QASAR 500 sx
The Qasar 500 sx is a semi-automated blood grouping intruments designed for larger Hospital Blood Banks or Donor Centres
QASAR 500 sx – an open, semi-automated Blood Grouping system
The Qasar 500 is a high-capacity, semi-automated blood grouping system designed to process batches of up to 96 samples at a time. It is suitable for the larger hospital blood bank and donor centres.
The Qasar 500 is an inherently flexible pipetting workstation which has been adapted with several unique features to create a high-capacity blood grouping “workhorse” for labs processing large numbers of samples. The open architeture of the system allows labs to choose the reagents used and helps to keep the running costs to a minimum.
One of the key benefits of a semi-automated system is that once the plates and cards have been prepared, they can be removed immediately for further processing (eg incubation, centrifugation and reading) thereby freeing up the Qasar 500 sx to prepare the next batch. This way it is possible to achieve a much higher throughput than with most fully automated systems incorporating a centrifuge which, inevitably, becomes the rate limiting step. You will of course need to have a suitable microplate centrifuge and incubator available.
Blood Grouping Applications
The Qasar 500 SX is driven by out BGX Blood Grouping Applications suite which provides the ability to setup just about any kind of test where a sample is tested against multiple reagents. For Blood Grouping, these applications include:
ABO Grouping
Rh Typing
Antibody screening
Cross matching
Flexible Deck Layout
The Qasar 500 SX working deck is flexible and can be configured with different Layouts to suit the individual laboratory’s requirements. One option, as shown above, includes:
96 Samples loaded in a 6 x 16 position SIR for bar-code reading of identifiers. 12 x 96 well Microplates 120 x dilution tubes for preparation of red cell suspensions 15 x position reagent rack with magnetic stirring and barcode reading for all positions
An alternative Layout is available which caters for both gel cards and microplates, accommodating a total of 36 Gel Cards and 6 Microplates. Other options are also possible.
The Slide-In-Rack (SIR) incorporates a motorised barcode reader which automatically adjusts the distance between the reader and the sample barcode labels to maximise both reliability and speed of reading. The racks accommodate a range of tube sizes.
The Qasar 500 allows you to choose which reagents to use. A range of different gel-card modules is available to match your current reagent requirements (BioRad, Ortho, Sanquin etc) and additional racks can be purchased should these change in the future. Racks to accommodate the majority of gel-cards available on the market are available and most liquid phase reagents can be readily located in a removable rack which sits on top of the reagent stirrer/barcode reader module.
Choice of Reagents
Succesful reading of all samples is accompanied by an audible tone. Likewise, if any barcodes fail to read this will be highlighted on screen and also audibly.
Security and Safety
The Qasar 500 incorporates fully automated identification of samples, reagents, microplates and cards. Reagent lot numbers are checked against pre-defined criteria and processing commences. An active security shield provides additional protection against identification errors. If the shield is lifted during processing, the instrument stops and all components are automatically re-identified before processing commences.
Active Probe Washing
The Qasar 500 incorporates an auxilliary pump and valve unit which delivers wash fluid to the outside of the probe needles after aspirating red cells to ensure complete removal of red cells and to prevent any carryover. The probes are dual nozzle and are able to aspirate plasma and red cells in a single visit to the sample tube helping to provide the high-throughput of the unit.
Complete System
The Qasar 500 is based on the new Beeline “SX” platform and which offers the highest levels of performance in both pipetting accuracy and processing speed. The Qasar 500 forms part of a complete system* when used in conjunction with the HTZ Duet reader. This instrument captures images of both microplates and cards, interpreting the results using “Aurora” software. All data from the Qasar 500 is securely linked with the data obtained by the Duet itself.
Additional Items needed for QASAR 500 sx
The QASAR 500 is a semi-automated system and there are a couple of steps which require manual intervention namely shaking and centrifugation. Your laboratory will probably already have these items available but, if not, we can recommend the following items:
Microplate Plate Shaker: Heidolph Titramax 101 Plate Shaker
Microplate Centrifuge: Centurion Pro Hospital Centrifuge
Furthermore, if you are doing antibody screening, the cards may require a special card centrifuge and incubator but we suggest you source this from your card supplier.
*Note: A centrifuge, incubator and microplate shaker are all required to perform blood grouping. If they are not already available in the laboratory, then please contact HTZ first so that we can make recommendations for each product according to the requirements of the laboratory.
