October 2013 Axiocam 105 color Installation + Reference – 10.
Carl Zeiss draws the User's attention to the fact that the information and references contained in these documents may be subject to technical modifications, in particular due to the continuous further development of Carl Zeiss's products. The documents enclosed do not contain any warranty by Carl Zeiss with regard to the technical processes described in the documentation or to certain reproduced product characteristics.
Notice from the Producer The referenced Software of Carl Zeiss ("Zeiss Software"), contained in this documentation, was designed, realized, verified, validated and released in a certificated process environment. The quality management system is certified following DIN EN ISO 9001. The fields of application of the Software are common tasks and applications in microscopy and/or imaging (so called "Off-The-Shelf Software").
Disposal and Recycling This product has been developed, tested and manufactured in accordance with the applicable environmental provisions and directives of the European Union. The product and its accessories comply with EU directives 2002/95/EC (RoHS) and 2002/96/EC (WEEE), insofar as these apply to this product. We have implemented a take-back and recycling process that ensures that proper recycling is carried out in accordance with the aforementioned EU directives.
Table of Contents Table of Contents 1. Installation ............................................................................................... 1 1.1 Safety Regulations ........................................................................ 1 General Notes ........................................................................... 3 Backup Copies .......................................................................... 3 1.2 System Requirements ........................................................
Table of Contents 2.5 General Property Page ................................................................ 30 Color Saturation ...................................................................... 30 Image Orientation .................................................................... 31 Shading Correction.................................................................. 31 2.6 Practical notes on Operation in AxioVision ................................. 35 Reset Camera to a Default State ..............
Installation 1. Installation The Axiocam 105 color is a high-resolution digital camera with a color CMOS sensor and USB 3.0 interface for universal light-microscopy applications. To make it easier for you to set up the camera, please follow the instructions in these chapters step by step. In this manual the interface between the Axiocam 105 color and the computer is called USB 3.0. 1.
Installation Limitation of liability No warranty shall be assumed by Carl Zeiss during the warranty period if the equipment is operated without observing the safety regulations. In any such case, Carl Zeiss shall be exempt from statutory liability for accidents resulting from such operation. Exemption from warranty Carl Zeiss shall be exempt from any warranty obligations should the user fail to observe the safety regulations.
Installation General Notes Please ensure the notes described below are adhered to when setting up and operating the camera. All connectors must be firmly and securely attached. Use the screw coupling if possible. Please protect the data cable from excessive heat (e.g. halogen lamps, microscope fluorescence illumination). Only use the camera in a clean and dry location. The camera must be protected against mechanical impact. External damage may affect the operation of inner components.
Installation 1.2 System Requirements The appropriate system requirements relating to hard- and software equipment can be found in the file "Installation Guide.PDF" on the actual product DVD. Contents of Delivery Axiocam 105 color USB 3.0 data cable PCI express (PCIe x1) Interface card 4 pin Molex power connector cable 15 pin SATA power connector cable DVD-ROM with device driver and Installation+Reference Guide Power connector cables, PCIe interface card, camera, USB 3.
Installation 1.3 Setting up the Camera System Operating the Camera on a PC Installing the PCIe bus interface card on the PC Static electricity can damage electronic components. To protect electronic components against static electricity, do not touch them until you have grounded yourself to the casing of the device. Never touch the contacts of the electronic components. We also recommend that you work only on an antistatic mat. For installation of the USB 3.
Installation Examine your PC’s power supply to see if it has Molex type connectors or SATA type connectors. Choose the appropriate power connector cable for the following steps. If your PC’s power supply has both connector types, choose only one cable. Connect the appropriate power connector cable to one of the open connectors from your computer’s power supply. Connect the other end of the power connector cable to the PCIe interface card.
Installation Power is supplied to the Axiocam 105 color via the interface card. If you switch off the PC, the camera is also switched off. During operation the camera may heat up. This is quite safe. Mounting the camera onto the microscope To mount the camera onto your microscope’s TV port, use a C-mount adapter. Suitable adapters (example): 1.0x 0.63x 0.
