Campden instruments 7000smz User manual

1
www.campdeninstruments.com
INSTRUCTION MANUAL
Vibrating Blade Tissue
Slicer
NOVEMBER 2019
DCN 2389
Document Ref: 7000-v2.4 Eng

2
Contents
1 Introduction
2 Description of the Instrument
3 Microtome blades
4 Cleaning, Sterilizing and Autoclaving
5 Installation
6 Operation 6.1 Editing an existing user or registering a new user
6.2 Change the operating parameters
6.3 Load or unload the specimen bath
6.4 Manual operation
6.5 Automatic operation –Slice Window mode
6.6 Automatic operation –Profile Repeat mode
6.7 Recovery from an Emergency Stop
6.8 Fitting blades
6.9 Alignment of the blade with the axis of oscillation
6.10 Settings
7 Options 7.1 Light source
7.2 Magnifier
7.3 Microscope mounting point
8 Maintenance and Service
9 Returns & Decontamination Form
10 Technical support
Error codes
11 Packing List
12 Spare Parts and Accessories
13 Specifications
14 Certificate of Conformity
© Campden Instruments Limited 2008-2013
All rights reserved. The information contained in this manual is the property and copyright of
Campden Instruments Limited. Except where explicitly stated, no part of this manual may be
reproduced in any form or by any means (including photocopying or storing in any medium by
electronic means) without the written permission of the copyright holder.

3
1. Introduction
The 7000smz Tissue Slicer by Campden Instruments is an oscillating blade
microtome and is the result of more than 25 years experience in the design and
manufacture of tissue slicers.
The 7000smz is a programmable unit that allows the instrument to ‘learn’a cutting
cycle input by the operator and then repeat that cycle a desired number of times. The
cycle may have a varying speed/distance profile so that particular areas of tissue can
be sliced at different speeds.
A number of researchers have found that certain combinations of oscillation
frequency; oscillation amplitude and tissue advance rate can give superior slice
quality for a given tissue. The 7000smz allows these combinations to be developed
solely by input from the keypad.
For machine stability and long life the amplitude of cut is related to the frequency of
oscillation –the larger the amplitude, the lower the maximum frequency available and
vice versa.
Experienced users of oscillating microtomes will no doubt be aware that large
amplitudes and/or high oscillation frequencies can lead to excessive vibration and
unstable tissue fluid. The 7000smz instrument benefits in this area by being built on a
heavy, rigid cast base giving exceptional immunity to secondary vibration
transmission.
The purpose of this manual is to allow the user to achieve expertise in the use of the
7000smz instrument. Please read and understand the information contained in this
manual before using the instrument. Only competent and capable personnel should
use the instrument.
This document should be retained for future reference as it contains the name and
address of the manufacturer within the EC.
PACKAGING
Please retain the original packaging for future use.
Instruments will not be accepted for service or repair unless the unit has been
adequately and properly packaged. Additionally instruments will not be accepted
without prior authorisation and have been certified as being uncontaminated with any
material that may be hazardous to the health of service personnel. A Returns
Authorisation and Decontamination Certificate blank form is included in Section 9 of
this manual and may be photocopied as required. Blank forms can also be obtained
by contacting Campden Instruments.
Campden Instruments Limited
PO Box 4148
Loughborough
Leicestershire
LE12 7XT
UK
Telephone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-Mail: [e-mail]
www.campdeninstruments.com

