measurement system uncertainty (MSU) following ISO/IEC Guide 98-3.
- Reporting: Requirements cover presentation of raw data sets, descriptive statistics, test reports, calibration certificates, and recommendations such as calibration intervals and “as‑found/as‑left” reporting.
Applications and users
ISO 23783-3 is used by:
- Laboratory users for validation, routine verification and performance monitoring of ALHS.
- Manufacturers for quality control, acceptance tests and instrument specifications.
- Calibration and test houses for certification, calibration services and issuing standardized reports.
- Regulated environments where traceable, auditable volumetric performance data are required.
Practical uses include instrument acceptance testing, troubleshooting (identifying channel drift or plate patterns), optimizing dispensing methods, and documenting performance for audits.
Related standards
- ISO 23783-1 - Terminology and general requirements for ALHS.
- ISO 23783-2:2022 - Measurement procedures for determining volumetric performance.
- ISO/IEC Guide 98-3 - Guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement (for MSU).
Keywords: ISO 23783-3:2022, automated liquid handling systems, ALHS, volumetric performance, calibration, precision, trueness, systematic error, random error, data indexing, descriptive statistics, reporting.
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