IBM open sources fully-functional Lego microscope design (2020) | Hacker News Reader

IBM open sources fully-functional Lego microscope design (2020)

ibm-research.medium.com

460 pointsTomte48 comments

The main reason the guy built this was so he could photograph certain kinds of specimens on an angle and reduce glare. It seems like a fairly specialized use case.

If you just want or need to look at stuff under a microscope, it's probably better just to buy an inexpensive one. You can get a pretty decent one in the $300-$400 range. I have one of AM Scope's stereo boom microscopes and works great for what I need it for. It is quality stuff and they have a range of different types of microscopes.

I was going to lambaste you for being pedantic and having no soul and then I went to an scope and looked at what was available and MAN can you buy a lot of microscope for not a lot of money. I’m assuming the quality is there.

It’s a far cry from the prices I recall in the 80’s when I was a teenager. (Well, probably similar, but in 1980’s dollars)

yes, the amscopes are extremely high quality.

One of the top things gobbled up during the multiple tech failure times (like the first one in ~2001-ish and ~2008 etc...

Was the liqudating of assets from failed companies, and microscopes were abound, and were grabbed up super fast in the asset auctions.

I never needed one, but I always regretted not buying one - ~$5,000 scope for $50...

That and every Oscilloscope were always bought up fast as heck.

Can confirm. The quality and prices are if AmScope are good and microscopy is a fun hobby. If you just want to build a microscope then build one but IMO using a microscope is a more enjoyable hobby than building one. Also even if you start with a decent microscope there are a lot of interesting diy projects involving focus and lighting and computational imaging.

Wow, that is indeed wild. A fellow student with me in the 80s broke a school microscope and I remember it being such a big deal that lawyers and lawsuits and even threats of violence broke out. I don't remember the dollar figure but I remember thinking you could get a car for a whole lot less than a microscope. I want to say it was 10s of thousands.

What sort of microscope though? A modern confocal microscope setup with something like a 100x oil immersion objective isn't cheap.

> inexpensive

> in the $300-$400 range.

inexpensive, relatively speaking.

$300-$400 might be inexpensive for a microscope, but it's not inexpensive per se.

In the context, comparing it to a $300-$400 DIY solution it isn't expensive.

A different thing, sure, but not more money.

Would I be able to examine the edge of plane iron blade on such a microscope? Blade is 0.125" thick and sharpened at a 35 degree bevel. Or, would the this lego microscope be a better tool given it's been designed for angles?

The cheap 'zoom tube' ones are great. $150-200 gets ~135-180x magnification with HDMI output, real time video and a nice lighting ring thrown in.

If you are interested in assembling your own microscope and have access to a 3D printer, I highly recommend: https://openflexure.org/

For me the interesting part was the build process. If you care more about microscopy than tinkering, you are probably better off just buying a pre-made scope.

If you do want to try out openflexure, I recommend 3d printing the v7 version [0]. At the time of writing it is still in alpha, but it's on par with v6 and the build instructions are a huge improvement.

And definitely read through those build instructions, and the forums. It's an incredibly capable microscope, but there are some rough edges. I would suggest trying the raspi camera with 40x objective, and then see if you can source all the required parts. You can find everything you need on aliexpress, if you don't mind the long shipping times.

If you don't need the motorized axis (eg for autostitching for research, or for autofocus), I would suggest skipping the stepper motors and driver board. The official board is not available, and stuffing cheap stepper drivers in the base is a hassle. You can always decide to add the motors/drivers later.

[0] https://build.openflexure.org/openflexure-microscope/v7.0.0-...

https://openhardware.science/

Why are the comments so negative? Live a little guys...It's just a neat little toy project!

On a related note, if one's willing to forego proper mechanics and lighting, for imaging small stuff you only need a digital video camera and a microscope objective lens (or just a photographic lens with some macro rings). I got good results [1] with a machine vision camera from PGR (comparable to RPi camera module) on a tripod pointed at a slide held in a "third hand", with desk lamp shining from behind ("oblique illumination"). Yes, one can easily move it sideways and focus by hand.

[1] https://vimeo.com/user12237688 (technical details in the description)

Or just buy a 5$ adapter and put on your existing lens backwards: https://photographylife.com/reverse-lens-technique-for-macro...

> “We have advanced microfluidic technologies for applications related to healthcare and life sciences, and often we have the challenge of visualizing microfluidic chips because they typically have reflective surfaces,”

Isn't this typically overcome using a polarized filter and appropriately polarized light? Seems preferable to making a rickety articulated structure if so.

Many of the plastics have stress lines that show up under polarized lens IIRC. And many of the techniques used to detect crystals in fluids also use polarized light that would be incompatible with such a lens.

