DEPTH OF FIELD EXTENSION FOR OPTICAL TOMOGRAPHY

• US 20100321786A1
• Filed: 08/24/2010
• Published: 12/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: VisionGate, Inc.
• Original Assignee: VisionGate, Inc.
• Inventors: Rahn, J. Richard, Hayenga, John W.
• Granted Patent: US 7,933,010 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 359/634
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0073 by tomography, i.e. reconstruction of 3D images from 2D projections A61B5/0066 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 15/1468 with spatial resolution of the texture or inner structure of the particle
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/4795 spatially resolved investigating of object in scattering medium in vivo A61B

Abstract

An optical tomography system for viewing an object of interest includes a microcapillary tube viewing area for positioning the object of interest in an optical path including a detector. A motor is located to attach to and rotate a microcapillary tube. A device is arranged for transmitting broadband light having wavelengths between 550 nm and 620 nm into the microcapillary tube viewing area. A hyperchromatic lens is located to receive light transmitted through the microcapillary tube viewing area. A tube lens is located to focus light rays transmitted through the hyperchromatic lens, such that light rays from multiple object planes in the microcapillary tube viewing area simultaneously focus on the at least one detector.

Claims

1. An optical tomography system for viewing an object of interest comprising:

a microcapillary tube viewing area for positioning the object of interest;

at least one detector;

a motor arranged to rotate a microcapillary tube;

means for transmitting broadband light having wavelengths between 550 nm and 620 nm into the microcapillary tube viewing area;

a hyperchromatic lens located to receive light transmitted through the microcapillary tube viewing area; and

a tube lens located to focus light rays transmitted through the hyperchromatic lens, such that light rays from multiple object planes in the microcapillary tube viewing area simultaneously focus on the at least one detector.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the object of interest comprises a biological cell.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the hyperchromatic lens and the tube lens operate to simultaneously focus multiple object planes from the microcapillary tube viewing area on the at least one detector.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein an interval spanned by the multiple object planes comprises an interval spanning the thickness of the biological cell.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the biological cell is stained to impart an absorption coefficient of at least one wavelength that registers on the at least one detector.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein an interval spanned by the multiple object planes comprises an interval spanning the thickness of the microcapillary tube viewing area.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the system further comprises a chromatic filter array located between the hyperchromatic lens and the at least one detector.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the light from the multiple object planes includes light having a wavelength range of 550 nm to 620 nm spanning a focus interval of up to 50 microns.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising a chromatic filter array located between the hyperchromatic lens and the at least one detector, so that light coming to a focus on the detector is separated into two or more wavelength bands, each wavelength band being transmitted through the chromatic filter array to a separate set of pixels on the at least one detector.

10. An optical tomography system for viewing an object of interest comprising:

a microcapillary tube containing the object of interest;

a motor, attached to the microcapillary tube, for rotating the microcapillary tube;

a light source located to illuminate the microcapillary tube;

a hyperchromatic lens located to receive light transmitted through the microcapillary tube;

a dichroic beamsplitter located to split a plurality of ray paths originating in multiple object planes in the microcapillary tube as transmitted through the hyperchromatic lens; and

at least two detectors, where a first detector of the at least two detectors is located to receive light transmitted along one of the plurality of ray paths, and a second detector of the at least two detectors is located to receive light transmitted along another of the plurality of ray paths, where light rays from the multiple object planes are simultaneously focused on at least one of the at least two detectors.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the system further comprises a piezoelectric transducer coupled to the hyperchromatic lens.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the object of interest comprises a biological cell.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein each of the multiple object planes that come to a focus registers light of a different optical wavelength on at least one of the at least two detectors.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein an interval spanned by the multiple object planes comprises an interval spanning the thickness of the object of interest.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein the biological cell is stained to impart an absorption coefficient of at least one wavelength.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein an interval spanned by the multiple object planes comprises an interval spanning the thickness of the microcapillary tube.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein the system further comprises a chromatic filter array located between the hyperchromatic lens and each of the at least two detectors.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the object of interest is stained with hematoxylin.

19. The system of claim 10, wherein the light from multiple object planes includes light having a wavelength range of 550 nm to 620 nm covering a focus interval of up to 50 microns.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the object-containing tube has a diameter of at least 50 microns.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein an interval spanned by the multiple object planes comprises a focus interval of at least 12 microns.

22. The system of claim 10, wherein the light from multiple object planes includes a wavelength range of 550 nm to 620 nm.

23. The system of claim 10, further comprising a band pass filter for passing light in the range of 550 nm to 620 nm located to band limit light reaching the at least two detectors.

24. The system of claim 10, wherein the light source includes a chromatic filter located to filter light reaching the object-containing tube.

25. A folded system for optical tomography comprising:

an objective lens for transmitting collimated light;

a first dichroic beam-splitting cube located downstream from the objective lens to split the collimated light transmitted by the objective lens into a first arm and a second arm;

the first arm has a wavelength λ

1 and originates in a first focal plane;

a first tube lens is positioned to transmit the first arm through a second beam-splitter cube, and onto a first region of the camera sensor'"'"'s active area;

the second arm has a wavelength λ

2 and originates in a second focal plane;

first and second mirrors positioned to pass the second arm through a tube lens after reflecting within a second dichroic beam-splitter cube and onto a second region of a camera sensor'"'"'s active area, whereby the first region and the second region of the camera acquire focused images originating from different focal planes in object space.

26. The system of claim 25 where a relative lateral shift in images is achieved by laterally shifting the second dichroic beam-splitter cube, so that the reflected light of the second arm is laterally shifted relative to the first arm and to the first tube lens.