4
2. Description of the instruments
The 7000smz instrument features a removable cutting head mounted on a deep
section parallel leaf spring assembly giving exceptional resistance to vertical (z axis)
deflections and motion errors.
Blade motion is by non-contact magnetic attraction giving a high degree of immunity
from out-of-plane forces whilst allowing variable oscillation rates.
The blade holder can be adjusted to ensure that the blade edge travels parallel to the
vibration axis resulting in a cleaner slice with minimal damage to the surface of the
tissue. A mountable non-contact metrology device is able to monitor the blade edge
travel profile giving feedback to facilitate adjustment.
The blade is advanced into the tissue under motor control via a rotary control on the
front of the instrument allowing continuous adjustment of speed. This is particularly
useful when different areas of tissue need to be cut at different speeds. Blade
retraction is carried out at maximum speed and only after the uncut tissue has been
lowered away from the blade, eliminating the possibility of the blade being dragged
back across the uncut tissue causing damage.
Dynamic feedback on the oscillation and advance axes maintains accurate control
over speed and (in the case of the advance axis) distance travelled.
Raising the tissue up into the path of the advancing blade controls section thickness.
This movement against gravity reduces lost motion and uncertainty to a minimum
allowing section thickness to be controlled accurately. A sprung loaded dovetail
arrangement for mounting the tissue bath gives a positive location of the bath whilst
still allowing easy removal.
A sealed LCD display and membrane keypad allows the user to control the
instrument and set the parameters governing blade frequency, section thickness, etc.
As the unit can be operated under fully automatic control an emergency stop facility
is provided.
The entire instrument is enclosed in a moulded enclosure giving protection against
liquid ingress from spillage and is tolerant of most commonly used solutions.
Up to 8 users or combinations of cutting parameters can be stored.

5
The Unit has a memory facility to remember the cutting profile and can auto-repeat
that profile. The unit can also retain a slice window which marks the start and end
point of the slice, so blade will return to a set point to start a new slice and stop at a
fixed point once the slice has been taken.
The instrument is supplied with a tissue bath having a ceramic magnet to locate and
retain the specimen platen. A fixed specimen platen with removable tissue support is
supplied as standard. An adjustable tissue platen is available as an optional extra.
The tissue bath is also located and held in place within the outer bath by magnets.
Inner and outer tissue bath (background) with standard tissue platen (front left) and
adjustable tissue platen (front right)
A stereoscopic zoom microscope, magnifying glass and a cold light source are
available as optional extras.
The stereoscopic microscope, with magnification factors of between 10 and 40x
allows close observation of the cutting procedure.
7000smz example with a stereoscopic microscope
The light source incorporates focusable LEDs and allows concentrated, cold
illumination to be directed selectively at the specimen being processed.

6
A lower power (2x) magnifying lens assembly can be fitted as an alternative to the
microscope.
7000smz fitted with magnifying glass and cold light source

7
3. Microtome Blades
Whatever features and controls an oscillating microtome possesses, the quality of
the slice can be enhanced by good blades and degraded by poor blades.
The average razor blade consists of a triple bevel on both faces of a thin foil made
from either carbon or stainless steel. The triple bevel terminates in a relatively non-
acute angle and is designed for cutting when being drawn across a surface
perpendicular to the edge of the blade. The thin foil of a razor blade will almost
certainly flex when clamped into a blade holder.
Carbon steel is relatively hard compared to stainless steel and a carbon steel blade
will keep its cutting edge longer however it has the inherent disadvantage that it will
rust quickly when exposed to moist air. To prevent rusting in storage carbon steel
blades have a film of oil that must be removed before the blade can be used. The
corrosion process is, of course, accelerated significantly in a.c.s.f. saline.
For these reasons normal razor blades and carbon steel blades are not
recommended for precision tissue sectioning.
Campden Instruments supplies two types of blade for its oscillating microtomes:
7550-1-SS Stainless Steel Blades
Made from surgical quality stainless steel these are double bevelled on both faces,
honed to an acute cutting edge.
Because of the relative softness of stainless steel, for optimum performance it is
recommended that stainless steel blades should be used once only or, at a
maximum, changed every day.
7550-1-C Ceramic Blades
Made from ultra hard zirconium, this is a material that can be lapped to the finest of
edges and the body of the blade is very rigid maintaining a straight cutting edge. The
result is that slice quality is substantially improved with prolonged slice life especially
in the most difficult tissues such as young brain where structures are yet to be
formed or very old brain with build up of extracellular proteins and added structures.
Additionally, the blade has a much longer life due to the ultra hard cutting edge not
losing its sharpness and being impervious to corrosion.
For studies where the deposition of metal into the slice would have undesirable
effects the benefit of ceramic blades is clear.
The initial higher cost of the ceramic blade is more than offset by its longevity.
To facilitate fitting of the narrow blades a special blade holder tool is provided. This
helps ensure correct blade alignment and reduces the risk of personal injury when
fitting the blade. Further details are shown in Section 6.8 Fitting blades.
The 7000smz instrument is supplied with fixed angle titanium blade holders suitable
for the 7550-1-SS stainless steel and 7550-1-C ceramic blades.
Sample 7550-1-SS and 7550-1-C blades are included with each instrument.

