The Perkin-Elmer approach to computer-aided chemistry: an overview of the technological trends in laboratory computing

Perkin-Elmer defines the term ’computer-aided chemistry’ as the application of a computer, of any size, to the solution of an analytical chemistry problem. More specifically, the computer is a tool which is applied to tasks of either a tedious, repetitive, or very complex nature so that the analytical chemist is freed to apply his reasoning power. This paper was prepared for a session on ’Solving the laboratory management problem’ at the 1983 Pittsburgh Conference and the authors were asked to contemplate the future laboratory applications for this extremely important tool. The time allotted was 30min, so the article focuses on only the most significant applications among those that Perkin-Elmer is working on.