microscope

Abstract

The present invention relates to a microscope (100) for inspecting a sample (112), the microscope (100) comprising a microscope stage (110) for accommodating the sample (112) to be inspected and further comprising a microscope housing (120) surrounding the microscope stage (110), the microscope housing (120) comprising a first access door (130) and a second access door (240), both of which, when opened, provide different access paths to the microscope stage (110).

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The concept of the invention generally relates to a microscope for inspecting samples, more particularly for imaging samples, comprising a microscope stage for accommodating the sample to be inspected and further comprising a microscope housing surrounding said microscope stage. Such a microscope can in particular be used for inspecting samples in a sample chamber, the sample chamber being incubated in an incubation atmosphere adapted to the sample. In general, however, other uses and applications of such a microscope can also be envisaged. [Background technology]

[0002] In the field of microscopy of living samples, such as cells, it is common to use incubated sample chambers and / or to supply reagents to the sample before or during its examination. Such reagents are supplied to the sample in order to initiate a biological or chemical reaction with the sample or simply to preserve it. Usually the sample itself is placed in a multi-well plate, a Petri dish on the microscope table / stage or in a microfluidic system. Pumps can be used to supply the reagents to the sample. On the other hand, manual pipetting can be performed.

[0003] Additionally or alternatively, the sample is examined in an incubation atmosphere, which provides the best possible conditions for the living sample in terms of temperature, humidity and gas, especially CO2 composition. Although access to the sample chamber is often necessary to supply reagents to the sample and / or to exchange the sample, and possibly to adjust the optics of the microscope within the sample chamber, it is desirable to limit leakage of the incubation atmosphere.

[0004] Furthermore, sample handling should generally be facilitated, particularly sample exchange, sample manipulation, application of reagents to the sample, and the like.

[0005] US 2006 / 0092506 A1 discloses a microscope comprising a humid space maintained at a predefined gas temperature for culturing live samples. An embodiment of this microscope comprises three spaces: a cell culture space with a controlled incubation atmosphere, where temperature, humidity and CO2 concentration are controlled, an observation space with a microscope objective, where only the temperature is controlled, and an external space, where an imaging lens and a digital camera are provided on the one hand, and a light source for transmitted illumination on the other hand. The cell culture space is covered by a cover box. This cover box acts as an opening and closing unit and is provided with thermal insulation inside. The cover box is provided with a hinge, whereby the cover box can be opened and closed by rotation about the hinge. Thus, the sample can be introduced into and removed from the cell culture space by opening the hinged cover box. When the cover box is open, the cell culture space is in communication with the external space. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] In view of the above tasks in modern microscopes, particularly for examining living specimens, a need exists for improved microscopes. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] An embodiment of the present invention provides a microscope for inspecting a sample, the microscope comprising a microscope stage for accommodating a sample to be inspected and further comprising a microscope housing surrounding the microscope stage, the microscope housing comprising a first access door and a second access door, both of which, when opened, provide different access paths to the microscope stage, or in other words provide different direct access paths to the interior of the microscope housing. In principle, the first access door and the second access door are arranged on the same side of the microscope housing, in particular on the front side of the microscope housing, or on opposite sides of the microscope housing, in particular on opposite sides of the microscope housing, or one access door is arranged on the front side and the other access door on a side wall of the microscope housing. Furthermore, in principle, the first access door and the second access door may be of the same size or different sizes, as long as the first access door and the second access door provide different access paths to the microscope stage in their open state.

[0008] The term "different access paths to the microscope stage" includes possible paths to reach the microscope stage through the respective openings provided by the first and second open access doors. Thus, "different access paths" requires different sizes of the respective openings provided by the open access doors and / or different positions of the respective openings. An access door or multiple different access door parameters (such as at least position and size) result in different spherical angles, the origin of which is on the microscope stage and encompasses the possible access paths to the microscope stage through the open access doors. Thus, the microscope user can decide which access door to use depending on the current requirements of accessibility. These requirements typically depend on whether the user requires direct access to the sample or direct access next to or to another area of ​​the microscope stage, for example for locating auxiliary devices such as pumps or reagent containers next to the microscope stage, or for pipetting or exchanging samples or adjusting other microscope components in the sample chamber around the microscope stage, for example the illumination unit or members of the incubation system. For example, opening a side wall door may have less impact on the incubation atmosphere than opening the front side door of the microscope housing. In another example, setting up an auxiliary device to be placed next to the microscope stage may require access through a larger door than exchanging samples after equilibration of the incubation atmosphere has been reached.

