Control system for a sample preparation system

Claim 1

A control system including a computer for controlling under the direction of a user an apparatus having a plurality of interconnected electromechanical devices, chambers and fluid pathways comprising: first means for running a plurality of preprogrammed sequences of commands to control a plurality of said electromechanical devices, said preprogrammed sequences of commands being nonalterable in the sense that said user cannot add, delete or change any command in the sequence, each said preprogrammed sequence of commands causing said plurality of electromechanic devices to cooperate to accomplish a particular overall function among a plurality of overall functions which said apparatus is capable of performing; second means for receiving, storing, and running new sequences of commands selected by said user from a command set of a first complexity level hereafter called the "high" level, each said high level command for causing said control system to control one or more of said electromechanical devices to cause a high level event to occur, said high level event involving cooperation of several of said electromechanical devices to perform a "building block" function, where a building block function is defined as a function one or more of which are necessary to achieve one of the overall functions achieved by said apparatus when said control system performs any one of said preprogrammed sequences of commands run by said first means; third means for receiving, storing and running new sequences of commands selected by said user from a command set of a second complexity level hereafter called the "expert" level, each said expert level command causing said control system to generate control signals to control an individual one of said electromechanical devices to do a single task, each said single task being one of a plurality of subtasks a collection of which comprises one of said building block functions carried out by one of said high level commands; and access control means for controlling whether said user is allowed to run only said preprogrammed sequences using said first means or is also allowed to define, store and run new sequences of commands using commands from said high level command set or said expert level command set or both using either said second means or said third means or both.