I didn't know much a consumer microscope goes for these days.

Apologies if I missed this in the article: What is the difference in power/quality between this microscope and the microscopes available for ~$100 on Amazon?

It uses a 10$ lens (for 1 piece, in large quantities could be much cheaper). I imagine for 100$ you should be able to get similar or better magnification.

Where would IBM be if they openaourced their entire mainframe ecosystem and entire Unix ecosystem? Genuine question.

Well at least give out free z/OS z/VM z/VSE ADCD, and for the community that -> [1] would have bee a really good move for the community without loosing on single cent, and maybe spark a little bit interest in Mainframes again.

1 https://geronimo370.nl/blog/2019/06/18/a-sad-day-for-free-xa...

Yes exactly.

They should cater to anyone who wants to learn. Withholding access to a dying platform is imbecile and frankly completely stupid. If successful, opening up could potentially sell more hardware as more people learn how to solve problems using these machines. I can't even see mainframes in the rear view mirror any more, and thats a shame. I would have enjoyed using one again.

The same place they are now. Squeezing out an existence doing professional services.

This is the coolest shit I have seen in a long time. Also look at his shirt, i am dreaming over this setup! I want one but I have no desire to build one, is there a market for 3rd party lego scopes? : )

We could create a market :D I think it would be really interesting to make one, but don't have any use for a microscope.

interesting, yes.

Thinking quickly, Dave constructs a LEGO microscope using only some LEGO, a Raspberry Pi, and a camera

He wants to reduce glare and fails to put on a polarization filter :facepalm:.

What's the magnification? I'm not sure I would call this a microscope... it's more like a motorized hand lens.

Actually the magnification is shockingly good, enough to find tardigrades and microorganisms. The Raspberry Pi Cam is the default low cost sensor option of the OpenFlexure 3D printed microscope which for less cost than this Lego kit competes with extremely expensive lab grade microscopes.

In OpenFlexure PiCam mode, the lens from the PiCam is removed and inverted and spaced at a distance, giving a higher magnification than the digital camera in default configuration.

https://opg.optica.org/DirectPDFAccess/445C5C67-0A08-4C06-8A...

I prefer to use AmScope objectives in my 3D printed microscope, but my kids find all kind of wonders using the cheap PiCam setup. I think it’s about equivalent to 20x objective magnification.

*Cost will vary by location between $300–$400

And cost could likely be mitigated by NOT using LEGO, which is a buzzword that makes the article, and rather opting in for literally anything else: like Meccano if it has to be a toy.

Stay tuned for my $2000 Cheetos(R) four axis CNC.

If you look at the BOM, the Legos are only $60 of the cost.

"Of course, the microscope doesn’t have to be made out of LEGO — it’s possible to 3D print all the components or mill them. But those approaches take a lot more time, and it would be tricky for people to do it at home. Another advantage of LEGO, Temiz says, is that the bricks are very precise and easily obtainable. And it’s possible to modify the structure by simply replacing a piece with a different one or assemble the microscope in a completely different way to take cross-section images, for example."

Lego is produced to very fine tolerances - so it’s smart, as well as engaging, for this.

Which would be incredibly cheap for a CNC… for a small one, in 80/20 profile I would be higher than this :D

Great idea!

Likewise, can we build low-cost MRI scanner for dogs and cats out of Lego?? https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30208083

300USD for that flimsy shaking setup, you can buy a very decent microscope for 300USD with HD camera and solidly built.

But is it opensource and from ibm? ;)

link?

Is there a name for or community centered around the practical non-toy use of Lego?

One Microscope Per Child ;)

That's foreshadowing the utter disaster and waste of resources (for countries that could ill afford such wastage) that OLPC ended up being.

https://foreignpolicy.com/2009/09/09/why-did-one-laptop-per-...

    Once the laptop finally started arriving in the developing world, its impact was minimal. We think. No one is doing much research on their impact on education; discussions are largely theoretical. This we do know: OLPC didn’t provide tech support for the machines, or training in how to incorporate them into education. Teachers didn’t understand how to use the laptops in their lessons; some resented them. Kids like the laptops, but they don’t actually seem to help them learn.

    It’s time to call a spade a spade. OLPC was a failure. …

As Shaikh suggests, OLPC is a classic case of a development program more tailored to the tastes and interests of its funders, than the needs of the people it was supposed to help. Back to the drawing board. "

I don’t want to crap on this project — it’s totally cool.

But, a word to some interested in building this: if you have an iPhone 13 Pro and some good lighting, the macro camera will give equal or perhaps better results with good ambient light and keeping the iPhone still.

I see a new Lego Ideas set coming..

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