[0009] In an embodiment of the present invention, the first access door is constituted by a first housing part of the microscope housing and / or the second access door is constituted by a second housing part of the microscope housing. Thus, an access door may be a hinged housing part, while an access door may be a door that can slide in an opening of the housing. However, it should be noted that any access door (in the sense of the present invention) can be considered as a housing part as participating in the "housing", at least in its closed state, and in its open state provides direct access to the interior of the microscope housing.

[0010] In some embodiments of the invention, the first housing part is larger than the second housing part and / or the opening provided by opening the first access door is larger than the opening provided by opening the second access door, and these openings may thus be dimensioned to provide easy access to the microscope stage and its surroundings through the first access door, and, particularly in the case of an incubated sample chamber, more direct access to the sample itself through the second access door, while minimizing disturbance of the sample in the sample chamber, minimizing light contamination by ambient light, and / or minimizing disturbance and leakage of the incubation atmosphere in the sample chamber.

[0011] For ease of explanation, without loss of generality, the following embodiments of the microscope according to the invention are based on a microscope configuration in which the microscope stage is surrounded by a microscope housing to form a separate sample chamber. The sample chamber may be incubated. Further microscope components, such as an illumination unit, may also be arranged inside the sample chamber. Such a microscope configuration may further comprise another space, separate from the sample chamber, to accommodate further microscope components, such as imaging optics. Such a configuration is typically used for transmitted light microscopes, which are typically used for the examination of living samples. As mentioned above, other configurations of the microscope according to the invention are possible and are not intended to be excluded. For example, the illumination unit of the microscope may be arranged outside the sample chamber and / or an incident light microscope may be used.

[0012] It should further be noted that the first and second access doors according to embodiments of the present invention need not be disposed separately from one another, but rather one access door may be part of the other. In particular, in embodiments where the first housing portion or first access door is larger than the second housing portion or second access door, the second access door may be included in the first access door. Such a configuration may be referred to as a "door-in-door" configuration.

[0013] It is advantageous to configure the second access door as a hinged door or a sliding door. While a sliding door can be configured to consume very little space when opened, a hinged door may preferably be configured to be pivoted downwards into an open state to form a horizontal or nearly horizontal work surface. Such a work surface may provide a storage area, a table or a shelf and thus can be used to place things like reagent containers, laboratory bottles, pipettes, sample containers such as multi-well plates, Petri dishes, etc. Thus, apart from the function of providing access to the microscope stage, the hinged door may have a second function of providing a work surface.

[0014] In another embodiment of the invention, the microscope comprises a third door, which in its closed state covers the second access door when the second access door is in its closed state. Generally, but particularly in this embodiment, it is advantageous if the second access door is formed in the front panel of the housing. The second and third doors can form a "double wall" configuration, the third door having to be opened to gain access to the second access door. The second access door provides access to the microscope stage in its open state. In a preferred embodiment, the second access door is at least partially transparent, which allows the user to visually inspect the condition of the sample on the microscope stage without having to open the second access door. In this regard, it should be noted that it may generally be advantageous to provide an inspection window in at least one of the access doors and / or to use a transparent material that allows the user to see through the transparent access door.

[0015] In the above-mentioned embodiment of the microscope with a third door, it is particularly advantageous if the second access door is formed as a transparent sliding door and the third door is formed as an opaque door, in particular larger than the second access door, preferably a hinged door. By having an opaque third door, the sample is protected from light contamination from ambient light as soon as the third door is in its closed position in the case of a transparent second access door.

[0016] It is further advantageous if the third door is realized in its closed state as at least a part of the front cover of the microscope housing, the second access door serving to open and close a corresponding opening provided in the microscope housing. Generally, the second access door is preferably formed in a first panel of the microscope housing. In the embodiment of the microscope with the third door, it is advantageous if the third door covers the part of the front panel including the second access door when the third door is in its closed state. Preferably, the third door forms at least a part of the front cover, whereby the microscope forms a closed entity, in particular in the form of a block, when the third door is closed. The "double wall" configuration is further explained below in relation to the drawings.

