Patents Examined by Jessica T Stultz
  • Patent number: 7682023
    Abstract: A method of determining and/or tracking the position of an eye, includes utilizing at least two wavelength components of a plural wavelength zone that traverses the limbus of the eye to obtain a profile of whiteness and/or redness across the zone, and identifying from the profile at least one predetermined reference position that indicates the position of the eye. Apparatus for carrying out the method is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 23, 2010
    Assignee: Customvis PLC
    Inventor: Paul Van Saarloos
  • Patent number: 7677728
    Abstract: A subject is placed in a more natural state or is encouraged to blink at specified intervals to obtain a measurement result under a fixed condition, and the judgment of the degree of dry eye is facilitated. A measurement part obtains, based on a reflected light flux from a subject eye, optical characteristic data of a two-dimensional vector form representing the time course of each optical characteristic of the subject eye in an blink interval from a certain blink to a next blink with respect to the first to the nth blink intervals. An analysis part one-dimensionally arranges each of the optical characteristic data with respect to the first to the nth blink intervals measured by the measurement part, and arranges the one-dimensional arrangement of the optical characteristic in a p-th blink interval at a p column to create a two-dimensional array, and performs a principal component analysis processing on the two-dimensional array.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 16, 2010
    Assignee: Kabuhsiki Kaisha Topcon
    Inventors: Yoko Hirohara, Toshifumi Mihashi
  • Patent number: 7677726
    Abstract: To ensure optical performance within a permissible range, making outward appearance excellent, and making binocular vision comfortable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 16, 2010
    Assignee: Hoya Corporation
    Inventor: Takatsugu Watanabe
  • Patent number: 7677725
    Abstract: A method of designing an aspheric ophthalmic lens with both refractive and diffractive powers that is capable of reducing chromatic aberration and at least one monochromatic aberration of an eye comprises combining aspherical refractive and diffractive surfaces, selecting an appropriate eye model, establishing a design lens having at least one aspheric surface with a capacity to reduce monochromatic aberration in said eye model, establishing a diffractive lens element that corrects for chromatic aberration of the model eye; and adjusting the lens surface design in order to obtain a suitably high polychromatic image quality in a form that is weighted to comply with a spectral merit function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 5, 2005
    Date of Patent: March 16, 2010
    Assignee: AMO Groningen B.V.
    Inventors: Patricia Piers, Henk Weeber
  • Patent number: 7679828
    Abstract: A collimating sheet, for use with a backlit display and the like, that includes a substrate, a plurality of microlenses on the output side of the substrate, a specularly reflective layer on the side of the substrate opposite the microlenses, and a plurality of apertures in the reflective layer in direct correspondence to the microlenses of the lens array. The specularly reflective layer can be relatively thinner than a diffuse reflective layer, which allows light to pass through the more readily. One or more layers of dielectric can be placed on top of one or more reflective material layers to further improves overall reflectivity. Apertures are preferably made in the light-absorptive and reflective layers with a laser ablation process wherein laser light illuminates the output side of the film. The laser light is brought to a focus by the lenslets of the lens array onto the light-absorptive layer, which then ablates a hole or aperture into the light-absorptive and reflective layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 16, 2010
    Assignee: Reflexite Corporation
    Inventor: James F. Munro
  • Patent number: 7675668
    Abstract: A 3D image display device with a 2D or 3D image mode switching barrier is provided. The image display device includes an image panel, color change regions spaced apart from each other in a repetitive pattern and selectively change into light transmission regions or light blockage regions, and a barrier having the color change regions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 19, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 9, 2010
    Assignee: LG. Display Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Eun Jung Lim
  • Patent number: 7673990
    Abstract: An individual eyeglass lens in which the vertical distance from the near reference point to the far distance point amounts to max. 18 millimeters, the progressive length is max. 14 millimeters, the main progressive length is max. 10 millimeters and the increase in refractive index, starting from the effect of the eyeglass lens at the far reference point up to a point 2 millimeters below the centering point amounts to less than 10% of the addition. The progressive length corresponds essentially to the vertical distance between the far reference point and a point essentially on the main line at which, starting from the far reference point, the value of the effect of the eyeglass lens corresponding the first time essentially to the near value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 9, 2010
    Assignee: Rodenstock GmbH
    Inventors: Gregor Esser, Helmut Altheimer, Norbert Awrath, Jochen Brosig, Walter Haimerl, Winfried Nikolaus, Kerstin Schmid, Edda Wehner, Andrea Welk, Martin Zimmermann
  • Patent number: 7675667
    Abstract: Devices including EC monomers polymerized using chronoamperometry to deposit a very thin homogeneous layer followed by cyclic voltammetry to increase the density of the EC polymer film. Another aspect of the present invention is directed to specific web like configurations for a grid of conductive material deposited onto a transparent substrate. The web like configuration is based either on concentric circles, or on concentric ellipses. Yet another aspect of the present invention is directed to an imaging system including a digital window that is disposed between a prism and a patterned analytic layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2008
    Date of Patent: March 9, 2010
    Assignee: University of Washington
    Inventors: Chunye Xu, Lu Liu, Minoru Taya
  • Patent number: 7670015
