Optical in-vivo monitoring systems
First Claim
1. ) A thin-disk optical coupling element comprising:
- an entrance aperture;
a beam turning element;
a waveguide array; and
an exit aperture,said entrance aperture comprising a planar annular region of a bottom surface of said thin-disk,said beam turning element formed in or on said thin-disk is arranged to redirect beams incident substantially orthogonal thereon in a radially inward direction towards said waveguide array,said waveguide array is formed in a central or inner portion of said thin-disk, the waveguide array comprising a plurality of pie-wedge shaped members, andsaid exit aperture being at least one surface prepared such that light beams from said waveguide array passes there through and exits the thin disk at an appreciably higher energy density than the beams energy density at entry to the thin-disk.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Systems for highly efficient, in-vivo collection of modulated infra-red light are presented. Specifically, these devices are arranged in an important format with a view to integration with a wristwatch or other wearable device. An optical aperture of large surface area, specially distributed in an annular ring, receives radiation having been modulated in a tissue test site by blood flow. Radiation received about the annular aperture is redirected by a blazed grating or similar optical element at near perpendicular angles, into a radially distributed, condensing light pipe array and further toward a common axis. Radiation converges on the axis, thus increasing the energy density of the collected signal, before it is further directed via a conic element to a detector such as a photodiode. In some versions, these highly specialized optical paths may be formed into a single element of inexpensive plastic or other rigid substrate.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. ) A thin-disk optical coupling element comprising:
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an entrance aperture; a beam turning element; a waveguide array; and an exit aperture, said entrance aperture comprising a planar annular region of a bottom surface of said thin-disk, said beam turning element formed in or on said thin-disk is arranged to redirect beams incident substantially orthogonal thereon in a radially inward direction towards said waveguide array, said waveguide array is formed in a central or inner portion of said thin-disk, the waveguide array comprising a plurality of pie-wedge shaped members, and said exit aperture being at least one surface prepared such that light beams from said waveguide array passes there through and exits the thin disk at an appreciably higher energy density than the beams energy density at entry to the thin-disk. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. ) Optical in-vivo monitoring systems for monitoring states of living tissues comprising:
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an illumination source; an optical coupling element; and a photodetector, said illumination source arranged to transmit a beam into a tissue test site, said optical coupling element concentric therewith said illumination source, being arranged to receive modulated light from the tissue test site and transmit received light at a sufficiently higher energy density to said photodetector. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. ) Methods of in-vivo optical monitoring, comprising the steps:
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illuminating tissue test site via an emitting semiconductor; receiving light which has sufficiently interacted with tissue via large scatter path length at a large annular aperture; turning light received at said aperture radially inward toward a symmetry axis; concentrating beam via TIR reflections in pie-wedge light pipe array; and converting received modulated optical beam to electrical impulses at a photodetector. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification