Safety
Read these safety instructions before operating dragonfly discovery. The instrument is designed
and engineered with your safety in mind: if you use dragonfly discovery in a manner not specified
by SPT Labtech, the protection provided may be impaired.
Do not try to operate the instrument or carry out maintenance tasks unless you have been trained to do so.
Do not operate dragonfly discovery if the instrument is visibly damaged unless a reliance engineer has confirmed that it is safe to do so.
Warning symbols on dragonfly discovery
The following hazards are present on the dragonfly discovery machine.
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Danger: electric shock. Do not remove any covers, or open any electrical enclosures or PSUs on the machine. Lethal voltages are present in these enclosures. |
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Danger: moving machinery. dragonfly discovery contains automatically controlled moving mechanisms |
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Danger: Pinch point. Part of the instrument where there is a risk of fingers being crushed |
Accessing dragonfly discovery
In normal use you access dragonfly discovery from the front of the instrument. For loading, the
nest will be in its parked position and the plate clamp will be in the retracted position, as shown.
You manually load your plate into the nest, your regents into reservoirs in the reservoir tray and
syringes into the dispense head.
Once the consumables been loaded, you can start the instrument and run your selected protocol
via the application software on the laptop.
Once the nest moves away from the parked position, the plate clamp activates and the plate is
registered and clamped: do not try and remove it.
In the event of a power failure, access to the instrument is the same as normal.
Danger/Caution: In the event of a power failure it is possible that the syringe piston rod has stopped within the syringe. The syringe must not be manually removed before retracting the piston rod. The piston rod will automatically be retracted upon start-up of the machine.
Stopping dragonfly discovery
To stop a run before completion, press the ‘Stop’ button next to the ‘Run’ button on the software user interface.
Note: Do not switch the instrument off before exiting or closing down the software.
Reagent safety
You must carry out risk assessments for the reagents you plan to use, and take appropriate safety measures.
If the instrument is being used to handle toxic materials, it should be located and operated in a
suitable fume cupboard.
Caution: Particular care should be taken when using toxic materials in the instrument.
Take care when handling the syringes once they have been in contact with toxic materials as they are sharp enough to piece a latex glove if sufficient force is applied.
Do not place your hands underneath the sharp syringe ends once they are loaded in the
instrument.
Moving dragonfly discovery safely
dragonfly discovery is heavy: a 10 head instrument weighs 46kg. It requires two persons to lift and carry it. The main structural element of the instrument is a single cast frame which securely
supports the instrument and provide the lifting points for carrying it. Two people should carry the
instrument by placing hands under the frame at the points shown below.
The instrument should only be carried using the lifting points on the main horizontal and vertical
hooped structural elements. Good manual lifting techniques should be employed when handling
the instrument.
Caution: Particular care should be taken when lifting, carrying and setting down dragonfly
discovery as the nest is free to move when there is no power on the machine.
Caution: dragonfly discovery should only be carried by two people.
dragonfly discovery EMC (electromagnetic compatibility)
No specific EMC precautions are required when operating dragonfly discovery.
INFORMATION: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class A digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference when the equipment is operated in a commercial environment. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to cause harmful interference in which case the user will be required to correct the interference at his own expense.
dragonfly discovery noise levels
dragonfly discovery airborne noise emissions do not exceed 70 dB(A).
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