Microscope Patents (Class 348/79)
  • Patent number: 8570370
    Abstract: Biological cells in a liquid suspension are counted in an automated cell counter that focuses an image of the suspension on a digital imaging sensor that contains at least 4,000,000 pixels each having an area of 2×2 ?m or less and that images a field of view of at least 3 mm2. The sensor enables the counter to compress the optical components into an optical path of less than 20 cm in height when arranged vertically with no changes in direction of the optical path as a whole, and the entire instrument has a footprint of less than 300 cm2. Activation of the light source, automated focusing of the sensor image, and digital cell counting are all initiated by the simple insertion of the sample holder into the instrument. The suspension is placed in a sample chamber in the form of a slide that is shaped to ensure proper orientation of the slide in the cell counter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2013
    Assignee: Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc.
    Inventors: Tom McCollum, Paul Patt, Frank Shen, Daniel Y. Chu, Don Flory, Mike Griffin, Xin Heng, Eli Hefner
  • Publication number: 20130278743
    Abstract: A method for analyzing porosity of a particle and a medium disposed in the porosity of the particle. A video-holographic microscope is provided to analyze interference patterns produced by providing a laser source to output a collimated beam, scattering the collimated beam off a particle and interacting with an unscattered beam to generate the interference pattern for analyzation to determine the refractive index of the particle and a medium disposed in the porosity of the particle to measure porosity and the medium.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 4, 2011
    Publication date: October 24, 2013
    Applicant: New York University
    Inventors: Fook Chiong Cheong, Ke Xiao, David Pine, David G. Grier
  • Publication number: 20130278742
    Abstract: Method for observing an emission of light from a sample in a medium of refractive index nL disposed against a surface of a transparent support of refractive index nS, greater than nL, the emission of light comprising luminous components oriented toward the support and forming an angle ? and including supercritical luminous components and critical or subcritical luminous components, implementing an observation device applying filters to the signal; and transforming the signal into an image zone of the sample Modulation of the signal is carried out, in which components of the emission of light are allowed to pass through so as to obtain image zones, the modulation pertaining to all or some of the collected signals; and at least one useful image zone of the sample is produced by combining image zones, the combination evidencing differences between the image zones related to the modulation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2011
    Publication date: October 24, 2013
    Applicant: Universite Paris Diderot- Paris 7
    Inventors: Emmanuel Fort, Sandrine Leveque Fort, Karla Balaa, Thomas Barocca
  • Publication number: 20130278726
    Abstract: A lens unit of an imaging unit features longitudinal chromatic aberration. From an imaged scene, an imaging sensor unit captures non-color-corrected first images of different spectral content. An intensity processing unit computes broadband luminance sharpness information from the first images on the basis of information descriptive for imaging properties of the lens unit. A chrominance processing unit computes chrominance information on the basis of the first images. A synthesizing unit combines the computed chrominance and luminance information to provide an output image having, for example, extended depth-of-field. The imaging unit may be provided in a camera system, a digital microscope, as examples.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 13, 2012
    Publication date: October 24, 2013
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Atif Muhammad, Muhammad Siddiqui, Christian Unruh, Markus Kamm
  • Publication number: 20130278744
    Abstract: A method and system for calibrating an optical device having a spatial optical modulator (6) and including: an optical lens (8) of a large numerical aperture, capable of receiving an incident beam and/or collecting an optical beam reflected by a sample; a camera (14) disposed in a plane optically conjugate with the focal plane of the lens (8); and a spatial optical modulator (6) disposed on the optical beam upstream of the camera (14). The method includes the following steps consisting in: acquiring three-dimensional images of the PSF in terms of intensity in a plane conjugate with the focal plane of the lens (8), reconstructing the profile in terms of amplitude and/or phase of the beam using a phase diversity algorithm, and determining the respective influence functions of a plurality of elements P1, . . . , PN of the spatial optical modulator (6) on the profile in terms of the amplitude A and/or phase ? of the beam.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 21, 2011
    Publication date: October 24, 2013
    Applicant: ECOLE POLYTECHNIQUE
    Inventors: Delphine Debarre, Thibault Vieille, Emmanuel Beaurepaire, Jean-Louis Martin
  • Patent number: 8564654
    Abstract: An image pick-up apparatus includes: a color imager having a color filter formed on a light receiving surface thereof; a monochrome imager not having a color filter formed on a light receiving surface thereof; a light guiding unit for guiding, to the color imager and/or the monochrome imager, light originating from a subject; and an image formation unit for forming an image from a signal based on an output from the color imager and/or the monochrome imager.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2013
