Fourier region OCT device for optretinography

Abstract

To provide a Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) apparatus for optoretinography.SOLUTION: A Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) apparatus 100 for acquiring optoretinography data comprises: a fixation target 110 which fixes a gaze direction 161 of an eye 160; an optical system 120 which applies an optical stimulus which is confined to a portion of a retina of the eye whose location is controllable; an OCT imaging system 130 which acquires OCT data from the retina; and a controller 140. The controller is configured to: acquire a target location on the retina; use the target location to control the optical system, while a position of the fixation target relative to the eye remains fixed, to apply the optical stimulus to a first portion of the retina at the target location; control the OCT imaging system to acquire OCT data of a second portion of the retina which is stimulated by the applied optical stimulus during acquisition of the OCT data; and generate optoretinography (ORG) data 150 based on the acquired OCT data.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field] 【0001】 The exemplary embodiments herein relate generally to the field of optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging systems, and more specifically to Fourier region OCT imaging systems for acquiring optretinography (ORG) data showing the physiological response of a subject's retina to light stimulation. [Background technology] 【0002】 Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an imaging technique based on low-coherence interferometry and is widely used for acquiring high-resolution two-dimensional and three-dimensional images of light-scattering media such as biological tissues. 【0003】 OCT imaging systems can be classified into time-domain OCT (TD-OCT) or Fourier-domain OCT (FD-OCT) (also called frequency-domain OCT) depending on the method of depth measurement. In TD-OCT, the optical path length of the reference arm of the interferometer in the imaging system changes over time while the OCT imaging system acquires the reflectance profile of the scattering medium being imaged (referred to herein as the "object being imaged"). The reflectance profile is generally called the "depth scan" or "axial scan" (A scan). In FD-OCT, the spectral interference image resulting from the interference between the light in the reference arm of the interferometer and the light in the sample arm at each A scan position is Fourier transformed to simultaneously acquire all points in the depth direction of the A scan without changing the optical path length of the reference arm. Because all back reflections from the sample are measured simultaneously, FD-OCT allows for much faster imaging than scanning the sample arm mirror of the interferometer. Two common types of FD-OCT are spectral-domain OCT (SD-OCT) and swept source OCT (SS-OCT). In SD-OCT, a broadband light source illuminates the imaging target with many wavelengths, and all wavelengths are measured simultaneously using a spectrometer as the detector. In SS-OCT (also called time-encoded frequency-domain OCT), the light source is swept over a certain wavelength range, and the temporal output of the detector is converted into spectral interference. 【0004】 Modern FD-OCT imaging systems often possess phase stability. For example, SD-OCT imaging systems are inherently phase-stable because they use a line-scanning camera to simultaneously acquire all spectral sample points. SS-OCT imaging systems can also have phase stability by using phase stabilization techniques well known to those skilled in the art. OCT imaging systems are classified into point-scanning (also called "point detection" or "scanning point"), line-scanning, or whole-area, depending on how the imaging system acquires OCT data at its position on the object being imaged. Point-scanning OCT imaging systems acquire OCT data by scanning a focused sample beam along the surface of the object being imaged, usually along a single line (which may be straight or curved, for example, in a circle or spiral), or along a series of (usually substantially parallel) lines on the surface of the object being imaged, and acquiring an axial depth profile (A-scan) one at a time for each of several points along the line. This constructs OCT data consisting of a one-dimensional or two-dimensional array of A-scans representing the two-dimensional (i.e., B-scan) or three-dimensional (i.e., C-scan or volume scan) reflection profile of the sample. 【0005】 Linear scanning OCT imaging systems acquire OCT data by scanning a focused linear beam of light across the surface of the object being imaged. Using the reflectance measured from the object, OCT data including a two-dimensional reflectance profile of the sample (i.e., B-scan) can be generated. By scanning the focused linear beam across multiple locations on the object, OCT data including a three-dimensional reflectance profile of the sample (i.e., C-scan or volumetric scan) can be acquired. Typically, the focused linear beam is straight and scanned perpendicular to it. However, in some cases, it may be curved, and the scanning direction may be adjusted accordingly. Full-area OCT imaging systems project a light beam onto the object being imaged to acquire OT data including a three-dimensional reflectance profile of the sample (i.e., C-scan or volumetric scan). 【0006】 Optretinography (ORG) generally refers to the detection of the physiological response of the retina to light stimulation (i.e., light-induced retinal functional activity). ORG techniques include non-invasive optical imaging of this physiological response of the retina. For example, it is possible to image retinal neurons that are thought to show changes in size in response to excitation by light stimulation using an OCT imaging system. This dimensional change has been shown to be detectable by OCT imaging systems and is usually a change in the length of the outer segment of cone or rod photoreceptor cells in the retina, detected by measuring the axial depth of the internal / external segment (IS / OS) junction and the outer segment tip (COST) of cone photoreceptor cells, or by measuring the change in axial depth of the IS / OS junction and the outer segment tip (ROST) of rod photoreceptor cells, respectively. However, the detection of dimensional changes in other retinal nerve cells, such as retinal ganglion cells, has also been shown by OCT imaging systems. The ganglion cell layer / medial reticular layer (GCL / IPL) may also undergo measurable changes in thickness when stimulated. GCL and IPL produce much weaker reflections, but are still detectable, especially if steps are taken to suppress motion artifacts (see, for example, C. Pfaffle et al., "Simultaneous functional imaging of neuronal and photoreceptor layers in living human retina"; Optic Letters, Vol. 44, No. 23, pages 5671-5674 (1 December 2019)). 【0007】 Existing ORG techniques, which use OCT imaging systems to acquire ORG data showing the physiological response of retinal portions to light stimuli, typically rely on a preliminary dark adaptation period of the retina to ensure that retinal neurons are in a non-stimulated state. Subsequently, light stimuli are applied to the retina within the entire field of view of the OCT imaging system (i.e., the retinal region where the OCT imaging system can operate and acquire OCT data while the eyeball is fixed to the fixation target). After acquiring ORG data at the first location on the retina, the retina must undergo a further dark adaptation period before ORG data can be acquired at each additional location on the retina. This is because the entire retina within the field of view of the OCT imaging system is stimulated during the acquisition of ORG data at each location. 【0008】 However, since the dark adaptation period is usually several minutes (e.g., about 5 minutes) or longer, repeated dark adaptation periods significantly increase the time required to acquire ORG data from different parts of the retina. This is inconvenient for the patient and also reduces the speed at which ORG data can be acquired from the patient, limiting the speed at which the doctor can examine the patient. [Overview of the project] 【0009】 A Fourier-region optical coherence tomography (FD-OCT) apparatus is provided according to a first exemplary embodiment of this specification, configured to acquire optretinography (ORG) showing the physiological response of a subject's retina to a light stimulus. The FD-OCT apparatus comprises a fixation target, an optical system, an FD-OCT imaging system, and a controller. The fixation target is configured to fix the gaze direction of the eyeball. The optical system is operable to apply a light stimulus to the eyeball and to localize the illumination of the retina by the light stimulus to at least a portion of the retina. The optical system is also controllable to change the position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied. The FD-OCT imaging system is operable to acquire OCT data by imaging a portion of the retina of the eyeball. The controller is configured to acquire an index of the target position on the retina to which light stimulation is applied by the optical system, to control the optical system using the acquired index, to apply light stimulation to the first portion of the retina at the target position while keeping the fixed target position relative to the eyeball fixed, to control the FD-OCT imaging system to acquire OCT data of the second portion of the retina (where at least a portion of the second portion of the retina is positioned relative to the first portion so that it can be stimulated from the applied light stimulation during the acquisition of at least a portion of the OCT data), and to generate ORG data based on the acquired OCT data. 【0010】 In an exemplary embodiment, the optical system comprises a light source configured to generate light that provides a photostimulus, and one or more scanning elements configured to direct the light towards the retina, wherein a controller is configured to control one or more scanning elements using acquired indices to direct the light towards a first portion of the retina at the target position while the position of the fixation target relative to the eyeball is fixed. 【0011】 In an exemplary embodiment, the FD-OCT imaging system includes an interferometer having a sample arm and a reference arm, and a detector configured to detect interference between sample OCT light propagating along the sample arm after being scattered from the retina and reference OCT light propagating along the reference arm, wherein at least one of one or more scanning elements is further configured to direct sample OCT light to a second portion of the retina and to direct sample OCT light scattered from the second portion of the retina to the detector. 【0012】 Alternatively, the FD-OCT imaging system of the exemplary embodiment may include an interferometer having a sample arm and a reference arm, one or more scanning elements, and a detector configured to detect interference between sample OCT light propagating along the sample arm after being scattered from the retina and reference OCT light propagating along the reference arm. Here, one or more scanning elements are configured to direct sample OCT light to a second portion of the retina and to direct sample OCT light scattered from the second portion of the retina to the detector. Furthermore, one or more scanning elements of the optical system are different from one or more scanning elements of the FD-OCT imaging system. In this case, the controller may be configured to control one or more scanning elements of the optical system independently of one or more scanning elements of the FD-OCT imaging system, while keeping the position of the fixation target fixed relative to the eyeball using acquired indices. 【0013】 In a further exemplary embodiment, the controller is configured to acquire a plurality of indices that individually indicate each target location on the retina to which a light stimulus is applied by the optical system, to control the optical system using the acquired indices to apply a light stimulus so that it is localized to each target location of each separate first portion of the retina while fixing the fixation target location relative to the eyeball, to control the FD-OCT imaging system with respect to each first portion of the retina to acquire each OCT data of each of the plurality of second portions of the retina (where at least a portion of each second portion of the retina is positioned relative to each first portion of the retina so that it can be stimulated by the applied light stimulus during the acquisition of at least a portion of the respective OCT data), and to process each OCT data of each second portion of the retina to generate each ORG data showing the respective physiological response of each second portion of the retina to the light stimulus applied to the corresponding first portion of the retina. Furthermore, within a period of less than 3 seconds, the controller can be configured to control the optical system using the acquired indicators to apply light stimulation to each first portion of the retina, and the controller (140) can be configured to control the FD-OCT imaging system to acquire OCT data for each first portion of the retina. 【0014】 In a further exemplary embodiment, the controller is further configured to store, with respect to each second portion of the retina, each ORG data generated with respect to the second portion, in association with each indication information of a location in the field of vision of the eyeball which is an optically conjugate point to the corresponding location of the second portion of the retina. In this case, the controller determines the indication information of the location of each second portion of the retina on the retina at the location where the OCT data is acquired by the FD-OCT imaging system by determining the indication information of the corresponding location on the retina which is optically conjugate to each of a plurality of points in the field of vision of the eyeball, and determines each index of a plurality of indices based on the corresponding indication information among the determined indication information indicating the location of each second portion of the retina, and is further configured so that at least a portion of each second portion of the retina is positioned relative to the first portion whose position is indicated by the index, so that it can be stimulated by a light stimulus applied during the acquisition of at least a portion of the OCT data. Alternatively, the controller is further configured to acquire multiple indices based on the image of the retina of the eyeball, determine the respective indicator information for the position on the retina of each second portion of the retina from which OCT data is acquired by the FD-OCT imaging system based on each of the multiple indices, and for each second portion of the retina, determine the respective indicator information for the position in the field of view of the eyeball of a point that is optically conjugate to the position of the second portion on the retina. 【0015】 In the further exemplary embodiments or variations thereof described above, the FD-OCT apparatus may further include a display device, and the controller may be configured to acquire data showing how measurements of the subject's ability to see light stimuli localized to different parts of the retina at each different location on the retina are distributed across at least a portion of the visual field of the eye. The controller can acquire this data by receiving each instruction from the subject regarding whether or not the subject saw each light stimulus applied to each of a plurality of first parts of the retina by the optical system; associating each received instruction with each instruction information for the location of each first part on the retina; and determining, for each of the instruction information for the location of each first part on the retina, the instruction information for the corresponding location in the visual field of the eye of a point optically conjugate to the location of each first part on the retina. Alternatively, the controller may also acquire the aforementioned data by receiving visual field test data obtained from the eye. In either case, the controller may further configure the display device to control the display to show a first map showing how the subject's ability to perceive light stimuli is distributed over at least a portion of the visual field of the eye, based on at least a portion of the acquired data, and to show a second map in comparison to the first map, which is a map showing how the physiological response of the retina to light stimuli, as indicated by at least a portion of the stored ORG data, is distributed over at least a portion of the visual field of the eye, based on at least a portion of the stored ORG data and associated stored instructional information. The first and second maps can be displayed on the display device, for example, side by side, or (at least partially) superimposed on each other. 【0016】 Alternatively, in the further exemplary embodiments described above, the controller is further configured to store, with respect to each of a plurality of second parts of the retina, the respective ORG data generated from OCT data acquired from that second part, associated with the respective indicating information of the location of that second part on the retina, and to acquire data showing how measurements of the subject's ability to perceive light stimuli localized to each different part of the retina at each different location on the retina are distributed across at least a portion of the visual field of the eye. The controller can be configured to acquire this data by receiving visual field data acquired from the eye by a visual field analyzer (which includes measurements of the subject's ability to perceive light stimuli applied from a plurality of points in the visual field of the eye), and determining, for each of the plurality of points in the visual field of the eye, the respective indicating information of the corresponding point on the retina that is optically conjugate to that point. Alternatively, the controller can be configured to obtain the above data (showing how measurements of the subject's ability to see light stimuli localized to different parts of the retina at different locations on the retina are distributed across at least a portion of the visual field of the eye) by receiving instructions from the subject regarding whether or not the subject has seen each light stimulus applied to each first part of the retina by the optical system, and relating each received instruction to instruction information for each location on the retina of each first part. In either case, the FD-OCT device may further include a display device, and the controller may be further configured to control the display device to display a first map showing how the subject's ability to see light stimuli with the eye is distributed over at least a portion of the retina of the eye, based on at least a portion of the acquired data, and to display a second map showing how the retinal response to light stimuli, as shown by at least a portion of the generated ORG data, is distributed over at least a portion of the eye, for comparison with the first map, based on at least a portion of the generated ORG data and the location on the retina of the second part of the retina where at least a portion of the ORG data was generated. 【0017】 The controller compares the data from the first map with the data from the second map and, based on the comparison, indicates: (i) that the subject can see the light stimulus in at least one first region of the visual field, and that at least one corresponding region of the retina gave a physiological response to the light stimulus that satisfies predetermined conditions; and (ii) that the subject cannot see the light stimulus in at least one second region of the visual field, and that at least one corresponding region of the retina gave a physiological response to the light stimulus that satisfies predetermined conditions. The device can be further configured to identify at least one of the following: (iii) one or more third regions in at least a portion of the visual field, indicating that the subject can see a light stimulus in one or more third regions in at least a portion of the visual field, and that one or more corresponding regions of the retina gave a physiological response to the light stimulus that does not meet the predetermined conditions; or (iv) one or more fourth regions in at least a portion of the visual field, indicating that the subject cannot see a light stimulus in one or more fourth regions in at least a portion of the visual field, and that one or more corresponding regions of the retina gave a physiological response to the light stimulus that does not meet the predetermined conditions. 【0018】 In the above, each first portion of the retina may be smaller than the retinal area that the FD-OCT imaging system can operate on for OCT data acquisition. 【0019】 A method for acquiring ORG data showing the physiological response of the retina of the eye to a light stimulus is provided according to a second exemplary embodiment of this specification. This method includes acquiring an index of a target location on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied, using the acquired index to apply a light stimulus to a first portion of the retina which is the target location while the gaze direction of the eye is fixed, acquiring OCT data of a second portion of the retina which is positioned relative to the first portion so that at least a portion of it can be stimulated by the light stimulus applied during the acquisition of at least a portion of the OCT data, and generating ORG data based on the acquired OCT data. 