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Jens,

Have you seen the ASI Rapid Automated Modular Microscope:

http://asiimaging.com/products/video-microscopes-test-stands-complete-system-solutions/rapid-automated-modular-microscope-ramm-system/

Definitely a lego-like system as different components can be bolted to it and it can be easily customized. Not sure if it has been successfully used for particle tracking, but we have used it for localization microscopy in the past, and it is an integral part of Hari Shroff's DiSPIM microscope:

http://asiimaging.com/products/light-sheet-microscopy/selective-plane-illumination-microscopy-ispimdispim/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YiQ-8tjYz0

Please note, I have no commercial interest in this product by ASI.

There used to be another small company called AFOptical (no commercial interest) that specialized in optical components that were easily used in a vertical building fashion (ideal for microscopes), but I don't think they are in existence any longer. I used the internet "way-back" machine to locate their old webpage:

http://web.archive.org/web/20061205032034/http://afoptical.com/



John Oreopoulos
Staff Scientist
Spectral Applied Research Inc.
A Division of Andor Technology
Richmond Hill, Ontario
Canada
www.spectral.ca


On 2014-04-21, at 3:12 PM, Jens-Bernhard Bosse wrote:

> *****
> To join, leave or search the confocal microscopy listserv, go to:
> http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A0=confocalmicroscopy
> Post images on http://www.imgur.com and include the link in your posting.
> *****
> 
> Dear List,
> 
> I am looking for  a simple and most importantly stable inverted microscope design/layout for fluorescence microscopy and single particle tracking. It should consist of readily available "Lego bricks" (e.g. Thorlabs parts) and be versatile so that additional components can be added later. Thorlabs seems to prefer a design in which the objective is mounted on a damped post as in their optical tweezers setup (http://www.thorlabs.com/NewGroupPage9.cfm?ObjectGroup_ID=3959) , but I am not sure if this is the most stable layout.
> 
> Thank you!
> 
> Jens
> --------------------------------------------------------------
> Jens B. Bosse Ph.D.
> Enquist Lab
> Department of Molecular Biology
> and
> Princeton Neuroscience Institute
> Princeton University
> 301 Schultz Lab
> Washington Rd
> 08544 Princeton, NJ, USA
> 
> Phone: +1-609-258-4990
> Email:  [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
> Web: http://molbio.princeton.edu/labs/enquist/