Mar 14, 2025
NIS-Elements JOB for Well Plate Scanning with Autofocus and Random Point Positioning
- Robert Tetley1,
- Stefan Russo2
- 1Nikon Healthcare UK;
- 2Queen Mary University of London
- Nikon Healthcare UK, Branch of Nikon Europe
Protocol Citation: Robert Tetley, Stefan Russo 2025. NIS-Elements JOB for Well Plate Scanning with Autofocus and Random Point Positioning. protocols.io https://dx.doi.org/10.17504/protocols.io.q26g7m32qgwz/v1
License: This is an open access protocol distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited
Protocol status: Working
We use this protocol and it's working
Created: December 31, 2024
Last Modified: March 14, 2025
Protocol Integer ID: 117455
Keywords: NIS-Elements, JOBS, Nikon, Microscopy, Wellplates, Randomisation, Autofocus, elements job for well plate scanning, well plate scanning, focal position, images at random position, autofocus, ni, autofocus routine, elements job, well plate, random position, defined well, point in each well, random point, image, plate
Disclaimer
Caution is advised when using the JOB, as stage movement is unsupervised. Setting z-drive limits is strongly recommended.
Abstract
This JOB was created in NIS-Elements version 5.42.06, and is designed to capture images at random positions within defined wells of a well plate. At each point in each well, the focal position is determined by an autofocus routine.
Guidelines
This JOB was created in NIS-Elements version 5.42.06.
Materials
JOB definition for Well Plate Scanning with Autofocus and Random Point Positioning - to be imported into the NIS-Elements JOBS Explorer:
Well Plate Scanning - Autofocus.bin14KB Troubleshooting
Align Well Plate
Before running the JOB, please ensure that your well plate of choice has been aligned from the HCA/JOBS menu via the (Re-)Align Well Plate Holder.. wizard.
Run the JOB from the JOBS Explorer
Download the attached JOB definition (see the Materials tab) and import the file into the JOBS Explorer
Click on the name of the JOB definition in the list and click the green Play icon
In the JOBS Wizard, first select the Optical Configurations/Experiment Setups that define your Capture Definition
Define the type of plate that will be imaged
Select the wells that will be imaged
Select the Autofocus settings that will be used, including the z-device, imaging criterion and range
Define the number of random points you wish to image per well - border (and centre) restrictions can also be specified in this step
Once all Wizard sections are complete, click Run
When the JOB starts running, you will first be prompted to go Live and focus on your cells/sample in the first well
Once this is done, click OK
The JOB will begin acquiring images in each defined well. If you would like to finish acquiring before images have been captured in all wells, click Finish. If you have made an error during setup and wish to discard all image data from the experiment, click Abort.