Chemotion LabIMotion: A Customizable, Standardizable, and Collaborative Software Solution for Enhanced Scientific Research and Data Management Across the Chemotion Platform
Chia-Lin Lin1, Pei-Chi Huang1, Helena Šimek Tosino1, John Jolliffe3, Nicole Jung1, 2
1. Institute of Biological and Chemical Systems, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
2. Institute of Organic Chemistry, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
3. Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
Chemotion LabIMotion is a versatile electronic laboratory notebook (ELN) software designed to cater to the diverse needs of scientists. As the Chemotion ELN extension, Chemotion LabIMotion features customizable modules that provide users with the flexibility to adapt the software to their specific research requirements, whether they involve chemistry-specific features. This adaptability allows scientists to design and integrate new modules seamlessly, optimizing the management of materials, samples, and workflows. Additionally, Chemotion LabIMotion promotes collaborative research by enabling the effortless sharing of templates and synchronization across different applications through Chemotion LabIMotion Template Hub, which has been synchronized more than 300 times across the Chemotion ELN instances.
With Chemotion LabIMotion, scientists act as designers, creating custom templates tailored to their specific needs. Each template can incorporate over 20 different components and settings, and an interactive diagram tool is provided to support workflow construction. Chemotion LabIMotion automatically maintains a revision history, allowing scientists to easily revert to specific stored versions and restore or view the user interface as needed. Integrated into both Chemotion ELN and the Chemotion Repository, Chemotion LabIMotion helps streamline the process of research data publication.
The latest updates to Chemotion LabIMotion introduce several new features that enhance user experience, functionality, and standardization. The integration of ontologies now allows for the standardization of data, ensuring consistency and interoperability across different research domains. This feature supports better data annotation and retrieval, aligning with the broader scientific push towards standardized, machine-readable formats.
Further improvements include the Export/Import Collection function, which now supports self-designed elements, making data management more intuitive. The new Restriction Setting feature allows users to define custom field names and apply restriction options, while the Generic Element Split Function enables the creation of parent-child relationships within data structures. The software also supports generating reports in DOCX format using the Generic Element Reporting Function, with new system units added and the ability to customize the default unit for any field, enhancing template flexibility.
Additional features include a Preview Image function, which allows users to zoom in and out of images and access the original file easily. The new Labeling feature enhances organization by enabling custom labels for elements, improving searchability and data management. Scientists can now drag-and-drop reactions into elements, integrating this data into export and reporting functions. The user interface has also been upgraded with a drag-and-drop feature for rearranging layers and fields, offering a more user-friendly experience. Lastly, the new Custom Flow feature allows users to document their workflows and visualize them as flow diagrams, simplifying research processes.
With contributions from the community to the Chemotion LabIMotion Template Hub, continuous enhancement and improvement, and the integration of ontologies, Chemotion LabIMotion has become a valuable tool for modern scientific research that supports standards.