    Abstract: In an optical switch controller, in order that residual vibration at movement control of a movable body such as a tilt mirror can be reduced and controlled with high accuracy, a processing unit outputs a driving signal for controlling the angle of the tilt mirror, the driving signal is D/A converted by a D/A converter and then is changed to a high-voltage signal by a high-voltage amplifier to be supplied to the tilt mirror, the electrostatic capacity of the tilt mirror changes corresponding to angle change of the tilt mirror, a mirror-angle detecting unit detects the electrostatic capacity and feeds back it as a correction value to a processing unit, and the processing unit corrects the driving signal using a correction value obtained when the angle of the tilt mirror is actually changed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2010
    Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
    Inventors: Satoshi Ide, Kazuyuki Mori, Kensuke Takahashi, Toru Matsuyama
  • Patent number: 7672033
    Abstract: In a light modulating apparatus of an external modulating type which is used in an optical communication system, there are provided an LN modulator, a light branching circuit, a photoelectric converter, a bias control circuit, a driver for an LN modulator which serves to drive the LN modulator in response to an input electric signal, a capacitor for cutting off DC and low frequency components of the input electric signal, a low frequency component compensating circuit for compensating the DC and low frequency components of the input electric signal, and an adding circuit for adding an output of the bias control circuit and that of the low frequency component compensating circuit and generating a bias control signal of the LN modulator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2010
    Assignee: Yokogawa Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Toshiaki Kobayashi, Kenji Uchida, Akira Toyama, Katsuya Ikezawa, Akira Miura, Yasukazu Akasaka
  • Patent number: 7672034
    Abstract: A manufacturing method is provided for a light modulation device that improves utilization efficiency of light. After forming a first reflective layer using a metallic material such as Pt or the like, on a substrate, a light modulating film is formed using an electro-optic material in which refractive index changes in accordance with an applied electrical field. After that, planarization is carried out so that irregularities on an upper surface of the light modulating film are less than or equal to 1/100 of the wavelength of light incident on the light modulation device. A transparent electrode is then formed using ITO, ZnO, or the like, on the light modulating film, and a second reflective layer including a dielectric multilayer is formed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2010
    Assignee: Rohm Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Yoshikazu Fujimori
  • Patent number: 7670001
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for accurately imaging, assessing and measuring a patient's macular pigment. A multiband filter is employed in combination with a color digital fundus camera to provide a method that operates with a single imaging exposure. The multiband filter has bandpass regions within spectral ranges of the red, green and blue detectors of the CCD array employed within the fundus camera, the bandpass regions being sufficiently sharply defined so as to avoid regions where the CCD detector responses spectrally overlap. This provides three discrete channels of grayscale data corresponding to the bandpass regions of the multiband filter, which can be used to calculate macular pigment topographically. Methods are also disclosed for calculating the optical density of the macular pigment and advantageously displaying the resulting data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 2, 2010
    Inventor: Richard Spaide
  • Patent number: 7667905
    Abstract: A device is shown having at least two movable lens units, wherein each of the at least two movable lens units has at least one lens, wherein the at least two movable lens units are movable into a first state wherein the at least two movable lens units are arranged in parallel to each other, and wherein the at least two movable lens units are movable into a second state wherein the at least two movable lens units are arranged on top of each other for positioning the lenses of the at least two movable lens units in an optical axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2010
    Assignee: Nokia Corporation
    Inventor: Marko Eromäki
  • Patent number: 7667903
    Abstract: A magnifying glass having a frame with gripping means, the frame forming the periphery of a magnifying glass formed of a clear plastic polycarbonate, the frame having an attachment member for attachment of a biased, retractable, flexible cord, which flexible, retractable cord is biasly secured to and stored within a mount member, the mount member affixable to any flat surface, the mount member having a securing member for securing the magnifying glass to the mount when not in use, the magnifying glass selectively removable from the mount member and transportable for a distance equal to the length of the flexible, retractable cord stored in the mount member, the return of the magnifying glass to the mount member, causing slack in the flexible, retractable cord, such that it is rewound or retracted within the mount member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2010
    Inventor: Mary Kisko
  • Patent number: 7665846
    Abstract: A system or method of positioning an ophthalmic device relative to an eye is provided. The method first obtains a series of images of an eye. In these series of images, the distance between the ophthalmic device and the eye is varied while the region of the eye image remains substantially the same. It is possible then to process these images to determine the high frequency content associated with each image. By comparing the high frequency content associated with each image, it is possible to determine which image has the largest amount of high frequency content. The high frequency content is maximized when the image is the sharpest. An optimally focused image will have the largest amount of high frequency content. By examining the high frequency content associate with the series of images is impossible to adjust the relative position and distance between the eye and the ophthalmic device to the distance associated with the image having the largest amount of high frequency content (i.e., optimally focused).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2006
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2010
    Assignee: Alcon Refractivehorizons, Inc.
