Pupilometer with pupil irregularity detection, pupil tracking, and pupil response detection capability, glaucoma screening capability, intracranial pressure detection capability, and ocular aberration measurement capability

• US 20060181678A1
• Filed: 04/04/2006
• Published: 08/17/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/23/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Neuroptics Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Neuroptics Incorporated
• Inventors: Oliver, Jeffrey, Siminou, Kamran, Stark, Lawrence W., Privitera, Claudio M.
• Granted Patent: US 7,670,002 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 351/206
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 3/112 for measuring diameter of pupils
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/163 by tracking eye movement, gaze, or pupil change
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36046 of the eye
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/0648 the light being directed to the eyes

Abstract

A pupilometer having image capturing means, illumination means generating and emitting light of a first wavelength, stimulation means generating and emitting light of a second wavelength, and image processing software. The image processing software receives data from the image capturing means, identifies a pupil'"'"'s dynamic response to light generated by the stimulation means, analyzes one or more components of the pupil'"'"'s dynamic response, and produces an output comprising a value indicative of a neurological condition of a patient.

Claims

1. A pupilometer comprising:

image capturing means;

illumination means generating and emitting light of a first wavelength;

stimulation means generating and emitting light of a second wavelength; and

image processing software that receives data from the image capturing means, identifies a pupil'"'"'s dynamic response to light generated by the stimulation means, analyzes one or more components of the pupil'"'"'s dynamic response, and produces an output comprising a value indicative of a neurological condition of a patient.

2. The pupilometer of claim 1, wherein said one or more components of the pupil'"'"'s dynamic response comprises minimum pupil aperture, maximum pupil aperture, difference between maximum and minimum pupil apertures, latency of pupil response to stimulation, pupil constriction velocity, first and second pupil dilation velocities, and pupil irregularity magnitude and location information.

3. The pupilometer of claim 1, wherein the value is represented as a scalar value that can be applied to a scale indicative of a neurological state of an individual.

4. The pupilometer of claim 1, wherein the value is represented in the form of a graph.

5. The pupilometer of claim 1, wherein the value is represented alphanumerically.

6. The pupilometer of claim 1, wherein the software further identifies statistical anomalies within said one or more components of the pupil'"'"'s dynamic response and discards said anomalies.

7. A pupilometer comprising:

image capturing means;

illumination means generating and emitting light of a first wavelength;

stimulation means generating and emitting light of a second wavelength; and

image processing software that detects a pupil within an image of an eye provided by the image capturing means, measures the size of the detected pupil, measures one or more components of the pupil'"'"'s dynamic response to the light generated and emitted by the stimulation means, analyzes said one or more components, and produces an output comprising a value indicative of a neurological condition of a patient.

8. The pupilometer of claim 7, wherein said one or more components of the pupil'"'"'s dynamic response comprises minimum pupil aperture, maximum pupil aperture, difference between maximum and minimum pupil apertures, latency of pupil response to stimulation, pupil constriction velocity, first and second pupil dilation velocities, and pupil irregularity magnitude and location information.

9. The pupilometer of claim 7, wherein the value is represented as a scalar value that can be applied to a scale indicative of a neurological state of an individual.

10. The pupilometer of claim 7, wherein the value is represented in the form of a graph.

11. The pupilometer of claim 7, wherein the value is represented alphanumerically.

12. The pupilometer of claim 7, wherein the software further identifies statistical anomalies within said one or more components of the pupil'"'"'s dynamic response and discards said anomalies.

13. A method for assessing the neurological condition of an individual comprising:

using a pupilometer, obtaining pupilary response data from a patient, said pupilary response data being representative of one or more components of a pupil'"'"'s dynamic response to a stimulus;

analyzing the pupilary response data within an automated data analysis system; and

deriving with the automated data analysis system an output comprising a value indicative of a neurological condition of the individual.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein said one or more components of the pupil'"'"'s dynamic response comprises minimum pupil aperture, maximum pupil aperture, difference between maximum and minimum pupil apertures, latency of pupil response to stimulation, pupil constriction velocity, first and second pupil dilation velocities, and pupil irregularity magnitude and location information.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the value is represented as a scalar value, the method further comprising applying the scalar value to a scale indicative of a neurological state of an individual.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the value is represented in the form of a graph.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the value is represented alphanumerically.

18. The method of claim 13, further comprising identifying with the automated data analysis system a statistical anomaly within said one or more components of the pupil'"'"'s dynamic response and discards said anomaly.