DERMATOSCOPE DEVICES

• US 20140243685A1
• Filed: 02/28/2014
• Published: 08/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canfield Scientific Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Canfield Scientific Incorporated
• Inventors: Patwardhan, Sachin V., DiGregorio, Daniel Eric, Mandanayake, Athula
• Granted Patent: US 10,617,305 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/476
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0077 Devices for viewing the surface of the body, e.g. camera, magnifying lens
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/44 Detecting, measuring or recording for evaluating the integumentary system, e.g. skin, hair or nails A61B5/117 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6898 Portable consumer electronic devices, e.g. music players, telephones, tablet computers
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/361 Optical details, e.g. image relay to the camera or image sensor G02B21/364 takes precedence; illumination details G02B21/06 and subgroups
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/368 details of associated display arrangements, e.g. mounting of LCD monitor

Abstract

A dermatoscope has a generally circular viewing opening, a plurality of light sources including first and second groups of light sources arranged about the viewing opening, a first polarizer for polarizing light passing through the viewing opening, and a second polarizer for polarizing light emitted from the first group of light sources, wherein the first and second groups of light sources are arranged at different distances from a center of the viewing opening so that light from the second group of light sources is not polarized by the second polarizer. A further dermatoscope has a head portion including a generally circular viewing opening, and at least one light source arranged proximate to the viewing opening; and a body portion including an image capture device, wherein the head portion is pivotally attached to the body portion selectively allowing alignment of the center of the viewing opening with the center of the field of view of the image capture device. Yet a further dermatoscope has a generally circular viewing opening, a selectively extendable element that can be selectively extended coaxially with the viewing opening, and a contact element for contacting a surface to be viewed, the contact element being removably attachable to a distal end of the selectively extendable element.

Claims

1. A dermatoscope comprising:

a generally circular viewing opening;

a plurality of light sources including first and second groups of light sources arranged about the viewing opening;

a first polarizer for polarizing light passing through the viewing opening; and

a second polarizer for polarizing light emitted from the first group of light sources,

wherein the first and second groups of light sources are arranged at different distances from a center of the viewing opening so that light from the second group of light sources is not polarized by the second polarizer.

2. The dermatoscope of claim 1, wherein the second group of light sources is arranged at a greater distance from the center of the viewing opening than the first group of light sources.

3. The dermatoscope of claim 1, wherein the polarization orientations of the first and second polarizers are mutually orthogonal.

4. The dermatoscope of claim 1, wherein the light sources of the first group are oriented towards a first point along an axis of the viewing opening and the light sources of the second group are oriented towards a second point along the axis of the viewing opening, wherein the second point is further from the dermatoscope than the first point.

5. The dermatoscope of claim 1, wherein the light sources of the second group are arranged so as to be beyond an inner opening of a contact viewing element.

6. The dermatoscope of claim 1 comprising a lens arranged within the viewing opening.

7. The dermatoscope of claim 1, wherein the plurality of light sources and the viewing opening are arranged in a pivoting head portion selectively allowing alignment of the center of the viewing opening with the center of the field of view of an image capture device.

8. The dermatoscope of claim 7, wherein an operating mode of at least a subset of the light sources is controlled in accordance with a position of the pivoting head.

9. The dermatoscope of claim 1 comprising a selectively extendable element that can be selectively extended coaxially with the viewing opening.

10. The dermatoscope of claim 1 comprising a removable contact element for contacting a surface to be viewed.

11. The dermatoscope of claim 10, wherein the removable contact element includes a frustoconical extension.

12. The dermatoscope of claim 1 comprising a plurality of first groups of light sources and an equal plurality of second groups of light sources, the first and second groups being alternately arranged adjacent to each other about the viewing opening.

13. The dermatoscope of claim 12 comprising a shroud element separating adjacent first and second groups of light sources.

14. The dermatoscope of claim 1, wherein the second polarizer has a generally polygonal shape and a central opening aligned with the viewing opening.

15. A dermatoscope comprising:

a head portion including;

a generally circular viewing opening, and

at least one light source arranged proximate to the viewing opening; and

a body portion including an image capture device,

wherein the head portion is pivotally attached to the body portion selectively allowing alignment of the center of the viewing opening with the center of the field of view of the image capture device.

16. The dermatoscope of claim 15, wherein an operating mode of the at least one light source is controlled in accordance with the position of the head portion relative to the body portion.

17. The dermatoscope of claim 15 comprising a removable contact element for contacting a surface to be viewed.

18. The dermatoscope of claim 17, wherein the removable contact element includes a frustoconical extension.

19. A dermatoscope comprising:

a generally circular viewing opening;

a selectively extendable element that can be selectively extended coaxially with the viewing opening; and

a contact element for contacting a surface to be viewed, the contact element being removably attachable to a distal end of the selectively extendable element.