【0020】 Next, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail, only as non-limiting examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings described below. Unless otherwise specified, similar reference numerals appearing in different drawings may represent identical or functionally similar elements. [Brief explanation of the drawing] 【0021】 [Figure 1] This is a schematic diagram of an FD-OCT apparatus 100 according to an exemplary embodiment described herein. [Figure 2] This is a schematic front view of the display device 200 of the FD-OCT device 100, and Figure 210 is shown as an example of a fixation target for fixing the direction of gaze of the eyeball. [Figure 3A] This is a schematic diagram of the optical system 300 and the FD-OCT imaging system 320 according to exemplary embodiments described herein. [Figure 3B] These are schematic diagrams of exemplary optical system 330 and exemplary FD-OCT imaging system 331, which share exemplary scanning system 332, which includes a lens-based optical system instead of the curved mirrors 313, 315 in Figure 3A. [Figure 3C] This is a schematic diagram of an alternative implementation of the exemplary embodiment described herein, comprising an optical system 340 and an FD-OCT imaging system 341. [Figure 3D] This is a schematic diagram of exemplary optical system 350 and exemplary FD-OCT imaging system 351, sharing exemplary scanning system 352, which includes a lens-based optical system instead of the curved mirrors 313, 315 in Figure 3C. [Figure 3E] This is a schematic diagram of the optical system 360 and the FD-OCT imaging system 361, representing further alternative implementations of exemplary embodiments. [Figure 3F] These are schematic diagrams of exemplary optical system 370 and exemplary FD-OCT imaging system 371, sharing with exemplary scanning system 372 which uses a two-dimensional scanner 373 instead of the third scanning element 363 and fourth scanning element 364 in Figure 3E. [Figure 4]This is a schematic diagram of programmable signal processing hardware configurable to perform the functions of the controller 140 described herein. [Figure 5] This is a flowchart illustrating the process by which the controller 140 generates ORG data 150 according to an exemplary embodiment of this specification. [Figure 6A] This is a schematic diagram of an example of the first and second portions of the retina during the execution of processes S52 and S53 in Figure 5 using the optical system 300 and FD-OCT imaging system 320 of an exemplary embodiment. [Figure 6B] This is a schematic diagram of an example of the first and second portions of the retina during the execution of processes S52 and S53 in Figure 5 using the optical system 300 and FD-OCT imaging system 320 of an exemplary embodiment. [Figure 6C] This is a schematic diagram of an example of the first and second portions of the retina during the execution of processes S52 and S53 in Figure 5 using the optical system 300 and FD-OCT imaging system 320 of an exemplary embodiment. [Figure 6D] This is a schematic diagram of an example of the first and second parts of the retina during the execution of processes S52 and S53 in Figure 5, using the optical system 360 and FD-OCT imaging system 361 shown in Figure 6E. [Figure 6E] This is a schematic diagram of an example of the first and second parts of the retina during the execution of processes S52 and S53 in Figure 5, using the optical system 360 and FD-OCT imaging system 361 shown in Figure 6E. [Figure 6F] This is a schematic diagram of the first and second parts of the process S52 and process S53 in Figure 5, using the optical system 340 and FD-OCT imaging system 341 shown in Figure 3C. [Figure 7] This flowchart illustrates the process by which the controller 140 generates ORG data 150 for multiple locations on the retina. [Figure 8A] This figure shows multiple first partial examples 801-807 and multiple second partial examples 811-817 during the execution of processes S72 and S73 in Figure 7 during the ORG data acquisition session. [Figure 8B] This figure shows multiple first partial examples 821-824 and multiple second partial examples 825-824 during the execution of processes S72 and S73 in Figure 7 during the ORG data acquisition session. [Figure 8C] This figure shows multiple first partial examples 831-834 and multiple second partial examples 835-838 during the execution of processes S72 and S73 in Figure 7 during an ORG data acquisition session. [Figure 8D] This figure shows multiple first partial examples 841-844 and multiple second partial examples 845-848 during the execution of processes S72 and S73 in Figure 7 during the ORG data acquisition session. [Figure 8E] This figure shows multiple first partial examples 851, 852, 855, 856 and multiple second partial examples 853, 854, 857, 858 during the execution of processes S72 and S73 in Figure 7 during the ORG data acquisition session. [Figure 9] This figure shows exemplary first part 901 and exemplary second part 902 during the execution of processes S52 and S53 in Figure 5, or processes S72 and S73 in Figure 7, during an ORG data acquisition session. [Figure 10] This figure shows exemplary first part 1001 and exemplary second part 1002 during the execution of processes S52 and S53 in Figure 5, or processes S72 and S73 in Figure 7, during an ORG data acquisition session. [Figure 11] This flowchart illustrates a process by which a controller 140 of an exemplary embodiment can determine an index of a target position on the retina to which light stimulation should be applied, based on a point within the field of view of the eyeball. [Figure 12] This flowchart illustrates the process by which the controller 140 selects the index and corresponding location from which OCT data should be acquired, and maps the location on the retina from which the OCT data was acquired to the corresponding location in the field of view of the eyeball. [Figure 13]This is a schematic diagram of the data structure 1300 stored by the controller 140. Here, the individual ORG data generated for each of the multiple separate parts of the retina are stored in relation to the position of that part and the position coordinates of the optically conjugate point within the field of view of the eyeball. [Figure 14] This flowchart illustrates the process by which the controller 140 acquires data showing how measurements of a subject's visual ability to different light stimuli applied to each different location on the retina of the eye are distributed across at least a portion of the eye's visual field, and controls the map display device 142 to display the map described herein. [Figure 15] This flowchart shows the process by which controller 140 acquires data in process S1401 in Figure 14. [Figure 16] This figure shows a first map example 1400 that can be displayed by the map display device 142 in process S1402 of Figure 14. [Figure 17] Figure 14 shows a second map example 1500 that can be displayed by the map display device 142 in process S1403. [Figure 18] This figure shows a third map example 1600 that can be displayed by the map display device 142 in process S1405 of Figure 14. [Figure 19] This flowchart illustrates the process by which the controller 140 acquires data showing how measurements of a subject's visual ability to light stimuli applied to different locations on the retina of the eyeball 160 are distributed across at least a portion of the retina of the eyeball 160, and controls the map display device 142 to display the fourth and fifth maps described herein. [Figure 20A] This flowchart shows the process by which controller 140 acquires data in process S2102 in Figure 19. [Figure 20B] This flowchart shows an alternative process in which controller 140 acquires data in process S2102 in Figure 19. [Figure 21] This figure shows a fourth map example 1700 that can be displayed by the map display device 142 in process S2103 of Figure 19. [Figure 22] This figure shows a fifth map example 1800 that can be displayed by the map display device 142 in process S2104 of Figure 19. [Figure 23A] This is a schematic diagram of a rotatable wedge-shaped prism that can be controlled to position the eyeball 160 on the retina at the location where the light stimulus is applied. [Figure 23B] This is a schematic diagram of a lithoscopy prism scanner that can control the position of the eyeball 160 on the retina to set it to the position where light stimulation is applied. [Figure 24] This is a schematic diagram of an alternative optical configuration comprising an optical fiber and one or more lenses, used to position the eyeball 160 on the retina at the location where a light stimulus is applied. [Figure 25] This is a schematic diagram of a further alternative optical configuration, comprising a dynamic amplitude mask and a beam maneuvering mechanism, used to position the eyeball 160 on the retina at the location where the light stimulus is applied. [Modes for carrying out the invention] 【0022】 In view of the aforementioned problems related to repeatedly using dark adaptation periods to acquire ORG data at multiple locations on the retina, the inventors have devised a Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography (FD-OCT) apparatus configured to acquire optretinography (ORG) data showing the physiological response of the retina to light stimulation. This FD-OCT imaging apparatus is equipped with an optical system that can manipulate the application of light stimulation to the retina so that the illumination of the retina by light stimulation is localized to a part of the retina, and can also control the position of application of light stimulation on the retina. 【0023】 Light stimulation can thus be applied to localized areas of the retina (without affecting the surrounding retinal region), and through control of the optical system, it can be applied to different locations on the retina within the field of view of the FD-OCT imaging device. Therefore, after a single dark adaptation period, light stimulation can stimulate multiple different parts of the retina, and no light stimulation applied to any part will stimulate any other part of the retina. This allows for the acquisition of accurate and comparable ORG data at multiple locations in multiple parts without requiring further dark adaptation periods or repeated patient repositioning. This makes ORG data acquisition much easier and enables automation, significantly reducing the time required for ORG data acquisition. Faster ORG data acquisition reduces the time the patient spends in front of the FD-OCT device, improving patient comfort. As a result, the tendency for ORG data quality to deteriorate due to patient movement is reduced. Furthermore, the imaging speed of the patient by the FD-OCT device can be increased, improving the speed at which physicians can evaluate patients using the FD-OCT device. 【0024】 Furthermore, compared to conventional methods where light stimulation is applied to the entire field of view of the OCT imaging system, this method allows for the use of weaker light sources to generate the light stimulation, potentially making it more comfortable for the patient. By localizing the light stimulation to a specific area of ​​the retina, it is possible to achieve sufficiently large illumination of the area to be acquired for ORG acquisition, even with a weaker light source. 【0025】 Next, an exemplary embodiment of the FD-OCT imaging apparatus described above will be explained in more detail with reference to the attached drawings. 【0026】 Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an FD-OCT apparatus 100 configured to acquire optretinography (ORG) data 150 showing the physiological response of a subject's retina 160 to light stimulation, according to an exemplary embodiment. The FD-OCT apparatus 100 comprises a fixation target 110, an optical system 120, an FD-OCT imaging system 130, a controller 140, and optionally a map display device 142. 【0027】 The fixation target 110 is positioned to fixate the gaze direction 161 of the eyeball 160 (i.e., the direction outward from the eyeball 160, along the visual axis of the eyeball 160). This fixation can occur when the eyeball 160 fixates on the fixation target 110. That is, the fixation target 110 is positioned so as to be visible to the eyeball 160 that when the eyeball 160 fixates on it during the acquisition of ORG data 150, the gaze direction 161 of the eyeball 160 can be fixed. However, the fixation target 110 can also be positioned alternatively to fixate the gaze direction 161 of the eyeball 160 when the patient's other eye is fixed on the fixation target 110. In the vast majority of subjects without strabismus or other conditions, the muscles that control eye movement act collectively to direct both eyes in the same direction. When the gaze direction of one eyeball is fixed by the fixation target 110, the other eyeball will also gaze in the same direction (even if the other eyeball cannot see the fixation target 110). For example, if the eyeball 160 is the subject's right eye, the gaze direction 161 of the eyeball 160 can be fixed by fixing the left eye on the fixation target 110. The position of the fixation target 110 relative to the eyeball 160 can be controlled by the controller 140, as in this exemplary embodiment, so that the gaze direction 161 of the eyeball 160 can be controlled when the eyeball 160 is fixed on the fixation target 110. However, the position of the fixation target 110 may alternatively be set to a fixed position related to the expected position of the eyeball 160 (i.e., the position in which the eyeball 160 is positioned relative to the FD-OCT imaging system 130 for the FD-OCT imaging system 130 to acquire AS-OCT images) during the manufacturing or installation / startup of the FD-OCT imaging system 130. The fixation target 110 can be incorporated into the FD-OCT device 100 in a manner visible to the eyeball 160, in a variety of ways known to those skilled in the art, or as described in U.S. Patent No. 11,253,146 (B2) (which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety). 【0028】 Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of an implementation example of a fixation target 110 in the form of a graphic 210, as displayed by a display device 200 which is part of the FD-OCT device 100. The display position of the graphic 210 relative to the eyeball 160 can be controlled by the controller 140, and the gaze direction 161 of the eyeball 160 is controlled when the eyeball 160 is fixed on the graphic 210. In other words, the position of the eyeball 160 is fixed relative to the FD-OCT imaging system 130 (for example, by placing the patient's chin on the chin rest of the FD-OCT imaging system 130). Thus, the display position of the graphic 210 on the display area of ​​the display device 200 can be adjusted as shown by the arrows in Figure 2, and when the eyeball 160 is fixed on the graphic 210, the gaze direction 161 of the eyeball 160 can be set (controlled). In Figure 2, the graphic 210 is a point shape, but please understand that the shape of the graphic is not limited to that, and can instead be a cross, a circle, or any shape toward which the eyeball 160 can be fixed. 【0029】 Furthermore, the fixation target 110 can be implemented in a form other than the graphic displayed on the display device 200. For example, the fixation target 110 may be a light source (e.g., a light-emitting diode) attached to an actuator. This can be controlled by the controller 140, and when the eyeball 160 is fixed to the light source, the light source can be moved relative to the eyeball 160 to control the gaze direction 161 of the eyeball 160. 【0030】 The optical system 120 can apply light stimuli to the retina of the eyeball 160, and the illumination of the retina by the light stimuli can be localized to (and possibly span or fill) a portion of the retina. With the gaze direction of the eyeball 160 fixed by the fixation target 110, the optical system 120 can be controlled to change the position on the retina of the eyeball 160 to which the light stimuli should be applied. In other words, the optical system 120 can be controlled to apply light stimuli to each of several different parts of the retina of the eyeball 160. Thereafter, when light stimuli are applied to one part of the multiple parts of the retina of the eyeball 160, none of the other parts of the multiple parts of the retina are stimulated. As will be described in more detail below, the optical system 120 can be controlled to change the position on the retina to which the light stimuli are applied, while the position of the fixation target 110 remains fixed relative to the eyeball 160 (the gaze direction 161 of the eyeball 160 remains fixed to the fixation target 110). 【0031】 The light stimulus may be a flash of light of a predetermined duration applied to the retina of the eyeball 160 along the optical path 121 of the optical system 120, as in this exemplary embodiment. The duration of the flash is typically much shorter than the length of time during which OCT data is acquired by the FD-OCT imaging system 130 for the generation of ORG data 150, and depends on the intensity of the stimulus. The duration of the flash may be, for example, between 5 ms and 50 ms. The duration of the light stimulus is controllable by the controller 140, as will be described in more detail below. 【0032】 The FD-OCT imaging system 130 (which may be a phase-stable FD-OCT imaging system) may be a point-scanning FD-OCT imaging system, as in this exemplary embodiment. However, the FD-OCT imaging system 130 can take other forms, such as a line-scanning or full-field FD-OCT imaging system. The FD-OCT imaging system 130 is operable to acquire complex OCT data 135 by imaging a portion of the retina of the eyeball 160. The OCT data 135 may include OCT images of a temporal sequence, such as a time sequence of A-scan, B-scan, or C-scan, as in this exemplary embodiment. 【0033】 Figure 3A is a schematic diagram of the optical system 300 and the FD-OCT imaging system 320. This can form an exemplary implementation of the optical system 120 and the FD-OCT imaging system 130 of Figure 1, as in this exemplary embodiment. The optical system 300 includes a light source 301, and the FD-OCT imaging system 320 includes an OCT light source 321, an interferometer 322, and a detector 323. The scanning system 310 is shared by both the optical system 300 and the FD-OCT imaging system 320, as described below, and includes a beam splitter 311, a first scanning element 312, a first curved mirror 313, a second scanning element 314, and a second curved mirror 315. For clarity, a fixation target is not shown in Figure 3A, but a fixation target can be positioned in the scanning system 310, at least on one side of the first curved mirror 313, above and / or below the plane of the figure, as described in U.S. Patent No. 11,253,146 (B2). Light from the fixation target can thus reach the eyeball 160 via the second scanning element 314 and then the two curved mirrors 315. 【0034】 The OCT light source 321 of the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is OCT beam L b The OCT light source 321 is configured to generate the OCT beam L. The OCT light source 321 may include an illumination source and an illumination source aperture, as in this exemplary embodiment. In this case, the illumination source emits light through the light source aperture to generate the OCT beam L. bIt is configured to generate the OCT beam L. The shape and size of the illumination aperture (for example, the diameter if the aperture is circular) are configured to generate the OCT beam L. b The cross-sectional shape and size (e.g., diameter) can be defined (i.e., such that these sizes and shapes are identical). The illumination source may be a swept illumination source configured to generate light having wavelengths swept over a range of wavelengths while scanning by the SS-OCT imaging system is performed, if the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is a swept illumination source (SS-OCT) imaging system, or a broadband illumination source configured to generate light having a range of wavelengths (i.e., broad spectral components) simultaneously while scanning by the SD-OCT imaging system is performed, if the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is a spectral-domain OCT (SD-OCT) imaging system. The illumination source may be any known swept illumination source or broadband illumination source (depending on the case). For example, the illumination source may comprise a laser or a light-emitting diode. 【0035】 The OCT light source 321 may include further components, such as one or more collimating lenses for parallelizing the light from the light source. Furthermore, as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, the OCT light source 321 can take alternative forms if the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is a line-field or full-field FD-OCT imaging system. For example, if the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is a line-field FD-OCT imaging system, the OCT light source 321 can be configured to produce linear light and may include a laser and one or more cylindrical lenses (e.g., a combination of plano-concave and plano-convex lenses configured to focus the beam from the laser in mutually orthogonal directions to form linear light). However, any other type of spatial light modulator for beam shaping, as is well known to those skilled in the art, can also be used as an alternative. 【0036】 Interferometer 322 receives the OCT beam L from OCT light source 321. b The sample is divided and the OCT light L ois propagated along the sample arm 324 of the interferometer 322, and the reference OCT light L r is configured to be propagated along the reference arm 325 of the interferometer 322. The interferometer 322 further receives the light L c scattered by a part of the retina of the eyeball 160 and collected by the scanning system 310, and the reference OCT light L r and the collected light L c to generate interference light L I resulting from the interference between them, and is configured to output the interference light L I to the detector 323. In other words, the reference OCT light L r propagating through the reference arm 325 and the collected light L c scattered by a part of the retina of the eyeball 160 and collected by the scanning system 310 during the scanning performed by the FD - OCT imaging system 320 are guided to coincide and interfere with each other, and the interference fringes L I of the resulting light are directed and received by the detector 323. 【0037】 As in this exemplary embodiment, the interferometer 322 uses a beam splitter 326 to split the OCT beam L b and propagate it through the sample arm 324 and the reference arm 325 of the interferometer 322, and the reference OCT light L r reflected by the reference mirror 327 and the collected light L cIt may be a Michelson interferometer that interferes with the OCT beam L. Although a Michelson interferometer has been described, those skilled in the art will understand that the interferometer 322 is not limited to this, and any interferometer suitable for OCT, such as a Mach-Zehnder interferometer, can be used. Furthermore, those skilled in the art will understand that the interferometer 322 can be appropriately adapted depending on whether the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is a line-scanning or full-field FD-OCT imaging system. For example, if the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is a line-scanning FD-OCT imaging system, the interferometer 322 may be a free-space interferometer using at least one beam splitter. Moreover, the interferometer 322 is not limited to a free-space interferometer, and may instead be an interferometer using optical fiber. In this case, the interferometer uses a fiber coupler to interfere with the OCT beam L. b The light is divided and propagated through the sample arm and reference arm of the interferometer 322, and the reference light L r and collecting light L c It is possible to cause interference between them. 