Light-triggered tattoo process

• US 20050234528A1
• Filed: 03/25/2004
• Published: 10/20/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Allen M. Hunter II, Betty W. Tang, Kenneth Y. Tang
• Original Assignee: Allen M. Hunter II, Betty W. Tang, Kenneth Y. Tang
• Inventors: Hunter, Allen M. II, Tang, Betty W., Tang, Kenneth Y.
• Granted Patent: US 7,131,446 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/89
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/203 applying laser energy to the outside of the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00452 Skin

Abstract

A light-triggered tattoo process. A strong absorber of light energy and tattoo material are sandwiched under pressure between a skin region and a transparent window. Short pulses of light, at frequencies strongly absorbed by the strong absorber, illuminates the strong absorber through the window creating micro-explosions in the strong absorber that drive particles of the tattoo material into the skin region producing a tattoo.

Claims

1. A light-triggered tattoo process comprising the steps of:

A) sandwiching under pressure, between a skin region and a transparent window, a strong absorber of light energy and tattoo material,

B) illuminating through said window said strong absorber with short pulses of light, at frequencies strongly absorbed by the strong absorber, to create micro-explosions in the strong absorber to drive particles of the tattoo material into the skin region to produce a tattoo.

2. The process as in claim 1 wherein the strong absorber comprises graphite.

3. The process as in claim 2 wherein the tattoo material comprises tattoo ink.

4. The process as in claim 2 wherein the tattoo material comprises graphite.

5. The process as in claim 1 wherein the short pulses of light are provided with a laser

6. The process as in claim 5 wherein the laser is a Nd-YAG laser.

7. The process as in claim 1 wherein the short pulses of light are provided with a flash lamp.

8. The process as in claim 7 wherein the flash lamp is a xenon flash lamp.

9. The process as in claim 1 wherein said window comprises a transparency.

10. The process as in claim 9 wherein said strong absorber is printed on said transparency.

11. The process as in claim 9 wherein said tattoo material is printed on said transparency over said strong absorber.

12. The process as in claim 10 wherein the strong absorber is printed using a color printer/copier.

13. The process as in claim 10 wherein the strong absorber and the tattoo material is printed using a color printer/copier.

14. The process as in claim 9 wherein the window also comprises a glass plate that is used to press the transparency against the skin region.

15. A laser tattoo process comprising the steps of:

A) applying an explosive absorber of light energy on a transparent substrate,

B) applying a tattoo material on the transparent substrate over the explosive absorber,

C) pressing the substrate firmly against a skin region with the tattoo material and the explosive absorber sandwiched between the transparent substrate and the skin,

D) illuminating the explosive absorber with pulsed laser beams are directed through the substrate to produce thousands of micro-explosions in the explosive absorber to drive tattoo material into the epidermis layers of the skin.

16. The process as in claim 15 wherein the explosive absorber comprises graphite.

17. The process as in claim 16 wherein the tattoo material comprises tattoo ink.

18. The process as in claim 16 wherein the tattoo material comprises graphite.

19. The process as in claim 15 wherein the pulsed laser beams are provided with a Nd-YAG laser.

20. The process as in claim 15 wherein the substrate is a transparency and the explosive absorber and the tattoo material is applied using a printer.

21. The process as in claim 15 wherein the substrate is a transparency and the explosive absorber and the tattoo material is applied using a copier.

22. The process as in claim 15 wherein the substrate is a transparency and the explosive absorber and the tattoo material is applied using a printer/copier.

23. The process as in claim 15 wherein the substrate is a transparency and the explosive absorber and the tattoo material is applied using an ink jet printer.

24. The process as in claim 15 wherein a glass plate is used to press the substrate against the skin region.