Internship Project @ MilliporeSigma R&D
Due to the NDA, the following content will not include any outcomes or demos. It is a brief blog for project introduction and idea generation.
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In Progress
Inter-Communication Interface
for Bio-Laboratory Devices
An exploratory internal personal project at MilliporeSigma. It includes 2 efforts:
- Accelerate user’s workflow
- Provide a consistent user experience throughout all lab devices.
The interface aims to align with existing product and business initiatives. The design research identifies future challenges in ‘the’ product development.
This project aims to future-proof digital product design and provide guidelines. However, validation risks remain for future product lines.
Intention
The project proposes a unified design language and an information architecture for on-device (e.g., Scepter 3.0, Millicell® ERS 3.0) and off-device (e.g., Millcell® Cloud) interfaces.
The Unified Interface Framework (UIF) allows smoother inter-communication between devices, lowering user learning costs, accelerating data processing, and easing ecosystem management.
Let’s say you’re cooking a dry-aged steak. What tools/devices will you use?
（Not in a lab, but in a kitchen. For sure, I will not disclose the project)
To turn raw beef into tasty dry-aged steak, you’ll need to:
- Use a vacuum sealer to dry the beef
- Oven the beef
- Measure the internal temperature to ensure it’s medium-rare (yeah, medium-rare is the best).
You treat, process, and measure the beef during the above steps. You do the same in a lab but 100 times more precise and complicated.
Interfaces on the cookware vary significantly due to their form factor, as do the bio-lab devices. They are designed under many restrictions and special requirements (use, environment, output, etc.)
A centralized system for organizing equipment and data in the lab can significantly improve efficiency. Standardizing processes creates a consistent user experience that streamlines our work.
Challenges
However, adapting every process to a consistent experience is challenging.
Since I’m not allowed to disclose what’s in the project, I’ll still take cooking as an example to demonstrate the challenges in the progress.
Again, here comes the microwave:
On-Device Interface
We love physical buttons, such as knobs on the microwave. We adjust time and power to treat different foods. You’ll also want to control more, such as humidity, for a ‘laboratory microwave.’
File Managment
Moreover, you’ll save some presets, so you don’t need to dial the same parameters every time.
Update Jan 23:
The page is under construction, and I’m still trying to share my experience without violating confidentiality.
The project is in conjunction with interface design and information management. Although it’s a complex project, I cannot disclose any details.
Hopefully, I can roll out everything years later.
Kuangming Qin 