【0038】 The scanning system 310 scans the retinal portion of the eyeball 160 using OCT light L o A point scan (for example, one-dimensional or two-dimensional) is performed, and light L scattered by the retinal portion of the eyeball 160 during the point scan is detected. c The scanning system 310 is configured to collect the sample OCT light L. o The light L is then sequentially irradiated one scanning position at a time, and scattered from the retinal portion of the eyeball 160 at each scanning position. c By collecting at least a portion of these, the system is configured to acquire an A scan at each scanning position, distributed (e.g., one-dimensionally or two-dimensionally) across the retinal portion of the eyeball 160. By acquiring a series of A scans, the scanning system 310 becomes capable of acquiring B scans and / or C scans of the retina of the eyeball 160. 【0039】 Sample OCT light L o The light enters the scanning system 310 from the interferometer 322 and propagates to the beam splitter 311. Sample OCT light L oThe light is sequentially reflected by the first scanning element 312, the first curved mirror 313, the second scanning element 314, and the second curved mirror 315 before entering the retinal portion of the eyeball 160. The light L is scattered by the retinal portion of the eyeball 160 and collected by the scanning system 310. c The sample OCT light L o It follows the same, but in reverse order, optical path that penetrates the scanning system 310, propagates through the beam splitter 311, and then exits the scanning system 310. 【0040】 Point scanning is performed by the scanning system 310, which rotates around the first axis (not shown) to scan the sample using OCT light L o A first scanning element 312 scans across the retinal portion of the eyeball 160 in a first direction or the opposite direction of the first direction, and rotates around a second axis 316 to scan the sample OCT light L o This is performed by at least one of the following: a first scanning element 312 and a second scanning element 314 that scans across the retinal portion of the eyeball 160 in a second direction or the opposite direction to the second direction. The second direction may be orthogonal to the first direction, as in this exemplary embodiment. Therefore, by rotating the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314, the sample OCT light L can be directed to any position in the retinal portion of the eyeball 160 within the field of view of the FD-OCT apparatus 100. o It is possible to control the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314. As described above, the rotation of the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 is adjusted by the controller 140 or a dedicated scanning system controller (not shown) to control the sample OCT light L o The FD-OCT device 100 can scan over the retina of the eyeball 160 according to a predefined scanning pattern. The predefined scanning pattern may be any suitable scanning pattern well known to those skilled in the art, such as unidirectional scanning (a set of parallel scanning lines extending in a common direction), circular scanning, serpentine scanning, or helical scanning, which may be pre-existing or selected by the user of the FD-OCT device 100 during manufacturing. 【0041】 The first curved mirror 313 and the second curved mirror 315 may be elliptical mirrors, each having a first focal point and a second conjugate focal point, as in this exemplary embodiment. The first scanning element 312 is the first focal point F of the first curved mirror 313. P1 The second scanning element 314 is located at the second focal point F of the first curved mirror 313. P2 It is located at the first focal point F of the second curved mirror 315. P3 Located at the second focal point F of the second curved mirror 315, the eyeball 160 is at the second focal point F P4 It is located in the vicinity of. More specifically, the pupil of the eyeball 160 is at the second focal point F of the second curved mirror 315. P4 The optical path of the scanning system 310 is positioned so that it can be maneuvered in two dimensions across the retinal region of the eyeball 160. However, the first curved mirror 313 and the second curved mirror 315 may be any reflective components having an aspherical reflective surface, such as a conical cross-sectional shape like a parabola or hyperbola, or more generally, they may have a shape that can be represented by one or more two-variable polynomial functions. 【0042】 By using a curved mirror in the scanning system 310, the FD-OCT imaging system 130 can function as a wide-field FD-OCT imaging system or an ultra-wide-field (UWF) FD-OCT imaging system. Further details are provided in WO2014 / 53824(A1), the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. However, the scanning system 310 is not limited thereto. 【0043】 Figure 3B shows schematic diagrams of an exemplary optical system 330 and an exemplary FD-OCT imaging system 331 of alternative implementations, which share a scanning system 332 with lenses (where similar reference numerals indicate the same elements as in Figure 3A). As shown in Figure 3B, instead of being guided by curved mirrors 313, 315, light is directed from the first scanning element 312 to the second scanning element 314, then through a beam splitter 333 and a lens relay (lens barrel) 334 consisting of one or more lenses to the retina of the eyeball 160. The beam splitter 333 may be identical in shape to the beam splitter 311 (for example, it may be a beam splitter cube or a dichroic mirror). Furthermore, the scanning system 332 may include a first lens relay and a second lens relay (which may have equal focal lengths) between the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 (as the sole intervening optical system). A fixation target 335 may be provided as an example of the fixation target 110 in Figure 1. Light from the fixation target 335 passes through the beam splitter 333 and lens relay 334 to reach the eyeball 160. 【0044】 The first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 may be galvanometer optical scanners ("H-Garbo" and "V-Garbo," respectively), as in this exemplary embodiment. However, other types of scanning elements, such as MEMS scanning mirrors or resonant scanning mirrors, may also be used as alternatives. 【0045】 Detector 323 emits interference light L I It is positioned to detect the interferometer L from the interferometer 322. I Received, received Light L I Based on the interference line, the detected signal S d The detector 323 is configured to generate interference light L incident on the photodetector element of the detector 323. I By performing photoelectric conversion, the detection signal S dThis generates the detection signal S. The specific form of the detector 323 depends on the form in which the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is implemented. For example, if the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is implemented as an SD-OCT imaging system, the detector 323 comprises a spectrometer which may have a diffraction grating, a Fourier transform lens, and a detector array (or a line scanning camera). If the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is implemented as an SS-OCT imaging system, the photodetector 120 may have a balanced photodetector configuration including two photodetectors (e.g., reverse-biased photodiodes), the photocurrents of their outputs are subtracted from each other, and the differential current signal is converted into a voltage detection signal by a transimpedance amplifier. d As in this exemplary embodiment, the OCT data 135 can be generated by processing the OCT data processing hardware of the FD-OCT imaging system 320. However, the functions of the OCT data processing hardware may be performed by the controller 140 instead (i.e., the detection signal S d (These are received and processed by the controller 140, which can then generate OCT data 135.) 【0046】 Referring again to Figure 3A, if the FD-OCT imaging system 320 is a line scanning system rather than a point scanning system, the OCT light source 321 generates line light as described above. In such a case, the interferometer 322 detects the OCT beam L b Instead, the line light is split and used as sample OCT light as sample OCT line light. The scanning system 310 performs a line scan of the sample OCT line light across the retinal portion of the eyeball 160, and the light L scattered by the retinal portion of the eyeball 160 during the line scan is split. c It is configured to collect the sample OCT line light. Therefore, the scanning system 310 directs the sample OCT line light to the first focal point F of the first curved mirror 313. P1The system may further include lenses positioned to focus the light. The sample OCT line light is then sequentially reflected by the first scanning element 312, the first curved mirror 313, the second scanning element 314, and the second curved mirror 315 and incident on the retina of the eyeball 160. The light scattered by the retina of the eyeball 160 is then returned to the detector 323 (i.e., in a form adapted for line scanning) via the scanning system 310, as described above for the point scanning implementation. The sample OCT line light is thus steered two-dimensionally within the eyeball by the rotation of the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314, enabling scanning of the eyeball 160 by the scanning system 310, which is adjusted by the controller 140 or a dedicated operating system controller. However, since the sample OCT line light is incident on the retina, the scanning system 310 acquires at least one B scan of the retina of the eyeball 160 (e.g., a series of B scans forming a C scan), rather than acquiring at least one A scan as in the point scanning implementation. 【0047】 The light source 301 of the optical system 300 is light L as a light stimulus. S It is configured to generate light L S The light source L may be one or more wavelengths in the visible spectrum for the human eye, as in this exemplary embodiment. More generally, however, it may be any wavelength that stimulates the physiological response of the retina of the eyeball 160. The light source 301 can be configured to produce multiple lights of different wavelengths, each of which can be used as a desired light stimulus (for example, by using a broadband spectral light source that produces white light filtered by at least one adjustable or removable spectral filter). However, this does not mean that the light L S This may be achieved by an optical system 300 comprising additional light sources configured to generate light of different wavelengths that can serve as photostimuli in addition to the wavelength of the light source (these light sources can be coupled to a single output of the light source 301 using fiber couplers, wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) fibers, beam splitters, or dichroic mirrors). 【0048】 Furthermore, the light source 301 emits light L of a desired light intensity under the control of the controller 140. S It is possible to generate it. 【0049】 The light source 301, as in this exemplary embodiment, may include an illumination source (e.g., a light-emitting diode) and an illumination source aperture, similar to those described above for the OCT light source 321. The light source 301 may also include further components, such as one or more collimating lenses for aligning the light from the light source. The controller 140 controls the light source 301 of the optical system 300 to emit light L as a light stimulus, as described below. S It is controlled to generate [the specified light]. Furthermore, it is possible to control the light source 301 to change the duration of the light stimulus applied by the light source 301. 【0050】 The beam splitter 311 may be a cube-shaped beam splitter, as in this exemplary embodiment. However, it may be replaced by, for example, a dichroic mirror. 【0051】 The optical system 300 shares the scanning system 310 used in the FD-OCT imaging system 320 to perform point scanning. This uses a beam splitter 311 to perform optical L S The optical path through the sample is OCT light L o This is achieved by coupling the light L that travels through the scanning system 310. However, any other suitable configuration for coupling the two light paths can also be used. The light L generated by the light source 301 travels through the scanning system 310. S The optical path of the sample OCT light L proceeds through the scanning system 310. o The optical paths can be coupled by the beam splitter 311, and these optical paths can travel along a common axis. However, it is also possible to alternatively travel the optical paths along axes shifted by a predetermined amount (for example, by adjusting the incident position of one optical path on the beam splitter 311). 【0052】 The scanning system 310 then uses optical L SIt is further configured to direct the light L towards the retina of the eyeball 160. S The beam enters the scanning system 310 via the beam splitter 311, and is then sequentially reflected by the first scanning element 312, the first curved mirror 313, the second scanning element 314, and the second curved mirror 315 before being projected onto the retina of the eyeball 160. 【0053】 Sample OCT light L o As in the case above, the optical system uses light L S The position on the retina of the eyeball 160 to which the light is irradiated can be controlled by a first scanning element 312 that rotates around a first axis (not shown) to move the optical path of the scanning system 310 in a first direction across the retina of the eyeball 160 or in the opposite direction to the first direction, and a second scanning element 314 that rotates around a second axis 316 to move the optical path of the scanning system 310 in a second direction across the retina of the eyeball 160 or in the opposite direction to the second direction. By rotating the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314, the light L S By manipulating the optical path in two dimensions, the light L S This allows the light L generated by the light source 301 to be projected onto any point on the retina of the eyeball 160. S By controlling the timing and duration of the light, and the range and speed of rotation of the first scanning element 312 and / or the second scanning element 314, the controller 140 can illuminate any point on the retina of the eyeball 160 for the required duration. S This allows for stimulation. The duration of this stimulation is controlled by the light L generated by the light source 301. S The intensity of the light can be controlled by the controller 140, allowing the retina of the eyeball 160 to be exposed to light to a predetermined degree. For example, the degree of exposure obtained is between 10% and 66%. A higher exposure value may be preferable for studying alpha waves (i.e., fast retinal responses) in ORG data 150. 【0054】 By sharing the scanning system 310 with the FD-OCT imaging system 320, the optical system 300 can access the entire field of view of the FD-OCT imaging system 320 without additional scanning hardware. This reduces the complexity of the FD-OCT apparatus 100 and makes it easier to integrate the FD-OCT imaging system 320 into a complex sample arm, such as the UWF FD-OCT imaging system described above. 【0055】 Figure 3C is a schematic diagram of optical system 340 and FD-OCT imaging system 341, which can form an implementation example of the optical system 120 and FD-OCT imaging system 130 of Figure 1 according to an alternative implementation example of this exemplary embodiment (similar reference numerals indicate the same elements as in Figure 3A). Figure 3C is a schematic diagram of optical system 340 and FD-OCT imaging system 341, which can form an implementation example of the optical system 120 and FD-OCT imaging system 130 of Figure 1 according to this exemplary embodiment (similar reference numerals indicate the same elements as in Figure 3A). Optical system 340 and FD-OCT imaging system 341 are the same as optical system 300 and FD-OCT imaging system 320 of Figure 3A, respectively, but differ from these components in Figure 3A in that they share a scanning system 342 instead of a scanning system 310. Scanning system 342 is the same as scanning system 310 except that it includes a third scanning element 343 and a beam splitter 344. The third scanning element 343 can be implemented in the same form as the first scanning element 312, but (instead of the first scanning element 312) it is used by the scanning system 342 to emit light L from the light source 301. S Direct the light towards the retina of the eyeball, L S The position of the retina of the eyeball 160, which is illuminated by the beam, is changed in the first direction and in the direction opposite to the first direction. The beam splitter 344 can be implemented in the same form as the beam splitter 311, and the light L from the light source 301 S The first curved mirror 313 is directed towards the sample OCT scan L o to the first curved mirror 313 (and the collected light L cThe light is directed towards the first scanning element 312. For simplicity, the fixation target is not shown in Figure 3C, but it may be located in the scanning system 342, at least on one side of the first curved mirror 313, i.e., on the upper and / or lower side of the plane of the figure, as described in U.S. Patent No. 11,253,146 (B2). Light from the fixation target can thus reach the eyeball 160 via the second scanning element 314 and then the two curved mirrors 315. 【0056】 In scanning system 342, light L S The third scanning element 343, used to direct the light L from the light source 301 towards the retina of the eyeball 160, is different from the first scanning element 312 and can therefore be controlled independently by the controller 140. Thus, the light L generated by the light source 301 and traveling through the scanning system 342 is controlled independently by the controller 140. S The optical path is the sample OCT light L o The optical path L can change in a first direction (or the opposite direction to the first direction) independently of the optical path that travels through the scanning system 342. S The optical path through the scanning system 342 is the sample OCT light L o The optical path traveling through the scanning system 342 is coupled in only one dimension. This comes at the cost of increasing the complexity of the FD-OCT apparatus 100, but adds an additional degree of freedom to the changes in light stimulation on the retina of the eyeball 160 compared to the implementations in Figures 3A and 3B. For example, this degree of freedom is used for light L S The optical path and the sample OCT beam L o Removing at least some of the optical path connections could be advantageous for studying the pathways of photoreceptor cells within the retina (for example, to introduce a spatial shift between the centers of the first and second parts of the retina). 【0057】 The exemplary embodiment in Figure 3C includes curved mirrors 313, 315, which can be omitted as shown in Figure 3D. This is a schematic diagram of an exemplary optical system 350 and an exemplary FD-OCT imaging system 351 sharing a scanning system 352, with the curved mirrors s313, 315 omitted (where similar reference numerals indicate the same elements as in Figures 3A to 3C). As shown in Figure 3D, light is directed from the first scanning element 312 and the third scanning element 343 to the second scanning element 314 via a first lens relay 353 and a second lens relay 354 (which may have equal focal lengths) located between the third scanning element 343 and the second scanning element 314. In alternative exemplary embodiments, the first lens relay 353 and the second lens relay 354 may be optional, and the only optical component interposed between the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314, and between the third scanning element 343 and the two scanning elements 314, may be the beam splitter 344. As shown in Figure 3D, a fixation target 335 may be provided in the scanning system 352 of Figure 3D, similar to the scanning system 332 of Figure 3B. 【0058】 Figure 3E is a schematic diagram of optical system 360 and FD-OCT imaging system 361, which constitute further alternative implementations of the exemplary optical system 120 and FD-OCT imaging system 130. Optical system 360 differs from optical system 300 in Figure 3A, and FD-OCT imaging system 361 differs from FD-OCT imaging system 320 in Figure 3A, but only in that they share scanning system 362 (instead of scanning system 310). Scanning system 362 is similar to scanning system 332 in Figure 3B, for example, in that it has one or more lenses in lens relay (lens barrel) 334 instead of curved mirrors 313 and 315 in Figure 3A, but differs from scanning system 332 in that it further has a beam splitter 365 instead of a third scanning element 363, a fourth scanning element 364, and beam splitters 311 and 333 in Figure 3B. The third scanning element 363 can be implemented in the same form as the first scanning element 312, and the fourth scanning element 364 can be implemented in the same form as the second scanning element 314, but the third scanning element 363 and the fourth scanning element 364 are used by the scanning system 362 (in place of the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314) and light L S Direct the light towards the retina of the eyeball, L S The position of the retina of the eyeball 160 irradiated with the light is changed in a first direction, the opposite direction of the first direction, a second direction, and the opposite direction of the second direction. The scanning system 362 may further include a first relay lens and a second relay lens (not shown) between the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314, and a third relay lens and a fourth relay lens (not shown) between the third scanning element 363 and the fourth scanning element 364. The beam splitter 365 can be implemented in the same form as the beam splitter 333, and can direct the light from the fourth scanning element 364 to the eyeball 160 after passing through the lens barrel 334. 【0059】 The scanning system 362 may further include a beam splitter 366 and a fixation target 335, as described above in relation to Figure 3B. Light from the fixation target 335 can be directed to the eyeball 160 via the beam splitter 366 and lens relay 334. 【0060】 Light L reaches the retina of the eyeball 160 S To direct the sample OCT light L o Unlike the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 used in the scanning system 362 to direct the light towards the retina, the scanning elements 363 and 364 can be controlled by the controller 140 independently of the scanning elements 312 and 314. Therefore, when generated by the light source 301, the light L S The optical path that travels through the scanning system 362 is the same as the sample OCT light L that travels through the scanning system 362. o The direction of light L can be changed independently of the optical path it travels in, in a first direction (or the opposite direction to the first direction) and a second direction (or the opposite direction to the second direction). In this way, light L S The optical path through the scanning system 362 is the sample OCT light L o This does not couple with the optical path that travels through the scanning system 362. This comes at the cost of increasing the complexity of the FD-OCT device 100 compared to the implementation described in Figures 3A and 3D, but it allows for independent control of changes in light stimulation on the retina of the eyeball 160 with two degrees of freedom. 