ROTA-ROD TREADMILLS ENV-577 FOUR STATION RAT AND ENV-577M FIVE STATION MOUSE USER S MANUAL. DOC-056 Rev Copyright 2012 All Rights Reserved

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Emma Malone
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1 instrumentation and software for research ROTA-ROD TREADMILLS ENV-577 FOUR STATION RAT AND ENV-577M FIVE STATION MOUSE USER S MANUAL DOC-056 Rev. 2.2 Copyright 2012 All Rights Reserved Med Associates Inc. P.O. Box 319 St. Albans, Vermont Phone: Fax:

2 ENV-577 / ENV-577M Rota-Rod Treadmill notes i

3 ENV-577 / ENV-577M Rota-Rod Treadmill Table of Contents Chapter 1 Introduction... 1 Chapter 2 Operating Instructions... 2 Fixed Speed Setting... 3 ACCEL Speed Setting... 3 End of Session... 3 Running a New Session... 3 Calculating RPMs in ACCEL Mode... 4 Appendix A Contact Information... 4 ii

4 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION The Rota-Rod treadmills from MED Associates are designed to accurately measure motor coordination and fatigue. Each Rota-Rod treadmill consists of a stepper motor-driven drum with both fixed-speed and accelerating-speed modes of operation. In the fixed-speed mode the drum will turn at a constant speed. In the accelerating-speed mode the drum begins turning at the lowest speed and takes five minutes to gradually reach the highest speed. Refer to the table below for the Rota-Rod speeds settings. The Rota-Rod drum has been specially machined to provide a suitable grip for the animal. For mice it is divided into five test zones so that up to five animals may be tested simultaneously, and for rats there are four test zones. Each zone has its own digital timer that automatically stops timing when the animal falls off the rotating drum. Figure 1-1 ENV-577 Four Station Rota-Rod - 1 -

5 CHAPTER 2 OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS Figure 2-1 Front Panel of ENV-577M 1. Adjust the thumbwheel to the desired speed setting. (Refer to Table 1 and Table 2). Note: Rat and mouse units have different fixed speeds Table 1 ENV-577 Speed Settings ENV-577 Rat Rota-Rod Treadmill Fixed Speeds Acceleration Speeds Setting RPM Setting RPM Table 2 ENV-577M Speed Settings ENV-577M Mouse Rota-Rod Treadmill Fixed Speeds Acceleration Speeds Setting RPM Setting RPM

6 2. Press the red RESET button on the face of each counter to reset to zero; 3. Ensure that there are no obstructions in any of the photo beam bays and that the front panel beam-fault indicator lights are not lit. If any fault indicators are lit, press the RESET button(s) to clear them. The Rota-Rod will not operate unless all bays are clear; 4. Turn the power switch on; 5. Wait at least 2-3 seconds after the power is switched on before the toggle switch is set to the RESET or ON/ACCEL position; 6. Push the toggle switch down to the RESET position and release; Fixed Speed Setting The Rota-Rod will begin turning at the set speed and the counter will begin incrementing. ACCEL Speed Setting The Rota-Rod will start turning at the beginning speed for the accelerating settings. It will continue to run at this speed and the counter will not increment until the toggle switch is moved to the ON/ACCEL position. After moving the toggle switch to the ON/ACCEL position, the counter will begin incrementing every second and the five-minute acceleration period will begin. End of Session Once a photo beam is broken for longer than 250 ms, the corresponding counter will stop and the beam-fault indicator light will come on. The Rota-Rod will continue turning until all of the photo beams have been broken. Running a New Session Once the unit has stopped, another session may be run at the same speed setting by resetting the beams, counters, and toggle switch. Move the toggle switch to ON/ACCEL after the subjects have been placed on the Rota-Rod. If the wheel is being operated at a fixed speed, another subject may be run immediately after the previous one finishes. Simply reset the beam, put the new subject on the treadmill, and reset the counter. Remember to note the counter reading for the previous subject before resetting it. To run another session at a different speed setting, change the thumbwheel to the desired setting. Reset the beams, counters, and toggle switch. Move the toggle switch to ON/ACCEL after the subjects have been placed on the Rota-Rod

7 Calculating RPMs in ACCEL Mode To calculate the speed at any given time in ACCEL Mode, the following equation may be used: RPM = [(End Speed - Start Speed) / 300] x (# Seconds Run) + Start Speed For example, what are the RPMs at a counter time of 40 seconds using the 2-20 RPM ACCEL Speed setting? RPM = [(20 RPM 2 RPM) / 300] x 40 seconds + 2 RPM [18 RPM / 300] x = 4.4 RPM APPENDIX A CONTACT INFORMATION Please contact for information regarding any of our products. Visit our website at for contact information. For technical questions, support@med-associates.com