Open Source Hardware
Hardware Integration
- ESP32-S2 Wrover Module with PSRAM (required for camera operations)
- Camera Module (OV7725) for fluorescence detection
- TFT Display (320×240) with touchscreen interface
- Temperature Control via PWM-controlled heaters and fan
- LED System (TLC59108 driver) for sample illumination
- ADC (TLA202x) for temperature sensing and power monitoring
- USB Mass Storage capability for data export
Core Functionality
Temperature Control System
- PID Controllers for block and lid temperature regulation
- Dual heating zones: sample block and heated lid
- Active cooling via PWM fan control
- Temperature sensors using NTC thermistors with Steinhart-Hart equation
Fluorescence Detection
- 8-channel simultaneous measurement
- Optimized for Cyber green fluorescence (SYBR green) based qPCR
- Excitation at 497 nanometer blue light, emmision 520 nm green light
- Camera-based detection with custom image processing
- Baseline correction and mask-based region selection
- Real-time data visualization with multi-color plotting
Hardware, Electronics and Software design Files on GitHub here: https://github.com/GaudiLabs/qPocketPCR
The qPocketPCR project started as part of the GlobalLAMP community with support from GOSH, Gathering for Open Science Hardware.
All data and images published under an open and public CC BY 4.0 license.