    Assignee: Olympus Corporation
    Inventor: Tomoharu Ogihara
  • Publication number: 20130271594
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for computing focus information during scanning digital microscope slide data with a line scan camera. The systems and methods include a dynamically interleaved procedure that works by moving the specimen relative to the objective lens while the height of the objective lens is adjusted relative to the stage. Imagery data is acquired at a plurality of objective lens heights the image data from the objective lens height having maximum contrast is stored and combined into a composite digital image of at least a portion of the specimen.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 4, 2013
    Publication date: October 17, 2013
    Inventors: Allen Olson, Greg Crandall, Dirk G. Soenksen
  • Publication number: 20130271592
    Abstract: A wavefront is optimized imaging a sample. A binary off-axis hologram is encoded by selective adoption of states for each mirror of a deformable mirror device, which is illuminated with an incident beam of light. A single diffraction order that has encoded phase-mask information is selected from light reflected from the deformable mirror device and focused onto the sample. Light scattered from the sample is directed to a photodetector. A transmission matrix through the sample is calculated from light received by the photodetector.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 7, 2012
    Publication date: October 17, 2013
    Inventors: Rafael Piestun, Donald Conkey
  • Publication number: 20130271593
    Abstract: There is provided an image processing apparatus which can prevent the case where it is difficult to perform highly accurate diagnosis using combined boundary regions in a combined image. An image processing apparatus includes image data acquisition means, combined-image data generation means, and combined-boundary-region display data generation means. The image data acquisition means acquires multiple pieces of divided image data obtained by capturing images of multiple regions into which a captured area for an imaging target is divided. The combined-image data generation means generates combined-image data on the basis of the multiple divided image data. The combined-boundary-region display data generation means generates display image data to be used for an observer to recognize combined boundary regions in the combined-image data. The combined-boundary-region display data generation means changes at least one of a color and a brightness for all of the combined boundary regions included in a display area.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 4, 2013
    Publication date: October 17, 2013
    Inventors: Takuya Tsujimoto, Takao Tani
  • Publication number: 20130265406
    Abstract: A microscope system includes: a microscope that generates an observation image of a specimen; an image obtaining unit that obtains an RGB image of the specimen; a spectroscopic information obtaining unit that obtains spectroscopic information of the specimen; an analyzer that analyzes the RGB image; a determining unit that determines a necessity of obtaining the spectroscopic information based on a result of the analysis of the analyzer; and a control unit that controls an operation of the spectroscopic information obtaining unit based on a result of the determination of the determining unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 3, 2013
    Publication date: October 10, 2013
    Inventor: Masanori MITSUI
  • Publication number: 20130265405
    Abstract: Microscopy techniques may be used to visualize polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons where an optical microscope is combined with an imaging device. The combination of these devices allows for images to be produced when visualized in the near infrared spectrum, such as a wavelength ranging from about 700 nm to about 2500 nm to be passed through the optical microscope.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 25, 2013
    Publication date: October 10, 2013
    Applicant: Baker Hughes Incorporated
    Inventor: Marco Respini
  • Patent number: 8553143
    Abstract: A holography attachment device for a digital imaging device. The holography attachment device including a chamber having a proximate end configured to attach to the digital imaging device. A distal end of the chamber includes a wall. Also, the chamber includes a sample holder section located between the proximate end and the distal end. The sample holder section is configured to receive a sample. The chamber is configured to attach to the digital imaging device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2013
    Assignee: The Rockefeller University
    Inventors: Stanislas Leibler, Seppe Kuehn, Zak Frentz, Doeke Hekstra
  • Patent number: 8553140
    Abstract: An image acquisition apparatus includes: an imaging device on which an image of a small area allocated to an area to be imaged is formed; a detection section detecting intensity of light irradiated on the small area from a light source; an integration section integrating the intensity of light detected by the detection section; if an integration value of the intensity of light integrated by the integration section from a point in time when light is emitted from the light source is greater than a predetermined threshold value, a light-source control section terminates light emission; an exposure control section starting exposure of the imaging device before light is emitted from the light source and terminating exposure of the imaging device after emission of light from the light source is terminated; and an image acquisition section acquiring the image of the small area as a divided image from the imaging device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 2010
