Modular Beam Sleeve for Calibrated Antimicrobial Light Dosing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current antimicrobial phototherapy methods face challenges in delivering accurate and standardized light doses efficiently, particularly with high-intensity LEDs, due to issues like stray light, patient comfort, and the risk of mammalian cell damage from overdose, as well as the inefficiency of long exposure times required to achieve bactericidal effects.
Innovation Solution
A modular photonic dosing system comprising a reusable beam forming body that slides over an LED source to form a calibrated irradiator unit, ensuring consistent intensity and dose delivery by blocking stray light and allowing for adjustable working distance to maintain safe and effective treatment protocols.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If high-intensity LEDs are used to reduce exposure time, then productivity is improved, but object-generated harmful factors worsen due to stray light, patient discomfort, and risk of cell damage
Solution Approach 1:
A beam forming body acts as an intermediary component between the high-intensity LED source and the treatment area. This mediator structures the diverging light into a controlled beam, containing stray light while maintaining high intensity delivery to the target, thus resolving the contradiction between productivity and harmful factors
Solution Approach 2:
The beam forming body extracts and separates the useful light from the harmful stray radiation. By structuring the beam and defining its boundaries, the system extracts the therapeutic effect while leaving behind the problematic stray light that causes discomfort and potential damage
2Object-affected harmful factors
If low-intensity LEDs are used to ensure safety, then object-generated harmful factors are reduced, but loss of time worsens due to very long exposure times
Solution Approach 1:
The beam forming body enables parameter changes in the light delivery system. By structuring the beam, the system can safely deliver higher intensities than unstructured LEDs, thereby reducing exposure time while maintaining safety margins through controlled light distribution
3Productivity
If high-intensity LEDs are used to overcome slow dose rate, then productivity is improved, but object-generated harmful factors worsen due to patient discomfort
Solution Approach 1:
The beam forming body creates local quality differences in the light distribution. The beam is structured to concentrate intensity where needed for high dose rate while controlling the spatial distribution to avoid uncomfortable stray light exposure to surrounding areas and patient skin
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution enables faster and more precise delivery of antimicrobial light doses, reducing treatment time while ensuring patient comfort and safety, and standardizing treatment protocols across different light sources and wavelengths, thereby enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of antimicrobial phototherapy.
Implementation Method 1
The second portion's interior acting as a beam forming element that reflects, captures, and directly passes the source beam light
Implementation Method 2
Visible spectra violet to blue LEDs (400 nm-470 nm) have been scientifically studied and medically used to produce antimicrobial effect in wounds
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a simple-to-use, phototherapy dose delivery system. More particularly, a two-component irradiator having a first component being antimicrobial light source and the second being an expendable, hollow, beam sleeve. The beam sleeve being constructed to slide partially over a bezel end of the light source thereby capturing and transforming the source light into a contained, homogeneous treatment spot of calibrated treatment intensity. The calibrated intensity enables protocols and dose times to become universally the same for all irradiators once paired with a fitting beam sleeve, regardless of spot size or spectra. In practice the beam sleeve defines the treatment spot diameter, gauges the working distance, sets the dose rate, all while blocking stray light from disrupting vision. In this modular manner the light source and beam sleeve work similarly as a syringe and needle; when used together the predetermined dose and rate are administered to a precise location in accurate amounts.