【0061】 The scanning system 362 includes a third scanning element 363 and a fourth scanning element 364, but these can be replaced by a single two-dimensional scanner (for example, a micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) scanner). 【0062】 Figure 3F is a schematic diagram of an exemplary optical system 370 and an exemplary FD-OCT imaging system 371, sharing a scanning system 372 equipped with a two-dimensional scanner 373. In Figure 3F, elements identical to those in Figures 3A to 3E are given the same numbering. The scanning system 372 is identical to the scanning system 362 except that it is equipped with a two-dimensional scanner 373 (instead of the third scanning element 363 and the fourth scanning element 364). This is optical L S Direct the light towards the retina of the eyeball, L SIt is used to change the position on the retina of the eyeball 160 to be irradiated in the first direction, the opposite direction of the first direction, the second direction, and the opposite direction of the second direction. 【0063】 The scanning system 372 can further include a beam splitter 366 and a fixation target 335 as described above in connection with FIG. 3B. The light from the fixation target 335 can be guided by the beam splitter 366 to the eyeball 160 via the beam splitter 365 and the lens relay 334. 【0064】 As a further alternative implementation of the exemplary embodiment, the optical system 120 can include a spatial light modulator that can control the irradiation position of the light L on the retina by the controller 140. For example, the spatial light modulator can include a projector having a light source 301, a collimator, and a dynamic amplitude mask (e.g., in the form of a digital micromirror device (DMD)). This is configured to be irradiated by collimated light and is controllable by the controller 140, and the collimated light L generated by the light source 301 S can pass through only a predetermined portion of the dynamic amplitude mask, and it is possible to change the position on the retina where the light from the light source 301 is incident. S When the dynamic amplitude mask is provided in the form of a DMD, the DMD can include an array of rotatable micromirrors, each of which can be controlled by the controller 140 to individually switch from one of the first and second different orientations to the other of the first and second orientations. More specifically, the DMD can be configured to set each micromirror in the DMD to either a first direction that reflects the light from the light source 301 toward the eyeball 160 or a second direction that reflects the incident light away from the eyeball 160 so that the light from the light source 301 does not reach the eyeball 160. In this way, the use of the DMD enables binary amplitude modulation of the light received at the position of each micromirror on the DMD. 【0065】 【0066】 ​However, it should be noted that the function of a dynamic amplitude mask can be provided by other suitable spatial light modulators other than DMDs, such as arrays of liquid crystal cells or analog micromirror arrays. For example, in an exemplary alternative embodiment in which the dynamic amplitude mask comprises liquid crystal cells, the liquid crystals in each liquid crystal cell in the array can be individually switched between a first liquid crystal phase and a second liquid crystal phase. The liquid crystal cells in the first liquid crystal phase receive incident light L S The light is transmitted towards the eyeball 160. On the other hand, the liquid crystal cell in the second liquid crystal phase receives the incident light L S This shields the light and prevents it from being transmitted to the eyeball 160. Furthermore, the unmasked portion of the dynamic amplitude mask may consist of an array of liquid crystal cells having a first phase of liquid crystal, and the masked portion of the dynamic amplitude mask may consist of an array of liquid crystal cells having a second phase of liquid crystal. As a further example, the spatial light modulator may consist of an array of light sources (e.g., LEDs) configured to provide a corresponding spatially separated collimated light beam, which can be controlled by a controller 140 to control the position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied. 【0067】 Furthermore, as an example, if the FD-OCT imaging system 130 is a full-field FD-OCT imaging system, then the optical L S A spatial light modulator may be used to change the position of the irradiated eyeball 160 on the retina. 【0068】 The above configuration, which changes the position on the retina to which light stimulation is applied, uses a single sample OCT beam L o Although described in the context of an FD-OCT imaging system 130 configured to deliver light to the retina of an eyeball 160, the disclosure is not limited thereto, and it should be noted that these configurations for changing the position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied can also be used in a multi-beam FD-OCT imaging system configured to deliver multiple sample OCT beams to the retina simultaneously. 【0069】 The above configuration allows for setting the position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied with much higher precision compared to manipulating the eyeball, for example, by changing the position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied by moving the fixation target 110 laterally relative to the eyeball 160 (i.e., within the field of view of the eyeball 160). Furthermore, by keeping the fixation target 110 in a fixed position during ORG data 150 acquisition, patient comfort is improved and the ease of use of the system is enhanced. In addition, some of the above configurations for changing the position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied utilize the existing optical system of the OCT sample arm. This thus facilitates the integration of the optical system 120 into existing OCT systems. 【0070】 Returning to Figure 1, the controller 140 is configured to acquire at least one index 141 of the target location on the retina to which light stimulation is applied by the optical system 120, and to control the optical system 120 with the acquired index 141 to apply light stimulation to the first portion of the retina, which is the target location, while keeping the position of the fixation target 110 fixed relative to the eyeball 160. The controller 140 further controls the FD-OCT imaging system 130 to acquire OCT data 135 of the second portion of the retina, where at least a portion of the second portion of the retina is positioned relative to the first portion and can be stimulated by the light stimulation applied when at least a portion of the OCT data 135 is acquired. The controller 140 is further configured to generate ORG data 150 based on the acquired OCT data 135, as will be described in more detail below. 【0071】 The controller 140 (and, if there is one, a dedicated scanning system controller) can be provided in any suitable form, for example, as a single programmable processing hardware 400 schematically shown in Figure 4. The programmable signal processing device 400 processes the OCT data 135 (or detection signal S) from the FD-OCT imaging system 130. dThe signal processing hardware 400 further includes a communication interface (I / F) 410 for receiving signals, and optionally receiving index 141, outputting control signals to the FD-OCT imaging system 130, and outputting ORG data 150 and / or graphs thereof to a map display device 142 (such as a computer screen). The signal processing hardware 400 further includes a processor 420 (e.g., a central processing unit CPU and / or a graphics processing unit GPU), a working memory 430 (e.g., random access memory), and an instruction storage unit 440 for storing a computer program 445 consisting of computer-readable instructions. When the computer-readable instructions are executed by the processor 420, they cause the processor 420 to perform various functions, including the functions of the controller 140 described herein. The working memory 430 stores information used by the processor 420 while the computer program 445 is being executed. The instruction storage unit 440 may consist of ROM (e.g., in the form of electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) or flash memory) in which computer-readable instructions are pre-stored. Alternatively, the instruction storage unit 440 may be equipped with RAM or a similar type of memory, and computer-readable instructions of the computer program 445 can be input therefrom a computer program product such as a non-temporary computer-readable storage medium 450 in the form of a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, or from computer-readable signals 460 that transmit computer-readable instructions. In any case, when the computer program 445 is executed on the processor 420, it causes the processor 420 to perform the functions of the controller 140 described herein.In other words, the controller 140 of the exemplary embodiment may include a computer processor 420 and a memory 440 for storing computer-readable instructions, which, when executed by the computer processor 420, cause the computer processor 420 to acquire an index 141 of a target position on the retina to which light stimulation is applied by the optical system 120, and to use the acquired index 141 to control the optical system 120 while keeping the position of the fixation target 110 fixed relative to the eyeball 160, to apply light stimulation to the first portion of the retina which is the target position, and to control the FD-OCT imaging system 130 to acquire OCT data 135 of the second portion of the retina, which is positioned relative to the first portion and stimulated by the light stimulation applied when acquiring at least a portion of the OCT data 135, and to generate ORG data 150 as described herein based on the acquired OCT data 135. 【0072】 However, it should be noted that the controller 140 may be implemented using non-programmable hardware such as an ASIC, FPGA, or other dedicated integrated circuit that performs the functions of the controller 140 described above, or a combination of such non-programmable hardware and programmable hardware as described with reference to Figure 4. Furthermore, although the controller 140 has been described in relation to a single programmable signal processing hardware 400, the controller 140 is not limited to this, and its functions may be divided among multiple programmable signal processing hardware components, or their components, and / or the aforementioned non-programmable hardware, as shown in Figure 4. For example, the controller 140 can be implemented by programmable signal processing hardware as shown in Figure 4, and the controller is configured to acquire an index 141 of the target position on the retina to which light stimulation is applied by the optical system 120, use the acquired index to control the optical system 120 while fixing the relative position of the fixation target 110 to the eyeball 160, apply light stimulation to the first part of the retina which is the target position, and control the FD-OCT imaging system 130 to acquire OCT data 135 of the second part of the retina, at least a portion of which is positioned relative to the first part and stimulated by the light stimulation applied when acquiring at least a portion of the OCT data 135 of the second part. In this case, it is also possible to arrange another processor (for example, similar to the processor 420 in Figure 4) to receive the acquired OCT data 135 from the controller 140 and generate ORG data 150 based on the acquired OCT data 135 as described herein (and output the ORG data 150 to, for example, a map display device 142). 【0073】 The map display device 142 may be configured to receive data from the controller 140 for display to a user (such as a physician), as in this exemplary embodiment. The communication interface 410 may be configured to receive user input of the FD-OCT device 100, as requested by the controller 140. For example, the map display device 142 can receive and display ORG data 150 or its graph representation, and can also be controlled by the controller 140 to display the map described below. User input of the FD-OCT device 100 may include, for example, index 141, or indication information for the second part of the retina, which will be discussed later, and the map display device 142 can transmit this to the controller 140. The map display device 142 may be, for example, an LCD screen and may include programmable signal processing hardware 400, schematicly shown in Figure 4. This can be used to generate a graph representation of ORG data 150, process input provided by the user (for example, by touch input processing from the user if the map display device 142 is a touchscreen), and interface with the controller 140. However, the map display device 142 is optional and may be omitted. For example, the aforementioned functions of the map display device 142 may be provided by an external computer, or in some cases it may not be necessary to display the ORG data 150, and instead it may be stored in the memory of an external server or controller 140 for later retrieval. 【0074】 Figure 5 is a flowchart illustrating the process by which the controller 140 can generate ORG data 150, as in this exemplary embodiment. This process defines an ORG imaging session that is initiated by the dark adaptation period of the retina of the eyeball 160. For example, the FD-OCT device 100 may be configured so that no light (either inside or outside the FD-OCT device 100) enters the retina of the eyeball 160 for a predetermined time (e.g., about 5 minutes). Or, more simply, the patient may be instructed to close their eyes or wait in a dark room for a predetermined time. 【0075】 In process S51 of Figure 5, the controller 140 acquires an index 141 of the target position on the retina of the eyeball 160 to which the optical system 120 applies a light stimulus. For example, the index 141 may indicate the position of a point on the retina of the eyeball 160 that is the center of the light stimulus applied by the optical system 120. The target position index 141 can be automatically generated based on a predetermined position on the retina defined in relation to one or more anatomical landmarks (e.g., optic nerve head, macula, etc.) and taking into account the gaze direction 161 of the eyeball 160. Alternatively, the target position index 141 can be selected by the user and input to the controller 140 by using a mouse and / or keyboard, or by one or more touch operations if the display is a touchscreen, to select the target position on a retinal image displayed on a map display device 142 (or an external display device such as a computer screen) (for example, a frontal OCT image previously acquired by the FD-OCT imaging system 130, or a retinal reflection image previously acquired using a scanning laser ophthalmoscope (SLO) included in the FD-OCT imaging device 100 and which can share the scanning system 310 with the FD-OCT imaging system 130). 【0076】 In process S52 of FIG. 5, while keeping the position of the fixation target 110 with respect to the eyeball 160 fixed and while the eyeball 160 is fixed on the fixation target 110 (i.e., while the position of the fixation target 110 within the field of view (FoV) of the eyeball 160 is fixed. Here, the FoV encompasses all that can be visually recognized when the head is in a fixed direction and the eyeball 160 rotates within its orbit), the controller 140 controls the optical system 120 using the acquired indicator 141 to apply a light stimulus to the first part of the retina of the eyeball 160 at the target position. The controller 140 controls the optical system 120 using the acquired indicator 141, and while the position of the fixation target 110 with respect to the eyeball 160 remains fixed, sets the position on the retina where the light stimulus should be applied as the target position, and applies a light stimulus to the first part of the retina at the target position. The controller 140 is configured to convert the position on the retina indicated by the indicator 141 into a set of one or more corresponding control parameters for operating the optical system 120 and apply a light stimulus to a position on the retina that is substantially the same as that indicated by the indicator 141. This can be achieved in one of several different ways. For example, the controller 140 can use a mapping between the position on the retina and the corresponding values of the control parameters. This can be provided, for example, in the form of a function defined by a look-up table (LUT) or a parameter set. The mapping can be determined by calibration using techniques well known to those skilled in the art. 【0077】 In this exemplary embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3A, the controller 140 controls the scanning system 310 to rotate the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 so that the optical path of the light L S traveling through the scanning system 310 is incident on the target position. The controller 140 controls the light source 301 to emit the light L SA signal is generated and made propagable along the optical path after the rotation described above, or possibly during the rotation described above. The first portion of the retina may be smaller than the field of view of the FD-OCT imaging system 13 (for example, less than 0.1%, 1%, or 10% of the area covered by the field of view of the FD-OCT imaging system 130), as in this exemplary embodiment. An example of the first portion of the retina is shown below and described in more detail. 【0078】 In process S53 of Figure 5, the controller 140 controls the FD-OCT imaging system 130 to acquire OCT data 135 of the second portion of the retina of the eyeball 160. In a scanner similar to the index 141 described in process S51, the controller 140 can acquire a second index indicating the position of the second portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 by having the user select the position of the second portion of the retina on the map display device 142. Alternatively, the second index can also be generated by the controller 140 based on at least one index 141 or the first portion of the retina of the eyeball 160, as will be described in more detail below. The second portion may have a predetermined, fixed positional relationship with respect to the first portion, for example. 【0079】 The acquisition of OCT data 135 may relate to temporally continuous OCT images of the second portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 within a first period (i.e., the period between the acquisition time of the first OCT image in the OCT image time sequence and the acquisition time of the final OCT image in the OCT image time sequence), as in this exemplary embodiment. Thus, in this exemplary embodiment shown in Figure 3A, the controller 140 controls the rotation of one or both of the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 to perform a point scan of the second portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 according to a predetermined scanning pattern to acquire a time sequence of OCT images. The controller 140 may alternatively instruct a dedicated scanning system controller (if one exists) to control one or both of the scanning elements 312 and 314. 【0080】 At least a portion of the second portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 is positioned relative to the first portion so that it is stimulated (or at least partially illuminated) by the applied light stimulus during the acquisition of at least a portion of the OCT data 135. That is, while process S53 is being performed on the second portion of the retina, the controller 140 first performs process S52 and controls the optical system 120 using the acquired index 141 to apply a light stimulus to the corresponding first portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 at a first time within a first period. Thus, at least a portion of the OCT images in the time sequence of OCT images are acquired after the first time. In each of these OCT images, at least a portion of the second portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 is stimulated (or at least partially illuminated) by the applied light stimulus. The second portion of the retina can at least partially overlap with the corresponding first portion of the retina. Alternatively, the light incident on the first part of the eyeball 160 may be scattered within at least a portion of the second part, even if it is spaced apart but close enough to the corresponding first part, or at least a portion of the second part of the retina may be stimulated by light stimulation, stimulating a retinal region within it. Examples of the position of the second part of the retina of the eyeball 160 relative to the first part of the retina of the eyeball 160 are described in more detail below. 【0081】 In one variant of the exemplary embodiment, the controller 140 first acquires indication information for the location of the second part of the retina from which the OCT data 135 is acquired, as described above, and then generates an index 141 such that the first part of the retina, which is the target location, can stimulate at least a portion of the second part of the retina (i.e., so that ORG data 150 can be generated at the location of the second part of the retina). For example, the location of the first part can be selected to be along a predetermined scanning pattern used to acquire the OCT data 135. Thus, for example, one or both of the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 in Figure 3A or Figure 3B, or the same rotation of the second scanning element 314 in Figure 3C or Figure 3D, can be used for both acquiring the OCT data 135 and applying light stimulation to the first part of the retina. This makes it possible to apply light stimulation to the eyeball 160 with a shorter time window compared to when the controller 140 needs to adjust different rotations of the scanning elements in processes S52 and S53. This is important when the temporal sequence of OCT images obtained in process S53 is temporally closer (as desired for reducing motion artifacts in OCT images). Note that this advantage is equally achievable when the position of the first part is off-center from the scanning pattern, rather than along a predetermined retinal scanning pattern, using the configuration described above with reference to Figures 3C to F (although this comes at the cost of increased system complexity). 