    Date of Patent: October 8, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Takamichi Yamakoshi, Koichiro Kishima
  • Publication number: 20130258091
    Abstract: A method and system of imaging a moving object within a microfluidic environment includes illuminating a first side of a flow cell configured to carry the moving object within a flow of carrier fluid with an illumination source emitting at least partially coherent light, the at least partially coherent light passing through an aperture prior to illuminating the flow cell. A plurality of lower resolution frame images of the moving object are acquired with an image sensor disposed on an opposing side of the flow cell, wherein the image sensor is angled relative to a direction of flow of the moving object within the carrier fluid. A higher resolution image is reconstructed of the moving object based at least in part on the plurality of lower resolution frame images.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 13, 2011
    Publication date: October 3, 2013
    Applicant: The Regents of the University of California
    Inventors: Aydogan Ozcan, Waheb Bishara
  • Publication number: 20130258090
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for recording images with a light microscope, wherein a specimen container with a specimen is arranged on a specimen holder of the light microscope, and wherein illuminating light is guided onto the specimen. The illuminating light can hereby be cut in a cross-section transversely to an optical axis of the light microscope through a wall of the specimen container to a limited cross-sectional region. First and second diaphragm settings are determined and set, for the limited cross-sectional region of the illuminating light defined by the wall of the specimen container, in which the diaphragm covers equal sized portions of the limited cross-sectional region. In addition the invention relates to a light microscope which is adapted in particular to carry out the method.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 26, 2013
    Publication date: October 3, 2013
    Applicant: Carl Zeiss Microscopy GmbH
    Inventors: Ralf Steinmeyer, Peter Schoen, Matthias Langhorst, Cornelia Bendlin
  • Patent number: 8547427
    Abstract: An illumination device and an observation system capable of outputting light having a continuous spectrum and high color rendering properties are provided. Employed is an illumination device including a first light source that emits first-wavelength-band light having a first wavelength band of violet color; a second light source that emits second-wavelength-band light having a second wavelength band that is broader than the first wavelength band and having a continuous spectrum; a light combining section that is composed of a dicroic mirror and that combines the first-wavelength-band light and the second-wavelength-band light; and a combination-ratio adjusting section that adjusts the combination ratio of the first-wavelength-band light and the second-wavelength-band light to be combined by the light combining section.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 1, 2013
    Assignee: Olympus Medical Systems Corp.
    Inventors: Kazunari Hanano, Takeshi Suga, Hirokazu Godo
  • Publication number: 20130250088
    Abstract: A confocal microscope, which comprises a light source for producing excitation light including a plurality of different spectral components; an optical device for providing the excitation light as a spectrally dispersed beam and outputting the different spectral components as a number of elongated beams an object holder for holding an object; an objective for focusing the elongated beams of light on the object as parallel, spaced-apart lines of excitation light corresponding to the different spectral components; and a detector for simultaneously detecting emission light produced by parallel lines emitted by the object due to its illumination by spaced apart parallel lines of the excitation light.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 22, 2012
    Publication date: September 26, 2013
    Applicant: MOLECULAR DEVICES, LLC
    Inventor: Yuri V. Osipchuk
  • Publication number: 20130250089
    Abstract: A device for establishing one or several recording regions from an image region is provided. The device includes a neighborhood determining unit for determining whether two objects of the image region are neighboring. Additionally, the device includes a graph set determining unit for determining a graph set such that the graph set includes one or several complete graphs, each element of the complete graph being neighboring to every other element of this complete graph. Furthermore, the device includes a selection set determining unit configured to add a complete graph to the selection set when one of the elements of an object set is included by precisely this one of the complete graphs of the graph set. In addition, the device includes a recording region determining unit for determining the one or several recording regions based on the complete graphs of the selection set.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 22, 2013
    Publication date: September 26, 2013
    Applicant: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.
    Inventor: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.
