Automatic colony counter PhenoBooth+

automatedbenchtopimage-based

Overview
PhenoBooth+ is an all-in-one automated colony counter and plate imager designed for medium- to high-throughput phenotypic assessment of microbes on solid media. It combines rapid autofocus imaging, multi-wavelength fluorescence capture and a suite of analysis tools to accelerate hit identification and simplify data management.

Key features

• Automated plate imaging with autofocus for rapid capture of Petri dishes and SBS-format plates
• Multi-wavelength fluorescence imaging with selectable emission/filter options (optimised for BFP, GFP, mCherry, mRuby)
• Advanced colony filtering by size, circularity, colour, brightness and RGB values
• Batch Analyse to apply identical analysis parameters across multiple plates
• Integrated visualisations: growth curves, in-plate heatmaps, between-plate boxplots and statistical charts
• Optional in-plate and between-plate normalisation to correct edge effects
• Standalone use for medium-throughput workflows or integration with high-throughput automation (e.g., ROTOR+) for large-scale screening

How it works

• Load a Petri dish or SBS plate containing colonies
• Select wavelength/emission filter and use autofocus to image each plate in seconds
• Filter detected colonies by properties of interest and run 'Batch Analyse' to process a set of plates with the same parameters
• Inspect results with interactive visualisations; hover over colonies to view identifiers and compare replicates

Fluorescence & throughput

• Multiple lighting and filter configurations optimised for common fluorescent proteins (BFP, GFP, mCherry, mRuby)
• Supports very high-density screening from agar (example: up to 6144 colonies per SBS plate)

Data visualisation & analysis

• Visualise colony parameters within plates using heatmaps (size, brightness, circularity, redness and RGB values)
• Compare conditions across plates using boxplots and statistical charts
• Export growth curves and charts for downstream analysis

Batch processing

• Define and save filters for size, circularity, colour or brightness and apply them across all plates in a batch
• Automates repetitive analysis to reduce manual spreadsheet work and hands-on time

Additional notes
Integrated workflows help locate hits faster and compare experimental vs control colony metrics without manual image capture and alignment steps.

Technical specifications

• Model: PhenoBooth+
• Brand: Singer Instruments
• Imaging modes: Brightfield and fluorescence (multiple selectable wavelengths/filters)
• Optimised fluorescence targets: BFP, GFP, mCherry, mRuby
• Throughput example: up to 6144 colonies per SBS plate (high-density screening)
• Automation: Autofocus and rapid plate imaging; batch analysis functionality
• Measured colony parameters: size, brightness, circularity, redness, RGB values
• Data outputs: growth curves, in-plate heatmaps, boxplots, statistical charts, exportable results
• Compatibility: Usable standalone or integrated with high-throughput systems (e.g., ROTOR+)
• Documentation: Product brochure available (PDF)