【0082】 Referring again to Figure 5, in process S54, the controller 140 generates ORG data 150 based on the acquired OCT data 135. As in this exemplary embodiment, the controller 140 can generate ORG data 150 based on the phase information of the acquired OCT data 135. The ORG data 150 generated by the controller 140 can be displayed to the user on the map display device 142, or output to an external computer or server for analysis, for example. 【0083】 The controller 140 can generate ORG data 150 based on the acquired OCT data 135 using any technique known to those skilled in the art. For example, the velocity-based technique described in "Velocity-based optoretinography for clinical applications" by Kari V. Vienola et al. (Optica 9, 1100-1108, 2022), the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference. Briefly, this velocity-based ORG technique is generated based on acquired OCT data (in this case, which consists of a temporal sequence of B-scans), first flattening each B-scan to make the reflections of the internal / external segment (IS / OS) and external segment (COST) of the photoreceptor cells the same height as in each A-scan in each B-scan. Next, a group of consecutive B-scans (e.g., five) is selected, corrected for motion relative to the first B-scan in the series using a travel time window (e.g., 10 ms). Next, the phase data cubes of each complex data cube for each spatial coordinate in the volume are unfolded in the time dimension to minimize the magnitude of the phase difference between data cubes of consecutive phase B scans. After unfolding, the phase change rate for each coordinate pair is calculated using least-squares linear approximation with respect to time to calculate the instantaneous velocity of each spatial position. These instantaneous velocities and B scan amplitudes are averaged laterally if necessary to obtain instantaneous depth-dependent measurements of velocity and backscatter, respectively. By shifting the time window (10 ms), time series of depth profiles are constructed for velocity and reflectance, respectively. Both of these can be visualized as M scans in time-depth coordinates. The velocities of the IS / OS layer and the ROST layer are then extracted. Their difference is the rate of OS contraction / expansion in that region as a function of time. This constitutes ORG data 150 (or alternatively, the OS length response may be ORG data 150). However, these techniques can be applied to other retinal layers, such as rod photoreceptor cells, by extracting the velocities of the IS / OS layer and the ROST layer.Alternatively, the magnitude of the so-called "alpha wave" (i.e., the fast retinal response, typically on a timescale of a few milliseconds) in the data of the contraction / expansion rate of the outer segment (OS) as a function of time can be determined and stored as ORG data 150 (or part thereof). As an addition or alternative, the so-called "beta wave" (i.e., the slow response, typically on a timescale of a few seconds) can be determined and stored as ORG data 150 (or part thereof). As a further alternative, ORG data 150 may also include a value (e.g., a predefined scale from 1 to 10) that represents the quality of the retinal response at the location of the second part of the retina, generated by comparing the retinal response shown by the acquired ORG data with a healthy retinal response. The healthy retinal response can be obtained, for example, from ORG data at the retinal location of eyeball 160 that a physician has assessed as healthy, or from ORG data of a sample healthy eye. 【0084】 Based on the acquired OCT data 135, the controller 140 can generate ORG data 150 using intensity-based ORG techniques, such as the OCT brightness change technique and OCT bandwidth analysis technique described in "Functional Optical Coherence Tomography for Intrinsic Signal Optoretinography: Recent Developments and Deployment Challenges" by Kim TH, Ma G, Son T, and Yao X (Front.Med.9:864824, (2022)). The contents of this document are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. The OCT brightness change technique can be used to detect local changes in pixel brightness values ​​caused by light stimulation on the retina. Data processing techniques used in OCT brightness change analysis techniques may include aligning raw OCT B scans to compensate for eye movements, normalizing pixel intensity based on the intensity of the inner retina to limit the influence of pupillary response, identifying "active" intrinsic light signal (IOS) pixels (i.e., pixels that show a significant intensity change after light stimulation, which may be positive if the intensity increases and negative if the intensity decreases), and quantifying the number of these active IOS pixels for analysis. OCT band analysis techniques may include, for example, deconvolution methods for band analysis (e.g., high-reflectance and low-reflectance bands of the retina). When intensity-based ORG techniques are used, OCT data may be acquired by an OCT imaging system that is not phase-stable. 【0085】 Figures 6A, 6B, and 6C are schematic diagrams of the first portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 and the corresponding second portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 in processes S52 and S53 described above, which are illuminated by the optical system 300 and imaged by the FD-OCT imaging system 320 according to the exemplary embodiment. These figures show the retinal region 600 of the eyeball 160 corresponding to the field of view of the FD-OCT imaging system 130. That is, the second portion of the eyeball 160 (where OCT data 135 is acquired) is illuminated by the scanning system 310 with sample OCT light L oIt may be any location within region 600 that can be directed. Since the optical system 300 shares the FD-OCT imaging system 320 and the scanning system 310, the first part of the eyeball 160 is also illuminated by the scanning system 300. S It may be any location within region 600 to which the light L can be directed. S Since the light source 301 can generate light beams of different diameters, please note that each first part may have a different size (width), as shown in Figures 6A, 6B, and 6C. S Making the beam size (e.g., diameter) different can be achieved, for example, by using different illumination light source diaphragms. 【0086】 In particular, when the optical system 300 shares the scanning system 310 with the FD-OCT imaging system 320, the optical beam (the optical L generated by the light source 301) S The radius of the light beam (as a component) can be set to illuminate the entire second portion of the eyeball 160 while the light beam is at each scanning position within the second portion of the eyeball 160. For example, if the second portion is a linear portion corresponding to a linear B scan, the radius of the light beam can be set to illuminate the entire linear portion when the light beam is at the first scanning position (corresponding to the first A scan of the linear B scan) and each subsequent scanning position. This configuration can prevent "flickering" perceived by parts of the retina as the retinal portion is alternately illuminated and not illuminated as the light beam moves between scanning positions, potentially improving the quality of the generated ORG data. 【0087】 Figure 6A shows a circular first part 610 as an example of the first part of the retina in process S52, and a second part 611 corresponding to the A scan as an example of the second part of the retina in process S53. The controller 140 controls the FD-OCT imaging system 320 to rotate the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 of the scanning system 310 to a first pair of their respective angular positions so that each A scan can be acquired at the position of the second part 611. Then process S53 is started to acquire OCT data 135, which is the time sequence of the A scans of the second part 611. At the beginning of the above, the controller 140 controls the optical system 300 using the acquired index 141, and light L from the light source 301 S The process S52 is performed to apply light stimulation to the circular first part 610 via the generation of (the diameter of the circular first part is the amount of light L incident on the retina) S (This is the diameter of the first circular part 610) Since the first circular part 610 is concentric with the second part 611, the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 remain at the respective angular positions of the first pair while acquiring ORG data 150, thereby simplifying the process. 【0088】 Figure 6B shows the first part 620, a hollow circle, as an example of the first part of the retina in process S52, and the second part 621, corresponding to the circular B-scan as an example of the second part of the retina in process S53 in Figure 5. In this case, the controller 140 controls the FD-OCT imaging system 320 to start process S53, which acquires OCT data 135. This is the time sequence of the circular B-scan of the second part 621, rotating the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 of the scanning system 310 to perform a two-dimensional point scan using a circular scanning pattern, so that each of the circular B-scans becomes the second part 621. At the above first time, the controller 140 executes process S52, and uses the acquired index 141 to control the optical system 300, and the light L S While the light source 301 is generating light, the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 of the scanning system 314 are rotated to apply light stimulation to the hollow circular first portion 620 (the thickness of the hollow circular first portion 620 is such that light L incident on the retinaS (This is the diameter of the first and second parts 620 and 621 of the hollow circular element follow the same scanning pattern, so that optical stimulation can be applied using the same rotation of the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 (adjusted by the controller 140) and OCT data 135 can be acquired. This simplifies the operation of the FD-OCT device 100. 【0089】 Figure 6C shows a linear first portion 630 as an example of the first portion of the retina in process S52, and a linear second portion 631 corresponding to a linear B scan as an example of the second portion of the retina in process S53 in Figure 5. The controller 140 performs processes S51 to S53 in Figure 5 in the same manner as described above in Figure 6B, except that the predefined scanning pattern is a unidirectional scan along a single scanning axis (for a single linear B scan) (the thickness of the linear first portion 630 is the amount of light L incident on the retina). S (This is the diameter of the ray). The first part 630 and the second part 631 of the straight line extend along a common straight line, and optical stimulation can be applied using the same rotation (controlled by the controller 140) of the first scanning element 312 and / or the second scanning element 314 to acquire OCT data 135. This simplifies the operation of the FD-OCT device 100. 【0090】 Although the first and second parts of Figures 6A, 6B, and 6C were described as being concentric or extending along a common line, this is not necessarily required, and any other type of scanning pattern can be used. Furthermore, the circular first part 610, the hollow circular first part 620, and the linear first part 630 are used to capture light L incident on the retina. S It was explained that each has a diameter or thickness corresponding to the diameter of, but light L incident on the retina S Alternatively, the diameter may be smaller than the intended width of the first part, and the controller 140 can adjust the rotation of the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 to progressively illuminate the entirety of each first part. 【0091】 Furthermore, although the first part of each figure is shown to be larger than the second part of each figure in Figures 6A, 6B, and 6C, this is not necessarily required. For example, by selecting the aperture of the illumination light source 301, the sample OCT light L o Light L with a diameter smaller than the diameter of S It is possible to provide this, or the second portion can extend outside the first portion of the eyeball 160 by controlling the rotation of one or both of the first scanning element 312 and the second scanning element 314 accordingly. 【0092】 Figures 6D and 6E are schematic diagrams of the exemplary first portion and the corresponding exemplary second portion of the retina of eyeball 160 within region 600, respectively, in processes S52 and S53 described above. These are illuminated by the optical system 360 and imaged by the FD-OCT imaging system 361 in Figure 3E. 【0093】 Figure 6D shows a circular first portion 640 as an example of the first portion of the retina in process S52, and a second portion 641 corresponding to the A scan as an example of the second portion of the retina in process S53 in Figure 5. As shown in Figure 6D, the second portion 641 is not concentric with the circular first portion 640. This is made possible by independent control of the light stimulation position. In contrast to Figures 6A-6C, the optical system 360 uses the sample OCT beam L o Regardless of where the light stimulus is directed on the retina, it is possible to apply the light stimulus to any desired part of the retina without interrupting the acquisition of the time sequence of OCT images. 【0094】 Figure 6E shows a circular first portion 650 as an example of the first portion of the retina in process S52 of Figure 5, and a second portion 651 as an example of the second portion of the retina in process S53 of Figure 5, corresponding to a circular B-scan (acquired using a circular scan as a predefined scanning pattern). These geometric arrangements are similarly achieved by independently controlling the location where light stimuli are applied to the retina and the location where OCT data is acquired from the retina. 【0095】 Figure 6F is a schematic diagram of a linear first portion 660 as an example of the first portion of the retina in process S52 of Figure 5, and a second portion 661 as an example of the second portion of the retina in process S53 of Figure 5, corresponding to a plurality of parallel linear B scans forming a C scan (obtained using a raster scan as a predetermined scanning pattern). Here, the controller 140 controls the optical system 340 to apply light stimulation and controls the FD-OCT imaging system 341 to acquire OCT data 135. In this case, the light stimulation is applied to the sample OCT beam L o Regardless of this, it is possible to control the sample OCT beam L in a second direction perpendicular to the linear B scan, and in the opposite direction to the first direction. o Without affecting the movement of the first linear section 660, it becomes possible to apply the light stimulus to the first linear section 660. By using the optical system 360 and the FD-OCT imaging system 361 at the cost of increased system complexity, and the second direction of the sample OCT beam L between the intended positions of each of the multiple parallel linear B scans o It should be noted that similar C-scans can be obtained by using both the optical system 300 and the FD-OCT imaging system 320, at the cost of interrupting the movement of the sensor. 【0096】 Instead of acquiring a single index 141 for a single target location and corresponding OCT data 135 acquired for that target location, the controller 140 can acquire multiple indices, each representing a different target location on the retina, and process the respective OCT data for each target location in the second part of the retina corresponding to the first part of the retina, thereby generating the respective ORG data during the ORG imaging session. 【0097】 Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating the process by which the controller 140 acquires and processes OCT data from each second portion of the retina to generate ORG data showing the respective physiological responses of the second portions of the retina to the light stimuli applied to the corresponding first portions of the retina. In the process shown in Figure 7, as described above with reference to Figure 5, the dark adaptation period of the retina of the eyeball 160 may be preceded to improve the accuracy and reliability of the ORG data 150. 【0098】 In process S71 of Figure 7, the controller 140 acquires a plurality of indices, each indicating a target position on the retina of the eyeball 160 to which light stimulation is applied by the optical system 120. Each of the plurality of indices is in the same format as the previously described indice 141, and the plurality of indices are acquired by the controller 140 in the same manner as described above with respect to indice 141. 【0099】 In process S72 of Figure 7, the controller 140 controls the optical system 120 using acquired indices while the position of the fixation target 110 relative to the eyeball 160 is fixed, applying optical stimuli to each target position of each individual first portion of the retina of the eyeball 160. The controller 140 controls the optical system 120 using each acquired indice in sequence in the same manner as described above with respect to indice 141 (see Figure 5). The optical stimuli applied to each first portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 do not stimulate any other first portion of the retina of the eyeball 160. That is, since each of the indices relates to a different target position on the retina than the target positions indicated by the other indices, each first portion of the retina does not overlap with any other first portion of the retina. Each first portion of the retina is smaller than the field of view of the FD-OCT imaging system 130 (e.g., less than 0.1%, 1%, or 10% of the area covered by the field of view of the FD-OCT imaging system 130). The first part of the retina is described in more detail below. 【0100】 In process S73 of Figure 7, the controller 140 controls the FD-OCT imaging system 130 to acquire OCT data for each second portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 with respect to each first portion of the retina of the eyeball 160. The controller 140 acquires a second index indicating the position of each second portion of the retina on the retina and controls the FD-OCT imaging system 130 to acquire OCT data for each second portion of the retina of the eyeball 160, as described above with reference to process S53 of Figure 5. At least a portion of each individual second portion of the retina is positioned relative to each first portion of the retina so that it can be stimulated by the light stimulus applied to the first portion when acquiring at least a portion of the respective OCT data. This is in the same manner as described with reference to process S53 of Figure 5 with respect to the first and second portions of the retina. Each second portion of the retina may be separated (spaced apart) from all other second portions of the retina, however at least a portion of a second portion may, in some cases, overlap at least a portion of at least another second portion. Examples of the position of the second part of the retina relative to each first part of the retina are described in more detail below. 【0101】 In process S74 of Figure 7, the controller 140 processes the OCT data for each second portion of the retina to generate ORG data for each second portion. This ORG data shows the physiological response of each second portion of the retina to the light stimulus applied to the corresponding first portion of the retina. Each ORG data is in the same format as the ORG data 150 in Figure 5. 【0102】 Note that, as in this exemplary embodiment, the controller 140 can first acquire a first indicator from among the multiple indicators 141 and use this to acquire a first OCT data corresponding to this first indicator. The controller 140 can then use each of the remaining indicators 141 and repeat this OCT data acquisition process (work procedure) until the respective OCT data is acquired for each of the remaining indicators 141. The controller 140 can then process the respective OCT data to generate the respective ORG data in process S74 of Figure 7. However, the generation of ORG data may be performed in parallel with the acquisition of the respective OCT data. That is, after acquiring the first OCT data, the controller 140 can start executing process S74, which generates the respective ORG data based on the first OCT data, while repeating the above work procedure for each of the remaining indicators 141, and generate the respective ORG data based on the respective OCT data corresponding to each of the multiple indicators in parallel with the acquisition of OCT data. Furthermore, process S71 in Figure 7 may be executed to obtain all of the multiple indicators before executing any of processes S72, S73, or S54 for the first of the multiple indicators. 【0103】 The controller 140 can perform processes S72 and S73 in Figure 7 (for all of the multiple indices 141) after only one dark adaptation period for the retina of the eyeball 160 during an ORG imaging session. This is possible because the applied light stimulus is limited to a first portion of the retina that is smaller than the field of view of the FD-OCT imaging system 130, and the position of the applied light stimulus on the retina can be changed between several different positions on the retina by the optical system 120. Since the light stimulus applied to each first portion of the retina of the eyeball 160 does not stimulate any other first portion of the retina of the eyeball 160, there is no need to provide a dark adaptation period (as required in the existing ORG techniques described in the background) each time a light stimulus is applied to the retina of the eyeball 160. Furthermore, the controller 140 can perform processes S72 and S73 (for all multiple indices) for acquiring ORG data for multiple retinal positions on a much shorter timescale (e.g., periods of 0.1 seconds or less, 1 second or less, or 3 seconds or less) than when light adaptation is required. This is not achievable with the conventional methods described above. 【0104】 It should be noted that the controller 140 first acquires a second index for each of the multiple second parts of the retina from which OCT data is to be acquired, and then generates multiple indexes 141 so that when a light stimulus is applied to the first part of the retina, each of the first parts of the retina whose position on the retina is indicated by one of the indexes 141 stimulates at least a portion of the second part of the retina (i.e., each ORG data can be generated based on the respective OCT data of each second part). 【0105】 Figures 8A to 8E are schematic diagrams of the exemplary first and second portions of the eyeball 160 in processes S72 and S73 of Figure 7. Unless otherwise specified, these are illuminated in any implementation of the optical system 120 according to exemplary embodiments (e.g., optical system 300 and FD-OCT imaging system 320) and imaged in any implementation of the FD-OCT imaging system 130. These figures show the retinal region 600 of the eyeball 160 corresponding to the field of view of the FD-OCT imaging system 130 shown in Figures 6A to 6F. 