fix(star): split pipetting operations by channel spacing#1164
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July 13, 2026 16:52
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Summary
Fixes STAR backend pipetting behavior when the configured minimum channel spacing is wider than the target spacing. Addresses #822.
Previously,
STARBackend.aspirate()andSTARBackend.dispense()sent all requested operations in a singleC0ASorC0DScommand. For adjacent wells in a 96-well plate, this could request 9 mm channel spacing from a STAR configured for a minimum of 18 mm.This PR changes aspirate and dispense to:
It also removes the explicit 100 mm end position and minimum traverse height from the liquid-height probing path, allowing the normal STAR channel traversal height to be used.
The single-batch behavior is unchanged when all requested channel positions are valid simultaneously.
Motivation
On a STAR with four 1 mL channels spaced at 18 mm, adjacent 96-well targets cannot be reached by those channels simultaneously. Sending them in one command requested a mechanically impossible arrangement instead of splitting the work into legal sequential movements.
During testing with
probe_liquid_height=True, the hard-coded 100 mm Z end and traverse height also caused the probing workflow to crash on the physical instrument. Removing those overrides restores the backend's normal safe traversal behavior between batches.Tests
Added STAR backend tests for:
Ran:
Result:
ruff checkandruff format --checkalso pass for both changed files.