Specimen moving attachment for a microscope or the like

Claim 2

Specimen moving apparatus for attachment to the stage of a microscope or the like for positioning and moving a specimen for inspection and analysis, comprising mounting means readily attachable to the stage, specimen holding means, support means connecting said specimen holding means to said mounting means and permitting planar movement of said specimen holding means in predeterminable paths across the microscope stage, actuator means drivingly connected to said support means and supported from said mounting means, said actuator means including motion producing means and a shaft assembly universally supported between its ends and drive connected at its opposite ends to said suppOrt means and said motion producing means for moving said specimen holding means in a selected one of several paths of movement across the stage of the microscope to present said specimen for microscopic examination from varying positions as desired.

Claim 3

Apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein said shaft assembly has one end universally connected to said support means and its opposite end drive connected to said motion producing means.

Claim 4

Apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein said motion producing means comprising motor means and a motor driven wheel having respective shaft assembly connector means for selective connection to said shaft assembly to effect movement of said actuator means in a selected one of several predetermined paths of travel whereby said specimen holding means and said specimen may be moved in a predetermined path across the stage of the microscope.

Claim 5

Apparatus as defined in claim 2, wherein said shaft assembly one end and said shaft assembly other end are telescopically coupled together to cause said shaft one end to move in a predetermined path of travel around the axis of said universal support resulting in movement of the specimen holder and specimen in a predetermined planar path across the stage of the microscope.

Claim 6

Apparatus as defined in claim 4, wherein said motion producing means comprising a motor and cam means rotatably drive connected to said motor, and said cam means provides a cam surface coupled to said opposite end of said shaft to move said opposite end in a predetermined path in a plane angularly related to the longitudinal axis of said shaft assembly to produce movement of said specimen holder means in a correlated predetermined path across the stage of the microscope.

Claim 7

Apparatus as defined in claim 5, wherein said cam means comprises a wheel having a top wall and bottom-opening recess enclosing a stationary cam disc having a helically grooved upper face, said wheel top wall has an opening through which said opposite shaft end passes to engage in the helical groove of said upper face whereby, upon rotation of said cam wheel, said opposite shaft end will be forced to follow the helical groove thereby causing said one shaft end and said specimen holder to move in a predetermined helical path across the stage of the microscope.

Claim 8

Apparatus as defined in claim 6 wherein said opening in said wheel top wall comprises an elongated slot extending radially outwardly in one direction from the axis of rotation of said wheel.

Claim 9

Apparatus as defined in claim 5 wherein said cam means comprises a wheel having a top wall and a bottom-opening recess enclosing a stationary cam disc and said wheel top wall has a plurality of apertures spaced radially outwardly in one direction from the axis of rotation of said wheel, said apertures being selectively fitted to said opposite shaft end whereby, when said opposite shaft end is positioned in a selected one of said apertures, said opposite shaft end will be forced to move in a substantially circular path thereby causing said one shaft end and said specimen holder to move in a predetermined circular path across the microscope stage.

Claim 10

Apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein said shaft assembly comprises a first hollow shaft having an upper generally spherical fulcrum mounting in said mounting means, a second shaft slidably received within said first hollow shaft and having a blind bore opening through one end and a shaft extension at its other end universally connected to said support means, a third shaft slidably received within said blind bore of said second shaft and with one end protruding from said blind bore and terminating in a conical end portion drive connected to said motion producing means, and spring means disposed between the other end of said third shaft and the bottom of said blind bore in said second shaft, said spring means biasing said third shaft in a direction to establish an extensible drive connection between said motion producing means and said support mEans whereby the ratio of movement between the opposite ends of said shaft may be varied.

Claim 11

Apparatus as defined in claim 1, wherein said support means comprises a slide rod having one end connected to said specimen holding means and a cross arm sleeve support axially slidably mounting said slide rod and having a pair of oppositely transversely extending arms slidably mounted in respective bearing supports formed on said mounting means, and said actuator means is connected to the other end of said slide rod.

