INFRA-E-MOTION - Support - Frequently Asked Questions

Support

Is it possible to operate the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger in humid or dusty surroundings our outdoors?
Is it possible to operate the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger with normal alkaline batteries? What has to be considered doing so?
Is it possible to operate the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger at temperatures lower than 0°C?
What is the response time of the temperature/humidity sensor of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger to changes in the environment?
Are the measured values for temperature/relative humidity influenced by a potential self-heating of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger during operation?
Is it possible to switch off any function displaying/LED-flashing of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?
Is it possible to configure the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger to let the actual logging of data begin at a point of time later than the time the device is started?
Is it possible to start logging or to delete stored data when it is not possible to connect the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger to a PC (e.g. in an animal facility or outdoors)?
Are the data generated by the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger compatible to other programs?
Is it possible to measure absolute values of the light intensity with the light sensor of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?
Is it possible to detect light pulses with the light sensor of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?
Is it possible to use the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger with other animals than laboratory mice or with material objects?
What types of animal cages are suited to be used with the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?
Is it possible to use the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger with individually ventilated cages (IVC)?
How does a drinking bottle or food on the cage affect the motion detection through the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?

Is it possible to operate the MOUSE-E-MOTION Data Logger in humid or dusty environment or outdoors?

Yes, if the data logger is protected against intrusion of moisture or dust particles using thin polyethylene film or comparable wrapping material. This has normally only very little influence on the detection capability of the motion sensor. The impact on the light sensor depends on the transparency of the applied wrapper. The effect on temperature measurement also depends on the properties of the wrapping material because of passing on the temperature from the environment to the sensor is more or less impeded or at least slowed down. And of course, measuring the relative humidity of the surroundings is impossible in this case because the humidity sensor is completely isolated from the ambient conditions. It is advisable to perform a small series of tests to check the ability to correctly detect the desired parameters before using a wrapped logger.

Is it possible to operate the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger with normal alkaline batteries? What has to be considered doing so?

Generally speaking, yes. But it is not recommended whatsoever because of the risk of explosion when accidentally an attempt to charge such batteries is made!
If operation with alkaline batteries is wanted nevertheless, e.g. if an extremely long operation span is needed (alkaline batteries usually have a higher capacity than rechargeable ones) or because of no freshly charged batteries are at hand, in any case the possibility to inadvertently trying to charge the batteries should be prevented by covering (e.g. with tape) the connector for the power adapter cable (Battery Recharge).

Q.	Is it possible to operate the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger at temperatures lower than 0°C?
A.	Yes. However, it is necessary to prevent condensation of moisture from the air on the surface and especially on the inside of the device. For this purpose, a thin protecting wrapper of plastic film or comparable material should be used (see also here). Also, rapidly transferring the data logger from cold to warm ambient temperature should be avoided.

Q.	What is the response time of the temperature/humidity sensor of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger to changes in the environment?
A.	The response time of the sensors directly depends on the air flow of the surrounding environment. The more the air is moving, the shorter is the response time. In surroundings with still air, it will take a maximum period of 30 minutes until the sensors exactly return the ambient temperature and relative humidity conditions.

Q.	Are the measured values for temperature/humidity influenced by a potential self-heating of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?
A.	No. The current consumption of the data logger is very low (normally less than 15mW). The potential self-heating of the device is significantly lower than 0.1°C, which is less than the accuracy of the temperature sensor (0.4°C).

Q.	Is it possible to switch off any function displaying/LED-flashing of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?
A.	Yes. The data logger can be configured (through the MOUSE-E-MOTION Excel add-in) to not emit any light (LED-) signals during logging operation. However, no distinction between the operational modes "powered off" and "logging" is possible any longer then. Hence, it is impossible to control if the device is properly operating in this case.

Is it possible to configure the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger to let the actual logging of data begin at a point of time later than the time the device is started?

Yes. It is possible to configure the data logger with an initial delay period passing between starting the device and the actual beginning of logging, as well as to set up a particular start time (up to 100 days in the future) and/or a limited duration of logging or a defined end time (configuration through the MOUSE-E-MOTION Excel add-in). This is helpful if several devices should start with logging at exactly the same time. The internal real time clocks of the data loggers can be synchronized with an internet time server in advance to absolutely match each other.

