The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 26, 2005
Filed:
Aug. 09, 2004
Donald L. Kramer, Boca Raton, FL (US);
Donald L. Kramer, Boca Raton, FL (US);
Coulter International Corp., Miami, FL (US);
Abstract
Apparatus for detecting light scattered by a small particle (e.g., a blood cell) irradiated by a light beam comprises one or more photodetectors and a plurality of optical fibers that serve to optically couple the scattered light and the photodetector(s). To enhance the efficiency of such optical coupling, a portion of each of the optical fibers in the vicinity of its light-collecting end is supported so that its optical axis extends towards the light-scattering source. By this arrangement, scattered light enters each fiber from a direction substantially parallel to the fiber axis. Preferably, the light-collecting ends of the optical fibers are supported on a concave surface and so that the respective optical axes of the fibers converge at a point representing the apparent position of the light-scattering source, taking into account the refractive effects of an optical flow cell through which scattering is detected. Preferably, both forward- and back-scattered light are detected by the apparatus of the invention.