DexBioLab: Benchmarking Dexterous Manipulation with Dynamic Experimental Phenomena in Realistic Laboratories
Organizations: Shanghai AI Laboratory · Huazhong University of Science and Technology · University of Southern California · Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Abstract
Automating biological laboratories requires robots to perform dexterous tool interactions under realistic visual conditions while handling dynamic experimental phenomena, presenting significant challenges for robotic manipulation. To enable systematic evaluation under these conditions, we introduce DexBioLab, a simulation benchmark and framework for dexterous manipulation in realistic biological laboratory environments. DexBioLab comprises 14 tasks across 4 robot embodiments, spanning functional tool use, precision manipulation, language-conditioned visual grounding, and instrument operation. We introduce controllable dynamic experimental phenomena, including flames, vapor, and bubbles, to capture the evolving visual conditions of laboratory procedures. To further enhance environmental realism, we develop a hybrid rendering pipeline that integrates interactive simulated foreground objects with Gaussian-splatting backgrounds reconstructed from 6 real laboratory scenes. For efficient large-scale data generation and evaluation, we further build a parallel simulation framework on top of mjlab, proposing Parallel Finite-State Machine (PFSM) and integrating batched rendering with decoupled trajectory replay for demonstration generation and model-independent closed-loop policy evaluation. Our evaluation reveals substantial variation in policy performance across tasks, exposing distinct strengths and weaknesses of current manipulation policies. Real-world experiments further demonstrate a reduced sim-to-real gap, supporting the validity of AutoBio+ for realistic manipulation evaluation. Supplementary materials are available at https://cumulusalpha.github.io/DexBioLabWebPage.
Figures & tables
| Benchmark | Biolab | Dexterous Manipulation | Realistic Rendering | Parallelization | Multi-Embodiment | Dynamic Phenomena |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bi-DexHands [ 2 ] | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| DexVerse [ 3 ] | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| DexJoCo [ 4 ] | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Chemistry3D [ 5 ] | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| LabUtopia [ 6 ] | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Labimus [ 7 ] | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Task | Gaussian Background | Visualization | Language Instruction |
| Attach Pipette Tip | Fume Hood | Attach the pipette tip with the Shadow hand. | |
| Aspirate with Pipette | Fume Hood | Pick up the pipette and move it directly above the cryovial to perform the pipetting operation. | |
| Transfer Tube (XHand) | Real Tube-Rack Scene | Pick up the centrifuge tube and move it to the other rack, row [row], col [column]. | |
| Manipulate Tweezers | Lab Bench | Pick up the tweezers, move them to the cryovial, grasp it with the tweezers, and place it into the fogging liquid nitrogen flask. | |
| Heat & Stir Agar Solution | Lab Bench | Place the beaker on the heating plate, turn the knob on, then return the knob to its home position with the Wuji hand. | |
| Close Centrifuge Lid | Centrifuge Station | Close the centrifuge lid with the Wuji hand. |
| Task | Gaussian Background | Visualization | Language Instruction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Thermal Cycler Lid | Reagent Cabinet | Open the thermal cycler with the XHand. | |
| Close Thermal Cycler Lid | Reagent Cabinet | Close the thermal cycler with the XHand. | |
| Operate Mixer Panel | Heating and Mixing Station | Set the mixer to [time] seconds, [temperature] degrees Celsius, and [speed] RPM with the XHand. |
| Task | Object / visual randomization | Robot reset ranges (rad.) |
|---|---|---|
| Attach Pipette Tip | Tip slot sampled from the tip-box grid. | UR5e: . |
| Aspirate with Pipette | Cryovial slot sampled from the rack grid. | UR5e: ; Shadow: . |
| Transfer Tube | XHand: source tube slot sampled from the rack. Shadow: target row and column sampled; tube pose follows the selected slot. | UR5e (XHand): ; UR5e (Shadow): ; Shadow: . |
| Manipulate Tweezers | Tweezers m and yaw rad; tube slot sampled. | Wuji: . |
| Heat & Stir Agar Solution | Plate: , ; beaker: , . | UR5e: . |
| Close Centrifuge Lid | Centrifuge m. | UR5e: . |