Topic · 28 posts
Device automation
28 posts on Device automation, 2008–2026, newest first.
Device automation posts, newest first
- 15 Apr2026
Starlyte Nebula Now Supports Opto Gmbh Microsocpes
Thomas Spieker from Opto Gmbh was kind enough to send us a demo assembly of several microscopes made by his company. Opto manufactures a series of highly integrated microscope modules, all provided in a small, integrated form factor. I was…
CameraDevice automationNebula1 min read
- 24 Feb2026
Starlyte Nebula Adds Drag+Drop Merge Captures
Tool simplifies manual capture We had a recent customer asking to solve a rather standard but annoying problem. If I have a manual filter turret, and still want to overlay images, how easy is it to do? To solve this, we added the ability…
CameraDevice automationNebula1 min read
- 15 Oct2025
Nikon Ti-E EPI Filter Wheel
What to look for and how to replace the drive gear The Venerable Nikon Ti-E remains in service in research labs all over the world. One of the first autofocus-enabled instruments deployed with the integrated PFS, there isn’t much to ask…
Device automationMicroscopesNikon1 min read
- 28 Nov2017
ARCLED 8 Channel LED Engine
I’m happy to announce a new product made by ARC. Over the years I’ve worked with a large number of illuminators, from mercury excitation lamps to laser combiners. I’ve tried to combine the best traits of a light source into this device…
Device automation1 min read - 16 Jun2017
DIY Syringe Pump
Interesting little project. Not sure the money pans out considering how much time it would take to build, but if one wanted to learn mechanical control, this would be a good way to dive in! https://www.drdflo.com/syringe
ArduinoDevice automation1 min read - 13 Jun2017
Cooling a Pt Grey Camera
I’ve been working with Pt Grey (now FLIR) cameras for a few years now, and one nagging question in the back of my mind has been whether or not it is possible to cool them via external means. There are basically 3 categories of cooling when…
Device automationOpticssCMOS4 min read - 02 Nov2016
Data Logging in the Cloud
I’ve been working on a project which requires data logging from a mobile device over several days. I came across a neat site which supports simple uploading and view/export of data, from numerous sources. It’s called thingspeak.com. Once…
Device automation1 min read - 28 Feb2016
A serial monitor that works in Win7x64!
David Biggs at KB Imaging LLC put me onto this serial monitoring software, called SUDT Accessport . I’ve used it a bit for some work on the triggerscope, and it works very well! You can watch data transmitted between USB emulated serial…
ArduinoDevice automation1 min read
- 15 Jan2016
How to use external triggers on scientific and industrial cameras
Controlling a camera from an external trigger can be very useful. External triggering provides greater timing accuracy, direct control over exposure duration, and remote operation from TTL devices. This is a prime reason I made the…
ArduinoDevice automationImaging5 min read
- 17 Sep2015
Acquisition Speed Comparison of MetaMorph, NIS Elements, Micro-Manager
How fast can a typical imaging system really run? What factors affect this? While most research might not require rapid sequential capture, almost all experiments can benefiet from tight exposure/illumination timing, yet few microscope…
ArduinoDevice automationNIS-Elements3 min read
- 23 Aug2015
Sub $2 microcontroller solution
I’ve been working with Arduino boards a lot lately, and they are great. But some elements of the arduino can be even better. What is an Arduino? An Arduino is a breakout board for the Atmel “ATMega” series of microcontrollers. These…
ArduinoDevice automationProgramming2 min read
- 29 Jul2015
Countdown to a Revolution in Microscopy – Day 3
Every so often I will get the chance to cook up some code for one of the usual software scope control packages. But these days, I spend most of my time in programs like Fusion360, Fritzing, and the like. So I guess this is how I feel when…
Device automationImagingMicroscopes2 min read
- 02 Mar2012
Nikon nSIM wins #5 in TheScientist’s 2011 Best and Brightest
Here’s a short video review of the top 10 innovations in 2011. Some really cool technology here! Top 10 Innovations of 2011 from thescientistllc on Vimeo.
Device automationImagingNikon1 min read - 07 Nov2011
The CNC Machine is done!