8
4. Cleaning, Sterilizing and Autoclaving
The blade holder can be fitted to or removed from the vibrating head using the
Pozidriv screwdriver supplied.
The blade holder may be autoclaved by normal methods.
Replacement blade holders are available as spares should the original items be lost
or damaged.
The stainless steel inner bath and specimen platens are made from a magnetic
stainless steel; this steel is not completely immune from the effects of a.c.s.f. and the
items should be thoroughly rinsed with clean water on a regular basis.
The specimen platen and the inner (stainless steel) bath as shown in the illustration
below are autoclavable. The specimen holder is located by a circular magnet in the
inner bath. They may be separated by simply pulling the two items apart. The inner
bath is also located in the outer bath by magnets.
Autoclaving of the specimen holder and inner bath may be carried out using normal
procedures.
The outer bath and its associated parts are not autoclavable, nor should they be
dismantled.
Additional or replacement outer baths, inner baths and specimen platens are
available as spares.
Inner bath & specimen
platens- autoclavable
Outer bath –not autoclavable

9
5. Installation
The unit should be placed on a sturdy bench. Although the unit has a very high static
mass to vibrating mass ratio and absorbent rubber feet, a rigid support bench will
enhance immunity from secondary vibration transmission.
If any accessories –microscope/magnifier attachment or light source - have been
supplied with the instrument, reference should be made to the appropriate section of
this manual for the fitting and setting up procedure.
Before connecting the unit to a mains supply, the unit must be set for your particular
voltage supply.
The voltage is set by prising out the fuse holder drawer and re-inserting it such that
the voltage legend for your supply is aligned with the mark on the inlet moulding. See
below.
Voltage supply selector (example shown is set to 220-240V)
The inlet moulding accepts a standard IEC socket. Where possible a standard mains
lead - IEC socket/mains plug –suitable for your mains outlet will have been supplied
with the instrument. The instrument must not be operated unless it is connected to a
suitably earthed (grounded) mains supply.
See Section 7 for fitting the light source, magnifier and microscope.
On/Off switch
Mains inlet
Voltage selector &
fuse drawer
Voltage
alignment marks

10
6. Operation
6.1 Edit an existing user name or registering a new user name
When the instrument is switched on
the display will be as shown, showing
any personalised user slots. This
screen can also be accessed from the
main menu.
Use the or keys to scroll to the
desired user name or to an unused
position.
Press the ‘MENU’key to go to the
display shown. This is the normal
operating display.
Press the MENU key again and the
display will change to that shown. Use
the or keys to scroll to the line
‘SETTINGS
Then scroll to the line ‘EDIT USER
NAME’and select.
Use the or keys to scroll to the
line (in the example shown) ‘USER 2’.
Pressing ‘MENU’again will cause the
1
st letter of the name to be highlighted.
The rotary knob can now be used to
scroll through the alphabet to select a
new letter or symbol. Press the to
confirm and move to the next letter
position; use the rotary knob to select
a new letter. ( selects the previous

11
position). Continue until the new user
name is acceptable.
Press the MENU key - this will
highlight the new name.
Use the or keys to scroll to the
line ‘CHANGE’
Press MENU to confirm the change.
Any changes to the oscillating
frequency, amplitude and section
thickness will be remembered under
that user name so that when that user
comes back to the instrument and
selects that user name those settings
will also be selected for immediate use
An existing user name can be deleted
by scrolling to the line ‘CLEAR NAME’
and pressing MENU.
Press MENU again to revert to the
normal operating display.