[0017] In another embodiment, the microscope comprises a third door including the second access door. Instead of having a "double wall" configuration, this configuration corresponds to a "door-in-door" configuration with respect to the second access door and the third door. Opening the second access door exposes a corresponding opening that provides access to the microscope stage. Opening the third door exposes a corresponding opening that corresponds to at least the opening not covered by the second access door. However, the opening not covered by the third door may be larger than the opening not covered by the second access door. It may be advantageous if the opening not covered by the third door is included in the front panel of the microscope housing. By closing the third door, preferably the front panel including the aforementioned opening is covered by the third door. In this case, opening the second access door with the third door in its closed state exposes a part of the aforementioned opening provided in the front cover. An example of this embodiment is described in more detail below in relation to the figures.

[0018] In an embodiment of the invention, the first access door constituted by the first housing part is provided with a hinge to form a hinged lid (or hinged door or hinged cap or hinged hatch) of the microscope housing, which in its open state can be pivoted upwards, downwards or to the side to provide direct access to the microscope stage. In this embodiment, it is particularly preferred if the hinged lid also supports the second access door, and in particular the third door if present.

[0019] In another embodiment, the microscope comprises at least one gas spring, i.e. one or more gas springs. The at least one gas spring is configured to brake the opening of the first access door. Additionally or alternatively, the at least one gas spring is configured to brake the closing of the first access door. This allows easy and smooth opening and closing of the first door while preventing damage. Depending on the requirements, in particular the position of the hinge, the number of gas springs and / or the position and arrangement of the gas springs can be appropriately selected.

[0020] By opening the hinged lid, the user opens a preferably larger portion of the microscope housing compared to opening the second access door and, if present, compared to opening the third door. Typically, the hinged lid is opened when the user requires access to the interior of the microscope housing, in particular to the interior and surroundings of the sample chamber, for example to adjust optical components and / or the microscope stage. This embodiment is also described in more detail below in conjunction with the drawings.

[0021] As already mentioned above, it is expedient if the second access door forms part of the first access door and / or the first housing part of the microscope housing comprises the second housing part of the microscope housing, which allows a user to reach the microscope stage via two different paths from one and the same side of the microscope, in particular from the front side.

[0022] In certain embodiments where a third door of the microscope is present, it is preferred if the third door is coupled to the first access door. In this case, the third door may be assembled to the first access door, in particular by a hinge mechanism. One possible configuration of this embodiment is a "door-in-door" configuration, where the third door is coupled to the first access door, and as another option, the second access door is included in the third door. The third door thus also forms an access door in order to provide direct access to the microscope stage. Such an embodiment is also described in more detail below in relation to the figures.

[0023] As already mentioned above, the second access door is a hinged door which in the open state is configured as a work surface and which in the closed state forms at least a part of the microscope housing.

[0024] In embodiments in which the microscope comprises a third door, it is preferred that the third door is a hinged door that is configured as a work surface in the open state and forms at least a part of the microscope housing in the closed state. In such embodiments, it is preferred that the third door has the function of a work surface, especially if the third door covers or includes the second access door.

[0025] It should be noted that any door of the microscope of the present concept can be operated manually or electromechanically, for example by remote control or by control of the microscope's control unit.

[0026] In a preferred embodiment, the microscope housing comprises a sample chamber, which is defined at least by a top surface of a microscope stage configured to accommodate a sample, and which is further defined by at least the first access door and by the second access door when each of the first and second access doors is in a closed state. If a third door including the second door is present, the sample chamber is preferably also defined by the third door, at least in the closed state. In a preferred embodiment, the sample chamber comprises and / or is connected to an incubation module for incubating the sample chamber. These embodiments are further described in the embodiments shown in the following figures.

[0027] In another preferred embodiment, the sample chamber comprises an illumination unit for generating an illumination beam for illuminating the sample when housed in the microscope stage, this embodiment of a transmitted light microscope is described further below.

[0028] As used in this specification, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items and may be abbreviated as " / ".