Installation For the definitions of the LED color signals, please refer to Notes on Maintenance. Checking the Equipment has been set up correctly Check the following connections: The Axiocam 105 color is mounted onto the microscope and is receiving light. The Axiocam 105 color is connected to the PC via the USB 3.0 data cable. If the LED on the Axiocam 105 color does not turn red now, please check that you have carried out all of the above steps correctly. 1.
Installation If you have inserted a USB 3.0 PCIe interface card, which was not supplied by Carl Zeiss or is supported by Carl Zeiss, into your computer, you first need to install this card with the help of the documentation enclosed by the manufacturer. Depending on your operating system this installation may not be necessary, as the drivers may already be integrated into the operating system. After you have inserted the DVD into the PC’s DVD drive, installation will start automatically.
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Installation Click OK and follow the installation wizard. There is no need to activate any special feature during the software installation process. To complete the camera installation, please go to our website to download and run "Installation 01 - Axiocam 105 color": http://www.zeiss.com/axiocam105 1.5 Notes on Maintenance Camera Electronic Camera, interface and power supply are maintenance free.
Installation Important Note on the Use of C-Mount Objectives The camera can be mounted onto microscopes with standard TV-adapters with C-mount connections. Carl Zeiss supplies the camera complete with a pre-mounted infrared barrier filter, which offers the optical advantage for use on microscopes of a lower sensitivity to dust. The IR barrier filter is situated approx. 11 mm behind the outer edge of the C-mount opening in the camera.
Image Acquisition 2. Image Acquisition 2.1 General The Axiocam 105 color is a high-resolution digital camera for color images. It has been designed to be used in the field of light microscopy for general observation, routine work, and simple applications in which a sufficient amount of light is available. The camera is particularly well suited for materials microscopy applications or for the acquisition of images of stained or naturally colored microscopic specimens.
Image Acquisition Note: The workbar may in fact be open but covered by the work area. If that is the case, simply click on the Workflow tab at the bottom edge of the work area . The Standard Workflow Live starts and closes the live window. Live properties opens and closes the window for adjusting the display characteristic curve and for controlling the camera (exposure time, white balance etc.). Snap acquires an image using the active camera.
Image Acquisition Step by Step to the First Image Select the camera you want from the menu: Acquisition Camera selection Axiocam 105 color camera Set the light path to the camera. Then click on the live image icon. The live window is opened to display the camera image This function can also be called up via the Acquisition Live menu. Now focus the camera image and select the frame you want to acquire.
Image Acquisition Click on the icon Show live window properties to open the live properties. Here you can see the settings for the display of the image like Brightness, Contrast and Gamma. Settings made here are passed on the acquired image. Note: Only the display is adapted; the camera data remains unchanged. 16 Printed 10.
Image Acquisition Make changes for the camera settings on the following controls: The central element is the setting for the exposure time on a digital camera. The Measure button can be used to determine an optimum exposure time. If you are using a color camera, you need to perform a white balance for the image. If you select the automatic balance (Automatic button), the camera tries to determine an optimum value itself.
Image Acquisition Click on the Properties icon and activate the Display tab. Any changes you make here are displayed in real time in the image window. Move the sliders Gamma Contrast Brightness up or down to adjust the image. Good color reproduction on a monitor is achieved with a gamma value of around 0.45. To find the optimum setting for contrast and brightness, click on Min/Max. To undo all your changes, click on Linear. You can use this icon to insert a scale bar into your image.
Image Acquisition This icon is used to open the window for generating annotations. Lettering and marking can be inserted in the Draw Annotation(s) window. The other options available in this dialog window are described below. In the dialog window Draw Annotation(s) the icons scalebar, text, line, rectangle, outline, curve und ellipse are available in the menu line. In the dialog window Draw Annotation(s) a field for Settings for selected items as well as for Font are available.
Image Acquisition the bottom of the image window Using the Navigator you can magnify or reduce the image and position the displayed image area in the overview window. Click on this icon to save the image you have generated to the computer’s hard drive. Notes: Once you have found a good camera setting, you can save it with the Settings Editor in the Tool menu and load it again automatically in the future.
