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BEATBox
BEATBox is a modular, low-cost platform for autonomous operant conditioning, longitudinal monitoring, and reproducible behavioral neuroscience.
24/7
Autonomous access
Animals can engage across day-night cycles.
Home
Cage context
Designed to reduce repeated handling and preserve natural rhythms.
Open
Source build
Hardware, software, CAD, firmware, and docs are inspectable.
Modular
Task panels
Feeder, screen, tunnel, lighting, wall, and sensor modules.
Low-cost
Design target
Accessible fabrication; final cost benchmarks remain to validate.
24/7 Home-Cage Operant Conditioning
BEATBox lets rodents live inside the experimental apparatus while continuously accessing task modules, rewards, sensors, and monitoring interfaces. The system is designed for ecological, high-throughput acquisition with minimal experimenter intervention.
Home-cage access: the animal remains in the BEATBox environment and can approach task areas on its own schedule.
Autonomous task engagement: operant events are triggered and logged without repeated handling or daily manual sessions.
Integrated modules: feeder, screens, nosepokes, IR barriers, lighting, tunnels, and wall panels create configurable behavioral workflows.
Continuous monitoring: the Raspberry Pi shield, GUI, and data pipeline record task state, sensor events, and performance across long experiments.
Autonomous engagement reduces the need to move animals into separate testing rooms and limits stress-related behavioral bias.
Continuous access can increase trial density and reveal circadian, motivational, and learning dynamics that short sessions may miss.
Standardized hardware, task timing, and data logs reduce experimenter variability and make protocols easier to share.
Richer within-subject datasets can improve statistical power and may reduce animal numbers when study designs support it.
Quantitative benchmarks such as cost per box, trials per day, and long-term reliability will be added as validation data are finalized.
Start with the scientific rationale, intended use cases, validation status, and examples of long-duration behavioral paradigms.
Use the assembly SOP, build guides, CAD files, PCB identifiers, BOM notes, and safety warnings to prepare a reproducible build.
Inspect the firmware, Python GUI, data outputs, Raspberry Pi shield integration, and contribution notes for extending the platform.
Real photos to show BEATBox nearing deployment
Transparent assembly video of the BEATBox enclosure with the detailed build SOP
Use the walkthrough video together with the interactive assembly checklist for internal builds and beta units.
BEATBox is nearing deployment through real builds, assembly documentation, and beta-unit preparation.
The assembly SOP now includes module-level GIFs for the base, walls, screen, feeder, tunnel, and lighting modules.
The platform targets operant conditioning, autonomous reward delivery, sensor-triggered events, and longitudinal monitoring.
Final cost, optimal cable lengths, wall color for tracking, long-term reliability, and full protocol templates still need formal resolution.
This section should be updated as beta-testing, module validation, and quantitative benchmarks are finalized.
Citation instructions will be added when a preprint, paper, or DOI is available.
Until publication metadata is finalized, please reference the BEATBox open-source repository and contact the NERB team before public reuse in manuscripts, talks, or derivative documentation.
Python software interface screenshots
Ecological validity with longitudinal, high-power datasets
Natural behavior is preserved by allowing animals to engage on their own schedule.
Track behavioral dynamics across days and weeks with stable conditions.
Autonomous engagement increases the number of trials per subject.
Minimal handling limits stress-related bias in behavioral readouts.
Richer within-subject datasets improve sensitivity and reproducibility.
BEATBox is an autonomous home-cage behavioral system that lets rodents live inside the experimental apparatus while continuously performing tasks.
By removing repeated handling, artificial session boundaries, and experimenter-driven timing, BEATBox is designed to preserve circadian rhythms, motivation, and long-term behavioral dynamics. The result is richer, more ecological data with higher reproducibility and lower animal stress.
Modular hardware with software-hardware co-design
V3 CAD render highlights
Controller boards, screens, and wiring details
In-lab recording
Short, real-life demo clip showing BEATBox in use.
Inline deck preview with a direct download link
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BEATBox hardware and software are fully open-source, enabling inspection, adaptation, and replication across labs.
Join a growing community of behavioral neuroscientists, method developers, and engineers shaping next-generation home-cage experimentation.
BEATBox is developed by the NERB team: Eric Burguiere, Lizbeth Mondragon-Gonzalez, Daniela Domingues. Learn more at nerb.team.
For the team: nerbmouse@gmail.com
Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon (CRNL), Located in: Centre Hospitalier Le Vinatier Address: CRNL - CH Le Vinatier - Bâtiment 462 - Neurocampus, 95 Bd Pinel, 69500 Bron
Project Lead and Vision
Scientific Conception and Contributions
Software & Firmware
Electronics
Mechanical Design
Documentation & Open Repository
Web Platform
Graphic Design
Validation & Beta Testing
*All versions included