Patents by Inventor John L. Wyatt
John L. Wyatt has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 6976998Abstract: An ocular device that can more safely and effectively perform all functions needed of a retinal prosthesis with electronic components that are placed outside the wall of an eye, are powered wirelessly provided by an external power source, and which provide a patient with a view determined by natural motion of the eye and triggered by natural incident light converging at the retina. In one aspect, the invention is an externally powered, light-activated, sub-retinal prosthesis in which natural light entering the eye conveys visual details to the sub-retinal prosthesis, while wireless radiofrequency transmission provides the power needed to stimulate the retina, which would be insufficient if it were obtained from the intensity of incoming light alone.Type: GrantFiled: January 17, 2003Date of Patent: December 20, 2005Assignees: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Eye & Ear InfirmaryInventors: Joseph F. Rizzo, John L. Wyatt, Jr., Luke Theogarajan
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Publication number: 20030158588Abstract: An ocular device that can more safely and effectively perform all functions needed of a retinal prosthesis with electronic components that are placed outside the wall of an eye, are powered wirelessly provided by an external power source, and which provide a patient with a view determined by natural motion of the eye and triggered by natural incident light converging at the retina. In one aspect, the invention is an externally powered, light-activated, sub-retinal prosthesis in which natural light entering the eye conveys visual details to the sub-retinal prosthesis, while wireless radiofrequency transmission provides the power needed to stimulate the retina, which would be insufficient if it were obtained from the intensity of incoming light alone.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 17, 2003Publication date: August 21, 2003Inventors: Joseph F. Rizzo, John L. Wyatt, Luke Theogarajan
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Patent number: 6120538Abstract: Dynamically functional intra-ocular prosthesis. The prosthesis includes an implantable intra-ocular lens and microelectronic components mounted on the lens. One embodiment is a variable focal length implantable intra-ocular lens system for adjusting the focal length of the implantable lens. In one embodiment, a micromotor changes the tension in a band encircling the peripheral portion of the deformable lens changing its shape to vary its focal length. Another embodiment is an artificial intra-ocular lens which serves as a holding substrate for microelectronic components that form part of a prosthesis to stimulate the neural elements of the eye to restore vision to patients who are blind from retinal disease.Type: GrantFiled: May 7, 1998Date of Patent: September 19, 2000Assignee: Massachusetts Eye and Ear InfirmaryInventors: Joseph Rizzo, III, John L. Wyatt, Jr.
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Patent number: 6045660Abstract: Apparatus for use in the rectification of liquid mixtures (separation of liquid mixtures into their constituents) and other processes requiring equilibration of liquid and gaseous phases in which mechanical energy is used to create and repeatedly regenerate free flying liquid structures that facilitate the intimate interaction and equilibration of said phases beyond standard practice and thereby allow smaller, more compact, more efficient, and more accessible apparatus and make practical lower operating temperatures and the use of inert carrier gases and otherwise increase the engineering options available to designers of rectification equipment and other equipment requiring liquid/vapor equilibration.Type: GrantFiled: February 21, 1997Date of Patent: April 4, 2000Inventors: Kern Savage, Richard C. Wingerson, William Lee Woodie, John L. Wyatt, deceased, by Diana Jacobs, legal representative, by Melody Balport, legal representative, by Mark Wyatt, legal representative
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Patent number: 5575813Abstract: A low-pressure neural contact structure for contact with neural tissue, for example, neural tissue of the retina within which are ganglion cells to be electrically stimulated. The contact structure comprises a first portion for attachment to a first bodily location, such as the inner surface of the retina, and a second portion interconnected with the first portion via an interconnection and being held in contact with the neural tissue. The interconnection exhibits a weak restoring force which in conjunction with the geometry of said second portion provides a preselected desired pressure of contact against the neural tissue. As adapted for the retina, the interconnection exhibits a weak restoring force developed in response to curvature of the interconnection along the inner radius of the retina.Type: GrantFiled: April 28, 1995Date of Patent: November 19, 1996Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyInventors: David J. Edell, Joseph Rizzo, III, John L. Wyatt, Jr.
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Patent number: 5476494Abstract: A low-pressure neural contact structure for contact with neural tissue, for example, neural tissue of the retina within which are ganglion cells to be electrically stimulated. The contact structure comprises a first portion for attachment to a first bodily location, such as the inner surface of the retina, and a second portion interconnected with the first portion via an interconnection and being held in contact with the neural tissue. The interconnection exhibits a weak restoring force which in conjunction with the geometry of said second portion provides a preselected desired pressure of contact against the neural tissue. As adapted for the retina, the interconnection exhibits a weak restoring force developed in response to curvature of the interconnection along the inner radius of the retina.Type: GrantFiled: April 28, 1994Date of Patent: December 19, 1995Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyInventors: David J. Edell, Joseph Rizzo, III, John L. Wyatt, Jr.
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Patent number: 5411540Abstract: The invention provides a method for preferentially stimulating neural somas over neural axons located around the somas but not integral with the somas. In the invention, a positive electrical pulse is applied to a region of neural tissue consisting of one or more neural somas to be stimulated and neural axons, and due to the physiology of the somas, they are preferentially stimulated by the electrical pulse over the neural axons not integral with the somas to be stimulated. The preferential soma stimulation provided by the invention achieves the advantage of locally focusing external stimulation such that it may be directed to particular soma locations for indicating location-dependent sensory information. Thus the pulse scheme of the invention may be employed in prosthetic applications directed to, for example, the retinal ganglia neural tissue.Type: GrantFiled: June 3, 1993Date of Patent: May 2, 1995Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyInventors: David J. Edell, John L. Wyatt, Jr., Joseph Rizzo, III
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Patent number: 5223754Abstract: A simple transistor circuit which acts as a linear resistor for small applied voltages, but becomes extremely resistive for large applied voltages is disclosed. Two-dimensional resistive grids comprising these resistive fuses can be employed to smooth and segment discretized images in machine vision. Existing and previously proposed VLSI implementations of resistive fuses have required at least thirty-three transistors. The resistive fuse circuit of the present invention uses only four transistors in its simplest embodiment, thus making it possible to design much denser vision arrays.Type: GrantFiled: December 14, 1990Date of Patent: June 29, 1993Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyInventors: Steve Decker, John L. Wyatt, Jr., Hae-Seung Lee
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Patent number: 3959653Abstract: A radiation measuring instrument including a fast charge digitizer and a digital data acquisition system has been developed. The fast charge digitizer includes a charge integrator connected to a conventional ionization chamber which generates an output current in proportion to ionizing radiation exposure rate. The charge integrator has an output connected to a comparator which is switched from a high state to a low state when the output of the integrator goes above the comparator threshold. The comparator output is connected to a bistable multivibrator consisting of two non-retriggerable one shot multivibrators connected in a feedback configuration. As long as the comparator output is in the low state, the bistable multivibrator generates a train of pluses which are fed back through an analog switch and a high megohm resistance to the input of the integrator.Type: GrantFiled: April 14, 1975Date of Patent: May 25, 1976Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Department of Health, Education and WelfareInventors: Thomas R. Lee, Roger H. Schneider, John L. Wyatt