Robotic arm and preparation cup system

A method comprising:

• magnetically coupling a preparation cup coupled to a plurality of wings to a plurality of grabbers of a robotic arm;
• scanning an environment above the preparation cup using a sensor coupled to a robotic arm, wherein the sensor is positioned inside a recessed portion of the robotic arm at a first angle greater than zero degrees relative to the robotic arm;
• and
• determining if the preparation cup is magnetically coupled to the plurality of grabbers by using a plurality of magnetic sensors to detect if magnets positioned inside the plurality of grabbers are proximate to the magnetism sensors.

An apparatus comprising:

• a preparation cup having a body portion;
• a set of wings having a body, a first extension, and a second extension, the first extension coupled to a first portion of the wing body and extending in a first direction and the second extension coupled to a second portion of the wing body and extending in a second direction and wherein each of the first and second extensions has a convex side and a concave side;
• and
• wherein the wings are operable to be removably coupled to a plurality of grabbers by magnetically coupling the convex sides of each wing to one or more magnets positioned inside the plurality of grabbers.