Accuvein, Inc.

Symbol Technologies, LLC

Red Creamery LLC

Accuveiw, Inc.

Accuview, Inc.

Ron Goldman

Stephen P Conlon

Fred Wood

Vincent Luciano

David L Hunt

Mark Mock

Miklos Stern

Paul Dvorkis

Chinh Tan

Dmitriy Yavid

Robert H Roth

Frederick F Wood

Graham Marshall

Carl D Wittenberg

Narayan Nambudiri

Joseph M Katz

Dmitry Yavid

Graham Marshal

Bob Roth

Jerome Swartz

Thomas K Roslak

Askold Strat

Jay Paul White

Gary Serbin

Anthony R Barkume

Joe Zott

Boris Metlitsky

Yajun Li

Simon Bard

Christopher Silvio Cosentino

Igor Paprotny

Vincent P Luciano

Edward R Alexander

Peter Wyatt

Stephen Jay Shellhammer

Raj Bridgelall

Eugene B Joseph

Alistair Robert Hamilton

Robert Sanders

Frederick Schuessler

Emmanuel V Tanghal

Peter Fazekas

Shane E MacGregor

Thomas Mazz

Steven M Chew

Adam M Petrovich

Michael S Slutsky

Lisa Fan

Richard Rizza

Michael Poldino

A vein imaging device includes: first and second lasers, a scanner, photo detector, memory, and microprocessor. The first laser emits a beam of light at a first wavelength, and the second laser emits a beam of visible light. The scanner is configured to scan the light from the first and second lasers onto the target in a pattern. The photo detector receives the first wavelength of light after being reflected from the target as a contrasted light/dark image of underlying veins, based on differential amounts of absorption and reflection by blood in the veins and surrounding tissue, and outputs a signal representative of the image. The memory receives and stores a sequential plurality of the contrasted images, and the microprocessor uses the stored plurality of the contrasted images to produce an averaged image with greater resolution, which is projected by the second laser onto the target using visible light.

Scanned laser vein contrast enhancer with image averaging

A portable vein viewer apparatus may be battery powered and hand-held to reveal patient vasculature information to aid in venipuncture processes. The apparatus comprises a first laser diode emitting infrared light, and a second laser diode emitting only visible wavelengths, wherein vasculature absorbs a portion of the infrared light causing reflection of a contrasted infrared image. A pair of silicon PIN photodiodes, responsive to the contrasted infrared image, causes transmission of a corresponding signal. The signal is processed through circuitry to amplify, sum, and filter the outputted signals, and with the use of an image processing algorithm, the contrasted image is projected onto the patient's skin surface using the second laser diode. Revealed information may comprise vein location, depth, diameter, and degree of certainty of vein locations. Projection of vein images may be a positive or a negative image. Venipuncture needles may be coated to provide visibility in projected images.

Method and system for optimizing a projected vein image and identifying vein locations using vein scanner

Vein scanner with housing configured for single-handed lifting and use

It is known in the art to use an apparatus to enhance the visual appearance of the veins and arteries in a patient to facilitate insertion of needles into those veins and arteries. This application discloses a number of inventions that add additional data collection and presentation capabilities to a handheld vein enhancement apparatus and a set of processes for the collection of blood and the delivery of IV medicines that use the handheld device to mediate the process.

Vein imaging device with differential image resolution at the center and the extremities of the vein image

A vein imager includes: a laser emitting a light beam in a first optical path; and scanner directing the beam to form a spot of light on the target, and scanning the beam to move the spot rapidly on the target. An optical element bounces the beam of light from the first optical path onto a second optical path, directing the beam at the scanner. The scanner directs an image portion, received from the target, along the second optical path toward the photodiode, the image portion being an afterglow formed by differential reflection and absorption of the scanned spot by surrounding tissue and blood vessels. A lens is positioned/configured to limit a size of the photodiode FOV to a portion of the target surface, which size encompasses only the spot size and a portion of the afterglow. The limited photodiode FOV thus moves synchronously with the scanned spot.

