Abstract: A wavefront sensor includes an afocal relay stage for magnifying an incoming wavefront reflected from a source plane. In an exemplary application, a retina of an eye reflects an impinging light beam thereon to form a series of wavefronts. A lenslet array is positioned at a reference plane of the afocal relay stage to receive the magnified wavefront. Further downstream is positioned a means for imaging and demagnifying a focal plane image of the lenslet array at a final image plane. This demagnified image then serves as input to an analyzer, such as a charge-coupled-device (CCD) camera.

Abstract: An optical correction system for correcting visual defects of an eye includes a wavefront analyzer responsive to a wavefront emanating from an eye for determining an optical path difference between a reference wave and the wavefront. A converter provides an optical correction based on the path difference and on a radially dependent ablation efficiency. The efficiency correction uses a compensating polynomial of the form A+B&rgr;+C&rgr;2+D&rgr;3+ . . . +X&rgr;n, where &rgr; is a normalized radius measured from a central portion of the cornea, reaching a value of 1 at an outer edge of the optical correction zone. A laser beam is directed to the cornea that has power sufficient for ablating corneal material. The optical correction is achieved by the removal of a selected amount of the corneal material to create a desired corneal shape change based on the optical correction.

Abstract: A system and method for converting measured wavefront data into an ablation profile for correcting visual defects includes providing measured wavefront data on an aberrated eye by a method such as known in the art. The measured wavefront data are correlated with accumulated data on previously treated eyes. Next an adjustment is applied to the measured wavefront data based upon the correlating step. This adjustment is used to form adjusted wavefront data for input to a wavefront data correction algorithm to calculate an ablation profile therefrom. The wavefront data correction algorithm may be modeled as, for example, Zernike polynomials with adjusted coefficients.

Abstract: An automated focusing method for a wavefront sensor that iteratively determines the best optics setting for the wavefront sensor by making objective measurements of the patient's focus without the need for subjective information from the patient.

Abstract: An optical correction system for correcting visual defects of an eye includes a wavefront analyzer responsive to a wavefront emanating from an eye for determining an optical path difference between a reference wave and the wavefront. A converter provides an optical correction based on the path difference and on a radially dependent ablation efficiency. The efficiency correction uses a compensating polynomial of the form A+B&rgr;+C&rgr;2+D&rgr;3+. . . +X&rgr;n, where &rgr; is a normalized radius measured from a central portion of the cornea, reaching a value of 1 at an outer edge of the optical correction zone. A laser beam is directed to the cornea that has power sufficient for ablating corneal material. The optical correction is achieved by the removal of a selected amount of the corneal material to create a desired corneal shape change based on the optical correction.

Abstract: A wavefront sensor includes an afocal relay stage for magnifying an incoming wavefront reflected from a source plane. In an exemplary application, a retina of an eye reflects an impinging light beam thereon to form a series of wavefronts. A lenslet array is positioned at a reference plane of the afocal relay stage to receive the magnified wavefront. Further downstream is positioned a means for imaging and demagnifying a focal plane image of the lenslet array at a final image plane. This demagnified image then serves as input to an analyzer, such as a charge-coupled-device (CCD) camera.