Specimen Analysis Digital Twins for Cross-Instrument Image Registration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing analytical instruments face challenges in accurately registering and transferring spatially-resolved analysis between different microscopes, particularly due to differences in image contrast mechanisms and coordinate systems, leading to inefficiencies and inaccuracies in identifying points of interest on specimens.
Innovation Solution
A scanning system and method utilizing computer-readable fiducial markers, such as QR codes or Apriltags, combined with photogrammetry techniques, generate a Digital Analytical Twin (DAT) data structure that allows for precise registration and transfer of analysis between different analytical instruments, independent of proprietary software systems.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If manual registration methods are used to identify points of interest on specimens, then flexibility in handling different specimens is maintained, but time consumption and registration accuracy deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a digital copy (Digital Analytical Twin - DAT) of the specimen that contains all spatial and analytical information. This digital replica allows rapid retrieval and registration of points of interest without manual measurement, thereby improving registration accuracy while reducing time consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical registration methods with an automated digital system. The DAT structure enables computer-based identification and registration of points of interest, substituting human manual operations with automated digital processing, which improves both accuracy and speed.
2Adaptability or versatility
If proprietary software systems are used for spatial registration, then instrument-specific functionality is optimized, but adaptability across different analytical instruments deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal Digital Analytical Twin (DAT) structure that can be used across different analytical instruments and software systems. The DAT serves as a common language that enables interoperability between instruments from different manufacturers, improving adaptability without requiring complex proprietary software integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The DAT acts as an intermediary data structure between different analytical instruments and software systems. It provides a standardized interface that translates between different instrument-specific coordinate systems and software formats, enabling seamless integration without increasing overall system complexity.
3Manufacturing precision
If different coordinate systems are used for different microscopes, then each instrument can be optimized for its specific imaging method, but difficulty in transferring spatial information between instruments increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a new dimensional layer (the DAT) that encompasses multiple coordinate systems and imaging modalities. By organizing spatial information in this additional digital dimension, the system can accurately transform and transfer spatial coordinates between different microscope systems without losing precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms where the DAT continuously updates with accurate spatial and analytical information from each instrument. This feedback loop ensures that coordinate transformations remain accurate by constantly referencing the original specimen data, maintaining manufacturing precision across instrument transfers.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables accurate and efficient correlation of images and analysis across multiple instruments, reducing time and cost associated with manual registration methods and facilitating seamless integration of diverse analytical tools.
Implementation Method 1
generate a three-dimensional model (3D model) of the specimen based on an application of one or more photogrammetry techniques on the captured first plurality of images
Data Source
AI summary
A new method and apparatus is described for the improved analysis (physical or chemical) of objects. Photogrammetry and computer-readable fiducial markers are used to produce electronic files that constitute a digital twin of the specimen being analyzed. This aids communication and discussion about where on the specimen to analyze, and allows multiple analytical techniques to be applied using a common coordinate system, thereby aiding correlative microscopy. Additionally, a method and software which we call PARS (Portable Analytical Registration Software) that allows points defined by one computer-operated imaging instrument to be found easily in another computer-operated imaging instrument, without needing access or changes to the software running each instrument. This methodology makes it possible to correlate images from many surface imaging techniques to provide an unprecedented level of surface detail on a potentially nanometer scale that no one technique can provide alone.