Semantic Support for Smart Laboratories

The electronic notebook is an integral part of a smart laboratory and is one of the main ways the laboratory record is generated. Triple stores containing RDF and other semantically-rich information provide a basis for recording this information in a flexible manner, and ultimately to allow automated semantic reasoning on the stored information. These automatic processes are essential not only for subsequent analysis but also to provide suitable context with which to place observations in their proper place in the experiment record, and to ensure that the electronic lab book adjusts itself to the context in which it is being used. Information flows from other sources, such as environmental monitors for temperature and humidity, or systems from tracking researchers' presence, contribute to and annotate the records generated as the experiments are run and are conveniently handled using middleware tools including data broker services. Examples of how these systems have been set up and the way they aid chemical investigations will be provided