OpenScope

We are dedicated to making the OpenScope easy to assemble and use, even for the inexperienced user. We have put together a detailed instruction and compressed all 3d-printable designs into a single archive. For more help and troubleshooting - visit our Make Your Own page. There you can also find some helpful (and entertainig) videos. With these resources available, everyone will be able to build and use the OpenScope. In fact, we think putting together the OpenScope is a great engineering experience for beginners.

Learning Resources

Licensing Guide

As part of our Human Practices, "Open-Source Hardware: An iGEM Guide" is available as a starting point for future teams on the Hardware Track

Wiki Design Guide

Making a wiki look good can be difficult and time-consuming. Some suggestions, based on our own experience, are available here

3D Printing Guide

After three months of non-stop printing, we've become well acquainted with the ins-and-outs of the process. We've put together a troubleshooting guide for anyone who wants to use a 3D printer too

Programming the Arduino Guide

Want to learn to program Arduinos? As part of our outreach workshop, we introduced school students to the basics. The resources we made can be used by anyone

Filter Choice Modeling

Thinking of imaging a fluorescent protein? Download our Python script that helps you choose the most appropriate filters and mirrors for your microscope

Technical Specifications

Stage Drift Characterisation

Stage drift can affect time-lapse imaging. We analysed the drift of our microscope to asses its significance

Resolution Assessment

Detailed information on the calculations required to determine OpenScope's resolution can be found here

Translation Precision

Information on how the resolution of the translation stage was determined is provided here

Bill of Materials

A full Bill of Materials, including cost and source, is available for download here

Power Consumption Analysis

Calculating the battery life of our microscope required analysis of its power consumption. The details of this analysis are given here

Strength and Flexibility Testing

Three-point being tests were carried out to characterise the material properties of PLA. Information on the results is available here

Software

Github Repository

The full contents of our Github repository are available here

OpenScope Image

The NOOBSCOPE SD card image is available here. This gives you everything we've developed for OpenScope. Just click 'Install'

ImageJ Plug-In

OpenScope wouldn't be complete without a plug-in to your favourite microscopy software software. Download it here