Method and apparatus for orientating a solid growth culture medium plate

A method for orientating a solid growth culture medium plate from an original position to a worked position, the plate having a lid and a bottom, the method including the steps of:

• a) clamping a plate in its original position between opposed jaws, one of the jaws including a plate-bottom gripping device rotatably mounted on a jaw support member of an orientation mechanism, thus forming a held position that defines a notional tube above and below the plate, the other jaw including a lid-gripping device;
• b) rotating the plate bottom about a generally horizontal axis that intersects the notional tube to orientate the plate bottom from the original position to the worked position, while retaining the lid in its original orientation;
• and
• c) engaging the orientated plate bottom with a plate clamping member of a plate platform to clamp the plate bottom,
• wherein the original orientation is an inverted orientation, namely with its lid lowermost and its bottom uppermost.

A method for orientating a solid growth culture medium plate from an original orientation to a worked orientation, the plate having a lid and a bottom, the method including the steps of:

• a) clamping a plate in its original orientation between opposed jaws mounted on a jaw support member of an orientation mechanism, thus forming a held position that defines a notional tube above and below the plate;
• and
• b) rotating at least the plate bottom about a generally horizontal axis that intersects the notional tube to orientate at least the plate bottom from the original orientation to the worked orientation,
• wherein the original orientation is an inverted orientation, namely with its lid lowermost and its bottom uppermost.