Raspberry Pi: Utilise the single-board computer as a microscope with LEGO and an Arduino

An ambitious project has created a microscope using an Arduino, LEGO and a Raspberry Pi as its basis. Produced by Yuksel Temiz, a scientist at IBM Research, the project also uses some 3D-printed parts, an 8 MP Raspberry Pi camera and a Digital Video magnifying microscope lens.

The project is completely open-source, with Temiz having posted a full build guide on GitHub. According to a bill of materials posted on a corresponding Inside IBM Research Medium post, the project will cost between US$300 to US$400 to realise, although this estimate includes US$50 to US$150 for an HDMI display.

The microscope could be built without LEGO and even an Arduino, but Temiz states that using these parts allows the project to be more modular. The LEGO microscope can also deliver usable results. According to Temiz, the microscope is precise enough to give "an artistic view of images for reports, papers and presentations".

Temiz has also published a YouTube video on the microscope, which you can watch below. He posts his projects on Reddit too. He has also provided the microcontroller code necessary to control the device's stepper motors.