Hardware for 5-poke

[LNS-KU]

I'm setting up a 5-choice operant box for mice, so I just bought the starter kit from OEPS (https://open-ephys.org/pycontrol/pycontrol). However, I realized that the kit only includes 3 pokes. Should I purchase 2 additional pokes separately? Is there anything else I need to buy?

Also, in Figure 1 of this paper (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-01717-1), there's a component labeled as a "5-poke board," but it doesn’t seem to be included in the kit, and I couldn’t find where to purchase it.

I’m not very experienced with hardware setup, so I’d really appreciate a detailed guide.

Thanks!

[alustig3]

Hi @LNS-KU,

@ThomasAkam would know better, but I'm pretty sure that the 5-poke hardware is not currently available for purchase anywhere.

For those that want to build it themselves, the design files are available here. To build it yourself it would involve ordering the printed circuit board (PCB) using the files in the gerber folder, ordering the electronic components (IR LEDs, phototransistors, white LEDs, RJ45 connectors etc.), soldering the components onto the PCB, and getting the plastic parts lasercut using the design files in the laser cut parts folder.

If you're not comfortable building the 5-poke hardware yourself, purchasing 2 additional pokes to add to your kit of 3 will also get the job done as far as setting up a task with 5 nosepokes. I'll let Thomas chime in, but it may be worth reaching out to OEPS or Labmaker to see if they could make the 5-poke hardware available for purchase.

Best,
Andy

[ThomasAkam]

Hi @LNS-KU ,

Apologies for the delay getting to your message. I think that Labmaker are planning to start selling the 5-poke board in the near future so I suggest emailing them to find out when the boards will be available. If you want to have a reward receptacle on the other side of the box then you could implement this using a standard nose poke. The 5 poke board does not have connectors to plug in solenoids so i if you want to deliver rewards from the 5 poke you could use a port adapter board to plug in up to 3 solenoids.

[LNS-KU]

Hi @alustig3 and @ThomasAkam ,

Thank you both for your helpful responses! I've decided to start with the 3-poke hardware from the OEPS starter kit, and if it works well, I'll purchase two additional pokes later, as Andy suggested. Alternatively, I might consider getting the 5-poke board from Labmaker in the future, as Thomas mentioned.

I really appreciate your help!