Focusing light through cataractous lenses

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11471326-B2
Application number	US-201816178190-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 1, 2018
Priority date	Nov 1, 2017
Publication date	Oct 18, 2022
Grant date	Oct 18, 2022

Abstract

A device for irradiating ocular tissue, including a source of electromagnetic radiation; a beacon scattering the electromagnetic radiation transmitted through an opacity in ocular tissue so as to form scattered electromagnetic radiation; a modulator transmitting output electromagnetic radiation having a field determined from a recording of the scattered electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity, so that the output electromagnetic radiation is transmitted through the opacity to the beacon. The device can be used to treat amblyopia or correct optical aberrations in corneal or lens tissue.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A device for irradiating ocular tissue, comprising:
a transmitter of ultrasound capable of transmitting ultrasound forming a beacon comprising a focus of ultrasound behind an opacity in ocular tissue,
a source of electromagnetic radiation capable of transmitting electromagnetic radiation to the opacity, wherein the electromagnetic radiation is transmitted through the opacity and the beacon scatters the electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity so as to form scattered electromagnetic radiation; and
a system generating output electromagnetic radiation, the system:
recording a recording of the scattered electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity;
including a modulator modulating one or more output wavefronts of the output electromagnetic radiation, forming the output electromagnetic radiation having a field determined from the recording of the scattered electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity; and
patterning the output electromagnetic radiation;

so that the output electromagnetic radiation is transmitted and focused through the opacity to the beacon on tissue, and the output electromagnetic radiation forms a patterned image on the ocular tissue.

2. The device of claim 1 , wherein the ultrasound comprises an ultrasound frequency and the ultrasound frequency shifts the electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity so as to form the scattered electromagnetic radiation comprising frequency shifted electromagnetic radiation.

3. The device of claim 2 , wherein the system further comprises:
a detector outputting a signal comprising the recording in response to the scattered electromagnetic radiation received on the detector;
a computer connected to the detector and the modulator:
the computer determining a phase, an amplitude, or an amplitude and a phase of the output electromagnetic radiation from the recording; and
the modulator modulating the output electromagnetic radiation so that the output electromagnetic radiation has the phase, the amplitude, or the amplitude and the phase.

4. The device of claim 3 , wherein:
the modulator comprises pixels, wherein:
the pixels have variable transmissivity, reflectivity, or emission so as to modulate an intensity of the output electromagnetic radiation transmitted from the pixels,
the computer controls the transmissivity, reflectivity, or emission of each of the pixels so as to form a varying intensity comprising a stimulating pattern capable of stimulating nerves on retinal tissue, and
the beacon is on the retinal tissue.

5. The device of claim 4 , wherein:
the computer determines, from the signal, values representing a phase, an amplitude, or a phase and an amplitude of the scattered electromagnetic radiation at spatial locations associated with the stimulating pattern; and
the computer determines the phase, the amplitude, or the amplitude and the phase of the output electromagnetic radiation from the values.

6. The device of claim 5 , wherein the computer temporally controls the transmissivity, the reflectivity, or the emission of each of the pixels so that all points or regions of the stimulating pattern are transmitted from the modulator sequentially in time.

7. The device of claim 5 , wherein:
the computer determines, from the signal, the values representing the phase, an amplitude, or the phase and the amplitude of the scattered electromagnetic radiation for a subset of the spatial locations associated with the stimulating pattern; and
the computer uses an optical memory effect to calculate the phase and/or amplitude for neighboring points in the stimulating pattern by adding different phase gradients.

8. The device of claim 4 , wherein the stimulating pattern comprises a line.

9. The device of claim 4 , wherein the stimulating pattern comprises a pair of lines moving closer together so as to measure visual acuity.

10. The device of claim 3 , wherein:
the detector comprises a wavefront sensor measuring a wavefront for each spatial location in the scattered electromagnetic radiation associated with the patterned image comprising a stimulation pattern;
the computer synthesizes the one or more output wavefronts of the output electromagnetic radiation using the wavefronts; and
the modulator performs the patterning modulating the output electromagnetic radiation so as to transmit the stimulation pattern to the beacon.

11. The device of claim 10 , wherein:
the modulator comprises pixels that are sequentially modulated so as to scan the output electromagnetic radiation representing different points in the stimulation pattern across retinal tissue within a duration of persistence of vision so that a subject perceives the stimulation pattern, wherein the beacon is on the retinal tissue, and/or
the computer uses an optical memory effect to determine the output wavefronts for neighboring points in the stimulation pattern by adding different phase gradients so as to reduce a number of the wavefronts measured by the wavefront sensor.

12. The device of claim 2 , wherein the modulating forms the output electromagnetic radiation comprising a phase conjugate of the scattered electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity.

13. The device of claim 1 , wherein:
the ocular tissue comprises lens tissue comprising cataractous tissue or other light scattering media intersecting with an optical axis of an eye.

14. The device of claim 13 , wherein the beacon is positioned on the ocular tissue comprising retinal tissue.

15. The device of claim 1 , wherein the beacon is a non-invasive guide star and any heating of the tissue is negligible.

16. A method of irradiating ocular tissue, comprising:
providing a beacon behind an opacity in ocular tissue so as to scatter electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity and form scattered electromagnetic radiation, wherein the beacon comprises a focus of ultrasound;
recording a recording of the scattered electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity;
modulating a wavefront of output electromagnetic radiation so as to form the output electromagnetic radiation having a field determined from the recording of the scattered electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity; and
patterning the output electromagnetic radiation, wherein the output electromagnetic radiation is transmitted and focused through the opacity to the beacon on tissue, forming a patterned image on the tissue.

17. The method of claim 16 , further comprising:
transmitting the ultrasound so as to form the beacon comprising the focus of the ultrasound, wherein the ultrasound comprises an ultrasound frequency and the ultrasound frequency shifts the electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity so as to form the scattered electromagnetic radiation comprising frequency shifted electromagnetic radiation.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the modulating forms the output electromagnetic radiation comprising a phase conjugate of the scattered electromagnetic radiation transmitted through the opacity.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein:
the modulating comprises the patterning forming the output electromagnetic radiation comprising the patterned image comprising a stimulating pattern useful for stimulating nerves in retinal tissue, and
the beacon is on the tissue comprising the retinal tissue.

20. A device for irradiating ocular tissue, comprising:
a source of electromagnetic radiation capable of transmitting electromagneti

Assignees

• California Inst Of Techn
• Univ California

Inventors

• Wang Lihong
• Brodie Frank L
• Shen Yuecheng
• Liu Yan
• Ruan Haowen

Classifications

• A61F9/00814 Primary

  Laser features or special beam parameters therefor · CPC title

• A61F2009/00863

  Retina · CPC title

• A61F9/00817

  Beam shaping with masks · CPC title

• A61F2009/00844

  Feedback systems · CPC title

• A61F2009/00887

  Cataract · CPC title