Vein scanner with limited photodiode FOV moving synchronously with scanned laser light

A vein imager includes: two photodetectors, a first and second lasers configured to respectively emit an infrared beam of light and a human-visible beam of light; a combiner to coaxially align the two beams; and a scanner that scans the coaxial beam in a pattern and onto a skin surface of a patient. The first photodetector receives the infrared wavelength reflected from the patient as a contrasted image of subcutaneous veins, and surface reflection noise due to skin surface topology, and outputs a first signal representing that contrasted image of subcutaneous veins and noise due to skin surface topology. The second photo detector receives the human-visible wavelength reflected from the skin surface and outputs a second signal representing a contrasted image of the topology. The second signal is subtracted from the first signal to remove the noise, permitting projection of a surface-noise-free vein image onto the skin surface.

Micro vein enhancer with two lasers and two optical detectors configured for removing surface topology

The present invention is a Miniature Vein Enhancer that includes a Miniature Projection Head. The Miniature Projection Head may be operated in one of three modes, AFM, DBM, and RTM. The Miniature Projection Head of the present invention projects an image of the veins of a patient, which aids the practitioner in pinpointing a vein for an intravenous drip, blood test, and the like. The Miniature projection head may have a cavity for a power source or it may have a power source located in a body portion of the Miniature Vein Enhancer. The Miniature Vein Enhancer may be attached to one of several improved needle protectors, or the Miniature Vein Enhancer may be attached to a body similar to a flashlight for hand held use. The Miniature Vein Enhancer of the present invention may also be attached to a magnifying glass, a flat panel display, and the like.

Scanned laser vein contrast enhancer with reduced laser intensity during scan line reversals

A cleaning chamber for cleaning a vein viewing device, includes a housing with an access door having an open position and a shut position, wherein when the access door is in the open position the vein viewing device can be placed inside the housing. When the access door is in the closed position the housing and access door together envelop the vein viewing device. A detector detects when the vein viewing device is contained within the housing. A light source is contained within the housing and is arranged to illuminate the exterior surfaces of the vein viewing device when the vein viewing device is detected within the housing.

Medical device stand with integrated cleaning chamber

A distally-actuated scanning mirror includes: a mirror block with reflective surface on one side; torsional hinges with proximal ends rigidly attached to the mirror block, and with distal ends attached to flexural structures configured to transform translational motion of the piezoelectric elements into rotational motion of the distal ends of the hinges; and piezoelectric elements providing such translational motion. The distally-actuated scanning mirror also includes flexural structures made of separate flexures attached to the opposite surfaces of the distal ends of the hinges, which flexural structures have defined thinned-down flexural points. Portions of the distally-actuated scanning mirror may be 3D printed and/or fabricated by silicon MEMS technology. The mirror is fabricated from a Silicon-on-Insulator wafer, having a relatively thick (e.g., 380 um) handle layer, and a relatively thin e.g., 50 um), where photolithography with backside-alignment allows separate patterning of these two layers.

Distally actuated scanning mirror

A portable hand-held miniature vein enhancer comprises: a housing, laser, one or more mirrors, mirror drive system, and sensor to determine a distance to the target. The laser emits a beam of light at a selective wavelength that images subcutaneous veins through differential absorption and reflection. The mirror(s) receive the beam of light and create a spot of light on the target, and when driven by the mirror drive system to oscillate, the spot is scanned to form a two-dimensionally shaped pattern of light. The scanned spot of light moves according to a range of angular positions of the mirror(s). When the distance to the target is at or below a threshold distance, the range of angular positions is set to a maximum, producing the largest scan pattern. When the distance increases beyond the threshold, the range of angular positions is reduced proportional to the increased distance.

Scanned laser vein contrast enhancer with scanning correlated to target distance

A vein imager includes: a housing with first and second portions respectively proximate to first and second ends of the imager; a first light source that emits a first wavelength; an optical detector responsive to the first wavelength and which converts a received vein image into a signal; a second light source that emits a second wavelength; one or more buttons protruding from the housing; and at least one exit opening in the housing for emission of light from the light sources. The first housing portion houses the light sources, the optical detectors, and includes the exit opening. The second housing portion, which houses a battery, is narrower than the first portion to be hand-holdable permitting single-handed lifting and use of the imager, which single-hand lifting and use does not cover the exit opening, and simultaneously permits actuation of the one or more buttons while holding the second housing portion.

Vein scanner configured for single-handed lifting and use

Vein imager and cradle in combination

Growing community of inventors

Cold Spring Harbor, NY, United States of America

Ron Goldman