Animal research activity monitor Opto-Varimex-5

with cage

General Information The Columbus Instruments latest Opto-Varimex-5 Auto Track System is the 5th generation of our animal activity meter designed for the Open Field Anxiety and Exploratory Tests. The Auto-Track is an advanced system using the latest technology to quantify locomotor activity and trace the animal's path for behavioral analysis. Systems can support up to 16 stations on a single PC and come complete with cages, sensors, brackets, interface, and Windows software. The Auto-Track System senses motion with a grid of infrared photocells placed around the arena (typically 17.5" x 17.5" (44.5 cm), but other sizes are available). Vertical motion is detected by a second array of photocells placed above the animal. The simultaneous interruption of beams along the horizontal axes (X & Y) provide coordinates that identify animal location. Vertical motion is scored and stored with the horizontal position data. The software records these coordinates for later playback and analysis. Suitable manipulation of the recorded pattern by analysis methods can reveal subtle changes in animal behavior over the course of an experiment, between experiments, and / or between animals. The Opto-Varimex-5 also can be adapted to perform automated measurements for other tests such as the Contextual Place Preference Test, Hole Poke Exploratory Test, and Light/Dark Transition Test.