Q.	Is it possible to start logging or to delete stored data when it is not possible to connect the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger to a PC (e.g. in an animal facility or outdoors)?
A.	Yes. The basic functions start logging, stop logging, delete data and data output can be put into operation via the buttons of the device. (Changing the configuration of the device, however, is only possible with a PC using the MOUSE-E-MOTION Excel add-in.)

Are the data generated by the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger fully compatible with other programs?

Yes. The data acquisition is achieved through the MOUSE-E-MOTION add-in for Microsoft Excel. Thus, the data can be stored as an Excel file or exported to any other format supported by Excel, e.g. CSV (comma separated values) which can be read by most spreadsheet or scientific programs. Additionally, the unprocessed log data can be saved in their original format, a CSV-like text format. Actimetrics, supplier of the program ClockLab, has developed a macro solution for Microsoft Excel which converts log data from the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger directly into the ClockLab format.

Is it possible to measure absolute values of the light intensity with the light sensor of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?

Yes, if certain prerequisites are matched. The light sensor is not calibrated and because of the sunken location in the data logger the measured light intensity values are attenuated by a specific factor different for each particular device. So the measured values are not correct absolute values of light intensity. If such values are wanted, it would be necessary, for each particular data logger, to determine the proportion of the light sensor's values to reference values measured with a separate lux meter. If the proportion is known, a quantitative measurement of light intensity is possible on condition that the data logger is exactly re-positioned.

Is it possible to detect light pulses with the light sensor of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?

Yes. If pulsing light occurs in the experimental environment, the reading rate of the data logger should be adjusted to the half of the duration of a light pulse (or the reading rate should be twice as long as a light pulse, respectively) to ensure complete detection of the light intensity of a pulse. If the duration of a light pulse is shorter than the interval granularity period, an average value resulting from a light fraction representing the light pulse and a dark fraction representing the time between the pulses will occur. Thus, this value does not denote the light intensity of the light pulse nor the light intensity of the dark period between the pulses.

Is it possible to use the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger with other animals than laboratory mice or with material objects?

Yes. The MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger is suited to be used with any animal or material object emitting body heat and, hence, infrared radiation. These are all warm-blooded creatures like all kinds of mammals (including human beings) and birds (on which the data logger is already being applied by several users for a while). Cold-blooded animals like fish, amphibia and reptiles or insects, spiders, crustaceans, snails, etc., that is, organisms that do not produce body heat, are not suited to be monitored with the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger because their body temperature usually is not different from the ambient temperature.
For applications different from activity monitoring of laboratory mice the external motion sensor might be particularly useful because of its 1m cable, allowing a big variety of experiment scenarios. Upon request, also other types of motion sensors are available, for example with a wider or narrower detection range.
More information and detailed specifications of the motion (infrared) sensor built-in in the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger can be found on the manufacturer's website (NAiS).

What types of animal cages are suited to be used with the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?

Principally, the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger can be used with any type of cage. For each case of application, considering the detection range of the motion sensor, the correct positioning of the data logger (the height above a cage) has to be determined to make sure that the whole cage extent is covered.
Presently, mounting units are available which are especially designed to meet the requirements of type 2 or type 2L cages, respectively. (Due to the longer dimensions of the type 2L cage the according mounting unit has a bigger height, so that the detection range of the motion sensor covers the whole cage extent.)
Customized mounting units are available upon request.

Q.	Is it possible to use the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger with individually ventilated cages (IVC)?
A.	Yes, but it is necessary to apply the external motion sensor. The little dimensions of the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger allow for integration of the device into an IVC. However, due to the limited space in such cages it is not possible to position the data logger in the middle of the cage. For this reason the external motion sensor has to be applied (more information...).

How does a drinking bottle or food on the cage affect the motion detection through the MOUSE-E-MOTION Universal Data Logger?

The infrared radiation emited by the animals is almost completely absorbed by a drinking bottle or food bits, preventing an accurate motion detection. To achieve extensive detection of activity it is recommended to use a small drinking bottle (50-100ml) and as less food as possible on top of a cage, or to provide the animals directly in the cage with water (e.g. through agar cubes) and food during the experiment. (Normally, a small "blind spot" in the experiment setup doesn't make a difference and is statistically irrelevant.)

Do you have a question about the MOUSE-E-MOTION data logger?
Please write to:

contact@infra-e-motion.de

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Last updated on Sep 30, 2004.

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