System and method for incubation and reading of biological cultures

A method for incubating and monitoring biological samples disposed in a culture media, the method comprising:

• conveying a sample containers into an incubator comprising a cabinet with multiple sealable ports for automated receipt and removal of the sample containers from the cabinet, wherein the multiple sealable ports includes a first sealable port, a second sealable port, and a third sealable port, wherein the first, second, and third sealable ports are vertically spaced apart on a single face of the cabinet;
• maintaining a controlled temperature environment and a controlled atmosphere composition for the sample containers in the cabinet;
• receiving, through the first sealable port the sample containers from a first conveyor adapted to cooperate with the first sealable port to receive the sample containers containing biological samples inoculated with a sample for incubation into the cabinet;
• receiving, through the second sealable port the sample containers from a second conveyor that conveys the sample containers from the cabinet;
• conveying the sample containers from the cabinet through the third sealable port via an image capture conveyor in an image capture module disposed in a housing separate from the cabinet,
• conveying the sample containers via the image capture conveyer to a rotating carousel in the image capture module, wherein the rotating carousel has a plurality of receptacles, each for receiving a sample container of the sample containers;
• and
• wherein the rotating carousel moves the sample containers from a location where the sample containers are received by the rotating carousel, to an image capture position of an imaging unit in the image capture module, wherein the imaging unit comprises an image sensor, a lens and a light source;
• obtaining an image of the biological samples in the sample containers at the image capture position;
• and
• conveying the sample containers from the rotating carousel to the image capture conveyor and through the third sealable port to the cabinet after the image capture module obtains the image of the biological samples in the sample containers, wherein the third sealable port is an only port into the image capture module from the cabinet, and further wherein the first, second and third sealable ports are sealable by first, second and third doors.