Compact ocular measuring system

Abstract

Apparatus for determining refractive aberrations of the eye of a patient includes an instrument housing having a light source for projecting a substantially focused beam of light at the back of the eye of a patient, said substantially focused beam acting as a secondary source for a return light path of a fonned outgoing wavefront exiting said eye. An electronic sensor is disposed along said light return path, said electronic sensor having a light detecting surface disposed perpendicular to said return light path, and at least one microoptics array disposed between the electronic sensor and the eye along said return light path. The microoptics array includes plurality of lenslets disposed in a plane perpendicular to said light return path and positioned relative to said electronic sensor so as to substantially focus incremental portions of the outgoing wavefront onto the light detecting surface such that the deviations in the positions of the substantially focused portions impinging on said light detecting surface can be measured so as to determine aberrations of said wavefront. Preferably, at least one pair of conjugate lenses is disposed along said return light path and positioned between said eye and the microoptics array, the lenses of said conjugate pair having unequal focal lengths to allow the device to be used at an effective working distance from a patient