[0029] Although some aspects have been described in the context of an apparatus, it will be apparent that these aspects also represent a description of a corresponding method, where a block or apparatus corresponds to a step or feature of a step, and similarly, aspects described in the context of a step also represent a description of a corresponding block or item or feature of a corresponding apparatus. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0030] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating one embodiment of the present invention with the first access door in its open position. [Diagram 2]FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating one embodiment of the present invention with the first access door closed. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 with the second access door open. [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an embodiment similar to that shown in FIG. 2. [Diagram 5] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing one embodiment in which all doors of the microscope are closed. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating one embodiment in which a first access door is closed while a second access door is open. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram illustrating another embodiment of the microscope with all doors closed. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing the embodiment shown in FIG. 7 in an open state. [Figure 9] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment similar to that shown in FIG. 7, showing a microscope with a closed door and including an incubation module fitted to the rear. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating the embodiment shown in FIG. 9 with the first access door open. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating the embodiment shown in FIG. 9 with the second access door open. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0031] The drawings are generally described and like reference numbers designate like or at least structurally like components.

[0032] FIG. 1 shows a schematic representation of one embodiment of a microscope according to the inventive concept, the microscope being designated by reference number 100. The microscope 100 comprises a microscope stage 110 for accommodating a sample 112 to be examined / imaged, and further comprises a microscope housing 120 surrounding the microscope stage 110. In this embodiment, the sample 112 is contained in a multi-well plate as shown in FIG. 1. The microscope 100 further comprises a first access door 130 constituted by a first housing part 132 of the microscope housing 120. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, this first access door 130 is in an open state, with a corresponding opening providing full access to the interior of the sample chamber 114 containing the microscope stage 110. The microscope 100 further comprises a second access door 240, generally designated by reference number 240 (see reference number 240a in FIG. 2), constituted by a second housing part 142 of the microscope housing 120, the second housing part being formed by the closed second access door. In this embodiment, the first access door 130 includes a second access door 240a (see FIG. 2).

[0033] As shown in FIG. 2, the second access door 240 is a sliding door 240a that can be opened by a sliding movement as shown in FIG. 3. As best seen from FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, the first access door 130 and the second access door 240a provide different access paths to the microscope stage 110 when they are opened. The different sizes and different positions of the first access door and the second access door form different spherical angles that encompass the possible paths of access to the microscope stage through the opened access doors, respectively. While the opened first access door 130 provides access to the microscope stage 110 via a wide variety of directions, the opened second access door 240a provides only a much more limited access to the microscope stage 110.

[0034] 1-3 provides a "door-in-door" configuration since the second access door 240a is part of the first access door 130. As can be seen from FIG. 1, the first access door 130, formed by the first housing part 132, includes a hinge 134 forming a hinged lid for the microscope housing 120, the opening and closing of which is damped by a gas spring 136.

[0035] It should be noted that generally, instead of two or more gas springs, a single gas spring may also be sufficient. Moreover, the use of such a gas spring does not require the specific combination of first and second access doors shown in Figures 1-3, but rather the effect of the gas spring can also be used for the first access door only if the second access door forms part of the first access door, e.g., if the second access door is provided in a different form or not at all.

[0036] As can be seen from FIG. 1, a closed sample chamber 114 is formed by closing the first access door 130. The sample chamber 114 comprises a sample 112, the upper surface of the microscope stage 110 and an illumination unit 116. The closed sample chamber 114 can be incubated such that a controlled incubation atmosphere of a predetermined temperature, humidity and CO2 concentration is generated. In this embodiment of a transmitted light microscope 100, the objective lens of the microscope 100 is located below the microscope stage 110. The space below the microscope stage 110, including the objective lens and possibly other imaging devices such as a digital camera, may have a controlled atmosphere, which is only temperature controlled, for example to avoid water condensation on the optical and electrical components of the imaging unit and possible temperature-induced damage of such optical and electrical components. For further details regarding the incubation of the sample chamber 114, reference is made below to the embodiment of FIGS. 10 and 11.

