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Observing Toothbrush Bristle Tips

Versatile digital microscopes facilitate multiple microscopy techniques in a single system

Application

There are a wide variety of toothbrushes, each characterized by the angle and flexibility of the head, the amount, length, and softness of the brush bristles, and the shape of the tip. These features enable users to select the toothbrush that best suits them. When food debris accumulates in a periodontal pocket, a small gap between the teeth and gums, it can cause gingivitis or pyorrhea. Consequently, manufacturers are making toothbrushes that have tapered bristle tips that are designed to enter the periodontal pockets. Product management must check bristle tips using a microscope to confirm that they are meeting the shape requirements.

Olympus’ solution

Olympus' DSX digital microscope enables users to easily perform a variety of microscopy techniques, including brightfield, darkfield, MIX (a combination of brightfield and darkfield), differential interference contrast (DIC), and polarization. Using a single click, users can switch between observation methods to easily find the method most suitable to the application. In this instance, a variety of techniques can be used to view the condition of the semi-transparent bristle tip. With optical zoom, users can obtain up to 10X magnification, covering the magnification range of a conventional metallurgical microscope using only one objective lens. When required, higher magnification can be achieved since up to two lenses can be mounted to the microscope. By capturing multiple images in the Z axis and using extended focal image (EFI) function, users can create an all in focus image from the root of the bundle of brush bristles to the tip. Combined with the automatic stitching function, users can achieve data imaging that is not possible using a conventional microscope.