Team:UCSC/Build

BUILD-A-BIOREACTOR

   Over the course of our At What Cost? Storyline, the iGEM team learned invaluable information on ageless business wisdom, groundbreaking trends in DIY Biotech, and insight into the importance of commercial viability in synthetic biology projects. Therefore, we wanted to leave the iGEM family with a gift we feel touched upon all of these concepts uniquely. We understand that students worldwide crave opportunities to develop hands-on engineering experience. Additionally, we understand that for teams across the globe, cost can be a serious impediment to engaging in the meaningful research that iGEM intends to nurture. That is why our iGEM team decided to create a Build-A-Bioreactor handbook for all iGEMs team to access. Clearly outlining all of the materials and steps necessary, the Build-A-Bioreactor handwork was designed so that anyone with ambition, drive, and the desire to create can be free to explore their passions in a low-cost manner.

   Our Build-A-Bioreactor handbook breaks down in detail the various components necessary for our bioreactor design to come to life. The handbook is split between a description of the Taris controller (Taris is our bioreactor's name) and the server it was running on. The controller description goes over hardware setup, such as reactor design, circuit board design, and microcontroller set up, as well as software installation using a Raspberry Pi. It also delves into calibrating the sensors, running the bioreactor, and calibrating the PID. For the Taris server, our handbook explains the server setup, how to reset the server, and how to interact with the website; all of this along with screenshots from our website and sample data to give tangibility to the knowledge. The handbook concludes with an appendix detailing the parts list and schematics involved.

   As we stated prior, we believe we are on the verge of an inspire, groundbreaking movement that will revolutionize the synthetic biology industry. With all of the bright, creative, and dedicated individuals across the globe, accessibility is everything. If we learned one thing, it is that when ambitious, talented individuals are given access to the tools of innovation, phenomenal things can happen. We hope, thought this handbook, we can help. Accessibility. Innovation. Forward the Future.