Vascular entoptoscope

Claim 1

An apparatus for entoptically perceiving and mapping the foveal area vasculature of the retina of a human subject's eye under examination, the apparatus comprising: (a) a means to establish and maintain translational and rotational alignment of said eye with said apparatus; (b) a main light source which is imaged in or near the eye's entrance pupil plane and a means of moving said main light source or said image along a path in space, said main light source being of variable intensity and shape; (c) a means of directing said main light image into said eye's entrance pupil, resulting in an angle of illumination of said eye's retina changing with time; (d) a means to image an aperture at optical infinity or other plane of interest to correct for any refractive error as an optical field stop for said apparatus, said aperture being of variable size and shape; (e) a fixation light source and a means to form a fixation light image on the retina of said eye, said fixation light source being of variable intensity; (f) a tracking light source and a means to form an image of tracking light from said source on the retina of the eye, said tracking light source being of variable intensity; (g) a means of moving said tracking light retinal image with respect to said fixation light retinal image; (h) a means of transducing movement of said tracking light retinal image to yield coordinates of its present location on said eye's retina with respect to said fixation light retinal image; (i) a means of compiling or displaying said coordinates of said tracking light retinal image movement, said compilation or display comprising a map of said tracking light retinal image positions with respect to said fixation light retinal image; and (j) a means to detect and indicate magnitude and direction of translation of said eye with respect to said apparatus.

Claim 2

An apparatus for entoptically perceiving and mapping the foveal area vasculature of the retina of a human subject's eye under examination, the apparatus comprising: (a) a means to establish and maintain translational and rotational alignment of said eye with said apparatus; (b) a main light source which is imaged in or near the eye's entrance pupil plane and a means of moving said main light source or said image along a path in space, said main light source being of variable intensity and shape; (c) a means of directing said main light image into said eye's entrance pupil, resulting in an angle of illumination of said eye's retina changing with time; (d) a means to image an aperture at optical infinity or other plane of interest to correct for any refractive error as an optical field stop for said apparatus, said aperture being of variable size and shape; (e) a fixation light source and a means to form a fixation light image on the retina of said eye, said fixation light source being of variable intensity; (f) a tracking light source and a means to form an image of tracking light from said source on the retina of the eye, said tracking light source being of variable intensity; (g) a means of moving said tracking light retinal image with respect to said fixation light retinal image; (h) a means of transducing movement of said tracking light retinal image to yield coordinates of its present location on said eye's retina with respect to said fixation light retinal image; (i) a means of compiling or displaying said coordinates of said tracking light retinal image movement, said compilation or display comprising a map of said tracking light retinal image positions with respect to said fixation light retinal image; and (j) a means to detect and indicate magnitude and direction of translation of said eye with respect to said apparatus.

Claim 26

A method for entoptically perceiving and mapping the foveal area vasculature in the retina of the eye of a human subject under examination with respect to the retinal point of fixation of said eye, the method comprising: (a) optically directing a main light source image within said eye's entrance pupil to illuminate a portion of said eye's retina defined by a field stop, said image being of variable intensity; (b) causing said main light source image to move along a main light path in space, said main light path in space resulting in said eye's angle of retinal illumination changing with time; (c) optically directing a fixation light source on said eye's retina and forming thereon a fixation light retinal image, said fixation light source image being of variable intensity; (d) having said subject visually fixate on said fixation light source image; (e) having said subject report descriptions of entoptically perceived vascular features of interest near the foveal area of said eye; (f) optically directing a tracking light source on said eye's retina and forming thereon a tracking light retinal image, said tracking light source image being variable in intensity and movable over said eye's retinal surface with respect to said fixation retinal image through a tracking light controller operated by said subject; (g) causing said fixation light, and tracking light source images to be viewed by said eye through an optical field stop aperture illuminated by the main light, said aperture being imaged at infinity or other plane of interest; (h) scaling outputs of said tracking light controller to correspond to distances and angles measured on said eye's retinal surface; (i) having said subject move said tracking light retinal image along or around said entoptically perceived vascular features of interest while said subject maintains constant translational and rotational alignment of said eye with said fixation light retinal image; (j) using said scaled outputs of said tracking light controller to create position reports of said entoptically perceived vascular features of interest on said eye's retina; (k) combining said position reports with said descriptions of said entoptically perceived vascular features of interest to create a retinal vascular map; (1) having said subject adjust said intensities of said main, fixation and tracking light sources for best entoptic visualization; (m) having said subject adjust complete rotation frequency and thus velocity of the main light source image; (n) observing said eye to detect misalignment with said fixation light retinal image due to any combination of translation or rotation of said eye; (o) determining corrections required to said position reports resulting from said misalignment of said eye with respect to said fixation light retinal image; and (p) applying said corrections to said position reports.

Claim 27

A method for entoptically perceiving and mapping the foveal area vasculature in the retina of the eye of a human subject under examination with respect to the retinal point of fixation of said eye, the method comprising: (a) optically directing a main light source image within said eye's entrance pupil to illuminate a portion of said eye's retina defined by a field stop, said image being of variable intensity; (b) causing said main light source image to move along a main light path in space, said main light path in space resulting in said eye's angle of retinal illumination changing with time; (c) optically directing a fixation light source on said eye's retina and forming thereon a fixation light retinal image, said fixation light source image being of variable intensity; (d) having said subject visually fixate on said fixation light source image; (e) having said subject report descriptions of entoptically perceived vascular features of interest near the foveal area of said eye; (f) optically directing a tracking light source on said eye's retina and forming thereon a tracking light retinal image, said tracking light source image being variable in intensity and movable over said eye's retinal surface with respect to said fixation retinal image through a tracking light controller operated by said subject; (g) causing said fixation light, and tracking light source images to be viewed by said eye through an optical field stop aperture illuminated by the main light, said aperture being imaged at infinity or other plane of interest; (h) scaling outputs of said tracking light controller to correspond to distances and angles measured on said eye's retinal surface; (i) having said subject move said tracking light retinal image along or around said entoptically perceived vascular features of interest while said subject maintains constant translational and rotational alignment of said eye with said fixation light retinal image; (j) using said scaled outputs of said tracking light controller to create position reports of said entoptically perceived vascular features of interest on said eye's retina; (k) combining said position reports with said descriptions of said entoptically perceived vascular features of interest to create a retinal vascular map; (1) having said subject adjust said intensities of said main, fixation and tracking light sources for best entoptic visualization; (m) having said subject adjust complete rotation frequency and thus velocity of the main light source image; (n) observing said eye to detect misalignment with said fixation light retinal image due to any combination of translation or rotation of said eye; (o) determining corrections required to said position reports resulting from said misalignment of said eye with respect to said fixation light retinal image; and (p) applying said corrections to said position reports.

Claim 45

An apparatus for entoptically perceiving and mapping the white blood cell circulation and foveal area vasculature in the retina of a the human subject's eye under examination, the apparatus comprising: (a) a means to establish and maintain translational alignment of said eye with said apparatus; (b) a main light source which is imaged in or near the eye's entrance pupil, and a means of moving said main light source or its image along a main light path in space, said main light source being of variable intensity; (c) a means of optically directing said main light image into said eye's entrance pupil, resulting in said eye's angle of retinal illumination changing with time; (d) a means to image an aperture at optical infinity or other plane of interest to correct for any refractive error as an optical field stop for said apparatus, said aperture being of variable size; (e) a fixation light source and a means to form a fixation light image on the retina of said eye, said fixation light source being of variable intensity; (f) a tracking light source and a means to form a tracking light image on the retina of said eye, said tracking light source being of variable intensity; (g) a means of moving said tracking light retinal image with respect to said fixation light retinal image; (h) a means of transducing movement of said tracking light retinal image with respect to said fixation light retinal image to yield coordinates of its location on said retina with respect to location of said fixation light retinal image; (i) a means of compiling or displaying said coordinates of tracking light image movement, said compilation or display comprising a map of said tracking light retinal image locations with respect to location of said fixation light retinal image; (j) a means to detect and indicate magnitude and direction of translation of said eye with respect to said apparatus; (k) a blue-field light source and a means to illuminate said eye's retina with said blue-field light source, said blue-field light source being of variable intensity; (l) a speed-comparator light source casting an image and a means to form a retinal image of said speed-comparator light on said eye's retina, said speed-comparator light source being of variable intensity and said speed-comparator light source retinal image being of a size about equal to said entoptically perceived white blood cells; (m) a means of causing said speed-comparator retinal image to move along a path on said eye's retina at a fixed velocity, said path and velocity being variable; and (n) a means of rotating and translating said speed comparator light retinal image on said eye's retina.

Claim 46

An apparatus for entoptically perceiving and mapping the white blood cell circulation and foveal area vasculature in the retina of a the human subject's eye under examination, the apparatus comprising: (a) a means to establish and maintain translational alignment of said eye with said apparatus; (b) a main light source which is imaged in or near the eye's entrance pupil, and a means of moving said main light source or its image along a main light path in space, said main light source being of variable intensity; (c) a means of optically directing said main light image into said eye's entrance pupil, resulting in said eye's angle of retinal illumination changing with time; (d) a means to image an aperture at optical infinity or other plane of interest to correct for any refractive error as an optical field stop for said apparatus, said aperture being of variable size; (e) a fixation light source and a means to form a fixation light image on the retina of said eye, said fixation light source being of variable intensity; (f) a tracking light source and a means to form a tracking light image on the retina of said eye, said tracking light source being of variable intensity; (g) a means of moving said tracking light retinal image with respect to said fixation light retinal image; (h) a means of transducing movement of said tracking light retinal image with respect to said fixation light retinal image to yield coordinates of its location on said retina with respect to location of said fixation light retinal image; (i) a means of compiling or displaying said coordinates of tracking light image movement, said compilation or display comprising a map of said tracking light retinal image locations with respect to location of said fixation light retinal image; (j) a means to detect and indicate magnitude and direction of translation of said eye with respect to said apparatus; (k) a blue-field light source and a means to illuminate said eye's retina with said blue-field light source, said blue-field light source being of variable intensity; (l) a speed-comparator light source casting an image and a means to form a retinal image of said speed-comparator light on said eye's retina, said speed-comparator light source being of variable intensity and said speed-comparator light source retinal image being of a size about equal to said entoptically perceived white blood cells; (m) a means of causing said speed-comparator retinal image to move along a path on said eye's retina at a fixed velocity, said path and velocity being variable; and (n) a means of rotating and translating said speed comparator light retinal image on said eye's retina.

