Using stimulus controls

You have the option to record with stimuli (manual or LED lights) if you have a license for the Stimulus Controls module.

Record with LED lights stimuli

We provide hardware for acquisition lights (LED white and red) and excitation lights (LED green and blue).

  1. Follow the steps for Recording a video but don't press Record yet.
  2. In the Capture tab, check Show stimulus controls to open the Controls window.
  3. In the LED setup panel, click Connect if you're not already connected; adjust the intensity of the acquisition light (white or red) with the slider.

    Synchronize with frames: Only consider this option when you're having difficulty with acquiring at a high rate at high resolution with very short stimuli. Note that in this case, the acquisition rate will dictate temporal resolution.

  4. Define a stimulus pattern for the green light in the Green LED panel: For each stimulus component, enter the parameters, click Test intensity then click Add label. Labels correspond to the time period during which a stimulus is applied. They will be used to refine analyses (see Label analysis).
  5. Define a stimulus pattern for the blue light in the Blue LED panel.
  6. Keep the Stimulus controls window open; return to the Capture tab (Video Capture window) and click Record.
  7. Click Stop.

Record with manual stimuli

You can define and apply your own stimuli manually.

  1. Follow the steps for Recording a video but don't press Record yet.
  2. In the Capture tab, check Show stimulus controls to open the Controls window.
  3. In the Stimulus Definition panel, enter a name and a description for the first stimulus then click Add. Define other stimuli as needed.
  4. Keep the Stimulus controls window open; return to the Capture tab (Video Capture window) and click Record.
  5. Use the buttons in the Manual Control panel to apply the stimuli as needed.

    WormLab automatically creates labels corresponding to the periods of time during which stimuli were applied. They will be used to refine analyses (see Label analysis).