【0106】 Figure 8A shows first parts 801-807 as an example of multiple first parts in process S72 of Figure 7, and multiple second parts 811-817 as an example of multiple second parts in process S73 of Figure 7, in an ORG imaging session. The controller 140 executes processes S72 and S73 to sequentially stimulate the first parts of each pair of first and second parts positioned at different locations on the retina, such as 801 and 811, 802 and 812, 803 and 813, for example, as previously described with respect to the first part 630 and second part 631 of the straight line in Figure 6C, and acquires OCT data 135 from the corresponding second parts. 【0107】 Figure 8B shows first parts 821-824 as an example of multiple first parts in process S72 of Figure 7, and multiple second parts 825-828 as an example of multiple second parts in process S73 of Figure 7, in an ORG imaging session. The controller 140 executes processes S72 and S73 to sequentially stimulate the first parts of each pair of first and second parts positioned at different locations on the retina, such as 821 and 825, 822 and 826, 823 and 827, for example, as previously described with respect to the first part 660 and second part 661 of the straight line in Figure 6F, and acquires OCT data 135 from the corresponding second parts. 【0108】 Figure 8C shows multiple first parts 831-834 as examples of multiple first parts in process S72 of Figure 7, and multiple second parts 835-838 as examples of multiple second parts in process S73 of Figure 7, which are used to perform a trend analysis of the radial direction of the eyeball 160 by analyzing the variation in the retinal response of the eyeball 160 due to the eccentricity of the eyeball 160 (e.g., from the periphery of the eyeball 160 toward the fovea of ​​the eyeball 160). The controller 140 sequentially performs processes S72 and S73, which involve stimulating the first part and acquiring OCT data 135 from the corresponding second part, for each pair of first and second parts linearly arranged at different positions on the retina, such as 831 and 835, 832 and 836, 833 and 837, as described with reference to the linear first part 630 and second part 631 of Figure 6C. 【0109】 Figure 8D shows multiple first parts 841-844 as an example of multiple first parts in process S72 of Figure 7, and multiple second parts 845-848 as an example of multiple second parts in process S73 of Figure 7, which can also be used to perform a radial trend analysis of the eyeball 160 to analyze the variation in the retinal response of the eyeball 160 due to the eccentricity of the eyeball 160. To achieve this, each of the first and second parts can form a concentric ring-shaped region centered on the fovea of ​​the eyeball 160, which corresponds to different degrees of eccentricity of the eyeball 160. The controller 140 sequentially performs processes S72 and S73, which involve stimulating the first part and acquiring OCT data 135 from the corresponding second part, for each pair of first and second parts located at different distances from the fovea, such as 841 and 845, 842 and 846, 843 and 847, as previously described with reference to the hollow circular first part 620 and second part 621 in Figure 6B. 【0110】 Figure 8E shows multiple first parts 851, 852, 855, 856 as an example of multiple first parts in process S72 of Figure 7, and multiple second parts 853, 854, 857, 858 as an example of multiple second parts in process S73 of Figure 7. The controller 140 sequentially performs processes S72 and S73, which involve stimulating the first parts and acquiring OCT data 135 from the corresponding second parts, for each pair of first and second parts, 851 and 853, 855 and 857, etc., located at different positions on the retina, as described, for example, with reference to the linear first part 630 and second part 631 of Figure 6C. In this case, the controller 140 controls the optical system 120 to apply a first light stimulus to the first parts 851, 852 on the retina, and then a second light stimulus to the second parts 855, 856 on the retina. Here, the first optical stimulus is different from the second optical stimulus (for example, by the light source of the optical system 120 emitting light at two different wavelengths, or by the optical system 120 comprising two different light sources configured to emit light at different wavelengths). Although two different optical stimuli have been described, the optical system 120 is not limited to these and may be operable to generate even more different optical stimuli (for example, as described with reference to the light source 301 of the optical system 300 in Figure 3A). 【0111】 Figure 9 shows the first part 901 and the second part 902 within region 600. These may be examples of the first part of process S52 and the second part of process S53 in Figure 5, respectively. A stimulus applied to the first part 901 stimulates the first part 903 of the second part 902, but not the second part 904 of the second part 902. Thus, the second part 904 provides a baseline unstimulated region that can be used for comparison and / or normalization purposes. This partial stimulation technique of the second part (by performing time modulation of the signal used to generate the optical stimulus) can also be used in any other examples described with reference to Figures 8A to 8E. Furthermore, although this technique has been described in relation to the linear first part 630 and the linear second part 631, the technique is not limited to these, and the principle described can be applied to other geometric shapes of the first and second parts of the retina. 【0112】 In some cases, it may be advantageous for the controller 140 to divide the processing of the OCT data into smaller steps for generating the ORG data 150. Figure 10 shows an exemplary first part 1001 and an exemplary second part 1002 in region 600. These provide examples of the first part of process S52 and the second part of process S53 in Figure 5, respectively, or multiple first parts of process S72 and multiple second parts of process S73 in Figure 7, respectively. As shown in Figure 10, the OCT data of the second part 1002 can be divided into subsets of OCT data corresponding to regions 1003-1007, and each subset of the OCT data can be processed separately using the aforementioned technique to generate ORG data 150 for each part 1003-1007 on the retina of the eyeball 160. For example, in the aforementioned velocity-based ORG technique, the time sequences of partial B-scans obtained from each region 1003-1007 can be used as the B-scan time sequences of this algorithm, making it possible to generate ORG at each position in the partial B-scan time sequences. This technique for dividing the process of the second part can also be applied to at least a portion of the remaining parts (if any) of multiple second parts. Furthermore, although this technique has been shown and explained in relation to the first linear part 1001 and the second linear part 1002, the technique is not limited to these, and the principles described can be applied to other geometric shapes of the first and second parts of the retina. 【0113】 The controller 140 of the FD-OCT device 100 can be used, as in this exemplary embodiment, to store, for each of the multiple second parts of the retina of the eyeball 160 described with reference to Figure 7, the respective ORG data generated for the second part (ORG data indicates the respective physiological response of the second part of the retina to the light stimulus applied to the corresponding first part of the retina), associated with the position of the second part on the retina of the eyeball 160 (e.g., the position of a point on the second part, such as the geometric center of the second part) and the optically conjugate indication information of the position of each point in the visual field of the eyeball 160. The stored ORG data and stored associated indication information can provide indication information of the retinal function of the eyeball 160 at multiple points in the visual field of the eyeball 160, which can be helpful in diagnosing various eye conditions. Furthermore, the stored ORG data and stored associated indication information can be used to complement the results of visual field tests of the eyeball 160 (e.g., automated static perimetry, dynamic perimetry, or frequency doubling perimetry). Specifically, as will be described in more detail below, it can be helpful in determining the cause of blind spots or decreased retinal sensitivity within the 160-focal field of vision determined by visual field testing. 【0114】 As described above, the data items linked and stored by the controller 140 can be generated in different ways. For example (as will be described in more detail below with reference to Figure 11), the position of a point on the retina stimulated by the optical system 120, from which OCT data is acquired by the FD-OCT imaging system 130 (for ORG data generation by the controller 140), can be selected by the controller 140 based on a predetermined location within the visual field of the eyeball 160. This method can be useful when the ORG data 150 generated by the controller 140 is compared with measurements acquired (or to be acquired) at the same location in a visual field test. 【0115】 Alternatively, the position of points on the retina that will be stimulated by the optical system 120, from which OCT data will be acquired by the FD-OCT imaging system 130, can be selected by the controller 140 based on the retinal image of the eyeball 160. The ORG data 150, ultimately generated by the controller 140, is obtained from one or more regions of the retina under study. This generated ORG data 150 can be compared to (or planned to be acquired) measurements obtained by visual field testing by mapping the retinal positions related to the OCT / ORG data items to their conjugate positions within the visual field of the eyeball 160. While the ORG data 150 items and the visual field test measurements may not have been acquired at optically conjugate points in this case, a meaningful comparison is still possible. This alternative is described in more detail below with reference to Figure 11. 【0116】 Figure 11 is a flowchart showing the process by which the controller 140 can determine, based on points within the visual field of the eye, an index of the target location on the retina to which light stimulation should be applied, and information indicating the location on the retina from which OCT data 135 will be acquired, in order to facilitate comparison between visual field test data and ORG data 150 generated by the controller 140. The controller 140 can perform this process before performing the process described with reference to Figure 7. This allows the controller 140 to control the FD-OCT imaging system 130 to acquire OCT data for each of the multiple second parts of the retina of the eyeball 160, corresponding to each first part of the retina to which light stimulation is applied. However, the controller 140 can also perform the process in Figure 11 in parallel with the process in Figure 7. 【0117】 In process S1101 of Figure 11, the controller 140 determines the positional information for each of the second portions of the retina on the retina from which OCT data 135 is to be acquired by the FD-OCT imaging system. The controller 140 does this by determining, for each of several separate points in the field of view of the eyeball 160, the positional information for the optically conjugate corresponding position on the retina for that point. The multiple points in the field of view of the eyeball 160 may be a configuration (e.g., on a grid or array) of points from a visual field test (e.g., automated static perimetry, dynamic perimetry, or frequency doubling perimetry) that is comparable to the ORG data 150 to be generated by the controller 140, as in this exemplary embodiment. Thus, the ORG data 150 can be acquired from substantially the same portion that was illuminated by the stimulus used in the visual field test and from which the response to the stimulus was evaluated in the visual field test. The multiple points in the field of view can be provided by a visual field test device such as an Octopus® visual field test device or a Humphrey® field analyzer (HFA). 【0118】 In process S1102 of Figure 11, the controller 140 determines each of the multiple indicators 141 (indicators 141 indicate target locations on the retina to which light stimulation is to be applied by the optical system 120). The light stimulation is then appropriately applied to stimulate the portion of the retina intended for ORG data 150 acquisition. This determination in process S1102 of Figure 11 is based on the corresponding indicator information in the indicator information determined in process S1101 of Figure 11 (which indicates the location of each second part of the retina). Here, at least a portion of each second part of the retina is positioned relative to the first part. The location of the first part is represented by indicator 141, which can be stimulated by the light stimulation applied thereto during the acquisition of at least a portion of the OCT data 135. The corresponding first and second parts can, for example, overlap at least partially. Once at least several (i.e., one or more) target location indicators indicating target locations on the retina to which light stimulation is to be applied have been determined, the ORG data 150 generation process, as described above with reference to Figure 7, can be initiated. 【0119】 The location of the second part of the retina may include a representative location of the second part of the retina (e.g., a point along the scanning line on the retina where repeated B scans are performed as OCT data 135 (e.g., the center point)). Therefore, the location of the second part is in Cartesian coordinates (x) relative to a reference location (e.g., a point on the retina through which the optical axis or the visual axis of the eyeball 160 passes, or the location of an anatomical feature point of the retina such as the fovea or optic disc). x ,y n ,z n ) or the position of a point defined in any other coordinate system. The corresponding position in the visual field of the eyeball 160, which is optically conjugate to the position of the second portion of the retina, can be defined by a first angle α from the visual axis of the eyeball 160 in the temporal-nasal bone direction and a second angle β from the visual axis of the eyeball 160 in the vertical direction, or by any other suitable coordinate system. 【0120】 Figure 12 is a flowchart illustrating the process by which the controller 140 selects a set of indicators 141 that represent the target position on the retina where the optical system 120 is to apply light stimulation and the corresponding position where the FD-OCT imaging system 130 is to acquire OCT data 135, and maps the position on the retina where the OCT data 135 was acquired to the corresponding position in the field of view of the eyeball 160 to generate ORG data 150, which can then be compared with the results of a visual field test performed on the eyeball 160. 【0121】 In process S1201 of Figure 12, the controller 140 acquires multiple indices 141 based on the retinal image of the eyeball 160. The controller 140 acquires multiple indices 141 using retinal positions specified by the user (for example, as described with reference to process S51 in Figure 5), and sets the coordinates of each point in an array of points on the retina to which light stimulation is applied as these indices 141. The array of points is then superimposed on the retinal region (e.g., the macular region) that requires ORG data. Alternatively, the controller 140 can automatically acquire multiple indices 141 based, for example, the retinal image of the eyeball 160 and information showing the spatial distribution of photoreceptor cells across the retina of the eyeball 160. This distribution can be estimated or predicted based on previous research (measurements) on the spatial distribution within the human retina, such as the report by JB Jonas et al., "Count and density of human retinal photoreceptors" (Graefe's Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol 230, pages 505-510, 1992). 【0122】 In process S1202 of Figure 12, the controller 140 determines, based on the aforementioned information, the positional information of each second portion of the retina on the retina, from which OCT data is acquired by the FD-OCT imaging system 130. The corresponding first and second portions are at least partially superimposed (as in the optical configuration described with reference to Figures 3A and 3B, for example) or separated but sufficiently close to each other (as can be realized in the optical configuration described with reference to Figure 3E, for example), so that a light stimulus applied to the first portion can elicit a response from the retina in the second portion. 【0123】 In process S1203 of Figure 12, the controller 140 determines, for each second portion of the retina, the corresponding indication information for the position of the optically conjugate point to the position of the second portion on the retina within the field of view of the eyeball 160. This can be performed by the controller 140 using a mapping between a point on the retina of the eyeball 160 and an optically conjugate point to the eyeball 160 within the field of view. This mapping can be determined using any technique known to those skilled in the art. For example, it may be based on a ray tracing model of the eyeball 160, or it may be based on a ray tracing model of the eyeball defined, for example, by the mean parameters of a set of eyes sampled from a population. 【0124】 Figure 13 is a schematic diagram of the data structure 1300 in tabular form, which can be stored in the memory of the controller 140 by the controller 140, as in this exemplary embodiment. The data structure 1300 contains information indicating the position of the second portion on the retina (x n ,y n ,z n ) is placed in the first column (optional) of the table, and the position information (α) is conjugate to the position in the second part, indicating the position of a point within the field of vision of the eyeball. n ,β n ) in the second column of the table, and the corresponding ORG data [XXX] n The third column of the table contains the following information: n ,y n ,z n ) indicates the position of each point within the field of view of the eyeball 160, which is conjugate to the position of each second part (α n ,β n ) in relation to each ORG data [XXX] n In relation to this, it is stored. However, it should be understood that data structure 1300 is not limited to this and can take other forms. The column headings are included for explanatory purposes only, and the ORG data [XXX] n It should be noted that the format can also take different forms, as mentioned above in relation to process S54 in Figure 5. 【0125】 By using the saved ORG data and the corresponding positional information within the visual field of each eyeball 160, it is possible to complement the visual field examination of the eyeball 160 and provide further information that can help determine the causes of blind spots and decreased retinal sensitivity within the visual field of the eyeball 160. 【0126】 Figure 14 is a flowchart illustrating the process by which the controller 140 acquires data showing how measurements of the patient's ability to see light stimuli localized to different parts of the retina of the eyeball 160 at different locations on the retina are distributed over at least a portion of the visual field of the eyeball 160, and the controller controls the map display device 142 to display, for comparison purposes, a first map showing how the patient's ability to see light stimuli in the eye 160 is distributed over at least a portion of the visual field of the eyeball 160, and a second map showing how the retinal response to light stimuli, as indicated by the stored marking information, is distributed over at least a portion of the visual field of the eyeball 160. 【0127】 In process S1401 of Figure 14, the controller 140 acquires data showing how measurements of the subject's ability to perceive light stimuli localized to different parts of the retina of the eyeball 160 at each location on the retina are distributed across at least a portion of the visual field of the eyeball 160. Figure 15 is a flowchart showing the process by which the controller 140 can acquire this data, as in this exemplary embodiment. 【0128】 Referring to Figure 15, in process S1501, the controller 140 receives instruction information from the subject regarding whether or not the subject has seen each of the light stimuli applied to multiple first parts of the retina by the optical system 120. For example, the FD-OCT device 100 is equipped with a button (which may be, for example, a physical button or a virtual button on the display of the FD-OCT device 100) that the subject can press when they see the light stimuli applied by the light stimuli. 【0129】 In process S1502 of Figure 15, the controller 140 associates each received instruction information with the instruction information for the respective location of each first part on the retina. The controller 140 can achieve this, for example, by matching the instruction information received from the subject to one of the periods during which the optical system 120 applied light stimulation to one of the multiple first parts of the retina. 【0130】 In process S1503 of Figure 15, the controller 140 determines, for each individual indication of the position of each first part of the retina, the indication of the corresponding position within the field of view of the eyeball 160 of the optically conjugate point with respect to the position of each first part on the retina. The controller 140 can achieve this, for example, using the technique described with respect to process S1203 of Figure 12. 【0131】 The controller 140 can alternatively obtain the aforementioned data (showing how measurements of the subject's visual ability at different locations on the retina to light stimuli localized to different parts of the retina of the eyeball 160 are distributed across at least a portion of the visual field of the eyeball 160) by receiving visual field data acquired from the eyeball 160 (e.g., by a dynamic or static visual field analyzer). For example, visual field data can be acquired from the eyeball 160 by performing a visual field test on the eyeball 160k using a visual field analyzer such as an Octopus® visual field analyzer or a Humphrey® field analyzer (HFA). More generally, visual field data can be acquired through visual field measurement methods, including, for example, the use of a tangent screen, a Goldmann perimeter, automated visual field measurement methods, and microvisual field measurement methods (more details below). Furthermore, the visual field measurement format can use either static or dynamic presentation of the visual field stimuli, so that, for example, static or dynamic visual field measurement tests can be performed. Furthermore, the visual field testing stimuli used can be selected to enable visual field testing specifically for photoreceptor cells, such as light-adapted visual field testing or dark-adapted visual field testing. 