Corneal Flap Laser Cut with Gas Evacuation Channel
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Solution Overview
Problem
During LASIK treatments, gas accumulations in the cornea from flap preparation can impede the functionality of eye trackers used in subsequent laser ablation, leading to precision issues during the procedure.
Innovation Solution
A device using focused, pulsed laser radiation to create a LASIK flap with an auxiliary cut connected to the flap cut, allowing gases to escape to the corneal surface, thereby preventing gas accumulation and improving eye tracker functionality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If focused, short-pulse laser radiation is used to prepare the LASIK flap, then the flap can be precisely cut with minimal tissue damage, but gas accumulations are produced during the photodisruption process that impede eye tracker functionality
Solution Approach 1:
The flap cut is segmented into two distinct components: the primary flap incision and an auxiliary incision. The auxiliary incision is specifically designed as a separate gas evacuation channel that does not interfere with the precision flap cut while providing a dedicated pathway for gas removal, thus resolving the conflict between precision cutting and gas accumulation.
Solution Approach 2:
The harmful gas accumulation problem is addressed by extracting it from the corneal tissue through the auxiliary incision. This auxiliary channel serves as a dedicated extraction pathway that removes photodisruption gases before they can interfere with eye tracking, separating the gas removal function from the precision flap cut.
2Reliability
If the auxiliary cut is added to the flap cut configuration, then gas evacuation is improved and eye tracker precision is maintained, but the device complexity and procedure time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The auxiliary incision and flap cut are merged into a single integrated cut figure that can be created using the same laser system and control program. Both incisions are generated in one procedural step without requiring separate equipment or multiple procedures, thus minimizing the increase in device complexity while achieving gas evacuation.
Solution Approach 2:
The auxiliary incision is created as a preliminary feature within the same laser procedure that prepares for the flap cut. By establishing the gas evacuation channel during the initial laser passage, the system prevents gas accumulation before it can interfere with subsequent eye tracking, eliminating the need for additional procedural steps.
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
The auxiliary cut effectively evacuates photodisruption gases, enhancing the precision of eye tracking and ensuring the success of the LASIK procedure by preventing gas-related impairments.
Implementation Method 1
The so-called laser-induced optical breakthrough is used as a physical effect for the generation of cuts by means of focused laser radiation in transparent material (transparent for the laser radiation). This ultimately leads to a photodisruption of the irradiated tissue in the area of the focus.
Implementation Method 2
The irradiated laser radiation causes local evaporation of the irradiated material at the focal point.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a device for cutting the human cornea using a focused, pulsed femtosecond laser beam comprises scanner components for adjusting the location of the beam focus, a control computer for controlling the scanner components, and a control program for the control computer. The control program contains instructions that are designed to cause a cutting pattern comprising a flap cut (38, 40) to be produced in the cornea when said instructions are executed by the control computer. According to the invention, the cutting pattern further comprises an auxiliary cut (50) that is connected to the flap cut and that leads preferably directly from the flap cut to the cornea surface. The auxiliary cut is advantageously produced before the flap cut and forms a purging channel through which gases that can develop while the flap cut is being cut can escape.