quick/easy focus of any USB microscope w repeatable results

One of the issues that previously bothered me tremendously when focusing in on any object without this homemade tripod stand was having any USB microscope inadvertently shake or become out of focus every time I made an adjustment using the focus wheel located on the scope itself.

By using the homemade tripod stand one can initially set the 640 x 480 frame size of the picture, for example, then initially focus in on the coin by adjusting the ‘focus wheel'. But then the final and more time consuming focusing adjustments can be completed more quickly by moving the microscope lens up and down.

Virtually any brand of focus wheel can periodically and unexpectedly get stuck and become difficult to rotate precisely and consequently result in eating up precious minutes when one is attempting to photograph multiple coins or any objects etc.

What's also nice about this homemade device is that:

1) The two tripod legs adjacent to the USB microscope can serve as rigid beams to mount multiple angled lighting sources,

2) The extended semi-rigid spiral tubing allows for 'steadily' positioning the USB microscope at 'any' desired angle while being sufficiently extended, if required, from the center of the tripod.

This configuration is useful for extra large non-coin type objects, for example, that may need more space or for an oddly positioned area needing to be photographed etc.



3) The entire tripod device then folds up nicely for compact storage when not in use.



In summary, the focus wheel itself on the USB microscope may still be needed from time to time on the initial attempt to focus on any object. The typically more time-consuming final adjustments, however, can be more quickly performed my moving the lens up and down using the tripod shaft's crank shaft.

I bought this used camera tripod at a Goodwill store for $5.

I hope this little project will assist my fellow CC members to make their lives a little easier when photographing their coins using 'any' USB microscope.

This project can take about 2 - 3 hours in total when accounting for car trips to find materials but in the long run it is very well worth one's time to improve the ROI (return on investment) when taking multiple photographs of coins etc....

good luck,

mdpmedia

I will have to try that or something similar because these are a real pain otherwise

Lighthouse makes a digital microscope stand that's pretty dang nice. I might try that. You do have a pretty ingenious set-up though. Well done.

This question can be taken two ways:

a) Does the rigidity of spiral tubing impede one's ability to easily focus anywhere in a 3D range of motion?

or

b) Does the intrinsic flexibility of the spiral tubing cause problems or movements when attempting to focus precisely?

A hybrid answer to both rephrased questions:

The primary reason for attaching a semi-rigid spiral tubing is to allow for larger (up to 3 inches) but more likely very small and incremental manual adjustments when required.

These inevitable last minute microscopic modifications, performed by simply tapping the tubing in any desired x, y, or z direction, for example, can actually be performed much quicker compared to raising and lowering the tripod arm.

Mounting the USB microscope 'directly' and 'rigidly' to the shaft of the tripod, on the other hand, severely restricts or even eliminates the possibility of implementing this jury rigged procedure consisting of only a quick finger tap.

One could conversely argue against the addition of this seven (7") tubing since the already-included ball joint connected to a mounting stand does allow for these small movements.

However, not including this seven (7") tubing extension prevents the user from making longer (up to approx. 3") manual adjustments which may come in handy some day if the measurement location needs to be located further away from the center of gravity of the tripod stand.

I personally would rather be prepared for any unanticipated measurement situation by designing a device that is more accommodating...

By the time one has reached this optional and final tapping stage the need to utilize the focus wheel or crank shaft should be extremely diminished assuming the same object is being photographed in the same area.

Also w/r/t the flexibility of spiral tubing causing problems such as unwanted movement when focusing, the degree of rigidity of the spiral tubing is great enough to prevent further movements once it has been set to a certain position.

I personally feel that designing the length of the tubing to be no more than seven (7) inches is paramount to avoid an inevitable 'drooping of the tubing' situation. The perceived innuendos of this phrase need not be elaborated upon.

A longer section of tubing inevitably results in an overall greater tubing weight and an increased moment arm producing more torque which naturally facilitates easier bending of the tubing from the natural and ever-present effects of gravity:

http://moon.ouhsc.edu/dthompso/namics/torque.htm

In layman's terms it is much easier to open a shut cellar door, for example, if one pushes upwards on the side farthest away from the door's hinges.

But just imagine being on a ladder looking upwards and trying to open this same cellar door by pushing upwards on this door at a point located just a few inches from the hinges: a daunting and almost impossible feat since the moment arm at this location is less.

I am sure these answers may have deviated to an extent from the original nature of the question but hopefully they have added some needed clarification to better understand the method to my madness.

I couldn't have asked for a better answer. It actually brought a smile to my face.

These following steps should be followed to ensure that the flexible arm does not collapse:

1) First stick a drill bit (separated from the drill) into the end of the opened spiral tubing with the intention to find the largest diameter drill bit that will snugly fit into this opening down to a depth of at least one (1") inch.

In this step let's assume you have chosen a 1/4" diameter bit.

2) Then use this specifically selected 1/4" diameter bit to penetrate into the closest aluminum side of the tripod's internal movable shaft. Going forward in this discussion let's refer to this side as the ‘near' side for simplicity.

a. On this step with the 1/4" diameter bit make sure to completely penetrate the first aluminum wall and just ‘barely' drill into the opposing internal ‘far' side of the other aluminum wall located 180 degrees away.

You just want to create a slight depression in the metal on the internal ‘far' side to only serve as an internal (inside the tubing) marker that you can later feel with a manually inserted smaller diameter drill bit.