Claim 12

Apparatus as defined in claim 9, said actuator means including shaft means having an upper end and a lower end which is connected to said motion producing means, said shaft means being supported intermediate its upper and lower ends from said mounting means for universal pivotal movement, universal coupling means for connecting said upper end of said shaft means to said other end of said slide rod, said coupling means comprising an outer coupling member having a transverse opening therethrough and a pair of longitudinal openings extending through the front and back walls thereof, an inner coupling member spaced within said transverse opening and supported therein for pivotal motion about the longitudinal axis of said outer coupling member, the upper end of said shaft means being pivotally connected to said inner coupling member for pivotal motion in a direction transverse to the longitudinal axis of said outer coupling member, and the other end of said slide rod being fixedly received within the opening in the front wall of said outer coupling member, whereby movement of the lower end of said shaft means is transmitted through said coupling means and said slidable support means to the specimen holding means to position a specimen on the stage of the microscope as desired.

Claim 13

Apparatus as defined in claim 1, said mounting means comprising first bracket means fixedly attached to the stage through a vertical leg and having a right angularly extending lower leg, a second bracket means having a vertical leg vertically adjustably connected to the vertical leg of said first bracket means and having a right angularly extending upper leg; said actuator means comprising shaft means including a first hollow shaft having an upper generally spherical fulcrum mounted for universal pivotal movement in said upper leg of said second bracket means, a second shaft slidably received within said first shaft and having an elongated, bottom end opening blind bore and an upper extension pivotally connected to said slidable support means, a third shaft slidably received within said blind bore and having a lower end engaging said motion producing means which is mounted on said lower leg of said first bracket means, spring means positioned between the upper end of said third shaft and the bottom of said blind bore, whereby the length of said shaft means extending from said fulcrum to the lower end of said third shaft may be varied by vertically adjusting said second bracket with respect to said first bracket.

Claim 14

In combination with a conventional specimen examination microscope having a specimen support stage, an attachment for receiving and moving a specimen holder across the specimen support stage in a desired path of movement for examination comprising an attachment clamp bracket formed to receive and be fixed to an edge of the support stage, and providing laterally spaced bearing supports; specimen holding means comprising a crossarm sleeve support the lateral arms of which are slidably mounted in said spaced bearing supports and the sleeve support of which is disposed with its axis normal to said lateral arms; specimen holder support rod means slidably mounted between its ends in said sleeve support and including clamp means at one end carrying a specimen holder; actuator means including a motor support bracket dependently fixedly secured to said clamp bracket and having a plate portion which extends at a right angle away from said specimen support stage beneath said specimen holDer support rod means, the free end of said plate portion having an opening; a shaft support bracket vertically adjustably fixed to said motor support bracket and having a plate portion disposed in overhanging vertically spaced relation to the plate portion of said motor support bracket and provided adjacent its free end with an opening delimited by a downwardly facing spherical ring socket, said shaft support bracket opening being substantially coaxially related to said motor bracket opening; an actuator shaft assembly including a spherical ended support sleeve journaled in dependent relation from said spherical socket and slidably carrying an extensible shaft, said shaft assembly including an upper sleeve shaft extending upwardly and terminating in a closed upper end adjacent the other end of said specimen holder support rod means and a lower shaft slidably carried by and depending from the lower end of said upper sleeve shaft and terminating at its lower end in a conical downwardly tapering end portion, a compression spring interposed between the closed upper end of said upper sleeve shaft and the upper end of said lower shaft to yieldingly bias said upper sleeve shaft and said lower shaft toward their maximum extension; means universally connecting the upward extension of said upper sleeve shaft to the other end of said specimen holder support rod means; a cam and wheel assembly fixedly mounted on said plate portion of said motor support bracket through a cam disc having a dependent threaded shank extending through said motor support bracket opening and a clamp nut threaded on its dependent end, said cam disc having an upwardly facing helically grooved cam face and journaling a driven wheel the upper side face of which is provided with a radial slot dimensioned to freely pass said tapering end portion of said lower shaft and a series of oppositely radially spaced circular openings dimensioned to grippingly engage said tapering end portion of said lower shaft; and a motor and drive pinion assembly including a support plate slotted at one end to receive said threaded shank of said cam disc, said slotted plate end being selectively adjustably clamped between said cam disc and said plate portion of said motor support bracket upon tightening of said clamp nut in position to frictionally drivingly abut said drive pinion with the peripheral face of said driven wheel whereby said driving wheel may be selectively drive connected to said tapering end portion of said lower shaft through said radial slot to drive said actuator shaft assembly along said helical groove to impart helical movement to said specimen holder and to a selected one of said radially spaced circular openings to impart a predetermined circular movement to said specimen holder.

