American Optical Corporation

Leica Gmbh

Leica Microsystems Inc.

Bernard Grolman

William D Richards

David A Luce

Walter P Siegmund

David A Krohn

Joseph W Kantorski

Robert G Lavallee

Donald B Whitney

A hand-held non contact tonometer includes a piston having a transparent plane parallel window normal to a measurement axis of the tonometer along which the piston travels to discharge a fluid pulse without interfering with optical alignment functions of the instrument. In a first embodiment intended for home use by a patient, an alignment guidance system utilizing a concave mirror and a target source in a plane containing the center of curvature of the concave mirror present an alignment image to the patient for guiding self-alignment. An infra-red light source at the focal point of the concave mirror irradiates the concave mirror so that a collimated beam is reflected along the measurement axis and focused by an objective lens. When the focal point of the objective lens coincides with the center of curvature of the cornea, the infra-red light is retro-reflected through the system and diverted orthogonally from measurement axis to a masked detector to passively monitor alignment and trigger release of the piston. A second embodiment for office use by a general medical practitioner includes an eyepiece in place of the concave mirror for allowing operator observation along the measurement axis during alignment.

Hand-held non-contact tonometer

A glare tester suitable for use with conventional subjective refractors for testing visual acuity is disclosed. The tester may be fitted to new refractors or retrofitted to existing refractors. The preferred tester is a plastic annular ring with a plurality of LEDs mounted in recesses to direct light toward the test axis and a surface to reflect the LED light toward the patient's eye. A coating on the ring surface opposite the patient's eye improves the LED efficiency.

Glare tester

An improved tonometer is disclosed having a pachymetric device means for measuring a patient's corneal thickness to allow for correction of the intraocular pressure measurement where the corneal thickness measurement deviates from a calibration mean corneal thickness. In a preferred embodiment, a single light source is pulsed just prior to intraocular pressure measurement to illuminate a central corneal section, and a pair of lateral light detector arrays are arranged to obliquely image the corneal section and generate signals which may be processed by a CPU to produce a corneal thickness measurement. If the corneal thickness measurement deviates from the calibration mean corneal thickness, the CPU calculates a thickness-corrected intraocular pressure measurement. The intraocular pressure measurement, corneal thickness measurement, and/or corrected intraocular pressure measurement may then be reported by a suitable display.

Non-contact tonometer

A device for testing visual contrast sensitivity is disclosed whereby the contrast between a vectographically polarized test symbol and a reference background may be continuously varied by changing the direction of polarization of a polarization analyzer situated along the test axis. The invention is practiced by providing a chart projector or a conventional refractor with a rotatable analyzer.

Contrast sensitivity tester

An instrument for photographing the ocular fundus is aligned by using a physical aperture designed to permit illumination of only a small area of the optic disc for minimal patient awareness of incident light and corresponding pupil dilation without mydriatics. The increased field of view and obliquity of viewing afforded by pupil dilation permits flashing of the fundus for photographic recording without image obscuring corneal reflections. The light restricting aperture is removed immediately before photographic recording.

Method and apparatus for examining and photographing the ocular fundus

A fixture for use in refracting an aphakic eye over a properly patient fitted spectacles frame glazed with major spherical component lenses and placed in a position of use upon the patient. The fixture, having trial lens holders for right and left eye refraction, is attached to rims of the spectacles frame for establishing parallelism of the holders with the frame and provision is made for separately adjusting each right and left eye lens holder vertically and horizontally as needed for centering with a corresponding glazed lens. Refraction over the major lens in each case may be conducted with trial lenses placed in the respective holders.

Ophthalmic refracting device

A holder for a lens-marking pen attachable to the pen oppositely of its working end and having a rest in the form of a spring arm adapted to extend along a side of the pen to a bifurcated termination straddling the pen's marking tip and resiliently biasing the tip away therefrom. In its function as a pen rest, the bifurcation of the spring is placed against a lens or other surface to be marked for steadying the pen which may then be depressed to bring its marking tip into contact with the surface between legs of the bifurcation.

Marking pen holder

A device for use in the art of fitting lenses to spectacle frames wherewith ophthalmic measurements are applied directly to frames selected by patients. A frame without lenses is adjusted to fit the patient, the measuring device is then applied to the frame and the whole placed upon the face. Horizontal and vertical measurements of distances from lateral and inferior points on the frame rims to a desired location of lens optical center relative to pupil are made for each eye and these measurements are forwarded to the lens finishing shop for edging and fitting of the lenses.

Method for making ophthalmic measurements

An illuminator including an incandescent lamp and strobe tube in a pivotable carrier adapted to selectively alternately position the lamp and tube in an identical single position of use, each being electrically activable only when at the position of use. The incandescent lamp affords continuous light of relatively low intensity for illumination of objects to be examined and the strobe tube affords short duration high intensity flash illumination for photographic recording purposes.

Instrument illuminator

A device for use in fitting lenses to spectacles frames wherewith ophthalmic measurements are applied directly to frames selected by patients. A frame without lenses is adjusted to fit the patient, the fitting device is applied to the frame and the whole placed upon the face. Measurements of distances from extreme lateral and inferior points on the frame rims to the patient's visual axis in the case of each eye are taken for use in edging the lenses to a size and shape which will locate their optical centers in coincidence with the patient's visual axes when the spectacles are glazed and put to use.

Apparatus and method for making ophthalmic measurements

A lens suitable for implantation in the eye is provided with laterally extending iris clips each having at least one of its ends locked within the body of the lens. The clips are initially extended through close-fitting openings, terminally beaded and forcefully retracted sufficiently to bury their beaded ends within the lens body. Cold flow of lens material around the beaded ends locks the clips in place.

Method of making artificial intraocular lens

A lens suitable for implantation in the eye is provided with iris clips formed of plastic filaments each having at least one of its ends fastened to the lens. Ends of the clips to be fastened are ferruled for secure and permanent affixation.

Artificial intraocular lens

A device for use in fitting ophthalmic lenses to spectacles frames. Horizontal and vertical measurements from optical centers of the lenses to their extreme lateral nasal and inferior edges are obtained by attaching the device to the edge of rimless lenses of a properly patient fitted sample rimless spectacles or rims of a similarly fitted rimmed spectacles frame intended to receive the lenses. The sample rimless spectacles or rimmed frame is then placed in the normal position of use upon the patient and a wand component of the fitting device is used to indicate the proper lens optical center location relative to the patient's pupils. Extreme lateral and inferior lens edge measurements are taken from the wand and forwarded to the lens finishing shop for edging of the lenses to final size and shape.

Optical center locator for spectacles

Device for making opthalmic measurements and method

Making perforate optical sections (lenses) of pseudophakoi with avoidance of drilling operations and adversities thereof. Lens material is drawn with embedded acid soluble columns corresponding in diametral size and relative juxtaposition to the size and spaced locations of holes needed in a lens and the columns are etched away prior to or following final edging and surface finishing of the lens. Making multiple lens preforms is contemplated.

Growing community of inventors

Worcester, MA, United States of America

Bernard Grolman