Image Acquisition 2.3 Adjust Property Page This property page contains a summary of the most important camera settings, which are constantly used during operation. The property page is split into the fields Exposure, White Balance (with color settings) and Histogram (for the display of an image histogram).
Image Acquisition Exposure The camera’s exposure time can be adjusted to the lighting conditions on the microscope using a slider or by entering an exposure time directly into the input field. When entering the exposure time manually you can state the value range directly using the abbreviations "ms" for milliseconds and "s" for seconds. Exposure time measurement The program assists in calculating an optimum exposure time, at which the camera will be maximally saturated without being overexposed.
Image Acquisition Automatic Exposure The Auto Snap feature is not available for the Axiocam 105 color. If the Auto Live check box is activated, the software continuously sets the exposure during the live image. In this way it is possible to generate images with the correct exposure without having to manually enter an exposure time. The exposure time currently calculated in the live image is used for each individual image. The exposure measurement button can be pressed at any time.
Image Acquisition : Using this button you can switch back to the basic LED white balance setting. This setting is optimized for a LED light temperature of 5500 K. Color Adjustment Using the color sliders you can increase or decrease the proportion of each basic color. Please note that each time a change is made, a proportionate adjustment of the other colors also takes place automatically.
Image Acquisition These changes can be observed immediately in the live image and in the histogram display. Note: Further information on setting optimum color reproduction in AxioVision can be found in Chapter 2.6 "Practical Notes on Operation in AxioVision" - "Notes on optimum color reproduction in AxioVision". A setting using this method can be saved as a setting with a name of your choice and subsequently reloaded.
Image Acquisition Log: By clicking on this button it is possible to influence the histogram display. You can toggle between a linear scaling and a logarithmic display of the signals represented in the histogram. The logarithmic display makes it possible to view small amplitudes and high peaks at the same time in a single overview. Otherwise, because of the automatic scaling of the display, small signal values are often not visible in the diagram.
Image Acquisition 2.4 Frame Property Page The Frame property page can be used to select a frame (ROI) for the image acquisition and is split into the fields Resolution and Frame. Camera Mode RGB and B/W: With the Axiocam 105 color, it is possible to use these setting options to select whether you want the camera to produce a color or a black/white image. This may be useful e.g. to reduce the volume of data or if the sample only contains black/white information.
Image Acquisition The camera will always acquire a color image, and this is then converted to a black/white image. In the drop-down list box underneath you can select from various camera operation modes. With the Axiocam 105 color, three modes are available: in the Color 1x1 mode, the resolution from the camera is set to its highest. In the Color 2x2 and Color 4x4 modes, pixels are combined (in arrays of 2x2 and 4x4 respectively) to represent 1 pixel.
Image Acquisition Memory used: Memory used shows the memory size of the acquired image, which depends on the camera resolution, the image size of the selected image frame and of the selected gray value scaling. The following table provides an overview: Axiocam 105 color Image size 2560 x 1920 1280 x 960 640 x 480 8-bit 14.2 MB 3.6 MB 1 MB In AxioVision, all acquired images can be saved in ZVI image format. When images are exported into other image formats (TIF, BMP, JPG etc.
Image Acquisition 2.5 General Property Page On this property page you enter the basic settings for the camera. Color Saturation The slider for saturation can be used to increase or reduce the intensity of the color impression. The default setting is 0. 30 Printed 10.
Image Acquisition Note: Please note that a gamma setting of 0.45 is required for correct color reproduction. This can be achieved in the Live image by activating the button. Only the display is influenced by this function. The data remain unchanged. Image Orientation An Axiocam 105 color image is adjusted in such a way that the image orientation corresponds to the image in the eyepiece when mounted on an upright microscope with the front of the camera facing you.
Image Acquisition Shading correction to improve image quality In microscopy, numerous side effects can have an undesirable influence on image quality. Dust and particles in the beam path, for example, can leave dark spots in the image, and, under certain conditions, diaphragms and optics can cause slight shadowing that increases towards the image edge, due to unavoidable physical effects.