Claim 77

A method for entoptically perceiving and mapping the white blood cell circulation and foveal area vasculature in the retina of the eye of a human subject under examination with respect to the retinal point of fixation of said eye, the method comprising: (a) optically directing an image of a main light source within or near said eye's entrance pupil so as to illuminate a portion of said eye's retina defined by a field stop, said main light source image being of variable intensity; (b) causing said main light image to move along a main light path in space, said path resulting in said eye's retinal illumination angle changing with time; (c) optically directing a fixation light source on said retina, resulting in the formation of a fixation light retinal image, said fixation light source being of variable intensity; (d) having said subject visually fixate on said fixation light retinal image; (e) having said subject provide descriptions of entoptically perceived vascular features of interest near said eye's foveal area; (f) optically directing a tracking light source on said eye's retina, resulting in the formation of a tracking light retinal image, said tracking light retinal image being movable over said retinal surface with respect to said fixation light retinal image through a tracking light image controller operated by said subject; (g) computing scaled outputs of said tracking light image controller to correspond to distances and angles measured on said retinal surface; (h) having said subject move said tracking light retinal image along or around said entoptically perceived vascular features of interest while said subject maintains constant translational and rotational alignment of said eye with said fixation light retinal image; (i) using said scaled outputs of said tracking light retinal image controller to create position reports of said entoptically perceived vascular features of interest on said retina; (j) combining said position reports with said descriptions of said subject's entoptically perceived vascular features of interest to create a retinal map; (k) observing said eye to detect misalignment with the instrumentation or said fixation light retinal image due to any combination of translation or rotation of said eye with respect to said fixation light retinal image; (1) determining corrections required to said position reports resulting from said misalignment of said eye; (m) applying said corrections to said position reports; (n) illuminating said eye's retina in alternation with said main light source or constantly with a blue-field light source, said blue-field light source being of variable intensity and, if alternating, having a duty cycle of less than 100%; (o) having said subject report entoptic perception of said white blood cell circulation; (p) causing said fixation light and tracking light images to be viewed by said eye through an optical field stop aperture, said aperture being imaged at infinity or other plane of interest; and (q) having said subject adjust one or both of intensity and duty cycle of said light sources for best entoptic perception;

Claim 78

A method for entoptically perceiving and mapping the white blood cell circulation and foveal area vasculature in the retina of the eye of a human subject under examination with respect to the retinal point of fixation of said eye, the method comprising: (a) optically directing an image of a main light source within or near said eye's entrance pupil so as to illuminate a portion of said eye's retina defined by a field stop, said main light source image being of variable intensity; (b) causing said main light image to move along a main light path in space, said path resulting in said eye's retinal illumination angle changing with time; (c) optically directing a fixation light source on said retina, resulting in the formation of a fixation light retinal image, said fixation light source being of variable intensity; (d) having said subject visually fixate on said fixation light retinal image; (e) having said subject provide descriptions of entoptically perceived vascular features of interest near said eye's foveal area; (f) optically directing a tracking light source on said eye's retina, resulting in the formation of a tracking light retinal image, said tracking light retinal image being movable over said retinal surface with respect to said fixation light retinal image through a tracking light image controller operated by said subject; (g) computing scaled outputs of said tracking light image controller to correspond to distances and angles measured on said retinal surface; (h) having said subject move said tracking light retinal image along or around said entoptically perceived vascular features of interest while said subject maintains constant translational and rotational alignment of said eye with said fixation light retinal image; (i) using said scaled outputs of said tracking light retinal image controller to create position reports of said entoptically perceived vascular features of interest on said retina; (j) combining said position reports with said descriptions of said subject's entoptically perceived vascular features of interest to create a retinal map; (k) observing said eye to detect misalignment with the instrumentation or said fixation light retinal image due to any combination of translation or rotation of said eye with respect to said fixation light retinal image; (1) determining corrections required to said position reports resulting from said misalignment of said eye; (m) applying said corrections to said position reports; (n) illuminating said eye's retina in alternation with said main light source or constantly with a blue-field light source, said blue-field light source being of variable intensity and, if alternating, having a duty cycle of less than 100%; (o) having said subject report entoptic perception of said white blood cell circulation; (p) causing said fixation light and tracking light images to be viewed by said eye through an optical field stop aperture, said aperture being imaged at infinity or other plane of interest; and (q) having said subject adjust one or both of intensity and duty cycle of said light sources for best entoptic perception;