Claim 15

In combination with a conventional specimen examination microscope having a specimen support stage, an attachment for receiving and moving a specimen holder across the specimen support stage in a desired path of movement for examination comprising an attachment clamp bracket formed to receive and be fixed to an edge of the support stage, and providing laterally spaced bearing supports; specimen holding means comprising a crossarm sleeve support the lateral arms of which are slidably mounted in said spaced bearing supports and the sleeve support of which is disposed with its axis normal to said lateral arms; specimen holder support rod means slidably mounted between its ends in said sleeve support and including clamp means at one end carrying a specimen holder; actuator means including a motor support bracket dependently fixedly secured to said clamp bracket and having a plate portion which extends at a right angle away from said specimen support stage beneath said specimen holDer support rod means, the free end of said plate portion having an opening; a shaft support bracket vertically adjustably fixed to said motor support bracket and having a plate portion disposed in overhanging vertically spaced relation to the plate portion of said motor support bracket and provided adjacent its free end with an opening delimited by a downwardly facing spherical ring socket, said shaft support bracket opening being substantially coaxially related to said motor bracket opening; an actuator shaft assembly including a spherical ended support sleeve journaled in dependent relation from said spherical socket and slidably carrying an extensible shaft, said shaft assembly including an upper sleeve shaft extending upwardly and terminating in a closed upper end adjacent the other end of said specimen holder support rod means and a lower shaft slidably carried by and depending from the lower end of said upper sleeve shaft and terminating at its lower end in a conical downwardly tapering end portion, a compression spring interposed between the closed upper end of said upper sleeve shaft and the upper end of said lower shaft to yieldingly bias said upper sleeve shaft and said lower shaft toward their maximum extension; means universally connecting the upward extension of said upper sleeve shaft to the other end of said specimen holder support rod means; a cam and wheel assembly fixedly mounted on said plate portion of said motor support bracket through a cam disc having a dependent threaded shank extending through said motor support bracket opening and a clamp nut threaded on its dependent end, said cam disc having an upwardly facing helically grooved cam face and journaling a driven wheel the upper side face of which is provided with a radial slot dimensioned to freely pass said tapering end portion of said lower shaft and a series of oppositely radially spaced circular openings dimensioned to grippingly engage said tapering end portion of said lower shaft; and a motor and drive pinion assembly including a support plate slotted at one end to receive said threaded shank of said cam disc, said slotted plate end being selectively adjustably clamped between said cam disc and said plate portion of said motor support bracket upon tightening of said clamp nut in position to frictionally drivingly abut said drive pinion with the peripheral face of said driven wheel whereby said driving wheel may be selectively drive connected to said tapering end portion of said lower shaft through said radial slot to drive said actuator shaft assembly along said helical groove to impart helical movement to said specimen holder and to a selected one of said radially spaced circular openings to impart a predetermined circular movement to said specimen holder.

Claim 16

The combination of claim 13 wherein said lower shaft pivotally mounts a handle member for manually actuating said shaft assembly upon disengaging said drive pinion from said driven wheel to impart desired manual movement of said specimen holder when necessary to effect proper examination of the specimen.