DIY: The $10 Digital Microscope
Lets face it, studying abnormal cells and visually identifying internal diseases has been a challenge for hobbyists in the past due to the high price-point of the equipment necessary, but thanks to the sheer genius of one individual, the tables have been turned. Identifying himself as “Yoshinok” on Instructables.com, he has designed a basic stage that costs around $10 to put together. In this video, Yoshinok shows you how to assemble the stage:
Materials and Tools
The cost of this project is just $10 (not counting the smartphone), and it only takes about 20 minutes to build. You can be viewing cells with your smartphone within the hour!
Materials required
3x 4 ½” x 5/16” carriage bolts
9x 5/16” nuts
3x 5/16” wing nuts
5x 5/16” washers
¾” x 7” x 7” plywood — for the base
⅛” x 7” x 7” plexiglass — for the camera stage
⅛” x 3” x 7” plexiglass — for the specimen stage
Scrap plexi (~ 2″x 4″) for specimen slide (optional but useful)
laser pointer focus lens (use two for increased magnification)
LED click light (necessary only for viewing backlit specimens)
Tools
Drill
Assorted bits
Ruler
Links to Lenses and Lights
Lights: http://www.amazon.com/FTmall-Pocket-Portable-Keychain-Flashlight/dp/B008O2KKYW/
Lenses: If you don't have a laser, these lenses have produced comparable results: http://www.aixiz.com/store/product_info.php/cPath/46/products_id/374/osCsid/37cabc139b4f03b0e0a522178defae7e
The results are quite impressive. Other users have improved on Yoshinok's rudimentary design, but these improvements certainly come at the cost of additional time and money. This is one of our favorites:
Source: Yoshinok @ http://www.instructables.com/id/10-Smartphone-to-digital-microscope-conversion/