Image Acquisition To do this, set a suitable exposure time and the white balance of the camera. Set Köhler illumination on the microscope (if using transmitted light) in order to create a reproducible image-acquisition situation. Create a test image of a specimen with quality that is as high as possible. Check the quality of the Köhler setting for each objective with which you want to generate automatic shading correction.
Image Acquisition If several cameras are operated on a system (e.g. an AxioCam MRm and an AxioCam IC), the reference images for each camera will be managed separately. In the Multidimensional Acquisition function, a function for fluorescence-channel-specific shading correction is offered under Extended parameters on the C (Channel) property page. Activating shading correction can reduce the maximum possible speed of the live image.
Image Acquisition To generate this file, follow the procedure described above. However, this function can only be carried out for one objective. As a compromise for all available objectives, you can perform this using an objective with a medium magnification. For special requirements you will need to carry out shading correction again, specifically for the objective you are using, prior to the acquisition of an image.
Image Acquisition Camera parameters for all cameras (as available): Exposure time White balance Auto Live Sensitivity Range Frame (ROI) Image Orientation Shading Correction USM HDR Color Saturation Binning 20 ms 3200 K Off 100% Full frame No changes Off Off Off No changes 1x1 (sensor basic resolution) With the function Load Factory Defaults (context menu of the live image) you can reset camera settings in addition to the settings for the live display: Spot Meter / Focus Bar Spot Meter Auto Best Fit Auto
Image Acquisition Notes on Optimum Color Reproduction in AxioVision Below you will find a detailed description of how best to set up AxioVision to achieve optimum color reproduction with the Axiocam 105 color. Note: For an optimum color reproduction the monitor first has to be adjusted. To do so please use a well-suited image.
Image Acquisition 2.7 Information for Displaying Axiocam Images in AxioVision So that intelligent use can be made of this feature, in AxioVision it is possible to influence the display using the characteristic curve. To do this, right-click in the image acquired and select from the context menu the Properties function. The dialog window Properties is displayed on the screen: 38 Printed 10.
Image Acquisition You can now select the area to be displayed by dragging the black rectangles along the characteristic curve or carry out automatic optimization by clicking on the corresponding buttons. A histogram of the gray and color values will be displayed which makes the gray and color distribution visible. The Best Fit, Min/Max and Linear buttons can be used to quickly adjust the histogram display. You can influence the display by clicking on the Log or Skip buttons.
Image Acquisition If you activate the Apply to all T check box the settings in all the acquired instants of exposure are applied to the relevant channel. Note: You can get the best display of colored objects, if the gamma setting is in the range of approx. 0.45. Recommended Camera Settings The standard setting installed for 3200 K (3200 K button on the Adjust property page) often offers the camera the most natural reproduction of the image situation on the microscope.
Image Acquisition Now save this white balance setting together with the current lamp voltage and filter position on the microscope (if available as an adjustable variable) as an AxioVision hardware setting. This will enable you to achieve reproducible settings for color reproduction. Details on working with hardware settings can be found under this keyword in the AxioVision online help.
Trouble Shooting 3. Trouble Shooting If errors occur, check first the setup instructions of the camera. 3.1 Software Please also pay attention to all the comments in the file ReadMe.TXT, which is displayed during the driver installation. Axiocam 105 color does not appear in the menu of selectable cameras 42 Make sure that the Axiocam 105 color files have been installed in accordance with the installation of the software.
Trouble Shooting The color does not correspond to the impression through the ocular Check white balance and, if necessary, repeat white balance. Check the monitor’s color temperature setting. If necessary, reduce this to the lowest value that can be set (usually 5200 K). Check whether the gamma curve 0.45 function is activated. To do this, open the Properties window.
Technical Data 4. Technical Data 4.1 Axiocam 105 color Including AxioVision LE64, USB 3.0 connecting cable, USB 3.0 PCIe interface card, Power connector cables Sensor type Aptina CMOS color sensor Number of pixels 2560 (H) x 1920 (V) = 5 megapixels Pixel size 2.2 µm x 2.2 µm Chip size 5.70 x 4.28 mm, corresponds to 1/2.
Technical Data Axiocam 105 color Installation + Reference Guide 45