[0037] 2 and 3 show the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 with the first access door / lid 130 closed. The second access door 240 is a slidable door 240a. A third door 250 is provided, which in its closed state covers the second access door 240a when in its closed state, as can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 5. It can be seen that the third door 250 does not provide direct access to the microscope stage 110, but the third door 250 can be used as a cover for the second access door, especially if the second access door 240a is a transparent door, and / or can be used as a working surface 252. For this purpose, it is preferred that the third door 250 is a hinged door, which in its open state is configured as a working surface 252. This configuration can be achieved by pivoting the third door 250 downward, so that it is parked in the position as shown in Figure 2 (90° opening angle). The substantially horizontal work surface 252 provides a storage area that can be used to place reagent containers, laboratory bottles, pipettes, sample containers and the like.

[0038] When the transparent second access door 240a is used, the user can inspect the inside of the sample chamber 114 while the second access door 240a is closed. Thus, no disturbance of the incubation atmosphere in the sample chamber 114 occurs. At the same time, light contamination by ambient light is minimized. When the user wants to replace or manipulate the sample, he or she can open the sliding door 240a. This results in a disturbance of the incubation atmosphere, but the resulting "leak" is much smaller than when the first access door 130 is opened.

[0039] It should be noted that the second access door 240 does not necessarily have to be a sliding door, but can be another door, such as a hinged door. The sliding door 240a does not have to be transparent, but can be opaque to avoid any ambient light from the sample in the sample chamber 114. In such a case, visual control of the state of the sample in the sample chamber 114 can be performed by camera inspection. In the embodiment shown in Figs. 1-3, it is necessary to open the first access door / lid 130 only in a limited number of cases. Such cases are, for example, to set up auxiliary equipment to be placed next to the microscope stage, to adjust the lighting unit 116, or to set up the incubation module 970 (see Fig. 9).

[0040] Figure 4 shows another embodiment similar to that shown in Figure 2, with the difference simply that the third access door 250 can be pivoted downwards by 180° instead of 90°. This does not provide a table configuration, but still provides the access advantages discussed above. This embodiment creates a free space in front of the second access door 240a.

[0041] FIG. 5 shows an embodiment in which preferably all doors of the microscope 100 are closed. The embodiment shown in FIG. 5 can be achieved, for example, by closing the first access door 130 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 or by closing the third door 250 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 3 or FIG. 4. As can be seen from FIG. 5, the third door 250 is embodied as at least a part, in this embodiment an upper part, of the front cover 560 of the microscope housing 120 in its closed state. As can be seen from FIGS. 2-4, the second access door 240a may be formed in the front panel 244 of the microscope housing 120. The second access door thus serves to open and close a corresponding opening provided in the microscope housing. The third door 250 serves to cover the front panel 244 including the second access door 240a. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the third door 250 forms an upper part of the front cover 560 in its closed state. This front cover 560 may be made of colored, transparent or translucent glass. In its closed state, the microscope 100 forms a closed entity and has the shape of a block.

[0042] The (push) button 180 shown in Figs. 1 to 5 serves the purpose of unlocking the first access door / lid 130, which can be opened by the user. It is reasonable to have interrelated locking mechanisms so that the first access door 130 can only be opened if the third door 250 is closed. Furthermore, it may be reasonable to only close the third door 250 if the second access door 240a is closed, especially in the case of incubated sample chambers. Furthermore, separate interrelated locking mechanisms of the three doors may be provided.

[0043] FIG. 6 shows a schematic representation of another embodiment in which the first access door 130 is closed while the second access door 240 is open. In this embodiment, the second access door 240 is a hinged door 240b. By pivoting the second access door 240b downwards, direct access to the microscope stage 110 is possible. The second access door 240b is constituted by a second housing part 642 serving the purpose of closing an opening 646 provided in the front panel 244. Since the size of the opening 646 is smaller than the size of the second access door 240b, a smaller second access door 240b can also be used in this embodiment. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the front panel 244 forms part of the microscope housing 120 together with the closed second access door 240b. Moreover, in this embodiment, the second access door 240b corresponds to the third door of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the sliding door 240a being omitted. Additionally, the second access door 240b is pivoted downward at an opening angle of 90° to form a work surface 252. For further features and advantages, particularly with respect to the first access door 130, please refer to the above-described embodiment.

