Energy Conversion Devices, Inc.

Somanetics Corporation

Peter H Klose

Stanford R Ovshinsky

Wayne P Messing

Herbert C Ovshinsky

Gary D Lewis

Robert W Hallman

Harvey H Wacks

Herbert L Ovshinsky

A sensor for use in medical patient examination and monitoring by spectrophotometric apparatus, including a main body having a soft, resilient outer cover on at least one side for conformably contacting a selected area on the patient, in particular the forehead, also having and an electro-optical light source and a plurality of electro-optical light detectors spaced from the source and from one another, and exposed to the selected site on the patient by light-transmissive passages extending through the resilient cover, in which the resilient cover is formed of a thin, softly compressible member of light-absorbing and moisture-transmissible material, preferably of resilient cellular polymeric foam.

Patient sensor for optical cerebral oximeter and the like

An apparatus and methods for producing a transmission barrier for inhibiting propagation of light into still unimaged transparent portions of microfiche recording system intermediate film strips by light-piping action are described. The barrier serves to optically isolate the subsequently-to-be-imaged still unexposed portion of the film strip in a dispensing film head from the illumination used to transfer the previously developed image on the exposed portion of the strip onto a permanent recording medium, such as a microfiche film card. In one exemplary form of the invention, the barrier regions are photographically produced dark bands or lines between the longitudinally spaced areas of the film strip to be imaged. These bands or lines are preferably created as latent images during the initial exposure of the intermediate film and subsequently developed at the same time as the record image. Alternative embodiments include placing bands or lines of light absorbing material on the film strip or by serrating or otherwise locally deforming the intermediate film strip to produce the barrier regions, the serrations serving to spoil total internal reflection in the film. Long term fogging of the film by normal ambient light is dealt with by providing an automatic film payout feature. Particular applications to archival microfiche systems involving the intermediate film strip carrying a transferable image are described. An apparatus for using pre-formed barriers on the film strip to regulate film advance is described.

Apparatus for preventing fogging of intermediate film in microfiche

An improved annotatable microfiche film card archival recording system utilizes an intermediate film strip on a movable film head to transfer an image from an initial imaging station to a transfer station where the image on the intermediate film strip is transferred to the microfiche film card. There is provided an optical train including a pair of downwardly facing, inclined and horizontally spaced mirrors at the imaging station, the first of which mirror receives upwardly directed light reflected from hard copy. This mirror arrangement, cooperating with a horizontal film head movement in a direction transverse to the mirror spacing, minimizes the height and width requirements of the equipment. A ball joint supported backing means supporting the entire area of the active portion of the film improves image resolution. Controlled upward displacement of only the image-receiving portion of the intermediate film strip during image transfer allows full utilization of the peripheral areas of the microfiche film card when supported on a flange support frame. Controlled downward displacement of the intermediate film at the imaging station allows an intermediate film backing element and a microfiche film card image projection illuminator to be activated by a common lifting means. A selectively interposable corrector lens optimizes image resolution of this projection.

Microfiche recording system

A data storage and retrieval system is provided utilizing digital or analog data input signals to energize one or more data recording heads which can produce a selection of sizes of alpha-numeric, pictorial or digital coded images on a recording medium. Where alpha-numeric or pictorial images are produced, the images are both human and machine readable. Such alpha-numeric or pictorial images can be sequentially or simultaneously selectively produced full sized and/or reduced substantially in size to form at least 24:1 or greater size reductions of these images on the same or different recording media. Thus, for example, X-ray pictures or letters and the like can be simultaneously produced in reduced form on a microfilm recording medium for record storage purposes and full sized simultaneously on a recording medium for direct examination and delivery to third parties. The reduced data is directly human readable by projecting light preferably through the recording medium and magnifying and projecting the image on a screen. Alternatively, the data is machine readable as by scanning small segments of the image with a capacitance or resistance responsive or photo-electric display device, to develop electrical signals which can operate conventional display readout devices. The microfilm recording and electrical readout operations most advantageously are achieved by supporting the recording head or readout unit on a carrier which moves across the recorded area of the recording medium in a line-by-line scanning operation, carried out so rapidly that a complete page of information can be recorded upon the recording medium or read therefrom in at most a manner of a few seconds or less.

Data storage and retrieval system

A controllable film holding and tensioning system for a movable intermediate film strip dispensing head provides a stable and non-film damaging positioning of intermediate images carried on the film strip as it is moved from an exposure station to a final station for image transfer to an archival microfiche film under conditions where bowing stresses are applied to the intermediate film at one or more of the processing stations. An improved pretensioning feature for the source reel minimizes the occasional jamming encountered with conventional cassette film dispensers. Automatic protection is provided by an intermediate film strip break sensor and an end-of-film sensor to guard against archival record loss from these causes. Unique film cassette designs are also described.

