Imaging system, methodology, and applications employing reciprocal space optical design

• US 7,288,751 B2
• Filed: 05/14/2004
• Issued: 10/30/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/06/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Pixel Matched Holdings LLC
• Original Assignee: Angkor Technology, LLP, Daniel B. Bortnick, Gregory Turocy, Himanshu S. Amin, Palantyr Research LLC
• Inventors: Cartlidge, Andrew G., Fein, Howard
• Primary Examiner(s): Luu, Thanh X.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Livedalen, Brian J
• Application Number:
  US10/846,429
• Publication Number:
  US 20050001144A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,264 Days
• Field of Search: 250/208.1, 250/216
• US Class Current: 250/208.1
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/0008 Microscopes having a simple construction, e.g. portable microscopes
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/02 Objectives
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/088 for both incident illumination and transillumination
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/16 adapted for ultraviolet illumination ; Fluorescence microscopes G02B21/0076 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/24 Base structure
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/365 Control or image processing arrangements for digital or video microscopes G02B21/361, G02B21/362 take precedence

Abstract

An imaging system, methodology, and various applications are provided to facilitate optical imaging performance. The system includes a sensor having one or more receptors and an image transfer medium to scale the sensor and receptors in accordance with resolvable characteristics of the medium. A computer, memory, and/or display associated with the sensor provides storage and/or display of information relating to output from the receptors to produce and/or process an image, wherein a plurality of illumination sources can also be utilized in conjunction with the image transfer medium. The image transfer medium can be configured as a k-space filter that correlates a pitch associated with the receptors to a diffraction-limited spot associated with the image transfer medium, wherein the pitch can be unit-mapped to about the size of the diffraction-limited spot.

Claims

1. A microscopic imaging system, comprising:

a handheld computer for storing a microscopic image from an object plane;

a camera associated with the handheld computer to receive the microscopic image from the object plane, the camera having a sensor comprising pixels, the pixels having a pixel pitch; and

at least one optical component that magnifies data from the object plane in order to generate the microscopic image, the pixel pitch having a correlation to the at least one optical component, the correlation providing a range of less than two projected pixels mapped to a diffraction-limited spot in the object plane to one pixel mapped to less than two diffraction-limited spots in the object plane, the at least one optical component comprises a first lens positioned toward the object plane and a second lens positioned toward the sensor, the first lens sized to have a focal length smaller than the second lens to provide an apparent reduction of the pixels within the object plane.

2. The system of claim 1, the at least one optical component is selected to promote frequencies of interest from microscopic specimens at the camera by forming a band pass filter with the camera.

3. The system of claim 1, the hand held computer comprises at least one of a wired port and a wireless port for transferring electronic microscopic images between locations.

4. The system of claim 1, further comprising one or more mirrors for directing microscopic images to the camera.

5. The system of claim 1, the hand held computer is adapted as a cell phone.

6. The system of claim 1, the at least one optical component includes a matching lens and a resolution lens for mapping pixels associated with the camera.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising a stage component for imaging a specimen.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a light source and an illumination lens for the light source to illuminate objects of interest.

9. The system of claim 8, further comprising a holographic diffuser positioned in front of the light source.

10. The system of claim 8, further comprising a power supply to be employed with at least one of the light source and the hand held computer.

11. The system of claim 10, the power supply is a regulated AC supply, a regulated DC supply, or a battery.

12. The system of claim 1, at least one of the hand held computer, the camera, and the at least one optical component are configured circumferentially with respect to one another in order to minimize planar real estate of an overall configuration.

13. The system of claim 1, the at least one optical component maps pixels from the camera to about 1.75 pixels per spot, 1.5 pixels per spot, 1 pixels per spot, 0.9 pixels per spot, and 0.7 pixels per spot.

14. The system of claim 1, the projected pixels are sized from about 50% to about 150% of the diffraction-limited spot.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein projected pixels are size matched to about the diffraction limited spot so as to facilitate reception of microscopic image data within spatial frequencies of interest.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein projected pixels are size matched to about the diffraction limited spot so as to facilitate mitigation of indeterminacy of data collected by adjacent pixels.

17. The system of claim 1, further comprising a holographic diffuser positioned in between a light source and the object field.

18. A method of making a microscopic image, comprising:

capturing the microscopic image using the system of claim 1.

19. The method of claim 18, the at least one optical component is selected to promote frequencies of interest from microscopic specimens at the camera by forming a band pass filter with the camera.

20. The method of claim 18, the at least one optical component comprises a matching lens and a resolution lens for mapping pixels associated with the camera.

21. The method of claim 18, the system further comprising a light source and an illumination lens for the light source to illuminate objects of interest.

22. The method of claim 18, further comprising sending the captured microscopic image to remote location.

23. The method of claim 18, the system further comprising a light source and an illumination lens for the light source to illuminate objects of interest.

24. The method of claim 18, the projected pixels are sized from about 50% to about 150% of the diffraction-limited spot.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising sending the captured microscopic image to remote location.

26. The method of claim 18, wherein projected pixels are size matched to about the diffraction limited spot so as to facilitate reception of microscopic image data within spatial frequencies of interest.

27. The method of claim 18, wherein projected pixels are size matched to about the diffraction limited spot so as to facilitate mitigation of indeterminacy of data collected by adjacent pixels.

28. The method of claim 18, the system further comprising a holographic diffuser positioned in between a light source and the object field.

29. A microscopic imaging system, comprising:

a first component comprising;

a hand held computer for storing a microscopic image from an object plane; and

a camera associated with the hand held computer to receive the microscopic image from the object plane, the camera having a sensor comprising pixels, the pixels having a pixel pitch; and

a second component comprising;

at least one optical component that magnifies data from the object plane in order to generate the microscopic image, the pixel pitch having a correlation to the at least one optical component, the correlation providing a range of less than two projected pixels mapped to a diffraction-limited spot in the object plane to one pixel mapped to less than two diffraction-limited spots in the object plane, the at least one optical component comprises a first lens positioned toward the obiect plane and a second lens positioned toward the sensor, the first lens sized to have a focal length smaller than the second lens to provide an apparent reduction of the pixels within the object plane.

30. The system of claim 29, the first component is a wireless phone or portable computer.

31. The system of claim 29, the second component further comprises a stage to hold a specimen to be imaged in the object plane.