Method for operating a microscopy arrangement and microscopy arrangement having a first microscope and at least one further microscope

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10775601-B2
Application number	US-201816103013-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 14, 2018
Priority date	Aug 15, 2017
Publication date	Sep 15, 2020
Grant date	Sep 15, 2020

Abstract

A method for operating a microscopy arrangement, and a microscopy arrangement, having a first microscope and at least one further microscope, wherein each of the microscopes have a respective optical axis. The respective optical axes do not coincide. The method provides a three-dimensional reference coordinate system being set; a carrier apparatus, that is embodied in the arrangement to receive and hold a specimen carrier is introduced into a specimen plane of the first microscope that is intersected by the optical axis and onto the optical axis of the first microscope; a reference point is set on the optical axis of the first microscope; the carrier apparatus is delivered to the further microscope, wherein the current coordinates of the reference point are continuously captured and compared to the coordinates of the optical axis of the at least one further microscope; and the reference point is brought onto the optical axis of the at least one further microscope.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. Method for operating a microscopy arrangement having a first microscope and at least one further microscope, wherein each of the first and at least one further microscopes has an optical axis, said optical axis of the respective first and at least one further microscopes do not coincide, comprising:
(A) setting a three-dimensional reference coordinate system in which the coordinates of the extent of the optical axis of the first microscope (hereinafter sometimes also referred to as the “first optical axis”) and the coordinates of the extent of said optical axis of said at least one further microscope (hereinafter sometimes also referred to as the “further optical axis”) are known or established and serve as reference axes,
(B) introducing a carrier apparatus, that is embodied in said arrangement to receive and hold a specimen carrier, into a specimen plane of the first microscope that is intersected by the first optical axis and onto the first optical axis,
(C) setting a reference point that coincides with the first optical axis and establishing coordinates of the reference point,
(D) delivering said carrier apparatus to the at least one further microscope, wherein the current coordinates of said reference point are continuously captured and compared to the coordinates of the optical axis of the further microscope, whereby a continuous capture of coordinates is provided at a frequency of several captures per second, whereby said frequency is chosen and adapted depending on a displacement speed of the carrier apparatus,
(E) generating control commands depending on the differences, established by means of the comparison, between the current coordinates of the reference point and the coordinates of the optical axis of the further microscope, and
(F) controlling the further delivery movement of the carrier apparatus by means of the control commands such that the carrier apparatus is positioned in such a way that the reference point coincides with the further optical axis.

2. Method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
comparing the coordinates of the reference point in step D to setpoint coordinates of a target point to be targeted on the optical axis of the further microscope;
generating control commands in step E depending on the differences, established by means of the comparison, between the current coordinates of the reference point and the coordinates of the target point; and
controlling the further delivery movement of the carrier apparatus in step F by means of the control commands such that the carrier apparatus is positioned in such a way that the reference point coincides with the target point.

3. Method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
capturing image data of an object region and the reference point is set within the captured object region in step C, wherein the coordinates of the object region are known or established and stored, and
capturing image data of a further object region by means of the further microscope after step F, wherein the reference point lies in the further object region.

4. Method according to claim 3 , further comprising:
focusing said first and said at least one further microscope used to capture images along their respective optical axis before or during the capture of the image data.

5. Microscopy arrangement comprising:
a first microscope and at least one further microscope, wherein each of said microscopes has an optical axis and said optical axis of the respective first and at least one further microscope do not coincide,
a carrier apparatus that is embodied in said arrangement to receive and hold a specimen carrier,
coordinate measuring apparatuses, by means of which current coordinates of the carrier apparatus are continuously captured or capturable,
a computer unit embodied in said arrangement to set up a three-dimensional reference coordinate system, in which the coordinates of the extent of the optical axis of the first microscope (hereinafter sometimes also referred to as the “first optical axis”) and the coordinates of the extent of the optical axis of the at least one further microscope (hereinafter sometimes also referred to as the “further optical axis”) are known and stored or in which the coordinates of the extent of the optical axis of the first microscope established by means of at least one said present coordinate measuring apparatus and the coordinates of the extent of the further optical axis of the at least one further microscope are stored and serve as reference axis,
a transporting apparatus, which is embodied in said arrangement to deliver the carrier apparatus to one of the said optical axes,
said computer unit configured to compare current coordinates of the carrier apparatus captured by means of the coordinate measuring apparatuses to coordinates of the optical axis of the at least one further microscope, wherein the comparison is effected between coordinates of a reference point set on the optical axis of the first microscope and the coordinates of the optical axis of the at least one further microscope, wherein continuous capture of coordinates is provided at a frequency of several captures per second, and wherein said frequency is chosen and adapted depending on a displacement speed of the carrier apparatus,
a control unit for producing control commands depending on the differences, established by means of the comparison, between the current coordinates of the reference point and the coordinates of the further optical axis and for controlling the delivery movement of the carrier apparatus depending on the control commands such that the carrier apparatus is positioned in such a way that the reference point coincides with the further optical axis.

6. Microscopy arrangement according to claim 5 , wherein
said first microscope and/or the at least one further microscope each have an illumination objective and a detection objective, the respective optical axes of which are perpendicular to one another and directed into a specimen plane, in which a specimen is arranged or arrangeable,
the illumination objective being configured to produce a light sheet that intersects the specimen plane, and
said first optical axis and the illumination axis in each case include an angle that differs from zero with the specimen plane and a normal of the specimen plane.

7. Microscopy arrangement according to claim 6 , wherein
the illumination objective and the detection objective are arranged in inverted fashion such that the optical axes thereof are directed or directable through a specimen carrier onto the specimen plane.

Assignees

• Zeiss Carl Microscopy Gmbh

Inventors

• Kalkbrenner Thomas
• Pergande Saskia
• Siebenmorgen Jörg
• Lippert Helmut

Classifications

• G02B21/365 Primary

  Control or image processing arrangements for digital or video microscopes (G02B21/361, G02B21/362 take precedence) · CPC title

• G02B21/26 Primary

  Stages; Adjusting means therefor · CPC title

• G02B21/18 Primary

  Arrangements with more than one light path, e.g. for comparing two specimens · CPC title

• G01B9/04

  Measuring microscopes · CPC title