Assessment and Control of Reagents in Automated Slide Preparation

Abstract

The present disclosure provides methods for the automated control of aspects of slide preparation in an automated slide preparation instrument. Aspects of the methods include automated assessments of reagent amounts, quality and performance as well as automated adjustments of reagents based on such assessments, including the adjustment of reagent amounts, e.g., as present in reagent baths, the adjustment of reagent compositions and the replacement of reagents. Devices and systems useful in performing the described methods are also provided herein.

1 .- 92 . (canceled) 
     
     
         93 . A system for assessing a stain, the system comprising:
 a specimen slide imaging device;   a computer memory storing a reference signature;   a processor in communication with the specimen slide imaging device and the computer memory, the processor having instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to:
 receive from the specimen slide imaging device a digital color image of a stained blank slide; 
 process the digital color image to produce a background stain signature comprising at least one staining parameter value; 
 retrieve the reference signature from the computer memory; and 
 compare the background stain signature to the reference signature to assess the stain. 
   
     
     
         94 . The system according to  claim 93 , wherein the system further comprises a user interface in communication with the processor that outputs the result of the assessment. 
     
     
         95 . The system according to  claim 93 , wherein the at least one staining parameter value comprises an overall staining intensity value. 
     
     
         96 . The system according to  claim 93 , wherein the processor further includes instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to separate the digital color image into individual color channels. 
     
     
         97 . The system according to  claim 96 , wherein the at least one staining parameter value comprises a red staining intensity value. 
     
     
         98 . The system according to  claim 96 , wherein the at least one staining parameter value comprises a green staining intensity value. 
     
     
         99 . The system according to  claim 96 , wherein the at least one staining parameter value comprises a blue staining intensity value. 
     
     
         100 . The system according to  claim 93 , wherein the processor further includes instructions that, when executed, cause the specimen slide imaging device to acquire a plurality of digital color images of different areas of the stained blank slide. 
     
     
         101 . The system according to  claim 100 , wherein the processor further includes instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to process the plurality of digital color images to produce a background stain signature comprising at least one stain parameter value for each image of the plurality. 
     
     
         102 . The system according to  claim 101 , wherein the at least one stain parameter value for each image of the plurality comprises an overall staining intensity value. 
     
     
         103 . The system according to  claim 102 , wherein the staining parameter value comprises an overall staining uniformity value. 
     
     
         104 . The system according to  claim 101 , wherein the processor further includes instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to separate each digital color image of the plurality into individual color channels. 
     
     
         105 . The system according to  claim 104 , wherein the at least one staining parameter value for each image of the plurality comprises a red staining intensity value. 
     
     
         106 . The system according to  claim 105 , wherein the staining parameter value comprises a red staining uniformity value. 
     
     
         107 . The system according to  claim 104 , wherein the at least one staining parameter value for each image of the plurality comprises a green staining intensity value. 
     
     
         108 . The system according to  claim 107 , wherein the staining parameter value comprises a green staining uniformity value. 
     
     
         109 . The system according to  claim 104 , wherein the at least one staining parameter value for each image of the plurality comprises a blue staining intensity value. 
     
     
         110 . The system according to  claim 109 , wherein the staining parameter value comprises a blue staining uniformity value. 
     
     
         111 . The system according to  claim 93 , wherein the reference signature is based on a digital image of an unstained slide acquired using the specimen slide imaging device. 
     
     
         112 . The system according to  claim 93 , wherein the reference signature is based on a digital image, acquired using the specimen slide imaging device, of a blank slide stained with a stain of known quality. 
     
     
         113 . The system according to  claim 93 , wherein the processor further includes instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to compare the result of the assessment to a predetermined stain quality threshold stored in the computer memory and output a result as to whether the stain quality is above the predetermined stain quality threshold. 
     
     
         114 . A system for controlling stain quality, the system comprising:
 a system for assessing a stain according to  claim 93 ;   a staining bath comprising the stain;   one or more valves in communication with the processor, wherein the processor further includes instructions that, when executed, trigger the one or more valves to adjust the stain based on the assessment.   
     
     
         115 . The system according to  claim 114 , wherein the one or more valves comprise a fill valve, connected to a reservoir comprising stain, that when triggered increases the amount of stain present in the staining bath. 
     
     
         116 . The system according to  claim 114 , wherein the one or more valves comprise a fill valve, connected to a reservoir comprising a component of the stain, that when triggered adds the component of the stain to the staining bath. 
     
     
         117 . The system according to  claim 114 , wherein the one or more valves comprise a fill valve, connected to a reservoir comprising a wash fluid, that when triggered adds the wash fluid to the staining bath. 
     
     
         118 . The system according to  claim 114 , wherein the one or more valves comprise a drain valve connected to the staining bath that when triggered decreases the amount of stain present in the staining bath.