Driver for a Zeiss Axio Observer D1

[_Paul]

We would like to control a Zeiss microscope (Axio Observer D1) and internal shutter with Labview (version 8.0 or 8.6). Anybody know of a suitable driver for this purpose. Thank you very much!

[BenjaminR]

Hi _Paul,

Thanks for coming on National Instruments Forum.

You can contact Zeis to know if they have drivers for LabVIEW, moreover if your device communicates in Serial, GPIB… you can implement you own driver in LabVIEW.

[bspuida]

I am using a Zeiss Axio Observer M1 and have contacted Zeiss. They offer two driver libraries - one is the Microscope Tool Box (MTB), the other is a low level library for accessing all functions via CAN bus. They recommended the former, as the latter is more complex and only suitable when you want to program really "close to the metal". The MTB is written in .net, so it should be possible to access it from LabView.

However, your company might object to some of the terms of the license - you are required to give them a copy of the source code of your application.

[Coq_Rouge]

First Google the phrase -> labview Carl Zeiss. Perhaps someone has made an instrument driver for a scope similar to yours. I am quite sure it uses the same protocol as your scope. Your scope has serial port. I will recommend using this. This is the easiest way to do it. Your plan involving a .net application and a can buss seems difficult and problematic to me. You should also contact Carl Zeiss and ask for a copy of the communication protocol. Remember to ask them if you have to order a special serial cable. If they offer to sell you a cable, buy it. This may save you a lot of wasted lab time

Good luck