Three‐dimensional‐printed tools to democratize global plant research

Abstract Numerous activities in the plant sciences require time‐consuming, repetitive actions that are ideal for automation, but existing tools to accomplish these types of tasks are often priced beyond the reach of many research labs, especially in low‐resource environments. We developed a suite of easy‐to‐use, three‐dimensional (3D)‐printable tools for seed handling, tissue collection, and bead dispensing. The designs were made using accessible software and tested for speed and accuracy across multiple crops. Compared to commercial and manual methods, the 3D‐printed tools were significantly faster with comparable or superior accuracy. Costs of printed tools were 0.1%–21% of commercial equivalents. All designs are freely available online and can be easily adjusted to suit different research needs or printer types. Inexpensive, open‐source hardware can meaningfully increase throughput, standardization, and reproducibility in plant research, especially for programs operating under budget constraints.