[0044] FIG. 7 shows a schematic representation of yet another embodiment of the microscope, preferably with all doors of the microscope 100 closed. FIG. 8 shows the embodiment shown in FIG. 7 in a schematic representation in an open state, with the third door 250 open. In this embodiment, the microscope 100 comprises a third door 250, which includes a second access door 240. This configuration corresponds to a "door-in-door" configuration for the second and third access doors, where the third door also has the function of an access door. Opening the second access door 240, which is configured as a sliding door, exposes a corresponding opening that provides direct access to the microscope stage 110. Furthermore, opening the third door 250 exposes a corresponding opening, which exceeds the size of the opening exposed by the second access door 240 (as can be seen from FIG. 8). In this embodiment, the opening not covered by the third door 250 is included in the front panel 244 of the microscope housing 120, although it would be possible to enlarge this opening by reducing or omitting the front panel 244. On the other hand, the size of the third door 250 may be adapted to the size of the opening 846. In the embodiment shown in Figure 8, the third door 250 corresponds to the third door shown in the embodiment of Figures 1-3, but the third door 250 includes the second access door 240 as can be seen in Figures 7 and 8.

[0045] In this embodiment, three different access paths to the microscope stage 110 are provided to the user: by opening the first access door 130, a wide spherical angle of access to the microscope stage 110 is provided to the user, by opening the third door 250, exposing the opening 846, a narrow spherical angle of access to the microscope stage 110 is provided, and by opening the second access door 240, an even narrower spherical angle of access is provided. Thus, depending on the user's intention, the user can decide between the three different access paths, while at the same time trying to keep the level of disturbance of the incubation atmosphere as low as possible.

[0046] 7, the second access door 240 is part of the third door 250, and the third door 250 is part of the first access door 130, so that this configuration forms a "door-in-door" configuration with respect to the first, second and third doors. The third (access) door 250 is coupled to the first access door 130 by a hinge mechanism, as already described in connection with the previous embodiment.

[0047] Figures 9 to 11 show diagrammatically an embodiment similar to that shown in Figures 7 and 8, with the main difference that the incubation module 970 is fitted to the rear of the microscope 100. Figure 9 shows this embodiment with the doors 240 and 130 closed, whereas Figure 10 shows this embodiment with the first access door / lid 130 open and Figure 11 shows this embodiment with the first access door 130 closed but the second access door open. With regard to the features and advantages of the microscope 100 according to this embodiment, reference is made to the description of the preceding embodiment in order to avoid unnecessary repetition.

[0048] As can be seen from FIG. 10, the sample chamber 114 is provided with the upper side of the microscope stage 110 and the illumination unit 116. The sample 112 has not yet been placed on the microscope stage 110. As mentioned above, other components for imaging the sample, such as a microscope objective (not shown) and a digital camera, are arranged at the bottom of the microscope 100 below the microscope stage 110. The rear of the sample chamber 114 is provided with three inlets / outlets 1018, two of which are closed and one of which is open and functional. The three inlets / outlets 1018 serve, among other things, to guide the incubation atmosphere formed by the incubation module 970 into the interior of the sample chamber 114 and / or out of the sample chamber 114. Furthermore, sensors, tubes for pumps, etc. may be led through one or more of these inlets / outlets 1018. 10, one of these inlets / outlets 1018 is provided with a split tube, one half of which is configured to direct the incubation atmosphere into the sample chamber 114, while the other half of the tube is configured to exhaust the incubation atmosphere out of the sample chamber 114. During operation, the sample 112 is placed on the microscope stage 110, preferably with all of the doors of the microscope 100 closed, and the incubation module 970 is operated to create an incubation atmosphere of predefined and controlled temperature, humidity and CO2 concentration in the sample chamber 114.

