Simultaneous Vision-Based Shape and Motion Analysis of Cells Fast-Flowing in a Microchannel

作者：Gu Qingyi^*; Aoyama Tadayoshi; Takaki Takeshi; Ishii Idaku

来源：IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering, 2015, 12(1): 204-215.

DOI：10.1109/TASE.2013.2292583

• Automated cell inspection
• cell deformation analysis
• frame-straddling camera
• high-speed vision
• lab-on-a-chip (LOC)
• multiobject feature extraction

This paper proposes a novel concept for simultaneous cell shape and motion analysis in fast microchannel flows by implementing a multiobject feature extraction algorithm on a frame-straddling high-speed vision platform. The system can synchronize two camera inputs with the same view with only a tiny time delay on the sub-microsecond timescale. Real-time video processing is performed in hardware logic by extracting the moment features of multiple cells in 512 256 images at 4000 fps for the two camera inputs and their frame-straddling time can be adjusted from 0 to 0.25 ms in 9.9 ns steps. By setting the frame-straddling time in a certain range to avoid large image displacements between the two camera inputs, our frame-straddling high-speed vision platform can perform simultaneous shape and motion analysis of cells in fast microchannel flows of 1 m/s or greater. The results of real-time experiments conducted to analyze the deformabilities and velocities of sea urchin egg cells fast-flowing in microchannels verify the efficacy of our vision-based cell analysis system.
Note to Practitioners-Offline high-speed cameras have been used for cell-shape analysis, however, the measurable speeds of cells in microchannel flows are limited by their frame intervals, because their frame intervals are not small enough to capture the fast apparent motion of cells magnified in microscopic view. Our system can overcome this restriction, and operates as a real-time inspection tool for cells flowing in microchannels at several meters per second, where their shapes are deformed corresponding to their mechanical properties. Lab-on-a-chip practitioners can easily apply it to cells fast-flowing in microchannels, such as red blood cells or iPS cells, which should be inspected by checking the size, shape, stiffness, and other image-based parameters, toward automated mass production of good-quality cells.

• 出版日期2015-1