Microfiche recording system with traveling film head

A data storage and retrieval system is provided utilizing digital or analog data input signals to energize one or more data recording heads which can produce a selection of sizes of alpha-numeric, pictorial or digital coded images on a recording medium. Where alpha-numeric or pictorial images are produced, the images are both human and machine readable. Such alpha-numeric or pictorial images can be sequentially or simultaneously selectively produced full sized and/or reduced substantially in size to form at least 24:1 or greater size reductions of these images on the same or different recording media. Thus, for example, X-ray pictures or letters and the like can be simultaneously produced in reduced form on a microfilm recording medium for record storage purposes and full sized simultaneously on a recording medium for direct examination and delivery to third parties. The reduced data is directly human readable by projecting light preferably through the recording medium and magnifying and projecting the image on a screen. Alternatively, the data is machine readable as by scanning small segments of the image with a capacitance or resistance responsive or photo-electric display device, to develop electrical signals which can operate conventional display readout devices. The microfilm recording and electrical readout operations most advantageously are achieved by supporting the recording head or readout unit on a carrier which moves across the recorded area of the recording medium in a line-by-line scanning operation, carried out so rapidly that a complete page of information can be recorded upon the recording medium or read therefrom in at most a manner of a few seconds or less. In the most commercially significant form of the invention, each data recording head capable of producing the reduced images is a Joule heat-producing device comprising one or more uniquely small current-carrying, heat-producing points each having dimensions preferably no greater than about 14 micron and less desirably no greater than about 20 micron. The heat-producing points are spaced about a distance no greater than about the aforesaid dimensions.

Light reflected from hard copy is reduced to microimage size and applied at an imaging and developing station to a dry-process mask film strip which is photosensitive to the reflected light and which is developed by heat to provide microimaged transparencies therein. Such microimaged transparencies in the mask film strip are transferred in an image transferring station to a dry-process microform film to provide imaged microform records therein which conform to the transparent microimages in the mask film strip and which have archival properties. The imaging and developing station includes a platform for receiving the hard copy and a projection means for applying the reduced microimage of the hard copy to the mask film strip. Projection means are provided for expanding and projecting an image of said desired imaged microform record in the microform film in expanded normal size onto the platform for viewing the same. Additional hard copy may be received on the platform in specific relation to the expanded normal size image projected onto the platform for annotation purposes, and the light image reflected from the additional hard copy may be reduced to microimage size and applied to the mask film strip for producing a microimaged transparency of the additional hard copy therein and for providing an imaged microform record of the additional hard copy in the desired imaged microform record of the microform film previously projected onto the platform for annotating the same with the additional hard copy. The photosensitive mask film strip is preferably carried in a movable cassette.

Dry process production and annotation of archival microform records from

A dry-process method and apparatus for producing archival microform records from light reflecting hard copy utilize a dry-process mask film strip which is photosensitive to and microimaged by light reflected and reduced or condensed from the hard copy and developed by heat to provide microimaged transparencies therein as the mask film strip is moved to an imaging and developing station. It also utilizes a dry-process microform film which has archival properties and which is sensitive to and microimaged and developed by short pulses of electromagnetic energy above a threshold value applied thereto through the microimaged transparencies of the superimposed mask film strip when it is moved to an image transferring station to provide in the microform film imaged microform records which conform to the transparent microimages in the dry-process mask film strip and, hence, the hard copy and which have achival properties. The microform film is preferably in the form of a microfiche.

Dry process production of archival microform records from hard copy

A new structure comprising a layer of an imaging material, capable of undergoing an image forming change in response to energy, a layer of a barrier material and a layer of a catalyst material which, if necessary after activation, is capable of causing or promoting the image forming change in the imaging material. The barrier material is capable of controlling in accordance with a desired image pattern, the passage of the catalyst material through the barrier layer into contact with the imaging material in selected areas, while it prevents passage of the catalyst material in other selected areas. The permeability of the barrier layer for the catalyst material and, if necessary the activation of the catalyst material, may be controlled by the selective imagewise application of imaging energy to the structure, and the image forming change in the imaging material may be brought about by the application of development energy, such as heat, to the structure to produce a detectable image in the layer of the imaging material.

Growing community of inventors

Troy, MI, United States of America

Peter H Klose