Automatic cell identification and visualization using digital holographic microscopy with head mounted augmented reality devices: An Overview

摘要

We overview a compact and field-portable digital holographic microscopy system based on shearing geometry and integrated with a head mounted augmented reality device for cell identification and visualization. Customized smart glasses containing an external camera connect directly to the 3D-printed system to record holograms of biological specimens. Following hologram acquisition, regions of interest containing biological cells are segmented and digitally reconstructed to generate a three-dimensional (3D) pseudocolor optical path length profile. From the optical path length profiles, morphological features are extracted and inputted into several classification models for comparison including random forest classifier, support vector machines, and k-nearest neighbor, each yielding a high classification accuracy. After successful classification of the target cell, the classification result along with a pseudocolor 3D rendering of the cell's optical path length profile, and its extracted feature values are displayed to the augmented reality device for the user. The system was tested on both living and non-living samples, including feature extraction from video data of live paramecium. The overviewed system may allow for quickly and conveniently visualizing cells through an augmented reality device and extracting relevant information with potential applications of rapid diagnosis by healthcare professionals working in remote areas. We acknowledge support from the National Science Foundation (Directorate for Engineering (ENG) (NSF ECCS 1545687, NSF/IIS-1422179)).