Hi,
I use the open ephys system to record from rats in vivo during behaviour in a Skinner box. The problem is that the headstage does not stay connected, i.e. the omnetics connector unplugs, after a few minutes. Does anybody have a solution?
thanks
Nils
Assume there is a headcap with dental acrylic.
Can add placement for a metal hook that can be manufactured from tinning wire or other tensile material.
Then use dental elastics to hold stage in place.
Dental elastics are cheap and will give sufficient olding power and easily manipulatple with forceps.
May need more than one anchoring position, but ground loop on Omnetics chip ideal for anchoring cabled headstage.
See powerpoint below for a quick mockup.
Hey Nils,
In the short term, I would suggest lengthening your cables (as much as you can without them drooping so the rat can chew on them) so that there is less pull on the omnetics connector. You may also want to consider using electrical tape to carefully wrap around where the pieces connect, or briefly anesthetize the rat and use a high powered microscope to see if there's debris or some other structural issue in the chip that is blocking the ability of the omnetics connector to plug all the way in.
In the long-term, if you are re-using omnetic chips across rats, the pins on the omnetics chip on your headstage will loosen over time. It may be worthwhile using brand new ones that have a tighter fit.
Good luck!
Strip connector or cylindrical connector?
Many by the same company.
Wire Clip solutions using spare pin holes are different dependent upon connector style.
Able to post pic of head stage and lead connector?
Dear Eric,
sorry I was not clear indeed. I use a strip connector, 32 channels and four guide posts. This is the setup I use http://intantech.com/images/RHD2132_board_with_cable.jpg
best
Nils
Assume there is a headcap with dental acrylic.
Can add placement for a metal hook that can be manufactured from tinning wire or other tensile material.
Then use dental elastics to hold stage in place.
Dental elastics are cheap and will give sufficient olding power and easily manipulatple with forceps.
May need more than one anchoring position, but ground loop on Omnetics chip ideal for anchoring cabled headstage.
See powerpoint below for a quick mockup.
@ Eric
Thanks for a great idea! We don't use omnetics headstages but this approach in general will be very useful for our ephys/imaging.
- Badges
- Science topic