Supported Hardware

This page lists all hardware devices that mesoSPIM-control can drive, together with the configuration key used to enable each one. Every category also includes a Demo simulator for software-only testing.

Cameras

Camera model	Config key	Notes
Demo (simulated)	'DemoCamera'	Software simulator; no driver required.
Hamamatsu Orca Flash 4.0 V3	'HamamatsuOrca'	2048 × 2048, 6.5 µm pixel. Supported and recommended for classic mesoSPIM v4–v5. Requires DCAM API. Use PCIe frame grabber (not USB3). Config: sensor_mode=12, readout_speed=1.
Hamamatsu Orca Fusion	'HamamatsuOrca'	2304 × 2304, 6.5 µm pixel. Tested, stable. Use CoaXPress frame grabber (not USB3). Requires DCAM API. Config: sensor_mode=12, readout_speed=2.
Hamamatsu Orca Lightning	'HamamatsuOrca'	4608 × 2592, 5.5 µm pixel. High-speed sCMOS; used in mesoSPIM v6 (ZMB / HIFO). Requires DCAM API with Lightning firmware. Config: trigger_mode=1 (NORMAL), high_dynamic_range_mode=2; no readout_speed key.
Teledyne Photometrics Kinetix	'Photometrics'	3200 × 3200, 6.5 µm pixel. Tested, stable. High resolution across entire FOV only with large-FOV detection objectives. Requires PVCAM + PVCAM-SDK + PyVCAM.
Teledyne Photometrics Prime BSI / Prime BSI Express	'Photometrics'	2048 × 2048, 6.5 µm pixel. Tested, stable. Requires PVCAM + PVCAM-SDK + PyVCAM.
Teledyne Photometrics Iris 15	'Photometrics'	5056 × 2960, 4.25 µm pixel. Supported and recommended for Benchtop-mesoSPIM. Requires PVCAM + PVCAM-SDK + PyVCAM. Default config: exp_mode='Edge Trigger', gain_index=1, scan_mode=1 (Line Delay).
Teledyne Photometrics Retiga E9	'Photometrics'	3000 × 3000, 3.76 µm pixel. Requires PVCAM + PVCAM-SDK + PyVCAM. Use USB3 frame grabber. Supported and recommended for Benchtop-mesoSPIM. Default config: exp_mode='Edge Trigger', gain_index=3 (HDR), exp_out_mode=4 (line out), scan_mode=1 (Line Delay).
PCO cameras	'PCO'	Requires the pco Python package (≥ 0.1.3).

Camera parameters — pixel size, binning, trigger mode, etc. — are set in the camera_parameters dict. See Configuration for examples.

Stages

mesoSPIM-control supports a variety of stage combinations. The stage config key selects the stage class; individual axis assignments are set in the stage_parameters dict.

Stage class	Config key	Typical use
Demo stage	'DemoStage'	Simulation; no hardware.
PI (1 controller → N axes)	'PI' or 'PI_1controllerNstages'	Single PI C-884 controller (up to 6 axes incl. rotation). Both keys are accepted. Axes: V4 stage set uses M-112K033 / L-406.40DG10 / M-116.DG / M-406.4PD; V5 uses L-509 series. Default for mesoSPIM v4–v6 (ZMB/USZ/HIFO sites).
PI (N controllers → N axes)	'PI_NcontrollersNstages'	One PI controller per axis (e.g. C-663, one stage per controller). mesoSPIM v5 option.
PI (rot+Z) + Galil (X,Y,F)	'PI_rotz_and_Galil_xyf'	PI C-884 drives rotation (M-061.PD) and Z (M-406.4PD); Galil DMC drives X/Y/F (Ethernet or serial). Used in mesoSPIM H45 geometry (HIFO), currently deprecated.
ASI Tiger / MS2000	'TigerASI'	ASI Tiger TG8-BASIC: 4 motor slots + 5 free slots. Benchtop mesoSPIM default controller; supports TTL trigger.

PI stages require the PI software suite. Galil stages require the Galil API. ASI stages require ASI Tiger drivers.

Filter wheels

Filter wheel	Config key	Notes
Demo	'Demo'	Simulation.
Ludl 96A350 (single)	'Ludl'	32 mm, 10 positions (0–9; Ludl position 10 = index 0). Large filter wheel with separate MAC6000 controller, serial cable. mesoSPIM v4–v6 at ZMB/USZ/H45 sites. Supports dual-wheel mode: set two Ludl wheels, use tuples (pos_wheel1, pos_wheel2) as filter positions.
Sutter Lambda 10	'Sutter'	25 mm, 10 positions. Serial communication; configurable baud rate and wheel speed. Deprecated (used in early versions).
ZWO EFW-MINI	'ZWO'	31 mm, 5 positions (0–4). Compact, low-cost astronomy filter wheel with integrated USB controller. mesoSPIM Benchtop and v6. Requires pyzwoefw bindings.

Zoom / magnification

Zoom actuator	Config key	Notes
Demo zoom	'Demo'	Simulation.
Dynamixel servo	'Dynamixel'	Robotis Dynamixel servo for motorised zoom body.
Mitutoyo turret	'Mitu'	Mitutoyo motorized objective-turret revolver. Baudrate 9600; positions A–E map to objective magnifications (e.g. 2×/5×/7.5×/10×/20×). Used in mesoSPIM v6 (ZMB) and some Benchtop setups.

Lasers / laser enable

Laser power is modulated via analogue output on the NI DAQ card. Individual laser lines are enabled / blanked via digital output lines.

Laser control	Config key	Notes
Demo	'Demo'	Simulation.
NI DAQ digital enable	'NI'	One DO line per laser (see laserdict in Configuration). Analog modulation via AO lines on the same card.
NI cDAQ digital enable	'cDAQ'	CompactDAQ version (e.g. cDAQ1Mod2). Used with the cDAQ waveform-generation backend.

Shutters

Shutter type	Config key	Notes
Demo	'Demo'	Simulation.
NI DAQ	'NI'	Digital output shutter control (see shutterdict).
NI cDAQ	'cDAQ'	CompactDAQ digital output shutter (e.g. /cDAQ1Mod1/port0/line2). Used with the cDAQ waveform-generation backend.

Data acquisition (DAQ)

Galvo scan waveforms, ETL (electrically tunable lens) ramps, laser modulation, and camera triggers are generated by National Instruments cards.

Adding custom hardware

mesoSPIM-control uses a plugin architecture for image writers and a class hierarchy for hardware devices. To add a new device type:

1. Create a new .py file in the appropriate sub-folder of mesoSPIM/src/devices/.

2. Subclass the relevant base class (e.g. mesoSPIM_Stage, mesoSPIM_GenericCamera).

3. Register the new class name in your config file.

See Contributing and the API Reference for details.