【0132】 The visual field data obtained from the eyeball 160 includes values ​​indicating the subject's ability to perceive light stimuli within the visual field of the eyeball 160, presented at multiple different locations within the visual field of the eyeball 160. For example, if visual field data is obtained from the eyeball 160 by performing a visual field test on the eyeball 160 using an HFA, this value may represent the sensitivity of the patient's retina (in dB) in a numerical display output from the FHA, or a grayscale value in a grayscale plot output from the HFA. More generally, the value may be a binary value (e.g., "0" or "1") indicating whether the subject saw the light stimulus, or a light intensity threshold indicating that the subject was able to perceive the light stimulus for a certain percentage of time (e.g., 50%). The location of the visual field of the eyeball 160 can be defined in a coordinate system similar to that described in process S1101 in Figure 11. However, it should be understood that the form of the visual field data is not limited to this, and any form of visual field data obtained using a visual field test of the eyeball 160 may be used. 【0133】 Referring again to Figure 14, in the optional process S1402, the controller 140 controls the map display device 142 to display a first map showing how the subject's ability to perceive light stimuli with the eyeball 160 is distributed across at least a portion of the visual field of the eyeball 160, based on at least some data acquired in process S1401 of Figure 14 (this may be similar to what is shown by at least a portion of the acquired visual field test data). For example, if the visual field test data is acquired from the eyeball 160 by performing a visual field test on the eyeball 160 using HFA, the first map may be the same as the numerical display or grayscale plot output from this device. 【0134】 Figure 16 is a schematic diagram of the exemplary first map 1400 displayed in process S1402 of Figure 14. In this example, the acquired data is visual field test data obtained from a visual field testing device. In this case, the visual field test data is value V1 to value V 24This includes, each of which, as previously mentioned, represents the threshold light intensity at which the subject was able to perceive the light stimulus in the visual field at that location for 50% of the time, and plotted on the first axis 1410 corresponding to the first angle α and the second axis 1420 corresponding to the second angle β. However, the first map 1400 may take different forms depending on the type of visual field test used, such as a Goldmann visual field plot when the visual field test is performed using a Goldmann perimeter. 【0135】 Referring again to Figure 14, in the optional process S1403, the controller 140 controls the map display device 142 to display a second map for comparison with the first map, based on at least a portion of the stored ORG data 150 and stored indication information for the corresponding positions within the field of view of the eyeball 160. The second map shows how the physiological response of the retina to light stimuli, as indicated by at least a portion of the stored ORG data 150, is distributed over at least a portion of the field of view of the eyeball 160. 【0136】 Figure 17 shows an exemplary second map 1500 displayed in process S1403 of Figure 14. The second map 1500 shows the retinal response at the corresponding location of the second portion on the retina, as previously described, using stored ORG data I1-I. 16 This is displayed on a plot of the eye's field of view, similar to the first map 1400. The saved ORG data I1~I 16 As in this exemplary embodiment, the second map 1500 can show the magnitude of preliminary "alpha waves" (or the magnitude of "beta waves" in the retinal response) in the retinal response at the corresponding location in the second portion of the retina. This second map 1500 can be displayed adjacent to the first map 1400 on the map display device 142, for example, to facilitate comparison of the two maps. However, the second map 1500 can also be superimposed on the first map 1400, and the acquired visual field test data V1~V 24 And the saved ORG data I1~I 16 However, it is displayed as a single plot on the first axis 1410, which corresponds to the first angle α, and the second axis 1420, which corresponds to the second angle β. 【0137】 For comparison, the position of the eyeball 160 within the visual field where the saved ORG data 150 is displayed on the second map of process S1403 in Figure 14 is the same position where the data acquired in process S1401 in Figure 14 is displayed on the first map of process S1402 in Figure 14. Therefore, the data acquired at each position can be easily and directly compared with the ORG response of the eyeball 160. This can help improve the certainty of diagnosing the cause of any defects within the visual field of the eyeball 160. This is achievable as described above with respect to the process in Figure 11, and is particularly advantageous when the first and second maps are superimposed, because the physician can view each ORG data 150 and the acquired data side by side at each position (for example, by displaying each value of the saved ORG data side by side with each value of the visual field test data at each position). 【0138】 In the optional process S1404 of Figure 14, the controller 140 compares the data of the first map with the data of the second map and, based on the comparison, identifies at least one region in at least a part of the visual field. Based on the comparison, the controller 140 can identify at least one of one or more first regions, one or more second regions, one or more third regions, and one or more fourth regions of the visual field or part of the visual field displayed on the map. Each of these regions can be identified by the controller 140 by determining, as in this exemplary embodiment, whether the values ​​of the visual field test data at each position in the visual field of the eyeball 160 indicate that the subject can see a light stimulus (e.g., of a specific light intensity for at least 50% of the time) at each individual position (in the visual field), and whether the respective ORG data at each corresponding position (e.g., the position closest to each position compared to the same position or each of the other remaining positions) shows a physiological response to the light stimulus that satisfies predetermined conditions. Satisfying predetermined conditions may mean that the physiological response to the light stimulus indicates a physiological response of a healthy eyeball to the light stimulus (i.e., a healthy retinal response). For example, if each ORG data set contains a set of values ​​that each represent a retinal response of a certain magnitude to a light stimulus, the predetermined condition may be that the value is above a threshold. Thus, values ​​above the threshold may indicate a healthy retinal response, while values ​​below the threshold may indicate an unhealthy retinal response. The comparison performed by the controller 140 allows the relationship between the data of the first map and the data of the second map to be classified into one of the four categories described above for each of the multiple regions into which the first and second maps are divided in any suitable manner, as in this exemplary embodiment. 【0139】 In this exemplary embodiment, one or more first regions (i.e., different first regions) of the displayed visual field indicate that the subject can perceive a light stimulus in one or more first regions, and further, that one or more corresponding regions of the retina provide a physiological response to the light stimulus that satisfies predetermined conditions. Therefore, these one or more first regions can be considered to correspond to regions of the retina that have healthy (normal) function. 【0140】 The presence of one or more secondary regions (i.e., different secondary regions) in the displayed visual field indicates that the subject was unable to perceive the light stimulus in one or more secondary regions, and further indicates that one or more corresponding regions of the retina provided a physiological response to the light stimulus that met certain conditions. These one or more secondary regions can therefore be considered to correspond to retinal regions where the subject was unable to perceive the given stimulus, despite the retina responding normally to the light stimulus (however, this does not rule out the possibility that the subject could have perceived the stimulus if a higher intensity stimulus had been applied in the visual field test). This suggests to physicians that the cause of the subject's inability to perceive may not be dysfunction of retinal photoreceptor cells, but rather something else, such as a communication pathway between the subject's retinal photoreceptor cells and the brain. This can help guide physicians to reach a correct diagnosis more quickly. 【0141】 The presence of one or more third regions (i.e., different third regions) in the displayed visual field indicates that the subject was able to perceive the light stimulus in one or more third regions, and further, that one or more corresponding regions of the retina provided a physiological response to the light stimulus that did not meet the specified conditions. These one or more third regions may therefore be associated with a false indication that the subject was able to perceive the light stimulus. Such regions may be re-examined in further visual field tests or excluded from the analysis of retinal function (or given lower confidence weight) to further improve the accuracy of the physician's diagnosis. 【0142】 The presence of one or more fourth regions (i.e., different fourth regions) in the displayed visual field indicates that the subject was unable to perceive the light stimulus in one or more fourth regions, and further indicates that one or more corresponding regions of the retina provided a physiological response to the light stimulus that did not meet the specified conditions. These one or more fourth regions therefore correspond to one or more regions of the retina that are not functioning properly, and identifying these can save physicians time by allowing them to focus on these regions first when analyzing the retinal function of the eyeball 160. 【0143】 By choice, in process S1405 of Figure 14, the controller 140 controls the map display device 142 to display any identified region in at least one of the first map, second map, and third map that shows at least a portion of the field of view of the eyeball 160. Figure 18 shows an example of a third map 1600 that can be displayed by the map display device 142 in process S1405 of Figure 14. The third map 1600 lies on a plot similar to the exemplary first map 1400 and exemplary second map 1500 (i.e., a plot along the first axis 1410 corresponding to the first angle α and the second axis 1420 corresponding to the second angle β). The third map 1600 shows the region 1601 identified as the first region, the two regions 1602 and 1603 identified as the second region, the region 1604 identified as the third region, and the three regions 1605, 1606, and 1607 identified as the fourth region. These regions 1601 to 1607 can also be shown superimposed on the first map, the second map, or on a superposition of the first map and the second map. 【0144】 Previously, a first map was described showing that the subject's ability to perceive light stimuli is distributed across at least a portion of the visual field of the eyeball 160, and a second map was described showing that the physiological response of the retina to light stimuli, as indicated by the stored instruction information, is distributed across at least a portion of the visual field of the eyeball 160. In an alternative implementation of the exemplary embodiment, the controller 140 can control the map display device 142 to display a fourth map showing that the subject's ability to perceive light stimuli in the eyeball 160 is distributed across at least a portion of the retina of the eyeball 160, and a fifth map showing that the physiological response of the retina to light stimuli, as indicated by at least a portion of the stored ORG data, is distributed across at least a portion of the retina of the eyeball 160. This is preferable for physicians because, when superimposed on the retinal image of the eyeball 160, it allows for comparison of visual field test data and ORG data, and the two sets of data can be used to interpret, for example, the structural features of the eyeball 160 in the image. Specifically, the fourth map is obtained from micro-field measurement examinations of the eyeballs 160, and as will be explained later, each ORG data can be mapped and displayed together with the micro-field measurement results acquired by the controller 140. 【0145】 Figure 19 is a flowchart illustrating the process by which, as an alternative implementation of an exemplary embodiment, the controller 140 acquires data showing how measurements of the subject's visual ability at different locations on the retina to light stimuli localized to different parts of the retina of the eyeball 160 are distributed over at least a portion of the retina of the eyeball 160, and controls the map display device 142 to display the fourth and fifth maps. 【0146】 In process S2101 shown in Figure 19, the controller 140 stores, for each of the multiple second parts of the retina, the ORG data 150 generated from the OCT data 135 acquired from the second part, in association with the respective positional information of the second part on the retina. 【0147】 In process S2102 of Figure 19, the controller 140 acquires data showing how the measured visual ability of the subject at different locations on the retina in response to light stimuli localized to different parts of the retina of the eyeball 160 is distributed across at least a portion of the retina. Figure 20A is a flowchart showing the process by which the controller 140 acquires this data, as in this exemplary embodiment. 【0148】 Referring to Figure 20A, in process S1901, the controller 140 receives visual field data acquired from the eyeball 160 by a visual field testing device. The visual field data includes measurements of the subject's ability to perceive light stimuli applied from multiple points within the visual field of the subject's eyeball 160. The controller 140 may acquire the visual field data from, for example, an HFA or other visual field analyzer as described above. 【0149】 In process S1902 of Figure 20A, the controller 140 determines, for each of the multiple points within the visual field of the eyeball 160, the corresponding optically conjugate point on the retina for that point. The controller 140 can achieve this by generating distribution information using a mapping between the coordinates of a first point within the visual field of the eyeball and the coordinates of a second optically conjugate point on the retina (which is obtained in the manner described above). 【0150】 As an alternative to processes S1901 and S1902, the controller 140 may receive visual field data acquired from the eyeball 160 by a visual field analyzer. The visual field data shows how the measured results of the subject's visual ability to respond to light stimuli applied to each different location on the retina of the eyeball 160 are distributed on at least a portion of the retina of the eyeball 160. For example, the visual field data can be acquired from a microvisual analyzer (e.g., Nidek® MP-3 microvisual analyzer, Zeiss Humphrey® Field Analyzer Model 860, or Haag-Streit Octopus900Pro®), and its output may also include, as distribution information, indication information of the location on the retina of the eyeball 160 to which the light stimuli from the microvisual analyzer are transmitted (e.g., displayed in coordinate form of points on a retinal image acquired by microvisual analysis). 【0151】 Figure 20B shows a flowchart of the process by which the controller 140 acquires the aforementioned data alternatively. 【0152】 In process S1903 of Figure 20B, the controller 140 receives instruction information from the subject regarding whether or not the subject has seen each of the light stimuli applied to each of the multiple first parts of the retina by the optical system 120. For example, the FD-OCT device 100 may include a button (which may be a physical button or a virtual button on the display of the FD-OCT device 100) that the subject can press when they see the light stimuli applied by the optical system 120. 【0153】 In process S1904 of Figure 20B, the controller 140 associates each of the received instruction pieces with the corresponding instruction piece for the position of each of the first parts on the retina. The controller 140 can achieve this, for example, by matching the instruction piece received from the subject with one of the periods during which the optical system 120 applied light stimulation to one of the multiple first parts of the retina. 【0154】 Returning to Figure 19, in an optional process S2103, the controller 140 controls the map display device 142 to display a fourth map showing how the subject's ability to see light stimuli (in the eyeball 160) is distributed across at least a portion of the retina of the eyeball 160, based on at least some data acquired in process S2101. The fourth map may include partial images of the retina of the eyeball 160, such as those acquired by a microfield measuring device (e.g., a scanning laser ophthalmoscope included in a microfield measuring device) or by an FD-OCT device 100 (e.g., a scanning laser ophthalmoscope that constitutes part of an FD-OCT imaging system 130 or an FD-OCT device 100). 【0155】 Figure 21 shows an exemplary fourth map 1700. This is the values ​​V1~V from the exemplary first map 1400 in Figure 16. 24 This shows that these are distributed across an image of region 800 of the retina of the eyeball 160. Values ​​V1~V in region 800. 24 The location is determined by distribution information. 【0156】 In the optional process S2104 shown in Figure 19, the controller 140 controls the map display device 142 to display a fifth map for comparison with the fourth map, based on at least a portion of the generated ORG data and the position of the second portion of the retina generated by at least a portion of the ORG data. The fifth map shows how the physiological response of the retina to light stimuli, as shown by at least a portion of the stored ORG data 150, is distributed over at least a portion of the retina of the eyeball 160. The fifth map may include an image of the portion of the retina of the eyeball 160, as described above for the fourth map. 【0157】 Figure 22 shows an exemplary fifth map 1800. This is the saved ORG data values ​​I1~I from the exemplary second map 1500 in Figure 17. 16 This is shown. However, these are distributed on the image of region 800 of the retina of eyeball 160 in Figure 22. Saved ORG data I1~I within region 800 16The position is determined as described above. Then, using the distribution information in process S2102, the positions of multiple indices in process S71 in Figure 7 or the second part of process S73 in Figure 7 can be determined as described above by setting them to the same positions as the values ​​of the visual field test data on the retina of the eyeball 160. By using the same position for each ORG data 150 and the visual field test data value, it is made easier for physicians to compare the datasets side by side and enables direct correlation between the datasets at each position. 【0158】 The fourth and fifth maps can be superimposed in the same manner as described above for the first and second maps. Furthermore, by comparing the fourth and fifth maps in the same manner as described above for the first and second maps, the controller 140 can identify one or more first regions, one or more second regions, one or more third regions, and one or more fourth regions distributed over at least a portion of the retina of the eyeball 160. Furthermore, these identified regions can be displayed by the map display device in at least one of the fourth, fifth, and sixth maps, which show at least a portion of the retina of the eyeball 160, in the same manner as described above for the first, second, and third maps. The controller 140 can control the map display device 142 by performing the above process to display at least one of the fourth, fifth, and sixth maps in addition to at least one of the first, second, and third maps. 【0159】 The exemplary embodiments described above can be subjected to various further modifications and alterations. 【0160】 For example, some of the examples of the optical system 120 above use scanning elements 363 and 364, or one two-dimensional scanner 373, to obtain light L S The light is directed towards the retina of the eyeball 160, and the light L on the retina of the eyeball 160 S The irradiation position is changed, and for this purpose, one or more different types of scanning elements can be used instead. 【0161】 For example, instead of one or more refractive elements, one or more refractive scanning elements can be used. More specifically, optical L S The beam can be configured to be incident on a scanning element in the form of a rotatable wedge-shaped prism 383, as schematically shown in Figure 23A, and the wedge-shaped prism 383 is driven (e.g. by a galvanometer or other rotational drive mechanism) to direct the light L S It rotates around a rotation axis that can be aligned in the direction of beam propagation, and as a result, the light L S The beam can be propagated in a direction determined by the rotational position of the wedge prism 383. In some modifications, a second wedge prism 384 may be added to provide a so-called Risley prism scanner. In this case, the two wedge prisms 383 and 384 can rotate independently around their respective axes of rotation, and can be aligned (parallel) to each other, or in some cases, can be aligned, as schematically shown in Figure 23B. Such configurations of two or more wedge prisms allow for the propagation of light L to a wider variety of positions compared to a single wedge prism. S This could enable control of the aircraft. 