IFA AUTOMATIONBEYOND HUMAN BOUNDARIES

HELMED® IFA PROCESSOR

HOW DOES IT SIMPLIFY YOUR WORKFLOW?

WHAT IS THE HELMED?The HELMED is a fully automated and open immunofluorescence processor capable of performing all IFA steps. It is suitable for Autoimmunity (room temperature) and it is the only system on the market that can process Infectious Serology slides (up to 40°C).

This instrument is developed and manufactured in Germany in accordance with the highest manufacturing quality standards.

Export your worklist to the HELPS+®

IFA Data Management software and complete the sample classification of your processed slides with a pattern library. Attach microscope images of a well to your sample results.

HELPS+®

IFA DATA MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE

Export your worklist to the HELPS+®

Load the necessary reagents as indicated in the loading wizard and press run. All IFA steps will be processed automatically including the addition of mounting medium.

MountingMediumAddition

IncubationWashIncubationCompositeIncubationWashIncubationTransferDilution

L d th t

Select which tests you would like to run on each sample, or query the LIS to automatically obtain the tests to be performed on each sample.

LISLIS

Select up to 4 different tests and include their lot, expiry dates and operator information for full traceabil-ity. Alternatively use one test only for large screenings

ANA HEp-2

rLKS

EMA

nDNA

ANA HEp-2

HOW DOES IT SIMPLIFY YOUR WORKFLOW?

Select up to 4 different tests and AAEMA 2A 2

Place your sample tubes and let the internal barcode reader automatically identify your sample ID. Use your worklist electronically without the need to transcribe long ID numbers.

Sample numbers 1 - 50

Sample numbers 50 - 100

Reagent rack

All of the above included

HELMED® RACK REFERENCE 50 x 12

REF. HEL-3540

REF. HEL-3541

REF. HEL-3012

REF. HEL-3542 REF. HEL-3555

REF. HEL-3012

REF. HEL-3554

REF. HEL-3553 REF. HEL-3013

REF. HEL-3014

REF. HEL-3012

REF. HEL-3015

REF. HEL-3509

REF. HEL-3510

REF. HEL-3012

REF. HEL-3517

REF. HEL-3505

REF. HEL-3506

REF. HEL-3012

REF. HEL-3518

REF. HEL-3512

REF. HEL-3513

REF. HEL-3012

REF. HEL-3516

REF. HEL-3029

- -

- -

- -

REF. HEL-3507

REF. HEL-3508

REF. HEL-3012

REF. HEL-3519

75 x 12 75 x 13 100 x 12 100 x 13 100 x 16 Sarstedt Microtube

50 m

m

12 mm

12 mm 13 mm

12 mm 13 mm 16 mm

75 m

m

100

mm

MAIN FEATURES• Easily change between different SAMPLE TUBE SIZES thanks to the already pre-programmed and uniquely barcoded

HELMED RACKS. 9 different racks are available so that you can swap between different sample tube sizes. No tools required. Racks are simply held by magnets.

• Although programmed and validated to run with AESKUSLIDES® yet the system is OPEN and allows almost any SLIDE to be programmed regardless of the manufacturer, including INFECTIOUS SEROLOGY.

• with incubation steps of 2hrs at 40°C (HELMED HTC Edition recommended for such extreme incubation steps).

• Optimal compact instrument with high Throughput up to: 20 x slides, 150 x samples, 4 tests per run.

• Minimal volume use. Wash/Waste bottles are typically refilled/emptied normally once per week.

• Software available in 12 languages:

• Insufficient sample volume: skip or refill option.

• Large conjugate bottle option for large mono-test screenings (20ml conjugate vial allows for one full run with 20 slides).

• Export worklist to HELPS+® and record reading results electronically.

• Improved layout features: more detailed volumes information, slide number, printout report, more screen resolutions, sample remarks.

• Control Designer: share controls amongst your selected tests.

• Additional serurity: password protection for slide and test designer modules.

• Increased Temperature control: sample transfer initiates once the system has reached the setpoint temperature.

• Improved heat distribution in the chamber. Highly relevant for Infectious Serology slides where 37°C incubation steps are required for up to 2hrs.

