Overview of Creating Tasks

The task screen is where the day-to-day work of creating, organising and carrying out tasks is performed. This screen brings together the appropriate samples, reagents and protocols to help you lay out your working containers, create proformas, export data to equipment and more.

The task screen is divided into two sections, the worklist section and the task section (see figure 19.1). The worklist section toggles between displaying the samples in a particular worklist (i.e. sample assigned to be performed by a particular protocol) and displaying the reagents required for the protocol associated with the worklist. The task section displays a view of the containers that the samples and reagents will be added to when performing the task. Both sections are able to display sample data in either a virtual representation of the containers holding the samples or a spreadsheet like view.

Figure 19.1. The Task screen.

Worklists are groups of samples that are waiting for processing by a particular protocol. As samples are added to a worklist they continue to queue, building in number. Samples may queue in a worklist because there are too many to complete at one time, or you are waiting for resources to become available, or simply because there is not enough time to process them. To display the samples in a particular worklist use the Protocol and Version controls (see figure 19.2). You can use the Filter Options control (see figure 19.2) to refine this list.

Figure 19.2. The Task group.

Figure 19.3. The Worklist samples group.

Before adding your samples to the Task section you will need to create one or more working containers. The Add Container control (see figure 19.4) allows you to add a range of containers by clicking on the appropriate choices. You can add as many containers as required. Choose the containers that best represent the ones that you are actually using to perform the work - this will help to minimize any errors that may occur in sample positioning.
If there is no suitable container available you can create additional containers from the containers screen on the Materials tab .

Figure 19.4. The Task samples group.

Select the samples from the worklist that you would like to use in a task. You can manually select the samples or use the Filter drop down control together with the Select drop down control to select the appropriate number of samples from the top of the list (see figure 19.3). Press the Add-To-Task control (see figure 19.1) to move selected samples from a worklist to a selected container. Samples are positioned from the first free or first selected well in the task section and placed according to the Pattern Option control (see figure 19.3). Alternatively, you can specify a particular layout by selecting wells on the target container – these wells are also filled according to the Pattern Option control.

Figure 19.5. The Worklist reagents group.

To add reagents, switch to the reagent view by clicking the Reagent View button (see figure 19.5). Select the particular batches that you want to add to the samples, and then click the Add-To-Task button (see figure 19.1) to add those reagents to the appropriate wells.
Note: You can modify the wells into agents are added by changing the settings under the Apply drop down control (see figure 19.5). Once you have added the samples and reagents you can perform the following tasks:

Set Controls. Use the Positive Control or Negative Control buttons to set any controls.
Edit samples or reagent details. Use the Edit button to change the volume or concentration details of the samples and reagents in the selected task container’s wells.
Print protocols or Task reports.
Print sample or tray labels.
Export data for use with equipment.

Now it is time to perform the task, you have the option of creating a printed Task Report or exporting a data file for integration with laboratory equipment.

When the task is complete you need to associate any results with the appropriate samples, identify contaminated samples, specify the success or failure of each sample in the task and send all samples to storage or a worklist.

Note:

Users are only shown the samples in worklists that they are assigned, by default. To view samples in workllists assigned to other users change the settings under the Filter drop down button in the Task group.
You can add samples directly to a task from the Materials tab.
The Task control in the Task group is used to locate existing tasks created from a particular protocol.
When you add samples to a working container, by default they are removed from the worklist. Use the Show transfer samples option from the Filter control in the Worklist Samples group (see figure 19.5) to change this setting.
If you accidentally add the wrong samples to a container you can remove those samples and return them to the worklist by selecting the samples and clicking the Remove-From-Task control (located below the Add-To-Task control).
To view tasks that have been completed or have failed, changed the options under the Filter drop down control in the Task group.
If a reagent or sample that is specified in the applied protocol is missing from a well, a validation error icon will appear on the well.