Hao (Maya) Li

Biomedical research scientists need more robust tools than spreadsheets to manage their data. However, no suitable laboratory information management systems (LIMS) are readily available; they are either too costly to build or too complex to adapt. This thesis presents the architecture, design, implementation, and a prototype of a model driven LIMS, called Seedpod. Scientists, with the help of biomedical informaticists, develop a knowledge model of their data and data management needs in Protégé. Seedpod then automatically produces a relational database from the model, and dynamically generates a web-based graphical user interface. Seedpod can be used for multiple scientific research domains since only its knowledge model contains domain-specific content. It decreases development time and cost, thereby allowing scientists to focus on producing and collecting data.