【0162】 The optical system 120 can be configured to change the position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied in yet another way. For example, instead of using scanning elements 363, 364, a single two-dimensional scanner 373, or one or more wedge prisms 383, 384 as described above, the optical system 120 can use an optical fiber 393 and light L from the optical fiber 393. S Light L is directed toward the retina of the eyeball 160 via at least one lens 394 positioned to focus the light. S It may be configured to project light L. S The end of the optical fiber 393 from which light is emitted is directed to at least one lens 394, and the light L between the optical fiber 393 and at least one lens 394 is directed to the end of the optical fiber 393. SIt is movable in a direction perpendicular to the propagation direction. Such a configuration is schematically shown in Figure 24. The position on the retina to which the light stimulus should be applied can be changed by translating the end of the optical fiber 393 along the direction 395 in Figure 24 while keeping at least one lens 394 fixed, or by translating at least one lens 394 in the direction 395 while keeping the end of the optical fiber 393 fixed, or by any other arbitrary relative movement between the end of the optical fiber 393 and at least one lens 394 in the direction 395 in Figure 24. 【0163】 With respect to the exemplary embodiments comprising the dynamic amplitude mask described above, it should be noted that, regardless of the form of implementation, the dynamic amplitude mask is sized such that its unmasked portion can illuminate any position on the eyeball 160. However, there is a risk that some or all elements of the dynamic amplitude mask (for example, some or all of the micromirrors if the dynamic amplitude mask is provided in the form of a DMD, as described above) may fail, resulting in the eyeball 160 being illuminated with light output exceeding safety limits. To address this problem, in some exemplary embodiments, the size of the dynamic amplitude mask is adjusted (made small enough) such that if the dynamic amplitude mask completely fails (substantially all light incident on the dynamic amplitude mask is directed towards the eyeball 160), the light output directed towards the eyeball 160 will be lower than a predetermined threshold level that is safe for the eyeball 160. In this case, as shown in Figure 25, the size limitation of the dynamic amplitude mask 401 can be compensated by providing a galvanometer or other beam steering mechanism 402 in the optical path between the dynamic amplitude mask 401 and the eyeball 160. The beam steering mechanism 402 is controlled by a controller to steer light from the dynamic amplitude mask 401 toward a target position on the retina indicated by index 141. The position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied is thus partially adjusted by the unmasked portion of the dynamic amplitude mask 401 and partially adjusted by the beam steering mechanism 402, both of which are controllable by the controller 140. The relay system 403 shown in Figure 25 includes a mirror-based relay system of the type described above with reference to Figures 3A and 3C (including curved mirrors 313, 315), and a lens-based relay system of the type described above with reference to Figures 3B and 3D-3F (including lens relay 334). 【0164】 In the preceding description, exemplary embodiments were described with reference to several exemplary embodiments. Therefore, this specification should be considered exemplary, not restrictive. Similarly, shapes shown in the drawings, which highlight the functions and advantages of the exemplary embodiments, are presented for illustrative purposes only. The architecture of the exemplary embodiments is sufficiently flexible and configurable and is available in ways other than those shown in the accompanying drawings. 【0165】 Some aspects of the embodiments presented herein, such as the functions of controller 140, can be provided as computer programs or software, such as one or more programs having instructions or sequences of instructions. In one embodiment, these may be contained in or stored in a product such as a machine-accessible or machine-readable medium, instruction storage unit, or computer-readable storage device, each of which may be non-temporary. Programs or instructions on a non-temporary machine-accessible medium, machine-readable medium, instruction storage unit, or computer-readable storage device can be used to program a computer system or other electronic device. Machine-readable or computer-readable medium, instruction storage unit, and storage device may include, but are not limited to, floppy diskettes, optical disks, and magneto-optical disks, or other types of medium / machine-readable medium / instruction storage unit / storage device suitable for storing or transmitting electronic instructions. The technologies described herein are not limited to any particular software configuration. They may find applicability to any computing or processing environment. As used herein, the terms “computer-readable,” “machine-accessible medium,” “machine-readable media,” “instruction storage unit,” and “computer-readable memory device” include any medium capable of storing, encoding, or transmitting instructions or instruction sequences for execution by a machine, computer, or computer processor, and causing a machine / computer / computer processor to execute them in any manner described herein. Furthermore, in the art, software generally refers to anything that performs an action and produces a result, whether in one form or another (e.g., a program, procedure, process, application, module, unit, logic, etc.). Such expressions are merely a simplified way of saying that the execution of software by a processing system causes a processor to perform an action and produce a result. 【0166】 Some or all of the functions of controller 140 can also be implemented by providing application-specific integrated circuits, field-programmable gate arrays, or by interconnecting a suitable network of conventional component circuits. 【0167】 Computer program products can be provided in the form of storage media, instruction storage units, or storage devices in which instructions are stored. These can be used to control or cause a computer or computer processor to perform any procedure of the exemplary embodiments described herein. Storage media / instruction storage units / storage devices may include, but are not limited to, optical discs, ROMs, RAMs, EPROMs, EEPROMs, DRAMs, VRAMs, flash memory, flash cards, magnetic cards, optical cards, nanosystems, molecular memory integrated circuits, RAIDs, remote data storage / archives / warehousing, and / or any other type of device suitable for storing instructions and / or data. 【0168】 Some implementations stored in a computer-readable medium, instruction memory, or storage device include software that controls the system's hardware and enables the system or microprocessor to interact with a human user or other mechanisms that utilize the results of the exemplary embodiments described herein. Such software may include, but is not limited to, device drivers, operating systems, and user applications. Ultimately, such computer-readable medium or storage device may further include software for performing exemplary embodiments of the invention as described above. 【0169】 The programming and / or system software includes software modules for performing the procedures described herein. In some exemplary embodiments herein, the modules include software; however, in other exemplary embodiments herein, the modules include hardware or a combination of hardware and software. 【0170】 While various exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that these are presented for illustrative purposes only and not as limitations. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications can be made in form and detail. Therefore, the present invention is not limited by any of the above exemplary embodiments, but should be defined solely by the claims and their equivalents described below. It should also be understood that any procedure described in the claims does not necessarily need to be performed in the order presented. 【0171】 While this specification includes details of many specific embodiments, these should not be considered as limiting the scope of any invention or claim, but rather as descriptions of features specific to the particular embodiments described herein. Certain features described herein in the context of separate embodiments can be combined and implemented in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single embodiment can be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any appropriate partial combination. Furthermore, even if features are described above as acting in a particular combination and are initially claimed as such, one or more features from the claimed combination may be removed from that combination, and the claimed combination may be directed towards a partial combination or a variation of a partial combination. 【0172】 Under certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may also be advantageous. Furthermore, it should be understood that the separation of various components in the above embodiments is not necessarily required in all embodiments, and that the above program elements and systems can generally be integrated into a single software product or packaged into multiple software products. 【0173】 Having described several exemplary embodiments and configurations so far, it is clear that those described herein are illustrative and not limiting, and are presented as examples only. In particular, many of the embodiments shown herein involve specific combinations of apparatus or software elements, but these elements may be combined in different ways to achieve the same purpose. Functions, elements, and features discussed in relation to one embodiment are not intended to be excluded from similar roles in other embodiments.

Claims

[Claim 1] A Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography FD-OCT apparatus (100) for acquiring optretinography ORG data (150) showing the physiological response of the retina of a subject's eyeball (160) to light stimulation, A fixation target (110) for fixing the gaze direction (161) of the eyeball (160), An optical system (120) capable of applying the light stimulus to the retina, wherein the illumination of the retina by the light stimulus is limited to a part of the retina, and the optical system (120) is controllable to change the position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied, An FD-OCT imaging system (130) that can be operated to acquire OCT data (135) by imaging a portion of the retina of the eyeball (160), Controller (140), The optical system (120) acquires an index (141) of the target position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied (S51), While the position of the fixation target (110) relative to the eyeball (160) is fixed, the light stimulus is applied to the first portion of the retina at the target position using the index (141) for controlling the optical system (120) (S52). The FD-OCT imaging system (130) is controlled to acquire OCT data (135) of the second portion of the retina (S53), where at least a portion of the second portion of the retina is positioned relative to the first portion so that it can receive stimulation from the applied light stimulus while at least a portion of the OCT data (135) is being acquired. Based on the acquired OCT data (135), ORG data (150) is generated (S54). A controller (140) configured as follows, Equipped with, The optical system (120, 300) comprises a light source (301) configured to generate light that provides the light stimulus, and one or more scanning elements (312, 314; 363, 364) configured to direct the light toward the retina. The controller (140) is configured to use the acquired index (141) to control one or more scanning elements (312, 314; 363, 364) to direct the light towards the first portion of the retina at the target position while the position of the fixation target relative to the eyeball is fixed. The FD-OCT imaging system (130, 320) is An interferometer (322) having a sample arm (324) and a reference arm (325), A detector (323) configured to detect interference between sample OCT light (Lo) that propagates along the sample arm (324) after being scattered from the retina and reference OCT light (Lr) that propagates along the reference arm (325), Equipped with, An FD-OCT apparatus (100) is further configured such that at least one of the one or more scanning elements (312, 314) directs the sample OCT light (Lo) to the second portion of the retina and directs the sample OCT light scattered from the second portion of the retina to the detector (323). [Claim 2] The controller (140) is The optical system (120) acquires a plurality of indicators (141) that individually indicate each target position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied (S71), Using the acquired index (141), the optical system (120) is controlled, and while the position of the fixation target relative to the eyeball is fixed, the light stimulus is applied to each target position of each separate first portion of the retina (S72). With respect to each first portion of the retina, the FD-OCT imaging system (130) is controlled to acquire OCT data (135) for each of the plurality of second portions of the retina (S73), where at least a portion of each of the second portions of the retina is positioned relative to each of the first portions of the retina so that it can be stimulated by the applied light stimulus while at least a portion of the OCT data (135) is being acquired. The OCT data (135) of each second portion of the retina is processed to generate ORG data showing the respective physiological responses of the second portions of the retina to the light stimulus applied to the corresponding first portion of the retina (S74). The FD-OCT apparatus (100) according to claim 1, configured as described above. [Claim 3] Within a period of 3 seconds or less, The controller (140) is configured to control the optical system (120) using the acquired index (141) and to apply the light stimulus to each of the first portions of the retina. The FD-OCT apparatus (100) according to claim 2, wherein the controller (140) is configured to control the FD-OCT imaging system (130) to acquire the respective OCT data (135) relating to each of the first portions of the retina. [Claim 4] The FD-OCT apparatus (100) according to claim 2, wherein the controller (140) is further configured to store, with respect to each second portion of the retina, the respective ORG data (135) generated with respect to the second portion in relation to the respective instruction information of the position in the field of view of the eyeball (160), which is a point optically conjugate to the corresponding position of the second portion of the retina. [Claim 5] The controller (140) is For each of the multiple points within the field of view of the eyeball (160), the corresponding position on the retina that is optically conjugate to the point is determined, thereby indicating the location on the retina where the OCT data is acquired by the FD-OCT imaging system (130). The instruction information for each position on the retina of the second part is determined (S1101), The FD-OCT apparatus (100) according to claim 4, further configured such that at least a portion of each of the second portions of the retina is positioned relative to the first portion indicated by the indicator (141) so that it can be stimulated by the applied light stimulus during the acquisition of at least a portion of the OCT data (135). [Claim 6] The controller (140) is Based on the image of the retina of the eyeball (160), the plurality of indicators (141) are obtained (S1201), Based on each of the multiple indicators (141) mentioned above, the FD-OCT imaging system (130) determines the respective indicator information for the position on the retina of each second portion of the retina from which OCT data (135) is acquired (S1202). For each second portion of the retina, the position of the second portion on the retina and the position of the optically conjugate point within the field of view of the eyeball (160) are determined (S1203). The FD-OCT apparatus (100) according to claim 4, further configured as follows. [Claim 7] The device further includes a display device (142), The controller (140) is Data is obtained showing how the measured ability of the subject to perceive light stimuli localized to different parts of the retina of the eyeball (160) at different locations on the retina is distributed across at least a portion of the visual field of the eyeball (160) (S1401). The display device (142) is controlled to display a first map (1400) showing how the subject's ability to see the light stimulus is distributed over at least a portion of the field of view of the eyeball (160) based on at least a portion of the acquired data (S1402). The display device (142) is controlled to display a second map (1500) in comparison with the first map (1400), based on the stored ORG data (150) and at least a portion of the associated stored instruction information, which is a map showing how the physiological response of the retina to the light stimulus, as indicated by at least a portion of the stored ORG data (150), is distributed over at least a portion of the visual field of the eyeball (160) (S1403). An FD-OCT apparatus (100) according to any one of claims 4 to 6, further configured as follows. [Claim 8] The controller (140) is With respect to each of the plurality of second parts of the retina, the respective ORG data (150) generated from the OCT data (135) acquired from the second part is stored in association with the respective position information of the second part on the retina (S2101). The FD-OCT apparatus (100) according to claim 2 or 3, further configured to acquire data (S2102) showing how measurements of the subject's ability to perceive light stimuli localized to different parts of the retina of the eyeball (160) at each different location on the retina are distributed across at least a portion of the field of vision of the eyeball (160). [Claim 9] The device further includes a display device (142), The controller (140) The display device (142) is controlled to display a first map (1700) showing how the subject's ability to perceive the light stimulus is distributed on at least a portion of the retina of the eyeball (160) based on at least a portion of the acquired data (S2103). The display device (142) is controlled to display a second map (1800) which shows how the retinal response to the light stimulus indicated by at least a portion of the generated ORG data (150) is distributed over at least a portion of the eyeball (160), for comparison with the first map (1700), based on at least a portion of the generated ORG data (150) and the position of the second portion of the retina from which at least a portion of the ORG data was generated (S2104). The FD-OCT apparatus (100) according to claim 8, further configured as follows. [Claim 10] The controller (140) compares the data of the first map (1400, 1700) with the data of the second map (1500, 1800), and based on the comparison, The subject is shown to be able to visually perceive a light stimulus within one or more first regions (1601) of at least a portion of the visual field, and one or more corresponding regions of the retina are shown to have given a physiological response to the light stimulus that satisfies predetermined conditions, the first regions (1601) of at least a portion of the visual field, The subject is shown to be unable to visually perceive the light stimulus within one or more second regions (1602, 1603) of at least a portion of the visual field, and one or more corresponding regions of the retina provide a physiological response to the light stimulus that satisfies the predetermined conditions, wherein the subject is unable to visually perceive the light stimulus within one or more second regions (1602, 1603) of at least a portion of the visual field, The subject demonstrates that he or she can see the light stimulus within one or more third regions (1604) of at least a portion of the visual field, and that one or more corresponding regions of the retina give a physiological response to the light stimulus that does not satisfy the predetermined conditions, the one or more third regions (1604) of at least a portion of the visual field, The subject is shown to be unable to visually perceive the light stimulus within one or more of the four fourth regions (1605, 1606, 1607) of the visual field, and one or more corresponding regions of the retina are shown to have given a physiological response to the light stimulus that does not satisfy the predetermined conditions, the four fourth regions (1605, 1606, 1607) of the visual field, The FD-OCT apparatus (100) according to claim 7, further configured to identify at least one of the following. [Claim 11] A control method for a Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography FD-OCT apparatus (100) for acquiring optretinography ORG data (150) showing the physiological response of the retina of the eyeball (160) to light stimulation, The FD-OCT device is, An optical system (120) capable of applying the light stimulus to the retina, wherein the illumination of the retina by the light stimulus is limited to a part of the retina, and the position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied can be controlled to change. A light source (301) configured to generate light that provides the aforementioned light stimulus, An optical system (120) comprising one or more scanning elements (312, 314; 363, 364) configured to direct the light toward the retina, An FD-OCT imaging system (130) that can be operated to acquire OCT data (135) by imaging a part of the retina of the eyeball (160), An interferometer (322) having a sample arm (324) and a reference arm (325), An FD-OCT imaging system (130) comprising: a detector (323) configured to detect interference between sample OCT light (Lo) that propagates along the sample arm (324) after being scattered from the retina and reference OCT light (Lr) that propagates along the reference arm (325); It includes a controller (140), The control method described above is The controller (140) acquires an index (141) of the target position on the retina to which the light stimulus is applied (S51), Using the acquired index (141), while the direction of gaze of the eyeball is fixed, the controller (140) controls one or more scanning elements (312, 314; 363, 364) to direct the light towards the first portion of the retina at the target position (S52), Step (S53) of acquiring OCT data (135) of the second portion of the retina using the FD-OCT imaging system (130), wherein during the acquisition of at least a portion of the OCT data (135), at least a portion of the second portion of the retina is positioned relative to the first portion so that it can be stimulated by the applied light stimulus, and at least one of the one or more scanning elements (312, 314) directs the sample OCT light (Lo) to the second portion of the retina and directs the sample OCT light scattered from the second portion of the retina to the detector (323), The controller (140) performs the step (S54) of generating the ORG data (150) based on the acquired OCT data (135), A control method including

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