  • Publication number: 20130250090
    Abstract: A sufficient amount of biological molecules are collected from a desired region in a tissue section with a single operation. Provided is a method of preparing a biological specimen including a sectioning step of sectioning biological tissue along a single cutting plane; a staining step of staining a first tissue section of two tissue sections that have been sectioned in the sectioning step; a stained-image capturing step of acquiring a stained image of the stained tissue section; a non-stained-image capturing step of acquiring a non-stained image in which, with respect to a second tissue section that has been sectioned in the sectioning step, division lines that divide the tissue section into a plurality of segments are defined; and associating steps of associating the non-stained image and the stained image with each other.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 15, 2013
    Publication date: September 26, 2013
    Applicant: OLYMPUS CORPORATION
    Inventor: Nobuhiko Morimoto
  • Publication number: 20130252272
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for measuring the mobility of molecules in a sample are disclosed. Molecules in a sample are tagged with a dye having active and inactive states that are generated by exposing dye to light of an activation wavelength and an inactivation wavelength, respectively, the activation wavelength being different from the inactivation wavelength. The sample is illuminated in a microscope with a light pattern that includes a first region in which the dye is activated and a second adjacent region in which the first dye is inactivated. After the sample is so illuminated, an image of the activated first molecules is recorded when the first molecules are illuminated with light of an excitation wavelength. Molecules having the first dye in the inactive state are distinguishable from molecules having the first dye in the active state in the microscope when illuminated with light of the excitation wavelength.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 20, 2013
    Publication date: September 26, 2013
    Applicant: Agilent Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Manuel Moertelmaier
  • Patent number: 8542274
    Abstract: A wide field microscopic image acquisition apparatus and method are disclosed. The apparatus is configured to acquire images of a specimen on a microscope slide and includes first and second illuminators each having unique illumination characteristics. The apparatus includes a microscope imaging system with an imaging device, an objective lens and a stage configured to digitally acquire a plurality of images of the specimen using the first and second illuminators. A controller is configured to automatically control the microscope imaging system and acquire the plurality of images of the specimen using the first and second illuminators. The first and second illuminators can be bright field, dark field or fluorescent illuminators.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 24, 2013
    Assignee: Olympus America Inc.
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Kawano, Lorne D. Davies
  • Publication number: 20130242078
    Abstract: A microscope is provided. The microscope includes: a detection section for detecting the measurement light; a first image acquisition section emitting the visible light onto a detection surface to obtain an optical image; and a switch mirror or beam splitter disposed on a light path, along which the measurement light from the analysis position of the sample is guided to the detection section. The microscope further includes a second image acquisition section that is disposed in a position apart from the light path of the detection section for obtaining an optical image of a large area which includes the analysis position of the sample, wherein the optical image of the large area is larger than an optical image of an area, which includes the analysis position of the sample, obtained by the first image acquisition section.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 27, 2012
    Publication date: September 19, 2013
    Applicant: SHIMADZU CORPORATION
    Inventors: TAKESHI MAJI, TOMOKI SASAYAMA, KAZUMI YOKOTA
  • Patent number: 8538120
    Abstract: An image sensor integrated circuit may contain image sensor pixels. A channel containing a fluid with particles such as cells may be formed on top of the image sensor. Some of the image sensor pixels may form a calibration sensor and some of the image sensor pixels may form an imager. As the fluid and particles flow through the channel at a flow rate, the calibration sensor may measures the flow rate and illumination intensity in the channel. Based on calibration data such as measured flow rate and measured illumination intensity, adjustments may be made to ensure that the imager acquires satisfactory image data. The adjustments may include flow rate adjustments, image acquisition data rate adjustments, and illumination adjustments. A processing unit in the channel may contain a laser or other component to destroy selected cells. A flared region in the channel may be used as a chromatograph.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2013
    Assignee: Aptina Imaging Corporation
    Inventors: Kenneth Edward Salsman, Ulrich Boettiger, Dmitry Bakin, Curtis W. Stith
  • Patent number: 8537213
    Abstract: A method for measuring a via bottom profile is disclosed for obtaining a profile of a bottom of a via in a front side of a substrate. In this method, an infrared (IR) light source is transmitted from the back of the substrate to the bottom of the via through an objective by using an IR-microscope, and lights scattered from the bottom of the via are acquired by an image capturing device to generate an image, where the image displays a diameter (2Ea) of the via bottom profile and a diameter (2Ec) of a maximum receivable base area of the via for the IR-microscope. Thereafter, by using an elliptic equation, a minor axis radius thereof (Eb) is obtained, and thus the via bottom profile is obtained from a radius (Ea) of the via bottom profile and the minor axis radius (Eb) of the elliptic equation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2013
    Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
    Inventors: Deh-Ming Shyu, Yi-Sha Ku, Wei-Te Hsu
  • Publication number: 20130235180
    Abstract: An imaging apparatus is disclosed which uses a super-oscillatory lens to obtain sub-diffraction limit resolution. The super-oscillatory lens is arranged to receive a light beam from a light source, the lens having a pre-defined pattern to spatially modulate the light beam in amplitude and/or phase so that it focuses the light beam to a focus at a first focal point having a full width half maximum of less than half the wavelength. Collection optical elements are arranged to focus the first focal point to a second focal point conjugate to the first focal point. An object for imaging is scanned over the first focal point and a detector is arranged to collect light from a collection region centered on the second focal point.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 8, 2012
    Publication date: September 12, 2013
    Inventors: Edward Thomas Foss Rogers, Nikolay Ivanovich Zheludev, John E. Chad
  • Publication number: 20130234019
    Abstract: In order to provide a technique for performing global alignment (detecting position shift and rotation of a wafer) stably and automatically using an optical microscope, as a pattern for global alignment, multiple alignment pattern candidates are calculated (107), multiple data for matching are created for each alignment pattern (108), matching is performed with respect to the data for matching for each alignment pattern in descending order of appropriateness as an alignment pattern with an image (113) based on an image signal from the optical microscope (114), and the amount of position shift and the amount of rotation of the wafer are calculated (116) on the basis of the results of matching (115).