    Inventors: John A. Campin, John J. Bowes
  • Patent number: 7663824
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a voice coil module (VCM), and more particularly, to a VCM used for lens fixation and displacement measurement in order to prevent and control power consumption. Accordingly, in the VCM, power is not additionally consumed in order to maintain a specific position of the lens in a state that a focus of the lens is adjusted. Further, the lens is not moved and an optical axis is not distorted when a vibration occurs while an image is captured. Furthermore, the lens can be accurately controlled by measuring the present position of the lens.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 9, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2010
    Assignee: Siliconfile Technologies Inc.
    Inventor: Byoung Su Lee
  • Patent number: 7663799
    Abstract: A movable particle display (such as an electrophoretic display) in which a plurality of closed spaces are two-dimensionally disposed along a surface of the substrate, a plurality of particles contained in each of the closed spaces, and a reflection surface for reflecting light which enters each of the closed particles are moved inside a closed space, between a position at which they cover a reflecting surface and a position at which they are collected to expose the reflecting surface. At least a part of the reflecting surface diffusely reflects incident light with an intensity distribution having directional properties (i.e. non-isotropically).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2004
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2010
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hiroshi Matsuda, Taro Endo, Kohei Nagayama, Tsutomu Ikeda, Etsuro Kishi
  • Patent number: 7663818
    Abstract: By maintaining a relative position of coils of a movable unit with respect to fixed magnets in a normal state to stabilize a relative position of the movable unit with respect to the whole of a lens drive assembly, the lens drive assembly is provided as an assembly capable of adjusting the focus of a lens in a satisfactory manner. In a voice coil type lens drive assembly for adjusting the focus of a lens, a spring 6, a yoke 6 with magnets 5 and a movable unit M1 attached thereto, and electrically conductive springs 2, are accommodated in this order on a base 1 and a connecting portion of a cover frame 8 and that of the base 1 are connected together to unite the two components. At the same time, cut-in portions 6d formed in end portions of the yoke 6, which is a metallic yoke, are fitted on projections 1e of the base 1 and both are joined together with connections to the cover frame 8 as guide.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 16, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2010
    Inventor: Huang Tien Chung
  • Patent number: 7661819
    Abstract: A method includes the following steps: a step of automatically measuring centering characteristics of the lens; a step of blocking the lens on a cutting-out element; a step of cutting out the lens; and a plurality of steps of acquiring axial coordinates of acquired points of a face of the lens, including a first acquisition of axial coordinates of the lens prior to blocking the lens on the cutting-out element, and a second step of acquisition by feeling that is subsequent to the blocking step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2007
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2010
    Assignee: Essilor International (Compagnie Generale d'Optique)
    Inventor: Gael Mazoyer
  • Patent number: 7660055
    Abstract: An optical element including a first groove extending from first end of the outer peripheral face in an optical axis direction towards second end, and a second groove connected to the first groove and extending from second end of the outer peripheral face in the optical axis direction towards first end; and a position-adjusting concave part which is between the first and second grooves and adjusts positions by adjusting member in the optical axis direction, a revolving direction about the optical axis, a width direction of first and second grooves, which is orthogonal to the optical axis, and in a synthesized direction that is a combination of at least two of those directions, wherein the optical element is molded by using only a first molding die for molding a part on the first groove side and a second molding die for molding a part on the second groove side.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 2008
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2010
    Assignee: Enplas Corporation
    Inventor: Hisayoshi Hayashi