Unofficial. This is a community-maintained library. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or supported by Bento Bioworks Ltd. See Disclaimer and
NOTICE.
Python control library for Bento Lab PCR workstations (Bento Bioworks, London). Communicates over Bluetooth LE using the Nordic UART Service protocol, reverse-engineered from the official Bento Bio app.
My Bento Lab Pro V1.4 (unit BL13489) mid-run — the device this library was reverse-engineered against.
| Unit | Hardware | Serial | Connectivity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pro V1.4 | BL13489 | Bluetooth LE | Primary, fully supported |
| 2 | Pro V1.31 | BL13125 | Wi-Fi | Protocol TBD |
# One-command setup (requires uv)
make setup
# Or manually:
uv venv --python 3.13
uv pip install -r requirements.txtfrom bentolab import BentoLabBLE, PCRProfile, ThermalStep, CycleStep
async def main():
lab = BentoLabBLE()
await lab.connect()
# Build a profile from the standard 3-step PCR pattern
profile = PCRProfile.simple(num_cycles=35)
# Or compose it explicitly:
custom = PCRProfile(
name="HF-Pgl3-EGFP-Puro-linear",
initial_denaturation=ThermalStep(95.0, 300),
cycles=[
CycleStep(
denaturation=ThermalStep(98.0, 10),
annealing=ThermalStep(60.0, 30),
extension=ThermalStep(72.0, 150),
repeat_count=35,
)
],
final_extension=ThermalStep(72.0, 300),
lid_temperature=110.0,
)
# Run with live progress updates
async for state in lab.run_profile(custom):
print(f"{state.state.value} block={state.block_temperature}C "
f"progress={state.progress}%")bentolab ships a Typer CLI that subsumes the one-off scripts in tools/.
Profiles live as YAML in the platform user-data directory; runs are recorded
as NDJSON in the same tree (or override with BENTOLAB_DATA_DIR).
bentolab scan # discover devices
bentolab status # one snapshot
bentolab monitor # live tail of status broadcasts
bentolab profile new my-profile # opens $EDITOR on a YAML template
bentolab profile list
bentolab profile import path/to/x.yaml
bentolab run my-profile # uploads + starts + tails until done
bentolab stop # abort the current run
bentolab logs list
bentolab logs show <run-id>Profile YAML:
name: HF-Pgl3-EGFP-Puro-linear
lid_temperature: 110
initial_denaturation: { temperature: 95, duration: 300 }
cycles:
- repeat: 35
denaturation: { temperature: 98, duration: 10 }
annealing: { temperature: 60, duration: 30 }
extension: { temperature: 72, duration: 150 }
final_extension: { temperature: 72, duration: 300 }
hold_temperature: 4
notes: ""Every subcommand accepts --json for machine-readable output. Exit codes:
0 ok, 2 user error, 3 device error, 4 aborted.
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
tools/ble_scanner.py |
Discover BLE devices, enumerate GATT profiles |
tools/ble_monitor.py |
Subscribe to all BLE notifications passively |
tools/ble_commander.py |
Interactive BLE command REPL with fuzzing |
tools/wifi_scanner.py |
mDNS/nmap discovery for Wi-Fi unit |
tools/wifi_monitor.py |
Passive TCP traffic capture |
tools/session_logger.py |
Compatibility shim — re-exports bentolab._logging.SessionLogger |
For day-to-day operation use the bentolab CLI above; the scripts in
tools/ are kept for protocol-decoding work.
# Scan for BLE devices
python tools/ble_scanner.py --scan-time 10
# Connect and enumerate GATT profile
python tools/ble_scanner.py --connect --device-name "Bento"
# Interactive exploration
python tools/ble_commander.pyApache License 2.0 — see also NOTICE for attribution and the trademark / interoperability disclaimers that ship with every redistribution.
Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Bento Bioworks Ltd. "Bento Lab" is a trademark of Bento Bioworks. Protocol information in this repository was determined through interoperability analysis of BLE communication with devices owned by the author, consistent with DMCA §1201(f) (US) and Article 6 of the EU Software Directive 2009/24/EC.