Authors:
Gustavo Lelis da Silva
1
;
Jorge Stolfi
1
and
Helena Cristina da Gama Leitão
2
Affiliations:
1
State University of Campinas (UNICAMP), Campinas, SP, Brazil
;
2
Federal Fluminense University (UFF) Niteroi, RJ, Brazil
Keyword(s):
Optical Microscopy, 3D Printing, Multi-focus Stereo, Photometric Stereo, Arduino.
Abstract:
Multifocal microscopy is an established technique to combine several reflected-light microscopy images of an object, each with a limited depth of focus, into a single image that shows the whole object in focus. Photometric stereo is an independent technique to recover the third dimension of an opaque object, given several images taken from the same viewpoint with different illumination conditions. We describe a low-cost motorized positioning device for the automatic acquisition of multiple reflected-light low-power microscope images of an object for combined multifocal and photometric stereo capture of millimeter-scale objects. The device automatically varies the microscope-to-object distance and the light direction, under control of an Arduino microcontroller. The device consists of a supporting frame, a microscope holder with motorized vertical displacement, an illumination stage with multiple light sources, and control electronics. The mechanical and structural parts are largely 3
D-printed. The electronics is based on the Arduino microcontroller. The device is driven through an USB cable by a Python program that runs on a PC.
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