The invention of the first microscopes inevitably led to the question of the size of the objects viewed via the eyepiece and their relationship to the each other. The other equally imperative question was how to deduce the volumes of the objects from a 2D section. These quantitative microscopy questions were usually addressed initially by the stereology, that in turn contributed to the principles on which Microscopy Image Analysis is based. The first experiments as well as the results are attributed to Achille Delesse, who demonstrated that the area fraction is proportional to the volume fraction.
The initial credence of the concept spurred the development of the QTM B in 1963 which proved to be the first commercially successful automated instrument in this field of Microscopy Image Analysis. These early Microscopy Image Analysis systems were basically utilized for scientific purposes. The users came from the steel industry or from metallurgic and mineralogical research institutes, but the potential in life sciences was immediately recognized.
The digital era for the Microscopy Image Analysis began back in 1969, when the Quantimet 720 was launched to the market. This was an instrument that was utilized highly-modular, hardware-based image processing logic. Thanks to the special tube cameras a resolution of 869 x 704 pixels was achieved and the entire image digitized. The system was much more flexible than its predecessors and provided automated control of the microscope stage and focus. When combined with accessories, these systems could have filled a small room.
So, you have the knowledge about this history of image analysis in microscopy! Don’t forget to share with the others!
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