[labnetwork] Suggestions for interlocking fume hoods

[Michael Khbeis]

Vito,

We interlocked the lid sensor and/or vacuum for spinners in hood. We did not interlock the benches for fear of something needing to be rinsed in an emergency etc. What we did instead is link a touch screen interface where users tap their name to log in/out of the wet process area. We created several virtual benches in WebCORAL that are enabled when a user logs in via either the tap interface or WebCORAL.  Since nothing is physically interlocked, it is an honor system backed by camera footage and policing by cleanroom staff. 

Let me know if you need more specifics about implementation.

Best,

Dr. Michael Khbeis
Associate Director, Washington Nanofabrication Facility (WNF) 
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network (NNIN)
University of Washington
Fluke Hall, Box 352143
(O) 206.543.5101
(F) 206.221.1681
(C) 443.254.5192
khbeis at uw.edu
www.wnf.washington.edu/

> On Sep 16, 2015, at 10:16 AM, Vito Logiudice <vito.logiudice at uwaterloo.ca> wrote:
> 
> Dear Colleagues,
> 
> Our efforts to physically interlock our tools via our lab management platform (Badger in our case) is progressing well. In most cases we are interlocking computer monitors, keyboards or computer mice with good results. 
> 
> My team and I have discussed how to best interlock our numerous fume hoods but were unable to settle on any one approach. For safety reasons we certainly do not want to make the hoods entirely unavailable when not enabled by Badger; ie., we want to encourage their use when lab users handle chemicals. However we do believe it would be beneficial to physically interlock them in some fashion to at least make them somewhat less appealing to use unless they are first enabled. I’ve searched past threads on this fantastic network and while I came across some great related discussions I was unable to find anything which dealt specifically with hood interlocks. 
> 
> I’d greatly appreciate hearing from those of you whom have interlocked your hoods or are thinking of doing so soon. I’m curious to know what service or feature you may have tapped into on a typical hood setup that might include some combination of spin-coaters, hot plates, heated/recirculating chemical baths, N2 guns, DI guns etc.
> 
> Thanks very much for any insights.
> 
> Best regards,
> Vito
> --
> Vito Logiudice  P.Eng.
> Director of Operations, Quantum NanoFab
> University of Waterloo
> Lazaridis QNC 1207
> 200 University Avenue West
> Waterloo, ON           Canada N2L 3G1
> Tel.: (519) 888-4567  ext. 38703
> Email: vito.logiudice at uwaterloo.ca
> Website: https://fab.qnc.uwaterloo.ca
> 
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