12
6.2 Change the operating parameters:
Frequency
Amplitude
Section thickness
Press the MENU key to display the
basic menu screen as shown:
Use the or keys to scroll to the
desired parameter:
Frequency –amplitude - section.
Press the MENU key to select that
parameter and highlight the value.
The or keys can now be used to
change the parameter’s value. Press
the MENU key to confirm and store the
change.
Frequency settings can be changed in 5Hz steps and amplitude can be changed in
0.25mm steps.
Note that there are restrictions limiting the amplitudes available for any given
frequency –see the following chart: The instrument may only be operated within the
shaded area.
Frequency Hz 0.5 0.75 1 1.25 1.5 1.75 2 2.25 2.5
20
40
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
95
100
105
110
115
120
125
Amplitude mm

13
6.3 Load or Unload the specimen bath
Press the ‘LOAD BATH’key (and hold
for 2 seconds) and the display will
change to that shown. The bath table
will be moved to its lowest position to
allow a specimen bath to be loaded (or
an existing one removed).
Once the table has reached its lowest
position the display will be as shown.
The specimen bath is located on the
rising table in a sprung loaded dovetail
mount.
To remove the bath, move the clamp
lever to the left and pull the bath away
from the instrument.
Pressing ‘LOAD BATH’keypad will
cause the table to rise to a preset
(nominal) position.
The display will then revert to the
‘home’display.
Pressing ‘Auto Repeat’keypad will
enter the blade alignment routine. See
Section 6.9 ‘Alignment of the blade
with the axis of oscillation’for detailed
guidance on the use of the ‘Opti-Cal’
alignment calibrator.
Note: users wanting to
customise the tissue mount
must ensure that the total
weight of ice bath, tissue
bath and contents must not
exceed 800g, or this would
cause over-load of the
motor.

14
6.4 Manual Operation
When the instrument is first switched on, scroll to the desired user name and press
MENU. All cutting parameters associated with that user will be recalled.
If desired, make any changes as described in Section 6.2 and scroll to the ‘EXIT
MENU’line and press the ‘MENU’key. If necessary load a bath to the table and
press the ‘LOAD BATH’key. The table will raise the bath to a nominal position and
the operating screen will change to that shown in the following illustration:
Note that the ‘SLICE ON/OFF’key is
now illuminated green and the
advance speed as shown on the
display is 0.00 mm/s.
Bringing the Blade to the Start
height

15
Press the ‘HEIGHT’key.
Press the ‘LOAD BATH’key to quickly
raise the table. Press again to stop.
Press the ‘ADVANCE’key to quickly
lower the table. Press again to stop.
Set a movement amount using the
rotary knob. Press the ‘RETURN’key
to raise the table by this amount.
Press the ‘SLICE’key to lower the
table by this amount.
Press the ‘AUTO REPEAT’key to
reset the height datum.
Press the ‘HEIGHT’key once more to
exit.
Bringing the specimen to the start
position
Cutting a slice
Press the ‘ADVANCE’key and using
the rotary knob to control the advance
speed. Press the ‘SLICE key to switch
the movement on or off.
Bring the cutting blade into a suitable
position for commencement of cut.
When the blade is in a suitable
position, press the ‘ADVANCE’key
again to exit.
(This selects the start position such
that when the ‘RETURN’key is
pressed [see next page] this is the
position the blade will return to).

