What is a Plate Creation table?
The Plate Creation table allows users to create multiple plates, scan existing plate barcodes into the table, navigate location hierarchies through an improved location selector, and set up more complex plate creation templates to ensure standardization and compliance.
Plate Creation tables work in tandem with transfer tables in a Notebook entry to streamline assay preparation from sample creation to sample use. Additionally, this new table type can be leveraged for lab automation applications such as creating many destination plates to use in a liquid handling run.
Create plates from the Plate Creation table
In your entry's formatting bar, click on Insert > Plate creation table.
In the Insert Plate creation table modal, choose the plate schema you're using and whether you'd like the Barcode to be autogenerated or if you'd like to create a custom barcode. An autogenerated barcode iterates from the schema's prefix, e.g. the third Plate created with prefix PL will have the barcode "PL003". A custom barcode can be any text so long as the barcode does not already exist in the Benchling system, e.g. two plates cannot have the same barcode "PLATE1".
After specifying your schema type and barcode choice, select Insert.
To add additional rows to your Plate Creation table, select the three horizontal line icon at the bottom of the first row and pull down.
Name your plate by typing into the Plate cell and assign your Plate to a location by double clicking into the Location cell and clicking through your Location hierarchy.
Once all of your plates have been named and assigned to the correct locations, select the blue Submit button to create all of the plates in the table at once. The Plate Creation table is not editable after submission, so ensure that everything is correct before you submit.
If you do need to make an update after submission, you can do so by clicking into the plate link and moving it to the correct location. You can then return to the table and select the circular arrows icon to refresh the table with the correct location.
After submission, your Plate column will be populated with links to each of your newly created plates.
Import data into Plate Creation tables
You can import new data into a Plate Creation table by copying and pasting data, importing a spreadsheet, or adding it from a worklist.
Copy and paste data
To import data from outside Benchling into a Plate Creation table, copy the data from the spreadsheet you’re importing, and paste it directly into the table.
Import a spreadsheet
To import data from a spreadsheet into a Plate Creation table:
- Click the + icon next to the table title.
- Select Add from spreadsheet.
- In the Import into table modal, upload the file by dragging and dropping the file into the uploader or selecting the file.
Add from a worklist
To add samples from a worklist:
- Select the column you’re inserting samples into.
- Click the + icon next to the table title, and select Add from worklist.
- Search for and select the worklist you’re importing.
Benchling supports ingestion of localized numbers and dates. You can configure your Locale in the user settings. To learn more, visit Updating user locale.