Patent ID: 8466958

Claim:
A microscope system that electrically changes an observation state of a sample, comprising: a microscope control unit which controls operations of units configuring the microscope system; a touch panel unit which accepts an input made with an external physical contact, and which has a display function; and a touch panel controlling unit which sets an image to a predetermined display area of the touch panel unit to set a functional area to operate at least one of the units and which generates a control instruction signal to operate the at least one of the units in accordance with a contact operation upon detection of an input made to the functional area of the touch panel unit by a user, wherein the touch panel controlling unit generates the control instruction signal to operate the at least one of the units corresponding to the functional area according to a path taken by the user on the functional area of the touch panel unit from a touch start position to a touch end position, and outputs the control instruction signal to the microscope control unit, and wherein the microscope control unit controls an operation of the at least one of the units corresponding to the functional area based on the control instruction signal output from the touch panel controlling unit.