• Full traceability of data

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WHAT DOES A HELMED BRING TO YOUR LAB?STANDARDIZATION“HELMED Provides standarisation eliminating the inconcistency that can be attributed to human intervention and distraction. It improves time management and minimizes transcription errors with the built-in internal barcode reader and LIS interface.“ (HELMED user, Australia)

LET THE HELMED DO THE MANUAL IFA WORK SO THAT YOU CAN FOCUS ON WHAT REALLY MATTERS.Loading is performed in a matter of minutes and hands-on time in IFA processing is eliminated. The IFA experts can concentrate on slide reading.

THROUGHPUTCapacity for 20 slides, 4 different tests and up to 150 samples per run. Although the HELMED is a very compact instrument the throughput is high. See example of the process time comparison between a competitor and the HELMED with the exact same conditions (i.e. samples, slides, dilutions etc.). Main reasons for the time differences between HELMED and competitor instrument:• No Barcode reader vs HELMED’S Built-in Internal Barcode reader.• Use of multiple sample pre-dilution tubes vs use of 2 MTP for pre-dilutions in the HELMED.• Needing several unnecessary serial dilutions to reach a final dilution vs needing maximum 2 serial dilutions to reach any final titer (up to 1/25600) in the HELMED.• Two needle system vs HELMED’s unique 3 needle system (the 3rd retractable needle provides an independent reagent pipetting channel allowing wash and

conjugate addition to be performed simultaneously).

ELECTRONIC WORKLISTS WITH FULL TRACEABILITYThere is no need to fill in so many IFA worksheets (one per slide) and write down manually all patient sample IDs, dilutions etc. The barcode reader and LIS communication enables you to go paperless without the worry of traceability, dilutions etc.

00:00 00:15 00:30 00:45 01:00 01:15 01:30 01:45 02:00 02:15 02:30

01:46

02:05

HELMED vs MANUAL

HELMED PROCESS TIME

MANUAL PROCESS TIME

00:00:00 01:12:00 02:24:00 03:36:00 04:48:00 06:00:00

2h 32m

5h 16m

Sample BC readingPlacing dilution tubes / MTPSoftware (dilution selection etc.)Sample dilutionTransfer & 1st incubationWashConjugate addition & incubationWashMounting medium addition

HELMED PROCESS TIME

TOTAL PROCESS TIME Same conditions: 16 slides, 54 samples, IFA titration identical runs

COMPETITOR PROCESS TIME

IFA Incubations up to 40°C for up to 2hrs per stepThe HELMED HTC Edition (Humidity & Temperature Controlled) is a special HELMED version that has been designed with new chassis modifications that include tight seals and a deep ring to hold distilled water. This allows to successfully process IFA incubations at high temperature of up to 40°C and 2hrs per step by simulating the right environment of a moist chamber eliminating the risk of sample evaporation.

By maintaining the optimum humidity and temperature levels Infectious Serology slides can now be also automated as the substrates are not dried during this demanding process.

DEEP RING – to be filled with a sponge and distilled water in order to keep humidity during incubation at optimum levels.

NEW TIGHT SEALS – special chassis modification brings improved H&T distribution in the chamber

HELMED®INFECTIOUS SEROLOGY & AUTOIMMUNITY IN ONE SYSTEM

STANDARDIZE YOUR IFA ROUTINE TESTING WITH FULL TRACEABILITYR IFA ROUTINE TESTING WITH F

11

2

34

5

LIS

Electronic worklistOr create a manual worklist and select test manualy if LIS is not available in your lab.

AutomaticIFA Processing• Standardization• High throughput• Reproducibility

IFA Reading (Image capture)

LED light source means:• 30k hrs without lamp replacements• No light intensity variation• Optional c-mount camera

HELPS+ worklist• Paperless environment• Image pattern library• ANA Hep-2 Knowledge database• Attach real images to your IFA sample results• Select follow-up steps : IFA titration, EIA, BLOT, RIA

9:00 am

9:10 am

11:42 am(for 54 samples, 16 slides

with high titrations)