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 22, 2011
    Publication date: September 12, 2013
    Inventors: Atsushi Miyamoto, Naoki Hosoya, Toshikazu Kawahara, Akihiro Onizawa
  • Publication number: 20130235181
    Abstract: An information processing apparatus includes an acquisition section and a correction section. The acquisition section acquires information of lightness distribution of a first image captured by an imaging section capable of capturing an image of an observed area provided on an optical path of an optical system of an optical microscope, the image of the observed area being obtained by the optical microscope, the first image being an image of the observed area in a state where no sample is placed therein, the lightness distribution resulting from the optical system of the optical microscope. The correction section corrects, based on the information of lightness distribution acquired by the acquisition section, lightness unevenness of a second image captured by the imaging section, the second image being an image of the observed area in a state where the sample is placed therein.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 23, 2013
    Publication date: September 12, 2013
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Junichi Sakagami, Nobuhiro Kihara
  • Publication number: 20130222569
    Abstract: An imaging apparatus includes: an illumination optical system including a light source and guiding the light from the light source to an illuminated surface B including an object; a plurality of image sensors for acquiring an image of the illuminated surface formed by an imaging optical system; a measurement unit for measuring a size of the object; and a control unit for determining an image sensor to be used when acquiring the image of the illuminated surface, among the plurality of image sensors, based on a measurement result of the measurement unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 17, 2011
    Publication date: August 29, 2013
    Inventors: Tomoaki Kawakami, Toshihiko Tsuji
  • Publication number: 20130222568
    Abstract: A method for light-microscopy imaging of a sample structure (2, 34) is described, having the following steps: preparing the sample structure (2, 34) with markers that are transferrable into a state imageable by light microscopy, generating a sequence of individual-image data sets by sequential imaging of the sample structure (2, 34), in such a way that for each image, only a subset of the totality of the markers is in each case transferred into the state imageable by light microscopy, the markers of the respective subset having an average spacing from one another which is greater than the resolution limit of light-microscopy imaging which determines the extent of a light distribution representing one of the respectively imaged markers, generating at least two data blocks in which multiple successive individual-image data sets are respectively combined, superposing the individual-image data sets contained in the respective data block to yield a superposed-image data set, identifying an image offset between
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 27, 2011
    Publication date: August 29, 2013
    Applicant: Leica Microsystems CMS GmbH
    Inventors: Marcus Dyba, Volker Seyfried
  • Publication number: 20130222567
    Abstract: A method for wavelength-selective and high spatial resolving fluorescence microscopy. In a specimen fluorescence emitters are repeatedly excited and specimen frames are produced with a microscope. The fluorescence emitters are excited to emit fluorescence radiation such that at least a sub-set is isolated in each frame and the positions of the isolated fluorescence emitters are localized with a localization precision exceeding the optical resolution and a high-resolution complete image is produced.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 30, 2013
    Publication date: August 29, 2013
    Applicant: Carl Zeiss Microscopy GmbH
    Inventor: Carl Zeiss Microscopy GmbH
  • Publication number: 20130222547
    Abstract: The present invention extends on-chip lensless microscope systems (10), including optofluidic microscope (OFMs) and holographic imaging microscopes to incorporate computational photography principles. A LF-OFM system 10 includes at least one plasmonic lens (50) with apertures (38), at least one microfluidic channel (28), and an image sensor array (24). The system (10) is capable of generating an image through computational photography.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 6, 2011
    Publication date: August 29, 2013
    Inventors: Pieter Van Rooyen, Suzanne Hugo
  • Publication number: 20130217065
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method in the preparation of samples for microscopic examination onto which a coverslip is applied. The method is notable for the fact that the coverslipping quality is checked automatically and at least partly optically. The invention further relates to an apparatus for carrying out the method, and to an apparatus for checking the coverslipping quality of samples onto which a coverslip is applied.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 19, 2013
    Publication date: August 22, 2013
    Applicant: LEICA BIOSYSTEMS NUSSLOCH GMBH
    Inventor: LEICA BIOSYSTEMS NUSSLOCH GMBH
  • Publication number: 20130215252
    Abstract: A microscope unit positioned in a culturing space for imaging cells or tissues also located therein. The microscope unit has a frame, an object holder provided on the frame and allowing the cells or tissues to be held substantially immobile during a culturing period, an imaging device arranged on the frame for the optical imaging of the cells or tissues held on the object holder and an image capturing device for capturing an image projected by the imaging device. A connection leading out of the culturing space provides electrical power to the microscope unit and is adapted to be connected to a control unit and, in turn, a processor, both located outside of the culturing space. The invention also relates to a method for monitoring cells or tissues located in the culturing space and transmitting the image thereof.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Publication date: August 22, 2013