16
Press the ‘SLICE ON/OFF’key to
commence the cut. The ‘SLICE
ON/OFF’key will now change to a red
illumination. Use the rotary knob to
control the advance speed as the
blade moves through the tissue.
(Note that, if desired, the advance
speed can be reduced past zero and
the cutting head moved in reverse).
When the cut has been completed
press the ‘SLICE ON/OFF’key to halt
the process.
The ‘RETURN’key may now be used
to retract the head to the position you
had selected as the start position
above. Before the head retracts the
bath will be lowered so that the blade
does not drag across the surface of
the specimen. After the head has been
retracted the bath will be raised to its
previous position and then raised once
more by the thickness of the section in
readiness for another cut.
When the cutting head has been retracted to the start position, the section thickness
will be highlighted on the display. If required, the section thickness may be changed
by pressing the height button. Set a movement amount using the rotary knob. Press
the ‘RETURN’key to raise the table by this amount. Press the ‘SLICE’key to lower
the table by this amount. Press the ‘HEIGHT’key once more to exit. Note that this
will change the section thickness for this slice only. If you want to change the repeat
thickness this should be done by changing the general operating parameters –see
the section above ‘Changing the operating parameters’.
The cut may now be repeated as often as you wish. If you want to make repeated
cuts using the same parameters the automatic repeat can be used –see the next
section ‘Automatic Operation’.

17
6.5 Automatic operation –Slice Window Mode
Once a cut has been taken as described in the manual slice procedure, the start
point and end point of that slice operation is stored in memory. In slice window mode
the user can slice between these points and the unit will automatically stop at the end
point. The user can select if the slice operation finishes at the end point or
automatically retracts to the start point ready for the next slice (see section 6.10).
If you try to operate the instrument in the slice window mode without having
previously set a slice window, via the manual slice procedure, the display will indicate
‘NO SLICE PROFILE HAS BEEN CREATED’. This display will time out and revert to
the basic manual operating screen.
When a satisfactory cut window has
been made, press the ‘AUTO
REPEAT’key once until the slice
window screen is displayed. The led
adjacent to that key will be illuminated
in red as a warning.
Using the rotary knob set a suitable
advance speed for cutting. You only
need to do this the first time you take a
slice. Successive slices will be taken
at this speed.
Pressing the RETURN button will take
the slicer to the start point and
increment the section thickness for the
next slice.
Press the ‘SLICE ON/OFF’key to
commence cutting or to stop cutting.
The unit will automatically stop cutting
at the stop point.

18
6.6 Automatic operation –Profile Repeat Mode
Once a cut has been taken as described manual slice procedure, the speed profile of
that cut is stored in memory and the instrument is able to repeat that profile under
automatic conditions. All that is further required is for the number of sections to be
entered. The user can select if the slice operation finishes at the end point of the
slice or automatically retracts to the start point ready for the next slice (see section
6.10).
If you try to operate the instrument in the automatic mode without having previously
set a cutting profile, via the manual slice procedure, the display will indicate ‘NO
SLICE PROFILE HAS BEEN CREATED’. This display will time out and revert to the
basic manual operating screen.
When a satisfactory cut profile has
been made, press the ‘AUTO
REPEAT’key twice until the profile
repeat screen is displayed. The led
adjacent to that key will be illuminated
in red as a warning.
Use the or keys to input the
number of cutting cycles required.
Press the ‘SLICE ON/OFF’key to
commence cutting.
The instrument will now carry out the
number of cycles under automatic
control.

19
The automatic slicing process may be
halted prematurely by pressing the
‘SLICE ON/OFF’key in which case the
display will change to that shown.
Follow the instructions on screen to
CONTINUE or ABORT the procedure.
Pressing ‘MENU’at this stage will
allow access to menu functions
permitting changes to frequency and
amplitude etc.
Note that the EMERGENCY STOP
button on the right front of the
instrument may be used to halt the
process at any time. See next page
for details of the recovery
procedure.

20
6.7 Recovery from an Emergency Stop
If the instrument has been halted by use of the Emergency Stop facility it must
be reset before operations can continue: Twist the red Emergency Stop
button clockwise to unlatch it. When the button is unlatched the instrument will
revert to initial user select screen.