Visualization

The following tools help to visualize the tracking process:

Show Polar Graph Element 
To open the Polar Graph dockable panel navigate to View > Visualization Controls > Polar Graph or click its icon from the Tracking panel. The graph can be zoomed inside the window - two types of trajectory selection are available, manual by mouse click and using the sector tool.

Show Selected

Displays only headings / trajectories of objects selected in the Tracking panel.

Show All

All tracked objects are displayed in the Polar graph.

Show Heading

Heading of each object is depicted as a color arrow. Its length corresponds to the appropriate object speed.

Show Trajectory

Projects real object movements into the Polar graph area as color paths. Their length corresponds to the appropriate track length.

Sector Selection

This tool can be used for filtering tracked objects. Move the yellow radius line to specify the heading range. You can also adjust the concentric circles / sectors position to delimit the line speed.

Polar Graph Settings

Opens the settings dialog enabling to change the Maximum Length Radius and Maximum Speed Radius so that a comparison between more polar graphs can be made.

Overlay 

You might want to see the whole image sequence in one image. The Overlay button can display an additional layer over the current image. To adjust its properties, invoke the Settings command from the menu near the button. Three overlay image types can be selected:

  • Maximum Intensity Projection - pixel values with the same XY coordinates are compared throughout the image sequence and only the pixels with the highest intensity value are displayed in the layer.

  • Minimum Intensity Projection - pixel values with the minimum intensities of the whole image sequence are displayed in the image.

  • Sequence Intensity Projection - this is a special overlay, which dyes the trajectories by a color scale. The movement direction and the object velocity become obvious.

Color and Transparency of the layer can be adjusted as well.

Show Trace 
Press the Settings button and adjust the options in the Display tab. See Track Properties for more information about each option.

Color of the objects 
During tracking, some objects may split. You can define which color will hold the new object - either the same color as the original object, or different.

Kymograph 
A kymograph displays pixel intensities changes under a defined linear section over time. A trajectory of a tracked object, or a user-drawn line can be used as the kymograph line.

To create a kymograph by line:

  1. Select the Create Kymograph by Line command from the Kymograph pull-down menu. The mouse cursor changes.

  2. Click to draw a line in the image. Finalize it by a secondary mouse click outside the drawn line.

    Tip

    To edit the line shape, select Edit Points from the context menu (secondary mouse click over the line). Now you can freely move the nodes around, add points using a single mouse click, convert segments to curves (Curve All Segments) and adjust the Bezier curves. Curved segments can be straightened back (Straighten All Segments). After adjusting the line, select Exit Edit Points.

    Tip

    To change the width and color of the line, select Properties from the context menu (secondary mouse click over the line).

  3. A new image called Kymograph is created.

To create a kymograph on selected objects

  1. Select one of the objects in the objects table the trajectory of which you want to use for the kymograph line.

  2. Select the Create Kymograph on Selected Objects command from the Kymograph pull-down menu.

  3. A new image called Kymograph is created.

Thickness of the kymograph line and the intensity calculation method can be adjusted in the same pull-down menu after selecting Kymograph Line Settings... (see: Image > ND Processing > Kymograph Line Settings).