Multiparameter hematology apparatus and method
First Claim
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1. A multiparamenter hematology apparatus comprising, in combination:
- a source of light energy configured to emit laser light in a red spectrum;
a reservoir for containing a blood specimen diluted to less than 1/100 the reservoir having a transparent portion in line with the laser light emitted from the source of light energy and providing access to an ensemble light scattering pattern from the blood specimen;
a camera disposed in line with the transparent portion for receiving the ensemble light scattering pattern of the laser light from an ensemble of blood cells contained in the specimen and providing images thereof;
a digitizing means for digitizing the images, in operative communication with the camera for receiving frames of images of the ensemble light scattering pattern and converting at least a portion thereof into digital images; and
a processor connected to the digitizing means for performing image analysis on the digital images of the ensemble light scattering pattern to establish blood parameters therefrom including intrinsic parameters such as cell size, extrinsic parameters such as cell counts as well as aggregation and sedimentation of blood cells.
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Abstract
A multi-parameter hematology analyzer and method are provided for in vitro determination of blood parameters. The analyzer apparatus includes a laser for transmitting light through a specimen container containing a minimally diluted blood sample. The light scattered by the constituents of the blood sample are scattered into a pattern which is recorded on a camera image. This image is then processed by image processing software and is used to establish specific blood parameters.
77 Citations
18 Claims
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1. A multiparamenter hematology apparatus comprising, in combination:
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a source of light energy configured to emit laser light in a red spectrum; a reservoir for containing a blood specimen diluted to less than 1/100 the reservoir having a transparent portion in line with the laser light emitted from the source of light energy and providing access to an ensemble light scattering pattern from the blood specimen; a camera disposed in line with the transparent portion for receiving the ensemble light scattering pattern of the laser light from an ensemble of blood cells contained in the specimen and providing images thereof; a digitizing means for digitizing the images, in operative communication with the camera for receiving frames of images of the ensemble light scattering pattern and converting at least a portion thereof into digital images; and a processor connected to the digitizing means for performing image analysis on the digital images of the ensemble light scattering pattern to establish blood parameters therefrom including intrinsic parameters such as cell size, extrinsic parameters such as cell counts as well as aggregation and sedimentation of blood cells. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A method for making measurements of a blood cell population comprising the steps of:
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providing a multiparameter hematology apparatus having a source of light energy configured to emit coherent light in a red spectrum, a transparent reservoir for containing a blood specimen diluted to less than 1/100,a camera for receiving an ensemble light scattering pattern from an ensemble of blood cells contained in the specimen contained in the reservoir and providing images thereof a digitizing means for digitizing images in operative communication with the camera for receiving and converting the images into digital images and a processor operatively connected to the digitizing the means for performing image analysis on the digital images; providing a blood specimen diluted to less than 1/100 in the transparent reservoir of the multiparameter hematology apparatus; irradiating the specimen with light from the source of light energy in the red spectrum; picking up the ensemble light scattering pattern from the irradiated ensemble of blood cells contained in the specimen with the camera; and converting the images of the ensemble light scattering pattern into digital images with the digitizing means ,and processing the digitized images of the ensemble light scattering pattern with the process to establish blood parameters for the blood specimen including intrinsic parameters such as cell size, extrinsic parameters such as cell counts as well as aggregation and sedimentation of blood cells. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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Specification