"The Future of Laboratory Automation: Speed, Efficiency, and Patient Safety". Clinical laboratory automation is continuing to evolve and improve to the benefit of laboratories that are purchasing automation. Faster systems that improve laboratory productivity are available – both for specific activities (task targeted automation) and for total laboratory automation systems. Machine vision systems are being developed to replace tedious human inspections for parameters such as tube size and type, specimen volume, presence and levels of interfering substances, and mislabeled specimens. These automated quality inspections are anticipated to further improve patient safety.