Multiple Magnification Glass Bead Microscope

thingiverse

This was inspired by the designs from Pacific Northwest Laboratories. They utilize a glass bead to enlarge samples which are then captured on a smartphone. However, after utilizing it for several brief lessons and demonstrations, I wanted to enhance some aspects of their design. This design boasts several improvements: * Easy switching between multiple magnifications * Simple sample movement * Rear camera with higher resolution is utilized * Optional USB LED lighting and optics system can be added The beads used in this design are 0.5 mm, 1.0 mm, and 3.5 mm, offering a magnification of about 500X, 350X, and 100X respectively. Digital zoom on the camera allows for even higher magnification. It works well with prepared slides where some slides appear best at high magnification while others look better at low magnification. It can also be used to examine fresh samples.