Structure of artificial electronic retina

• US 9,427,569 B2
• Filed: 05/18/2015
• Issued: 08/30/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Po-Kang Lin
• Original Assignee: Po-Kang Lin
• Inventors: Lin, Po-Kang
• Primary Examiner(s): Flory, Christopher A
• Application Number:
  US14/714,343
• Publication Number:
  US 20150246220A1
• Time in Patent Office: 470 Days
• Field of Search: 607/53, 607/54, 607/116, 623/6.63, 623/24
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/0543 Retinal electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36046 of the eye
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3758 Packaging of the components within the casing
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 30/00 Nanotechnology for materials or surface science, e.g. nanocomposites

Abstract

A structure of an artificial electronic retina is disclosed, which includes an array of a plurality of photoelectric units, and each photoelectric unit includes one electronic photosensitive element, one microelectrode, one electronic circuit, and sidewalls surrounding the photoelectric unit, wherein the microelectrode is disposed on and electrically connected to the electronic photosensitive element, and the electronic circuit is disposed on the electronic photosensitive element adjacent to the sidewalls near the circumference of the electronic photosensitive element. A layer of a light-permeable conductive material is disposed on the electronic photosensitive element between the microelectrode and the electronic circuit, wherein the layer of the light-permeable conductive material is electrically connected to both the electronic photosensitive element and the microelectrode. Therefore, the input and output power of the electronic photosensitive element can be increased without reducing the photosensitive area of the electronic photosensitive element.

Claims

1. A structure of an artificial electronic retina comprising an array of a plurality of photoelectric units, each photoelectric unit including:

an electronic photosensitive element;

a microelectrode disposed on a top surface of the electronic photosensitive element and electrically connected to the electronic photosensitive element;

a layer of a light-permeable conductive material disposed in an independent manner on the top surface of the electronic photosensitive element in each photoelectric unit and surrounding the microelectrode, an inner surface of the layer of the light-permeable conductive material abutting against an outer surface of the microelectrode, and the layer of the light-permeable conductive material electrically connected to the microelectrode and the electronic photosensitive element;

an electronic circuit disposed on the top surface of the electronic photosensitive element and surrounding the layer of the light-permeable conductive material, and an inner surface of the electronic circuit abutting against an outer surface of the layer of the light-permeable conductive material; and

a base including sidewalls and a bottom wall, the sidewalls abutting against sidewalls of bases of neighboring photoelectric units and forming a chamber with the bottom wall;

wherein the electronic photosensitive element, the microelectrode, the layer of the light-permeable conductive material and the electronic circuit are received in the chamber, a bottom surface of the electronic photosensitive element abuts against the bottom wall of the base, both an outer surface of the electronic photosensitive element and an outer surface of the electronic circuit abuts against inner surfaces of the sidewalls of the base.

2. The structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the light-permeable conductive material is a conductive biomaterial.

3. The structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein the conductive biomaterial is indium tin oxide.

4. The structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein the conductive biomaterial is carbon nanotube.

5. The structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein the conductive biomaterial is graphene.

6. The structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the light-permeable conductive material has a light-focusing structure.

7. The structure as claimed in claim 6, wherein the light-focusing structure has a protruded arc-shaped surface.

8. The structure as claimed in claim 6, wherein the light-focusing structure has a plurality of protruding portions formed on a surface of the light-permeable conductive material.

9. The structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the light-permeable conductive material has an electricity-discharging structure.

10. The structure as claimed in claim 9, wherein the electricity-discharging structure has a plurality of acute protruding portions formed on a surface of the light-permeable conductive material for point discharging.