[0049] As shown in FIG. 11, further depending on the user's intention, the user can open only the second access door 240, for example to replace the sample 112 or to manipulate the sample 112, resulting in only a slight "leak", with a small degree of air exchange between the inside and the outside of the sample chamber 114. In contrast, the user can decide to open the first access door / lid 130 for maximum access possible, for example to set up an incubation module or an illumination unit. In this case, a large air exchange will occur between the inside and the outside of the sample chamber, most likely destroying the incubation atmosphere if it already exists. On the other hand, the user can take an intermediate path by opening the third door 250 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, if this option is realized in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 9-11. [Explanation of symbols]

[0050] 100 Microscope 110 Microscope Stage 112 Samples 114 Sample chamber 116 Lighting Unit 120 Microscope Housing 130 First Access Door 132 first housing part 134 Hinge 136 Gas spring 142 second housing part 180 Button 240 Second Access Door 240a Second sliding access door 240b Second Hinged Access Door 244 Front Panel 250 The Third Door 252 Work surface 560 Front cover 646 Aperture 642 Second housing part 846 Aperture 970 Incubation Module 1018 Entrance / Exit

Claims

1. A microscope (100) for inspecting a sample (112), comprising: The microscope (100) comprises a microscope stage (110) for accommodating the sample (112) to be examined, and further comprises a microscope housing (120) surrounding the microscope stage (110); the microscope housing (120) comprises a first access door (130) and a second access door (240), both of which, when opened, provide different access paths to the microscope stage (110); Microscope (100).

2. an opening provided by opening the first access door (130) is larger than an opening provided by opening the second access door (240); The microscope (100) of claim 1.

3. the first access door (130) is defined by a first housing portion (132) of the microscope housing (120) and / or the second access door (240) is defined by a second housing portion (142) of the microscope housing (120); The microscope (100) of claim 1.

4. the first housing portion (132) is larger than the second housing portion (142); The microscope (100) of claim 3.

5. The second access door (240) is a hinged door (240b) or a sliding door (240a). The microscope (100) of claim 1.

6. the microscope (100) comprises a third door (250), which in its closed state covers the second access door (240a) when the second access door (240a) is in its closed state; The microscope (100) of claim 1.

7. The third door (250) in its closed state embodies at least a part of a front cover (560) of the microscope housing (120). The microscope (100) of claim 6.

8. the second access door (240a) is formed in a front panel (244) of the microscope housing (120); The microscope (100) of claim 1.

9. The microscope (100) includes a third door (250), the third door (250) including the second access door (240). The microscope (100) of claim 1.

10. The first access door (130) includes a hinge (134) to form a hinged lid for the microscope housing (120). The microscope (100) of claim 1.

11. The microscope (100) further comprises at least one gas spring (136), the at least one gas spring (136) configured to brake at least one of the opening of the first access door (130) and the closing of the first access door (130). The microscope (100) of claim 10.

12. said second access door (240a) forms part of said first access door (130); The microscope (100) of claim 1.

13. The first housing portion (132) of the microscope housing (120) includes the second housing portion (142) of the microscope housing (120). The microscope (100) of claim 3.

14. The third door (250) forms part of and / or is coupled to the first access door (130). A microscope (100) according to claim 6 or 9.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the second access door (240) is a hinged door that, in an open position, is configured as a work surface (252) and, in a closed position, forms at least a portion of the microscope housing (120). The microscope (100) of claim 5.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the third door (250) is a hinged door that, in an open state, is configured as a work surface (252) and, in a closed state, forms at least a portion of the microscope housing (120). A microscope (100) according to claim 6 or 9.

17. the microscope housing (120) comprises a sample chamber (114), the sample chamber (114) being defined at least by an upper surface of the microscope stage (110) configured to accommodate the sample (112) and further defined at least by the first access door (130) and by the second access door (240) when each of the first access door (130) and the second access door (240) is in a closed state; The microscope (100) of claim 1.

18. The microscope housing (120) comprises a sample chamber (114), the sample chamber (114) being defined at least by an upper surface of the microscope stage (110) configured to accommodate the sample (112) and further defined at least by the first access door (130) and by the second access door (240) when each of the first access door (130) and the second access door (240) is in a closed state, and the sample chamber (114) is defined at least by the third door (250) in a closed state. The microscope (100) of claim 9.

19. the sample chamber (114) is provided with and / or connected to an incubation module (970) for incubating the sample chamber (114); A microscope (100) according to claim 17 or 18.

20. the sample chamber (114) comprises an illumination unit (116) for generating an illumination beam for illuminating the sample (112) when housed within the microscope stage (110); A microscope (100) according to claim 17 or 18.

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