12:12 pm

12:15 pmFROM YOUR LIS AND BACK TO LIS

Paperless environment

• Electronic worklists

• Electronic results with pictures

• No transcription

• Full traceability

• Pattern library

• Cost and time savings

AESKUSLIDES®

THE IFA PRODUCT LINE

Simplify your routine autoimmunity sample screening with the AESKUSLIDES®. The Immunofluorescence (IFA) product line from AESKU.DIAGNOSTICS is designed to fit in with the lab automation needs

HEp-2 cells nDNA ANCA

EMA HEp-2 cellsKS/LKS (rat, mouse)

Cytoplasmic Jo-1 like

Nucleoplasm coarse speckled

Kinetoplast positive pANCA Ethanol

IgA Endomysium positive AMA like pattern on kidney

AESKU SYSTEMSTHE DIAGNOSTIC AUTOMATION COMPANY

AESKU.SYSTEMS GmbH & Co. KG • MIKROFORUM RING 3 • 55234 WENDELSHEIM • GERMANYTEL: +49-6734-96270 • FAX: +49-6734-9627-27 • SALES@AESKU.COM • WWW.AESKU-SYSTEMS.COM

Sample capacity: IFA: With barcode: up to 120 without barcode: 150

Sample identification: Built-in multi-type barcode reader for sample detection and identification

IFA Slide capacity: Up to 20 slides

IFA test capacity: Up to 4 different tests with 4 different substrates and 4 different conjugates per slide

Samples & reagents support: Customized multi-format extractable racks

Slide support: 26.1 x 76.1 mm (25 mm and 26mm slide thickness within the same run)

Standard sample rack tube size: 75 mm to 100 mm / 13mm diameter tubes and microtubes (2ml)

IFA sample dilution capacity: • Free titration ratio programmable from 1:1 to 1:25.600

• One step dilution: 1:1 thru 1:160 using a MTP well

• Two steps dilution: 1:161 thru 1:25.600 using MTP wells

Dilution fluid: User choice of wash solution or dedicated diluent solution in the carousel

Positions available for IFA sample dilution: 192 (performed in 2x96 MTP)

Pippeting station: • 3 low carbon stainless steel needles. 2 fixed and one retractable

• The 3rd retractable needle provides an independent reagent pipetting channel

• One peristaltic pump for aspiration of fluids

• One peristaltic pump for slide well and MTP well washing

• 0ne 50 μl syringe

• 0ne 1 ml syringe

Level detection: Continuous level tracking by Conductivity

Precision: CV <3% @ 5 μl

CV <1% @ 10 μl

Minimum sample volume pick-up: 1 μl

Minimum sample volume required: 50 μl

Reagents capacity: • Modular racks with dynamic allocation of positions

• Several reagent rack can be combined in the outer ring, each of them with capacity for 16 reagent and controls bottles

Wash solutions: 2 different wash solution

Wash type: Free slide and well wash programming (well by well wash)

Incubator: For slides and MTP programmable from RT to 40°C

Software requirements: PC (not included) with 32 & 64 bits compatible processor. Runs on Windows Vista, 2000 & XP, Windows 7

PC communication port: Bidirectional USB

LIS link: • Uni-directional. HELMED can query LIS to automatically select test & dilution

• Conforms to ASTM standards

• Bi-directional with the HELPS+® IFA data management software

Modularity: Up to 3 HELMED systems controlled by a single PC

Programming: User-friendly software interface including an intuitive easy to use slide & test designer that supports different slide

thickness, different well formats, multiple substrates in the same slide, multiple sample dispensing points and

multiple number of well rows within the same slide

Certifications: CE mark and FDA approved

Power consumption: Without incubator: 50 Watt max.

With incubator: 250 Watt max.

Power supply: Input: 100-240 Volt, 50-60 Hz

Dimensions: 57cm x 62cm x 75cm

Instrument weight: 25 kg

HELMED® TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Infectious Serology(long incubation steps)

Infectious Serology(short incubation steps)

HELMED® INSTRUMENT MODELS / APPLICATION Autoimmunity

HELMED® HTC Edition (REF. HEL-1600)

HELMED® Classic (REF. HEL-1000) + Incubator ring (REF. HEL-3511)

HELMED® Classic (REF. HEL-1000)

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