    Applicant: Cryo-Innovation Kft.
    Inventors: Csaba Pribenszky, Miklós Molnár
  • Publication number: 20130215251
    Abstract: An imaging apparatus includes: a first imaging area setting unit configured to divide an imaging range that includes a sample into a plurality of areas and set each of the plurality of areas as a first imaging area; a first imaging unit configured to capture a first image at an in-focus position of the first imaging area; a second imaging area setting unit configured to set an area that extends over adjacent first imaging areas as a second imaging area in a case where in-focus positions of the adjacent first imaging areas are so different from each other that the difference exceeds a predetermined value; a second imaging unit configured to capture a second image at an in-focus position of the second imaging area; and an image combining unit configured to combine the first image with the second image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 31, 2013
    Publication date: August 22, 2013
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventor: Sony Corporation
  • Patent number: 8508589
    Abstract: Imaging systems and methods for generating images of a sample wherein the system comprises an illumination source for illuminating the sample; an image viewing subsystem for capturing images from the sample; one or more liquid crystal panels and one or more birefringent elements, which are positioned between the sample and the image viewing subsystem, so that the images from the sample pass through the liquid crystal panels and the birefringent elements before reaching the image viewing subsystem; a device that changes one or more polarization states of the liquid crystal panels; and a controller that is configured to cause the device to change the polarization states of the liquid crystal panels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2013
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Kevin George Harding, Robert John Filkins, Gil Abramovich
  • Patent number: 8508588
    Abstract: The present invention is directed to method and system for image processing of test wells on a microplates wherein the microplates' test well wall boundaries are identified through the use of a candidate edge image wherein the candidate edge image represents locations of one or more segments of the wall boundaries.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2013
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Musodiq Olatayo Bello, Jens Rittscher, Bikash Chandra Mahato, Ahmad Yekta, Jilin Tu, Ying Li
  • Patent number: 8508587
    Abstract: The present invention provides an imaging device capable of displaying the whole of a display mosaic image in a screen even when the image size of the mosaic image is largely changed, the imaging device including: a mosaic image generation unit which assembles a plurality of still images, and generates the mosaic image; a relative position determination unit which determines a relative position between a frame image and the mosaic image; a display reduction unit which reduces the frame image and the mosaic image respectively based on the image size of the mosaic image, and generates a display frame image and a display mosaic image; and a live image display unit which updates a display position of the frame image with respect to the mosaic image based on a determination result of the relative position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2009
    Date of Patent: August 13, 2013
    Assignee: Keyence Corporation
    Inventor: Woobum Kang
  • Publication number: 20130201321
    Abstract: Disclosed is a method for testing a light-emitting device comprising the steps of: providing an integrating sphere comprising an inlet port and a first exit port; disposing the light-emitting device close to the inlet port of the integrating sphere; providing a current source to drive the light-emitting device to form an image of the light-emitting device in driven state; providing an image receiving device and to receive the image of the light-emitting device, wherein the image receiving device is connected to the first exit port of the integrating sphere; and determining a luminous intensity of the light-emitting device according to the image. An apparatus for testing a light-emitting device is also disclosed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 15, 2013
    Publication date: August 8, 2013
    Inventor: Epistar Corporation
  • Patent number: 8502867
    Abstract: A synthetic aperture optics (SAO) imaging method minimizes the number of selective excitation patterns used to illuminate the imaging target, based on the objects' physical characteristics corresponding to spatial frequency content from the illuminated target and/or one or more parameters of the optical imaging system used for SAO. With the minimized number of selective excitation patterns, the time required to perform SAO is reduced dramatically, thereby allowing SAO to be used with DNA sequencing applications that require massive parallelization for cost reduction and high throughput. In addition, an SAO apparatus optimized to perform the SAO method is provided. The SAO apparatus includes a plurality of interference pattern generation modules that can be arranged in a half-ring shape.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2013
    Assignee: LightSpeed Genomics, Inc.
