What is the Equipment Register?
The Equipment Register is a catalog of the instruments and equipment in your lab. Each entry stores the make, model, serial number, and location of a piece of kit — along with a photo if you want one. Once an instrument is in the register, Bower knows it exists. Ask Bower about it in a conversation and it can answer technical questions, walk you through common procedures, help diagnose unexpected behavior, and pull up relevant protocols from your workspace.Why add your equipment?
The biggest benefit is that Bower can act as a knowledgeable co-worker who knows your specific setup — not just the instrument in general, but your centrifuge in Lab 3B with the serial number you gave it. A few things this unlocks:- Troubleshooting. “The rotor is making a grinding noise” → Bower can work through likely causes for that model, ask clarifying questions, and help you decide whether to keep running or stop.
- Procedure guidance. “Walk me through a balance calibration” → Bower gives instrument-specific steps, not generic advice.
- Hands-free use. With smart glasses (Ray-Ban Meta or Viture Luma), you can ask Bower what you’re looking at, describe what’s on the display, or talk through a problem without ever touching your phone or laptop.
Adding equipment
Open the Equipment Register from the sidebar and click Add equipment. You have four options:1
Use my phone
Scan the QR code with your phone camera and Bower opens straight into equipment capture. Photograph the nameplate and it saves to the register — no need to move the photo across yourself. You’ll sign in on your phone the first time.
2
Scan a photo
Take or upload a photo of the instrument — the nameplate, serial tag, or front panel works best. Bower reads the image and auto-fills the make, model, and serial number. Review the result and confirm.
3
Search online
Type the instrument name (e.g. Eppendorf 5810 R centrifuge) and Bower looks it up. Pick from the results to auto-fill make, model, and a description.
4
Enter manually
Fill in the details yourself — useful for custom-built kit or instruments Bower can’t identify.
Talking to Bower about your equipment
Once cataloged, mention the instrument by name in any Bower conversation. You don’t need a special command — just describe what you’re trying to do or what’s going wrong.“Our Eppendorf 5810 R is throwing error code E12 after a long run. What does that mean?”
“I need to run a two-step density gradient with the Beckman. What speeds and times do you recommend?”Bower brings in the instrument’s specs alongside anything else in your workspace — related protocols, past notes, attached manuals — so answers stay grounded in your actual setup.
Hands-free with smart glasses
The Equipment Register is especially powerful during active bench work. With Bower running in Live Mode on Ray-Ban Meta or Viture glasses, you can:- Ask Bower to identify an instrument you’re looking at.
- Describe an error on a display and get a diagnosis without stopping what you’re doing.
- Walk through a calibration or maintenance procedure step by step, hands-free.
Editing and removing equipment
Click any row in the register to open the instrument’s detail page. From there you can edit any field, update the photo, or delete the entry.Deleting an instrument removes it from the register but does not delete any protocols or notes that reference it.