Live Tiling

Image-Pro with Capture Module Only

The Live Tiling module for Image-Pro makes it easy to acquire a large tiled image without an automated microscope stage. Tiling is the process of taking several captures of the same subject at different points on the X and Y planes and then "Stitching" them together into one large, composited image.

To use Live Tiling, go to the Capture tab on the Image-Pro ribbon. You will see the Live Tiling group.

To start the tiling procedure, move the microscope to the area of the specimen where you want to start tiling and click the Start button. When you click Start, the current image becomes the starting point for the tiled image. Yellow rectangles show you the outline of the original frame when you move objects under the microscope. When you see that the yellow frame follows the image correctly, you can start tiling. The easiest way of tiling is with the Auto tiling option enabled. In that case the images to be stitched together will be added to the output image automatically when the live preview of the object shifts 25% (this is indicated in the live tiling view when the internal yellow rectangle touches the image border). Move the stage slowly, and the images will be acquired and tiled automatically.

Note: The tiling algorithm uses cross-correlation to find the image shift; for best results, use objects with texture for tiling. Note that empty fields cannot be aligned correctly automatically. Note also that the maximum image shift between slices cannot exceed 25-40%.

Add Button:  The tiles can be also added manually using the Add  button. If the tiled position is not correct you can use the Undo button to remove the last tile and try other location. Note that if you use Auto tiling the Add button will be switched off.  

Options

There are many options you can set to tune the Live Tiling process.  Click the drop-down arrow to display the Live Tiling menu.

Motion Detection: Motion blur is a common problem with capturing images of moving objects. This problem can be eliminated by activating the Motion detection option. Activating this option is recommended for long exposure times. When this option is active, a new tile in auto-tiling mode will be added only when the camera is still.

Use EDF Adding Tiles: If the image contains out-of-focus areas, use the Use EDF Adding Tiles option. When this option is on, every new tile is added using the EDF algorithm. The borders of the EDF image are blended with Blending Width (see Tiling Options). When the option is off, the tiles are added with full overlap blending. The option can be activated temporary to merge several focus planes adding tiles using the Add button.

Auto EDF: When the Auto EDF option is on, the new images are added to the output constantly and clicking the Add button is not necessary. You can simply adjust the focus, and during the adjustment the EDF image will be created. EDF images are not added when the stage is moving.

Show Crop ROI: Shows/hides the ROI on the output image that includes only valid pixels (excluding empty areas).  The ROI can be used to crop the output image.

Set New Position: Use this button if, in the middle of creating a tiled output, you want to continue from another side of the tiled image. Clicking the button will activate the  position selection mode, where you must click on the output image where you  want to continue tiling.

Correct Background: If the microscope has uneven illumination, it can be corrected using this option. Use the empty area on slide as the background, move the slide under microscope, and click the Set background Image button.

Background Color: This option is used for empty areas outside the tiles on an output image. Clicking the Pick from Image button will activate the color picking tool, which you can use to select a color for the image.

Options:  Click the Options button to open the "Live Tiling" page of the Image-Pro Options dialog which allows you to set the following options.

  • Tiling Undo depth: This option defines the number of undo buffers.
  • Matching Threshold: Use the matching threshold for new images. The matching threshold is within 0...1 range, and the default value is 0.25. If the image correlation is below the threshold, the tile is not automatically added, although it can be added using the Add button.
  • Color and Sound. The Normal color is the color of the tracking rectangle in its default state.  The Go color is the tracking rectangle color indicating the location the current tile will be 'snapped' to when you release the mouse button.  The Error color is the tracking rectangle color indicating that there is an error.  You may also indicate if you want to play a sound when an error is detected.
  • Blending: When the Use blending adding tiles option is on (default) new tiles are added using gradient blending, so no edges between tiles are visible.
  • Info Messages: Check these boxes to see helpful messages when clicking Undo or Set New Position.
  • Output Window Position: Side by side: When this option is on, the workspace is split into 2 panes, where the live preview window is on the left and the output window is on the right.  
  • Task: When Run in background thread is on, the Live Tiling is started in a separate thread. This option should be used with multi-core processors, so Live Tiling will run in parallel to Live Preview and not slow down the preview frame rate.
  • Reset: Click the Reset button to restore the defaults to all options.