    Inventor: Jong Buhm Park
  • Publication number: 20130194410
    Abstract: A method for determining cell occupancy, confluency and cell migration in a cell culture, comprising receiving data related to pixel intensity in an image acquired of the cell culture, and distinguishing between cell concentrations in different locations in the cell culture by detecting variations in pixel intensity between multi pixel locations.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Publication date: August 1, 2013
    Applicant: Ramot at Tel-Aviv University Ltd.
    Inventor: Ramot at Tel-Aviv University Ltd.
  • Publication number: 20130194409
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an attachment module (100) for a surgical microscope (10), the attachment module (100) being insertable into a main optical path between an objective (11) of the surgical microscope and an object (O) being observed, and including: a multi-photon fluoroscope (110) including a light source (111) for emitting excitation light, a scanning device (112) for directing the excitation light onto the object (O), and a detector (113) for detecting fluorescent light emitted from the object (O); and input coupling optics (120) for reflecting the excitation light from the scanning device onto the object (O).
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 25, 2013
    Publication date: August 1, 2013
    Applicant: Leica Microsystems (Schweiz) AG
    Inventor: Leica Microsystems (Schweiz) AG
  • Patent number: 8497899
    Abstract: A biological sample image acquiring apparatus includes: a sample stage on which a biological sample is placed and which can move in a direction; an objective lens magnifying a region of the biological sample; an imaging device imaging the region magnified by the objective lens; a stage on which the imaging device or the objective lens is placed and which can move in a corresponding direction of the direction; a first moving mechanism moving the sample stage so that a target region of the biological sample is located at an imaging range; a second moving mechanism moving the stage in the corresponding direction at a movement speed obtained by multiplying a movement speed of the sample stage by a magnification of the objective lens; and an imaging controller starting the exposure of the imaging device before the sample stage moved by the first moving means is stopped.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 30, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Koichiro Kishima
  • Publication number: 20130188033
    Abstract: A recording medium having an observation program recorded therein, the program may cause a computer to execute: an entire-image-pickup process of picking up an image of a sample by picking up an image of an entire container containing the sample and a solution; a sample-mass-identification process of identifying a sample mass having the samples gathering therein, from the image picked up in the entire image-pickup process; a sample-mass-determination process of extracting shape information of the identified sample mass, and determining a state of the sample mass based on the shape information; a coordinate-detection process of selecting a magnifying-observation-target sample mass from the identified sample masses, and detecting coordinates of the center of the magnifying-observation-target sample mass.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 28, 2012
    Publication date: July 25, 2013
    Applicant: SANYO ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.
  • Publication number: 20130188035
    Abstract: This disclosure is directed to optical microscope calibration devices that can be used with optical microscopes to adjust the microscope imaging parameters so that images of samples can be obtained below the diffraction limit. The microscope calibration devices include at least one calibration target. Each calibration target includes a number of features with dimensions below the diffraction limit of a microscope objective. Separate color component diffraction limited images of one of the calibration targets are obtained for a particular magnification. The color component images can be combined and image processed to obtain a focused and non-distorted image of the calibration target. The parameters used to obtain the focused and non-distorted image of the calibration target can be used to obtain focused and non-distorted images of a sample for the same magnification by using the same parameters.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 29, 2011
    Publication date: July 25, 2013
    Applicant: APPLIED PRECISION ,INC.
