Wseen Detection of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University is illuminating the way for faster, easier, and more accurate automated microbial enumeration. The Precise Color colony counter of High Resolution (HiCC) utilizes the latest digital image technology, allowing the user to capture full color sample images. Its ease of use allows technicians to read plates quickly and efficiently. This extraordinary time reduction frees technicians to perform other important responsibilities. The Color HiCC uses proprietary technology to break through the limitations of clustered colonies, giving you sharp, and error-free plate counts. The basis for HiCC's latest-generation technology runs far deeper than an innovative imaging system and flexible data management. Backed by the Wseen Detection of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University that pioneered automated microbiology systems nowadays, and guided by microbiologists, Wseen Detection recognizes your urgent need for proficient customer service and technical support teams. High quality is the most important feature we build into the HiCC products.

Applications

Identifying potentially harmful bacteria in food
The precise automated colony counter is being used at a major food testing center in China to automatically count a wide range of different-colored bacteria and yeast cells on spiral, pour, and spread plates. One of its main uses is to differentiate and count the numbers of potentially harmful red E. coli colonies from a background of blue coliform colonies on selective chromogenic COLI ID plates. By eye, it can be difficult to differentiate between the blue of the coliforms and the red of the E. coli. This ultimately protects the public from the potential of food poisoning, which in some cases can be fatal.

Testing the effectiveness of vaccines
Scientists in the Department of Pathology use the HiCC system to save time in the evaluation of new pneumococcal vaccines. The system is being used as part of an improved opsonophagocytic killing assay (OPKA) to automatically count surviving antibiotic-resistant pneumococci on Todd- Hewitt agar plates with yeast extract and an agar overlay containing antibiotics and 2,3,5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TCC). The pneumococci plated are those that survived the opsonizing effect of antibodies induced with different pneumococcal vaccines.
Manual colony counting for the OPKA is tedious and time consuming. However, the low contrast between the medium and colonies means that it is difficult to distinguish between the two. The TCC colors pneumococcal colonies red, and the colony counter with its enhanced color contrast is able to detect and easily count these red colonies.

Image Quality

High Resolution Color Image - A high resolution digital CMOS video camera captures a minimum colony detection size of 0.1 mm for 3.0M camera or 0.06 mm for 5.0M camera.
Innovative Lighting Design - Lighting configuration assures uniform illumination and enhanced colony contrast, eliminating ambient light effects and reflections from the petri dish and agar surface.
Advanced Image Analysis - Proprietary contour analysis detects colonies by examining the subtle shifts in tone within acolony or colony cluster to determine peaks.
Flexible Analysis Options - The Color HiCC offers multiple algorithms enabling the user to count plates such as Streptococcus pneumoniae on blood agar and Listeria species on MOX agar.

Consistency and Flexibility for Higher Productivity

Autothresholding - Software automatically determines threshold of background (agar) color.
High Throughput - Total analysis time occurs in less than 1 second, including overlapping colony clusters; a laboratory can easily process 400 plates in an hour.
Flexible Data Management - The Color HiCC system includes a high-end computer for optimal performance. Compiled data is GLP-compliant, and saved as a spreadsheet, or archived to a CD-ROM to satisfy any regulatory or auditing requirement.
Editing Capability - The Color HiCC saves each plate image in the database for printing or re-analysis. The user can manually exclude areas and add or delete colonies, and the Color HiCC software will recalculate colony-forming unit data and flag it to indicate manual editing. All edits track the operator's user ID, date/time, and comments.