I use object detection to track tardigrades in my custom motorized microscope. It's very useful for making long observations in a field much larger than the scope's field of view.

The system works quite simply: I start with an existing object detector and train it with a small (<100) number of manually labelled images. Then during inference, I move the scope's field of view using motor commands to put the center of the tardigrade at the center of the field of view.

This technology is very useful for doing long-term observations of tardigrades (so, useful for science).