    Inventor: Paul C. Goodwin
  • Publication number: 20130188034
    Abstract: An IR microscope (1) is constituted such that, in an optical viewing mode in a beam path of visible light (VIS-R, VIS-T), a first intermediate focus (ZW1) is imaged onto a flat detector surface (15a) of a camera. The IR microscope (1) is constituted such that, in the beam path of the visible light (VIS-R, VIS-T), the first intermediate focus (ZW1) is imaged onto a second intermediate focus (ZW2), and, in the second intermediate focus (ZW2), a Mangin mirror (11) is disposed that corrects a field curvature of the Cassegrain objective (4). The invention provides an IR microscope in which the field curvature generated by the Cassegrain objective is corrected in a simple manner in the optical viewing mode when detection is performed using a flat detector and without restricting the spectral range of the IR microscope.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 17, 2013
    Publication date: July 25, 2013
    Applicant: Bruker Optik GmbH
    Inventor: Bruker Optik GmbH
  • Patent number: 8494671
    Abstract: The invention relates to a grinding machine for grinding a workpiece, which has been set on a chuck top surface, by moving a rotating grinding wheel in relation to the workpiece. The grinding machine includes: a microscope configured to be vertically movable; a CCD camera configured to take an image viewed through the microscope; and an image processor configured to process the image taken by the CCD camera to measure a vertical distance between a reference plane of the microscope and an object of the microscope. The image processor is adapted to measure the vertical distance between the reference plane of the microscope and the object of the microscope based on sharpness of the image, which corresponds to how clear the microscope is focused.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2013
    Assignee: Toshiba Kakai Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takanobu Akiyama, Hiroyuki Kakishima
  • Publication number: 20130182096
    Abstract: According to a first aspect, the invention relates to a multimodal optical sectioning microscope (200, 400, 600) for full-field imaging of a volumic and scattering sample comprising:—a full-field OCT system for providing an image of a first section in depth of the sample comprising an illumination sub-system (201, 401, 601) and a full-field imaging interferometer with a detection sub system (208, 408, 608) and an optical conjugation device for optically conjugating the sample and said detection sub system, wherein said optical conjugation device comprises a microscope objective (203, 403, 603),—a supplementary full-field optical sectioning imaging system for providing a fluorescent image of a second section in depth of said sample comprising a structured illumination microscope with an illumination sub system (623), means (421, 422) for generating at the focal plane of said microscope objective of said full-field imaging interferometer a variable spatial pattern illumination and a detection sub system (624),
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 19, 2011
    Publication date: July 18, 2013
    Applicant: LLTECH MANAGEMENT
    Inventors: Albert Claude Boccara, Fabrice Harms, Bertrand Le Conte Chrestien De Poly
  • Patent number: 8487989
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an image stabilization device which is particularly space-efficient and has a quick response time, and which is integrated into an image capture device for an image capture system of a surgical microscope, including a carrier substrate (101, 102) defining a sensor plane, a plurality of optoelectronic image capturing cells (110) arranged, in particular, in a matrix array; and at least one moving means (120) for moving the optoelectronic image capturing cells (110) relative to the carrier substrate (101, 102).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 16, 2013
    Assignee: Leica Microsystems (Schweiz) AG
    Inventor: Ulrich Sander
  • Publication number: 20130169787
    Abstract: The image processing device 10 includes a template preparation unit 15 for preparing, from a template included in pixels of M rows and M columns (M is an integer not less than 3) corresponding to a molecular model, a partial template corresponding to a shape for which a shape of the molecular model is divided, an evaluation value calculation unit 17 for evaluating, in the optical image, by use of the partial template, matching between the optical image and the partial template to calculate an evaluation value for every plurality of the attention pixels, and a molecular location identification unit 18 for identifying the molecular location in the optical image based on the evaluation value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 26, 2012
    Publication date: July 4, 2013
    Applicant: HAMAMATSU PHOTONICS K.K.
    Inventor: HAMAMATSU PHOTONICS K.K.
  • Publication number: 20130169788
    Abstract: A microscope 1 includes an illumination device 10 for illuminating a object 30, an optical system 40 for forming an image of the object 30, and an imaging device 50 for capturing the image of the object 30. The imaging device 50 includes a plurality of imaging units. Each of the imaging units includes an image sensor and a movement mechanism for moving the image sensor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 11, 2011
    Publication date: July 4, 2013
    Applicant: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Toshihiko Tsuji, Hirofumi Fujii, Shun Mochizuki