Abstract: Pipetting errors are detected by: (a) during pipetting, measuring the pressure in the tip of a pipetting device and determining an earlier rate of change of the pressure in the tip; (b) based on the earlier rate of pressure change and a previous pressure value pi, determining an expectation range for the pressure pi+1 at a further moment in time and/or an expectation range for the rate of pressure change ?i+1 based on the pressure at the further moment in time ti+1; (c) at the further moment in time ti+1 measuring the pressure pi+1 in the tip; and (d) determining the occurrence of a pipetting error by comparing the measured pressure pi+1 at the further moment ti+1 in time and/or a rate of pressure change ?i+1 calculated on the basis of the pressure pi+1 at the further moment ti+1 in time.

Abstract: Methods, computer programs, data carriers and apparatus and systems for detecting pipetting errors include: (a) during pipetting, measuring the pressure in the tip of a pipetting device and determining an earlier rate of change of the pressure ?0 in the tip; (b) based on the earlier rate of pressure change ?0 and a previous pressure value pi, determining an expectation range for the pressure pi+1 at a further moment in time and/or an expectation range for the rate of pressure change ?i+1 based on the pressure at the further moment in time ti+1; (c) at the further moment in time ti+1 measuring the pressure pi+1 in the tip; and (d) determining the occurrence of a pipetting error by comparing the measured pressure pi+1 at the further moment ti+1 in time and/or a rate of pressure change ?i+1 calculated on the basis of the pressure pi+1 at the further moment ti+1 in time, with respectively the determined expectation range of acceptable pressures and the determined expectation range of acceptable rates of pressure