So after 6 months of watching the guys at mydiycnc complete their manual, and roughly 4 months of building, I’m happy to post that I’ve finished the machine. I’ve written an extensive post on the last few days of building, on the build log…
Device automationProgramming1 min read
- 02 Sep2011
Lumencor Sola Driver for NIS Elements
Yesterday we received our first shipment of Sola white light LED driven sources for microscopy. I had a chance to snag one and write a driver for it. Price is $300 USD. The driver controls both the shuttering and ND on the box, and…
Device automationNIS-ElementsMacros1 min read
- 05 Jul2011
How to Align a Dualview 2
Walking through the alignment procedure of the DV 2, narrated by Jeff Harris from Photometrics . Great video and great explanation Jeff! For those of you who have a DualView, I’m certain this video will come in handy…
Device automationImagingPhotometrics1 min read - 23 May2011
Acquisition crashes, and power settings in Win7
Windows 7 has a new power management interface, and the design of modern motherboards, along with win7 Automatic Power Management (APM), can cause some insidious device-based software crashes if power options aren’t set correctly. Here’s…
Device automationNIS-ElementsImageJ1 min read
- 29 Apr2011
Voltage output from NIS Elements, MetaMorph or uManager for under $200
I posted briefly about this a while back, in my explanation of the demise of the parallel port. I finally got my hands on a National Instruments USB-6008 box, and have found the unit to be 100% compatible with any NI-DAQ controlling…
Device automationNIS-ElementsImageJ2 min read
- 29 Apr2011
ASI MS-2000 Flat Top Stage
Apparently ASI has had a flat top variant of it’s MS-2000 stage available for a while now. News to me! If it’s anything like the current stages they sell I’m sure it’ll be a frequently recommended product from me. – Austin
ASI StageDevice automation1 min read - 08 Apr2011
Nikon DS U3 Series Controller Install Guide
The new Nikon controllers for DS Series Cameras run on Firewire. As with other firewire adapted imaging cameras, there are numerous small issues to awtch out for during the setup and operation process. Once they are up and running, they…
Device automationDS CamerasNIS-Elements1 min read - 25 Mar2011
Photometrics LVDS cards on Win7
I recently slogged through a tough install with a customer (Thanks Sean!!) in an attempt to run an older Photometrics camera using a PCI card in windows 7/xp. What we found was that the latest driver, (as of this post v. 2,7,10) is not…
Device automationImagingPhotometrics1 min read
- 11 Feb2011
*UPDATED* Micro-Manager Tethered to a Nikon Digital SLR
***UPDATE 3/3/2014*** After a few requests for a report on x64 capability using this tethering technique, I tried installing the NK Remote software on a rather fresh copy of Windows 7×64 – it did not communicate with the camera at all. On…
Device automationDSLR CamerasNIS-Elements3 min read
- 07 Dec2010
Parallel ports wont work in 64bit windows!
After speaking with several software vendors I’ve learned that win 7 64 bit will not operate a parallel port with any device automation software. So gone is the ttl access needed for so many of our devices! Fortunately there are low cost…
Device automation1 min read - 27 Aug2010
Instensity Calibration using a Photostable Light Source
I’m very excited to announce Technical Instruments’ first ever camera-specific calibration product! At left is an image of the CC-560, or Camera calibrator, which emits photons at 560nm. All of the cameras in the microscopy world rely upon…
Device automationImagingNikon3 min read
- 16 Jul2010
SLR cameras for Microscopy
Most of the time, I work with people who need measurable and accurate (quantitative) results from the images they obtain. While this constitutes the bulk of my daily job, there is a much larger group of people using cameras on microscopes…
Device automationDSLR CamerasImaging4 min read - 05 Mar2010
Micro-Manager 1.3 and Velleman Boards
If you are running micro manager and need to control a device via TTL or voltage, there is a nice driver written for umanager along with an inexpensive A/D card. The Card I used for a recent project was the Velleman K-8061. I’ve written up…
Device automationProgramming1 min read - 21 Sep2009
Elements 3.1 Released
Nikon has released it’s major revision of Elements in version 3.1. (Build 587). There are several new features in this build and from what i’ve seen it’s quite stable. You can download the build here. – Austin
Device automationNIS-ElementsNikon1 min read - 14 Nov2008
What can programming macros do for me?
I’ve been running into a lot of programming applications lately. The fun part about using the Elements (or other) programming system is the amount of utility and flexibility it can offer to end users. Most people think about programming in…
Device automationNIS-ElementsMacros2 min read